Beretta To Leave Maryland
BY Herschel Smith
11 years, 8 months ago
As I had hoped, Beretta isn’t full of windbags and liars. They are honest folk. They said they would leave Maryland, and they are.
New legislation is forcing gun manufacturing company Beretta to uproot and take their business elsewhere.
Established in 1526, Beretta holds the distinction of being the oldest active firearms manufacturer in the world. The U.S. factory is located in Accokeek, Maryland, and has been a staple of the local economy for years.
Beretta warned that stricter gun control laws would push the company outside of state lines, but that didn’t stop Maryland legislators. Jeffrey Reh, a spokesman for Beretta who also serves as the President of Stoeger Industries under Beretta, announced that the company would begrudgingly uproot and take its business elsewhere. He said, “We don’t want to do this, we’re not willing to do this, but obviously this legislation has caused us a serious level of concern within our company.”
He added that Beretta paid approximately $31 million in taxes, employs 400 people, and had invested $73 million in the business over the past several decades. Despite being such a prominent player in the local economy, Beretta was unable to prevent legislators from passing tighter gun control laws. Ironically, Beretta manufactures some firearms that are now banned in Maryland.
Good. I hope it’s painful and hard for Maryland. I hope they lose business of all kinds, and I hope they feel it right in the pocketbook. Take note of the next bit.
One legislator stated: “Other than target shooting, the only other reason [for a semi-automic firearm] would be for self-defense… [Why would you need a] rifle that accommodates 20 rounds semi-automatic for deer hunting? … It’s only very infrequently that someone commits a crime with an assault weapon – why do you need one for self-defense?”
Of course, it’s tempting to respond something like, “Well, if you weren’t such a dumb ass you would know that there have been home owners who had to use just such weapons with high capacity magazines to defend their very lives. And you know, under duress you might miss. And you know, multi-man home invasions are becoming the tactic of choice for criminals nowadays. If you weren’t a dumb ass you would know these things. Dumb ass.”
But tempting as it is, the best response is also the simplest: “I need all the high powered weapons and high capacity magazines I can get in order to hold tyrants like you accountable.”
Closer every day, inch by inch.
On April 5, 2013 at 4:21 pm, amr said:
After the Stamp Act of 1765 the Sons of Liberty were formed to resist including the Boston Tea Party. This back and forth action resulted in the escalation of violence with several skirmishes between the two sides. A major engagement was the Battle of Golden Hill on January 19, 1770, in which many people were injured and at least one killed. Five years before the war for liberty began.
Today, with modern communications and social media, information is more available and even inaccurate information travels very fast. The law, now passed in Maryland and the other states, limits freedom far more than the Stamp Act and other actions of the British leading up to Concord.
Maryland Delegate Dwyer is forming the Minuteman of today with his Maryland Constitutional Defense Force. Police Chief Kessler also has his Constitutional Security Force now becoming active in 35 states. Sheriff Mack and the Constitutional Sheriffs and Peace Officers Association are rallying the sheriffs around the county to nullify state and federal gun control laws. The Campaign for Liberty and the Cecil County Patriots are pushing for the County Council to pass a resolution to nullify the MD gun control law. We, unfortunately, do not have a Constitutional Sheriff.
We, similar to the actions of the Sons of Liberty before us, are organizing to start next week to begin our constitutional petition to referendum process to overturn the laws limiting our 2nd Amendment rights. As of yet, we do no have deep pockets helping in our efforts at MDpetitions. I don’t believe that Colorado, New York or Connecticut have the referendum process. The NRA and the firearms producers ought to be fully involved in MD because we can overturn these laws.
On April 5, 2013 at 7:13 pm, scott s. said:
Unfortunately Accokeek is in southern Maryland and politicos in Baltimore city and Montgomery county couldn’t give a rat’s rear-end.
On April 5, 2013 at 10:24 pm, Brad Ervin said:
As a free person I have no responsibility to explain to others why I “need” something. Whomever asks such a question should be instantly shot down (rhetorically speaking, of course).
If I lose the right to choose for myself the things of my life and the way of my life in what way can I be called “free?” This is a case where, as important as the survival of the 2nd Amendment is, the argument being used uncovers a concept even more important: my right to pursue my own life absent the approval of the “experts” of our society. We cannot cede this point by toting up facts to prove why we “need” certain guns; the argument itself must be quashed. A free people need not inquire to a higher authority than themselves in the pursuits of their lives.
The difference between a people that choose their own way and those that are directed by a superior is the difference between a free people and slaves.
On April 6, 2013 at 5:01 pm, Mannie said:
We may get to see, this year, whether The Constitution is worth anything at all. We may get to see how many cops are willing to betray their country and become nothing more than jackbooted thugs deserving a bullet in the spine. Conversely, we may get to see with pride how many Patriot cops we have. We may get to see whether the American People are willing to kill and die for The Constitution, or whether they will lie down like sheep.
These are perilous times.
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On April 8, 2013 at 5:17 am, john said:
I realize they haven’t announced where they’re going to move to, but…
If Beretta wants to have a real impact, they have to move well away from Maryland. Moving to an adjacent state means that some of their money still gets to Maryland, and some of the people already employed there will remain employed there. Moving to Virginia simply won’t be sufficient.