Firearm Manufacturer Press release
- Thread starter John A.
- Start date
MikeD said:They are still awesome, just not as awesome as they were when Costa's beard was there.
Maybe that's why S(is)HTF... Costa's beard isn't there to hold everything together
^
tomservo92
.270 WIN
ripjack13 said:I do mean CTD and don't call me shirley....
:roll:
I won't let it happen again
Here is the full text of the ArmaLite response. It sounds like they are getting pounded. This clarifies that they won't sell to states that have banned their guns for civilians but they will sell to individual LEO's in those states. The policy overall is still less than impressive compared to say Barrett not selling to CA. I think this shows how careful these companies need to be.
Thanks for posting this email. I just received a concerned telephone call about it, an email from the staffer who stimulated the mail.
I think a bit of clarification is in order.
The root of the matter is a HUGE series of inquiries by both email and telephone asking ArmaLite to cut off sales to New York and other states which deny its citizens the right to own our rifles, as several other firms have done. Some of the contacts have been duplicates of others and some were so redundant that they appeared to be spam. Many of them have been rude and I'm afraid one of my staffers thought that he was responding to a spammer and was more terse than he should have been. Once he realized what happened he came to me and apologized.
My purpose here is to pass on his apology from the corporate level and to answer the initial question: What is ArmaLite going to do?
ArmaLite is continuing a policy put into place when California first banned our rifles. That policy remains:
1. We will not sell to those states which deny it's honorable citizens the right to own ArmaLite's.
2. We do not halt sales to individual officers even in problematic states. I am a former Police Officer myself, and the staffer who stimulated the recent anger is a currently serving one. We are well familiar with the fact that most rifles serving Police Officers are purchased by the officers themselves, and that they shouldn't be punished for the actions of their political elite.
We consider sales to those sate subdivisions which are not engaged or potentially engaged with disarming its citizens. DNR and Forestry Departments, for instance, sometimes serve in remote areas that conceal drug farms and their officers deserve good hardware.
3. We will not sell to those lower political subdivisions that deny their honorable citizens the right to own ArmaLite's. Chicago, for instance, prohibits its citizens from owning ArmaLite's within the city limits so we make no effort to sell into that city. We have many friends on the Chicago Police Department and have continued to sell to them individually.
Our observation is that most County Sheriffs disagree with banning sales of our rifles and many publicly refuse to enforce such laws. We sell to those departments and to their Deputies, but will not sell to those County departments headed by Sheriffs who would deny their citizens the same rights.
In short, Americans need not worry that ArmaLite is selling to those who betray them.
As you can see by reading posts on the topic, some readers have been harsh with their criticism of ArmaLite. It was in response to this atmosphere that my staffer reacted harshly. He's come to me and apologized and I personally am passing my own apology along with his.
But don't be mistaken, ArmaLite is strongly involved with both personal, corporate, and political efforts at the State, National, and International level to protect our civil rights. And we'll continue to support your shooting needs as the situation moves forward.
Respectfully,
Mark Westrom
President,
ArmaLite Inc.
Thanks for posting this email. I just received a concerned telephone call about it, an email from the staffer who stimulated the mail.
I think a bit of clarification is in order.
The root of the matter is a HUGE series of inquiries by both email and telephone asking ArmaLite to cut off sales to New York and other states which deny its citizens the right to own our rifles, as several other firms have done. Some of the contacts have been duplicates of others and some were so redundant that they appeared to be spam. Many of them have been rude and I'm afraid one of my staffers thought that he was responding to a spammer and was more terse than he should have been. Once he realized what happened he came to me and apologized.
My purpose here is to pass on his apology from the corporate level and to answer the initial question: What is ArmaLite going to do?
ArmaLite is continuing a policy put into place when California first banned our rifles. That policy remains:
1. We will not sell to those states which deny it's honorable citizens the right to own ArmaLite's.
2. We do not halt sales to individual officers even in problematic states. I am a former Police Officer myself, and the staffer who stimulated the recent anger is a currently serving one. We are well familiar with the fact that most rifles serving Police Officers are purchased by the officers themselves, and that they shouldn't be punished for the actions of their political elite.
We consider sales to those sate subdivisions which are not engaged or potentially engaged with disarming its citizens. DNR and Forestry Departments, for instance, sometimes serve in remote areas that conceal drug farms and their officers deserve good hardware.
3. We will not sell to those lower political subdivisions that deny their honorable citizens the right to own ArmaLite's. Chicago, for instance, prohibits its citizens from owning ArmaLite's within the city limits so we make no effort to sell into that city. We have many friends on the Chicago Police Department and have continued to sell to them individually.
Our observation is that most County Sheriffs disagree with banning sales of our rifles and many publicly refuse to enforce such laws. We sell to those departments and to their Deputies, but will not sell to those County departments headed by Sheriffs who would deny their citizens the same rights.
In short, Americans need not worry that ArmaLite is selling to those who betray them.
As you can see by reading posts on the topic, some readers have been harsh with their criticism of ArmaLite. It was in response to this atmosphere that my staffer reacted harshly. He's come to me and apologized and I personally am passing my own apology along with his.
But don't be mistaken, ArmaLite is strongly involved with both personal, corporate, and political efforts at the State, National, and International level to protect our civil rights. And we'll continue to support your shooting needs as the situation moves forward.
Respectfully,
Mark Westrom
President,
ArmaLite Inc.
Tim4k5
.270 WIN
It does go to show how careful these companies have to be Mike.......most companies are choosing now which bed they want to lay in and Armalite has done the same. The letter you quoted here is one of the later "backpedaling" responses this guy put out after his initial statement caused ArmaLite to get their heads handed to them on social networking sites. I do find it interesting though that he seems to blame the whole "mixup" on an unnamed staff member who has since apologized profusely.......yet the original posts that pissed everyone off so much had his name on them.
I don't own an ArmaLite rifle......haven't ever had the desire to own one. If I were to be in the market for an AR ArmaLite probably wouldn't even be in the top 10 that I would look at. So it isn't like they are losing business from me. What pisses me off so bad about their flip-flopping, back and forth, non-position is that I know for a fact that they are a better company than that.....but are taking profits over precedence. When Illinois was threatening with an AWB in Dec/Jan ArmaLite had made it perfectly clear that they would leave the State if it passed. They sent representatives to the Illinois General Assembly to testify and educate our politicians......they fought the good fight because it was in their own back yard........And it pisses me off that by doing this they are essentially saying that NY or any other ban-happy State isn't as important to take a stand for. THAT is what pisses me off about it.......EVERY State is just as important as the one next to it in this fight.
I don't own an ArmaLite rifle......haven't ever had the desire to own one. If I were to be in the market for an AR ArmaLite probably wouldn't even be in the top 10 that I would look at. So it isn't like they are losing business from me. What pisses me off so bad about their flip-flopping, back and forth, non-position is that I know for a fact that they are a better company than that.....but are taking profits over precedence. When Illinois was threatening with an AWB in Dec/Jan ArmaLite had made it perfectly clear that they would leave the State if it passed. They sent representatives to the Illinois General Assembly to testify and educate our politicians......they fought the good fight because it was in their own back yard........And it pisses me off that by doing this they are essentially saying that NY or any other ban-happy State isn't as important to take a stand for. THAT is what pisses me off about it.......EVERY State is just as important as the one next to it in this fight.
Ok, this will be out of order but here is the original text of an email exchange that supposedly started the whole ArmeLite fiasco. I have seen their response several places on the web:
Dear Law Enforcement/General Sales Manager,
Recently the state of New York rushed through an ill-advised and possibly(or what I strongly feel is an)unconstitutional law infringing on myself and my fellow law-abiding and gun owning residents in the state of New York. Other states are poised to pass similar laws. I urge you to please follow the lead of companies such as LaRue Tactical,Olympic Arms and York Arms which has adopted this policy: If it can't be sold to law-abiding citizens, it wont be sold to state and local police agencies either.
There are 800,000 sworn police officers in the entire United States. The FBI reports a total of 2,495,440 NICS,and thus firearm sales in January 2013 alone. Police sales are not your major business. It's time for firearm manufacturers to send a clear message that you will not participate in the slow erosion of our Second Amendment Rights. We have supported your company,and companies like yours for a very long time. This is our time of need,please help us fight the good fight. Thank you for your consideration in this matter.
Signed,
Christopher T. Jones
And here is the response I got.......FYI,no spam I sent one copy to each company......
Dear concerned gun owner,
First of all I would like to say thank you for filling my email with all this spam email.
Second, I am not sure where you got this blanket email from to send out as spam, but please stop it.
Third, The manufacture is not the one you need to convince. You need to convince the law enforcement agencies and the common people about their mistake in electing these officials and have them removed. Again NOT the manufacture.
AR Stands for ArmaLite…
Respectfully,
Pat Raley
raleyp@armalite.com
Master Armorer / Sales Rep.
ArmaLite, Inc.
P.O. Box 299
Geneseo, IL. 61254
Dear Law Enforcement/General Sales Manager,
Recently the state of New York rushed through an ill-advised and possibly(or what I strongly feel is an)unconstitutional law infringing on myself and my fellow law-abiding and gun owning residents in the state of New York. Other states are poised to pass similar laws. I urge you to please follow the lead of companies such as LaRue Tactical,Olympic Arms and York Arms which has adopted this policy: If it can't be sold to law-abiding citizens, it wont be sold to state and local police agencies either.
There are 800,000 sworn police officers in the entire United States. The FBI reports a total of 2,495,440 NICS,and thus firearm sales in January 2013 alone. Police sales are not your major business. It's time for firearm manufacturers to send a clear message that you will not participate in the slow erosion of our Second Amendment Rights. We have supported your company,and companies like yours for a very long time. This is our time of need,please help us fight the good fight. Thank you for your consideration in this matter.
Signed,
Christopher T. Jones
And here is the response I got.......FYI,no spam I sent one copy to each company......
Dear concerned gun owner,
First of all I would like to say thank you for filling my email with all this spam email.
Second, I am not sure where you got this blanket email from to send out as spam, but please stop it.
Third, The manufacture is not the one you need to convince. You need to convince the law enforcement agencies and the common people about their mistake in electing these officials and have them removed. Again NOT the manufacture.
AR Stands for ArmaLite…
Respectfully,
Pat Raley
raleyp@armalite.com
Master Armorer / Sales Rep.
ArmaLite, Inc.
P.O. Box 299
Geneseo, IL. 61254
Tim4k5
.270 WIN
Sorry Mike, didn't mean to jump your second post there.
Like I said though, the current stance taken by ArmaLite ticks me off so badly on a personal level because I thought they would be firmly on this list of "no-sellers" because of their previous statements made here in IL. The position they are currently taking feels a lot to me like what many of you would think about Magpul if they decided, after all their previous statements, that leaving Colorado wasn't economically viable so they were going to stay. You either take a stand or you don't.......there isn't any middle ground to be had here.
Or since Armalite seems to have such a bond with the LEO community I'll phrase it this way......By standing to fight in Illinois and refusing to stand and apply pressure to help brothers in other States they have taken the position of an officer saying "I'll back up Officers Scmidt, Douglas and Rodgers since they are my highschool buddies and my cousin, but the rest of you guys are outta luck if you need me. Gotta think about my own safety, ya know?"
Like I said though, the current stance taken by ArmaLite ticks me off so badly on a personal level because I thought they would be firmly on this list of "no-sellers" because of their previous statements made here in IL. The position they are currently taking feels a lot to me like what many of you would think about Magpul if they decided, after all their previous statements, that leaving Colorado wasn't economically viable so they were going to stay. You either take a stand or you don't.......there isn't any middle ground to be had here.
Or since Armalite seems to have such a bond with the LEO community I'll phrase it this way......By standing to fight in Illinois and refusing to stand and apply pressure to help brothers in other States they have taken the position of an officer saying "I'll back up Officers Scmidt, Douglas and Rodgers since they are my highschool buddies and my cousin, but the rest of you guys are outta luck if you need me. Gotta think about my own safety, ya know?"
No problem Tim. I didn't take it that you were jumping on my post, just on ArmaLite
This was why I added the copy of what started it all...just to show what the mix up supposedly was.
Keep em' coming Tim and keep that fire stoked for the fight!
What a lot of people do not realize about Armalite, they are NOT, let me repeat N-O-T the same company that made and designed the AR15 back in the 1950's.
A few years back, they purchased the rights to use the Armalite name.
If you want to find out more about the existing armalite company history, you'll have to research Eagle Arms.
--------------------------------------------------------------
A trip way back down memory lane to FAIRCHILD
Notice the date of the publication. It's just a few days short of being its' 50th anniversary. I especially liked reading the final paragraph. They really saved the best for last LOL
A few years back, they purchased the rights to use the Armalite name.
If you want to find out more about the existing armalite company history, you'll have to research Eagle Arms.
--------------------------------------------------------------
A trip way back down memory lane to FAIRCHILD
Notice the date of the publication. It's just a few days short of being its' 50th anniversary. I especially liked reading the final paragraph. They really saved the best for last LOL
I'd like to see some more big names on this list.
Rolling count:
Add West Fork Armory too:
Alex Arms
American Spirit Arms
Barrett Firearms
Bullwater Enterprises
Doublestar Corp
Extreme Firepower Inc, LLC
Head Down Products
J&G Sales
LaRue Tactical
Liberty Suppressors
Olympic Arms
Quality Arms
Smith Enterprises
Spikes Tactical
Templar Custom
Top Gun Police Supply
Top Gun Supply
Trident Armory
West Fork Armory
York Arms
From Barrett:
“Barrett opposes those who are illegally disarming the American public from their efficient arms and creating superior armed elitist government agencies,” Barrett said in the letter.
“Elected state officials of New York, having been sworn to protect our Constitution, have instead committed an offense against it and their citizens by stripping inalienable rights duly protected and guaranteed under the Second Amendment. By their deliberate and sinister actions, these officials now cause their state and local policing agencies to enforce these unconstitutional and illegal so called ‘laws.’”
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...-anti-2nd-amendment-states-oh-yeah-lots-more/
Rolling count:
Add West Fork Armory too:
Alex Arms
American Spirit Arms
Barrett Firearms
Bullwater Enterprises
Doublestar Corp
Extreme Firepower Inc, LLC
Head Down Products
J&G Sales
LaRue Tactical
Liberty Suppressors
Olympic Arms
Quality Arms
Smith Enterprises
Spikes Tactical
Templar Custom
Top Gun Police Supply
Top Gun Supply
Trident Armory
West Fork Armory
York Arms
From Barrett:
“Barrett opposes those who are illegally disarming the American public from their efficient arms and creating superior armed elitist government agencies,” Barrett said in the letter.
“Elected state officials of New York, having been sworn to protect our Constitution, have instead committed an offense against it and their citizens by stripping inalienable rights duly protected and guaranteed under the Second Amendment. By their deliberate and sinister actions, these officials now cause their state and local policing agencies to enforce these unconstitutional and illegal so called ‘laws.’”
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...-anti-2nd-amendment-states-oh-yeah-lots-more/
Frank Castle
.270 WIN
carbinemike said:
Barrett has made this type of statement before, 10 years ago in California, and has held their word. I know they will continue doing it.
Cant wait to one day own one (If and when it becomes leagle again, or I move to a state that it is).
Frank
Barrett is right down the road from me.
Ronnie owns and operates a retail store here called The Outpost Armory. Best selection of arms I've ever seen in one place, including most of the gun shows I've ever been to. Good folks too...
Ronnie owns and operates a retail store here called The Outpost Armory. Best selection of arms I've ever seen in one place, including most of the gun shows I've ever been to. Good folks too...
WolfPak
.410
LES I did not realize you were near Outpost Armory. They do have an extensive collection. Franklin Gun Shop of Murfreesboro road also has a big selection, bit the best prices I found are at the new Nashville Armory. I picked up my 590 with GRS and Speed Feed for $514. I did not think that was to bad since the stock is $80 and the GRS are $90.
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