Demand for concealed pistol permits jumps in Wash.
EVERETT, Wash. - Recent shootings have triggered a push that is overwhelming local offices that issue concealed weapon permits.
In Snohomish County alone, the firearm frenzy has officials struggling to keep up with the mushrooming demand.
Brenda Gibbs with the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office says she's seeing more and more people lining up and reading up to apply for a concealed pistol license.
"We have seen an increase over the last couple of months," she says.
Just how big of an increase?
In 2011 the county issued an average of 523 concealed pistol licenses each month. In 2012 that average jumped to 734 per month - with nearly 1,300 issued in December alone - double the number in the same month the previous year.
The numbers signal a contentious time for gun control. This weekend gun advocates rallied peacefully across the nation and in Olympia against President Barack Obama's sweeping federal gun control proposals.
The new plans were spurred by the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre.
The president called for a ban on high-capacity magazines and assault rifles, along with 23 executive orders that some believe put the Second Amendment in jeopardy.
"I'm initiating my own executive order and buying rifles and magazines before they can no longer be purchased," says gun owner Kyle Schreiner.
In Snohomish County it's that rush to buy that has the Sheriff's Office scrambling to keep up with demand.
"We've had to adjust some staff - try to make sure we have enough people just focusing just on this task," says Gibbs.
The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office says the courthouse office has been so busy some operations have been moved to the eastern part of the county.
In Snohomish County alone, the firearm frenzy has officials struggling to keep up with the mushrooming demand.
Brenda Gibbs with the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office says she's seeing more and more people lining up and reading up to apply for a concealed pistol license.
"We have seen an increase over the last couple of months," she says.
Just how big of an increase?
In 2011 the county issued an average of 523 concealed pistol licenses each month. In 2012 that average jumped to 734 per month - with nearly 1,300 issued in December alone - double the number in the same month the previous year.
The numbers signal a contentious time for gun control. This weekend gun advocates rallied peacefully across the nation and in Olympia against President Barack Obama's sweeping federal gun control proposals.
The new plans were spurred by the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre.
The president called for a ban on high-capacity magazines and assault rifles, along with 23 executive orders that some believe put the Second Amendment in jeopardy.
"I'm initiating my own executive order and buying rifles and magazines before they can no longer be purchased," says gun owner Kyle Schreiner.
In Snohomish County it's that rush to buy that has the Sheriff's Office scrambling to keep up with demand.
"We've had to adjust some staff - try to make sure we have enough people just focusing just on this task," says Gibbs.
The Snohomish County Sheriff's Office says the courthouse office has been so busy some operations have been moved to the eastern part of the county.
My sherifff is watching out for my CCL......
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http://www.gazettetimes.com/news/local/letter-from-linn-county-sheriff-tim-mueller-to-vice-president/article_b95b8505-330d-5e9f-999b-1327d9c09fe9.html
 @GoodbyeOregonPatriot Sheriff Mueller started the ball rolling in Oregon.
So much for the gun control nut cases.
Their big mouths put more guns in more peoples hands than ever before.
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I predicted their knee jerk reaction would backfire and it did.
Good.
 @Mipsfer Keep it going! This is great for the economy!I think Glock ought to refuse to sell its proprietary cartridges to government employees of New York, until the demand for magazines and pistols from consumers is met, or Cuomo resigns from office. That will teach Cuomo to stick his hands in the hornet's nest.
 @Mipsfer Obama / Biden are to stupid to care. They sparked the panic and now some guns like AR15's, etc, are on back order 6months to a year. Prices have tripled if not more for them online. All because we have a Constitution hating President that want's the Gov. to have more control over you and your daily life. 4 more years and then that disgrace is out of that office forever.
I am all for letting sane, non-outlaw citizens carry personal protection. Â Lately there has been way too many incidents of crazies going berserk in public places resulting in deaths and injury of innocent victims. Â Such incidents could be minimized by one person with a handgun. Â More importantly, perhaps the knowledge that there are responsible people out there with guns might get these maniacs to reconsider their actions before executing them. Â Its getting way too dangerous out there lately...I wish I had an answer to it all.
5.56 or 7.62 for SHTF?
 @Altazi 7.62 is cheaper and more versatile, and AKs are legendary for being able to operate in mud and water. LWRC makes a piston-operated AR-15 that is freakin' phenomenal and you don't have to worry about gunking up the gas tube with carbon or having it blow out if the rifle gets immersed in water. The 5.56 or .223 is a much more accurate round, though.
 @Playanekes  @AltaziÂ
Plus the AK doesn't have the return spring in the stock which is a bonus in my book.
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The 7.62 is a very underpowered 30 caliber but it's reliability is a huge plus as far as guns go.
It has as much to do with the obvious War on Some Guns as recent shootings. I have to stock up on stock magazines for my pistol before the President Stalin bans manufacture of them. We're dealing with a special interest group that bans guns so quickly it forgets to exempt its own police forces, a la New York last week. This administration is quite simply the best weapons salesmen in the history of America.
I'm up for renewal this year, I better get started early.
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Ironic that you are just trolling.
@nwipac ironic that if guns don't protect people, banks and federal buildings use armed guards to protect themselves.
 @Playanekes  @nwipac Banks use armed guards only to protect ca$h.
Federal buildings use armed guards to drive away
American citizens who wish to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
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 @Mipsfer  @nwipac My daughter's life is worth more to me than all of the cash in any bank, and so I protect her with the best tools and the best training I could find. Which is why I'm such a badger about some hipster or DC liberal telling me what I need.
 @nwipac considering it is virtually always a sheriffs office that sometimes has a jail attached to it like here in Clark County, nope.
I can only hope that the antigunners keep up their attempts at the assault weapons ban. It will spell disaster for them at the polls. Even Bill Clinton gets it and is warning democrats that it will come to a bad end for them if they continue.
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2013/01/20/Bill-Clinton-To-Democrats-Your-Gun-Control-Push-Is-Bringing-Back-The-Tea-Party
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It will never pass but voters will remember their attempts in next years elections.
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Note to antigunners: take Bills suggestion and don't marginalize or put down gun owners. We have a very good memory and will remember come voting time.
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The radicalized leftists will need to be put down by the rational democrats if they hope to survive the elections.
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 @nwipac Murders from semi-auto rifles that can accept 20-30 round magazines average about 18 per year. Why are you aiming small? Banning alcohol will save 10,000+ lives per year. Banning hammers and other blunt objects will save over 600 lives per year. Why are firearms the only inanimate objects that liberals try to ban?
 @nwipac Some people will say anything in order to hang on to a thread of relevancy. Is it IRONIC that you live in Portland though?
 @nwipac  @RalphCramdenÂ
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I am a gun owner, and a social liberal. Â And I am NOT for an assault weapons ban of any kind or a magazine size restriction. Â Why? Â Just because a specific weapon is used in less than 1% of crimes, doesn't mean that other law abiding citizens should be stripped of their Constitutional rights.
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This is the same as asking for restrictions on freedom of speech rights based upon when someone incites a riot and dozens are killed.
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No one is asking for that, so you should respect other's right to own these types of weapons.
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@Travis Beehler @nwipac @RalphCramden thank you!
 @nwipacÂ
You are not a gun owner and even if you were it would be an antique that you inherited and put over the fireplace to make people think you are an outdoorsman.
 @RalphCramden Personal feelings aside, President Clinton can dissect politics better than anyone I've ever seen. He's like a prize fighter that knows when to play defense and when to press his advantage. The portion of the story I find so relevant is his caution to gun-control advocates that they not "patronize" or"look down their nose at gun owners" in an attempt to trivialize, very wise man.
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He plays the middle better than anyone.
 @Torino_v2Â
And he learns as he goes on. He learned that the gun crowd is not to be underestimated which he found out in 1996.
Most of the guys that I know that have Concealed Carry permits are way too fat to get their piece out in a timely fashion. One of them told me that "showing weapons" stopped five times as many violent crimes as actually occurred in the USA last year. Since most people don't carry, that means there are tens of millions of assaults, robberies and rapes that are not reported. I call BS.
@david_42 The FBI did their own study, No im not linking it you can go research it but they back up the number of violent crimes that are stopped yearly by the good person merely showing a firearm. No shot fired, just displaying the fact they are armed.  Pass all the laws you want there is a reason criminals thrive the way they do and it has nothing to do with how much gun regulation we have, nor will that change them.  Â
@david_42 I spar with my firearms instructors, who are all reservists, cops, former Marines, defense contractors and private armed security. Maybe your problem is that you hang out with losers.
 @david_42 There was a study done about 10 years ago which is where they get that claim from. It was a telephone survey though and the anti-gun crowd likes to argue its validity and the pro gun crowd likes to cite it to justify being able to defend yourself from criminals.
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Personally I think the best and always true line to be able to protect yourself from criminals is that when seconds count the police are only minutes away...
 @FreedomRocks  @david_42 Or in some cases hours..
 @david_42Â
Call it what you want.
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Gun sales to the public are the strongest they have ever been in the history of the US. There is an estimated 5 million more guns in the hands of the public. High capacity magazines, ammo and gun permits are way up. There are over 5 million guns made in the US every year and most are sold.
http://nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/18/15977143-gun-control-offers-no-cure-all-in-america?lite
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The civilian army is mobilizing and we outnumber the total of all the armies and police agencies of the world at at over 100 million.
http://www.albany.edu/sourcebook/tost_2.html#2_al
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The US has by far the highest percentage of gun ownership in the world.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2007/08/28/us-world-firearms-idUSL2834893820070828
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We are a formidable force to be reckoned with and not to be taken lightly or looked down on as most far left gun grabbing liberals do.
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The liberals want to take out guns away. Period. The cat is out of the bag and confiscation is on the table. http://weaselzippers.us/2013/01/19/video-shows-democratic-attempt-to-hide-their-list-of-proposals-attacking-2nd-amendment-confiscation-release-of-permit-holder-names-database-of-all-guns/
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Trying to take guns away from law abiding Americans will not go well.
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@RalphCramden @david_42Â
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The December 2012 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 2,237,731 is an increase of 58.6 percent over the NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,410,937 in December 2011. For comparison, the unadjusted December 2012 NICSÂ figure of 2,776,105 reflects a 49.7 percent increase from the unadjusted NICS figure of 1,854,400 in December 2011.
@RalphCramden @david_42 --- there you go again confusing them with facts. Good job!
 @The Resistance    @david_42Â
Liberals don't understand facts. They respond to emotions.
It's happening in Oregon, too.  And I'm glad to see it!  More people with carry permits means less chance "they" will actually try to confiscate.  More permits = a more obvious voting block, forcing people like  Rep. Sherry Appleton, D-Poulsbo, WA who tried to sneak her bill to limit self-defense rights to back off and work within the system's proper channels.  More permits = a more people potentially ready and able to defend themselves so we will see (if the MSM reports it) more stories of lawful uses, rather than the non-stop "look another criminal with a gun" stories.
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 @Luckylucy You wish.  The law doesn't require them to do that.  Only to complete a background check.  Criminals still will get guns without background checks.  Especially law-abiding citizens are extremely less likely to kill people than those who are not law-abiding and shirk the law to acquire illegal weapons.
First we have run on guns
Second will com a run on the banks..do you know what this means?
 @lee986321 no not really.
 @TreeWizard Oh I think you do, Civil war. my friend, civil war, people are subconsciously starting to think about it. I hope I am wrong, Dear God, I hope I am wrong. but what is happening in this country is pure evil taking over. I know people will close there yes to it, People think it won't happen or it can't, people think that the government will stop it..but... that won't be the case. it will happen the day the first door is barged in and guns are taken. the line in the sand have been drawn.. I seen in a dream the war to come, and I hope it is jsut that a dream, because if it comes true, it will be pure h ell.
@noneofyourbizzness and just how well did it work for Russia or the U.S. in Afganistan?? 2 superior military forces against a bunch of militia with AK's and IED's, and I would like to point out that there are way more armed people in the U.S. so your theory might be a little flawed!
@TreeWizard@lee986321
We have four boxes with which to defend our freedom: the soap box, the ballot box, the jury box, and the cartridge box.
Rep. Larry McDonald 1935 â 1983Â
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@noneofyourbizzness that's what the army thought about Robert E Lee, Stonewall Jackson, Hood, Longstreet, Jefferson Davis and countless other US forces. Do you honestly think that the military is going to arrest it's own citizens because a bunch of pot-leaf-waving flag-burners and hippies orders them to do so?
@Kushfan @noneofyourbizzness wait until you see the M2B2 Gandhi. I think a great name for the next American mega tank would be the Prophet.
@Kushfan @noneofyourbizzness ---Please tell me they didn't really think you meant that?
Named after General Creighton Abrams.
 @noneofyourbizzness Abrams tank. Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States.
 @noneofyourbizzness They named a tank after Lincoln?
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I did not know that.
Which side do you think the military will be on? Or let me rephrase that, how many military personnel do you think are gun owners?
@lee986321 @TreeWizard How to you plan to stop a Abraham's tank or several National guard members or army urban combat specialists? if there was a civil war (which there won't be) you won't have a fighting chance.Besides the only support that you will get is from your fellow mean bad ass keyboard warriors.
 @TreeWizard  @lee986321 Well the jury's out so better stock up on the last one.
 @lee986321 There are four boxes of democracy. "Soap box, ballot box, jury box, cartridge box, in that order"- don't recall who said that. Point is the first three boxes have not been exhausted yet.