House fire overnight after shooting near scene of deadly Sunday night home invasion in Port Arthur

PORT ARTHUR, Texas — Port Arthur Police are investigating a house fire that happened around midnight on Tuesday at the same home where three people broke in and held a family at gunpoint Sunday night.

An eyewitness tells 12News a neighbor saw smoke and flames coming from the home and dialed 911. Nobody was home when the fire started. Right now, the cause is unknown.

Less than 24 hours after the scary home invasion in Port Arthur, police were back near the scene Monday evening.

According to investigators, shots were fired Monday in the 2500 block of 18th Street. On Sunday night, investigators said a 29-year-old man shot and killed one of three people holding his family at gunpoint in their own home. Continue reading “”

Financial Discrimination Continues Against the Gun Industry

A recent proposal by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), an independent bureau within the U.S. Department of the Treasury, would work to ensure fair treatment in lending and access to other financial services for American businesses. This is of particular importance to the Second Amendment, as manufacturers, companies and retailers in the shooting sports industries have and still are experiencing discrimination in getting these services from financial institutions.

Apparently, some of these financial institutions don’t like the work these businesses are engaged in, even though the work is legitimate and legal.

The OCC rule would “ensure fair access to banking services provided by national banks, federal savings associations and federal branches and agencies of foreign bank organizations. The proposal would codify more than a decade of OCC guidance stating that banks should provide access to services, capital, and credit based on the risk assessment of individual customers, rather than broad-based decisions affecting whole categories or classes of customers.”

Continue reading “”

WV AG Morrisey joins coalition supporting NRA against lawsuit from New York AG

CHARLESTON, W.Va (WDTV) – West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey announced that he recently joined a 16-state coalition supporting the National Rifle Association’s lawsuit against New York’s attorney general.

The coalition argues that New York’s attorney general unjustly seeks to dissolve the NRA, which is the country’s oldest civil rights organization and leading Second Amendment advocacy organization, Morrisey Announced in a press release.

In August, New York’s attorney general filed suit in state court seeking to dissolve the NRA. The NRA responded by suing New York’s attorney general in federal court, claiming that her dissolution lawsuit violated the First Amendment by seeking to punish the NRA for its constitutionally protected Second Amendment advocacy.

“New York’s lawsuit seeks to destroy the Second Amendment,” Attorney General Morrisey said. “West Virginia remains in fervent support of the Second Amendment. Our office will vigorously oppose any effort to roll back gun rights and attack those who cherish the freedom to bear arms.

Default Proceed Sale Transparency Act & the So-Called ‘Charleston Shooter Loophole’

In continuing with the tradition of de-evolution of our civil liberties, we have creatures crawling out of the primordial soup of government bureaucracy, and today’s soup du jour is from the Chicago suburbs.

With a long standing tradition of respecting fundamental rights and not being corrupt, anything outta Chicagoland and Illinois, which is predominately controlled by Chicagoland, must be a homerun for citizens across the nation, or hell, call the United Nations (another entity known for their upright ways) – citizens of the world can benefit from such polices!

On December 11, 2020 the office of anti-gun politician and a buddy of Shannon Watts, Brad Schneider snuck out in a semi-quiet press release on introduced legislation to stop the so-called “Charleston Shooter Loophole”.  Schneider, a Congressman for the 10th legislative district of Illinois, goes straight for the jugular:

“Default proceed” system that allows gun sales before background check an absurd loophole.

What our fine soup covered Congressman is referencing is a provision in the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act. which allows, at the discretion of the FFL, for the sale of a firearm to proceed if the NICS system is unable to return results within three business days.  This provision, which actually protects citizens from executive overreach, has not-so-eloquently been dubbed the “Charleston Loophole”.  A reference to Dylann Roof, a domestic terrorist, and his procurement of a firearm.  While Roof’s NICS background check did not return any of the disqualifier “flags”, as his criminal history had no disqualifying arrests per se, this precept has to do with a misdemeanor drug charge and possession of a recreational drug.  By federal law users of illicit drugs are barred from firearm ownership and possession.

The big push behind how the “Charleston Loophole” is painted revolves around the three-day default proceed provisions.  The logic is fairly flawed for several reasons.

First, if the hearts and minds of our do-good swamp creatures were in the right place, they’d be pushing for a provision that such misdemeanor offenses concerning possession of illicit drugs be incorporated into the halting of firearm purchase by default without interpretation, with the opportunity for appeal.

Second, when someone fills out the form 4473, they are beholden to the honor system on reporting back they are not a user of illegal drugs.

The problem with these two concepts, which really ought to be the focus of any potential reform, should reform even need to happen, neglects people’s abilities to no longer be users or addicts.  After all didn’t Barrack Obama admit to smoking Marijuana?  That admission would make him a felon if paired with those great pictures of him shooting a double barreled shotgun during clay shooting sports.  By progressive logic in this context, once an addict always an addict, no?  If we’re going to be fair and honest, then Obama should have been arrested and charged with a felony because he smoked a joint once upon a time (probably more than one if one had to guess) and had possession of a firearm.

This is not about Obama or Roof, but the much larger issue of progressive policies and actors that wish to decriminalize Schedule I Drugs while simultaneously strip us of our rights.  The same progressives that want to decriminalize all these controlled substances are the same ones that are using Roof’s misdemeanor drug charge as proof positive of his ineligibility to own firearms and are constantly pushing for further laws that limit the civil rights of our citizenry.  You can’t eat your cake and have it too!

Given all this information, would the abolishment of the “default proceed” provision have kept Roof from getting a firearm?  The answer to that is NO.  Even if Roof was somehow halted during the NICS process, domestic terrorists like him will always find a way to enact acts of violence (Cite Oklahoma City Bombing, Boston Marathon Bombing, Acid Attacks, and a little event where “some people did something”), and if he was that intent on getting a gun, he would have.

Continue reading “”

Either he is that stupid and believes his BS,
or he believes we are that stupid and believe his BS.

Doom and Gloom Biden Warns Our ‘Very Existence’ Is Threatened

Let’s face it.

Joe Biden is not the sharpest knife in the drawer. I don’t say that to be mean, but rather just a statement of fact. He was always known as a gaffe machine and wrong on everything for 47 years. Now, with encroaching cognitive decline on top of all that, not a lot of what he says makes sense.

But he’s already making clear that if he gets in, we can expect a very dark time of it all. He would ‘govern’ by fear-mongering.

Biden was talking about how we needed to address carbon emissions to combat climate change.

He says a bunch of words that don’t really mean anything. Then he gets into trouble when he tries to ad lib away from the teleprompter. Carbon emissions threaten “the very existence of our planet,” he claims.

The planet is going to blow up from carbon emissions? Does Joe even science? Does he know that carbon emissions actually help plant growth? So is that going to happen within Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s 12 year deadline for the end of it all because of climate change?

But did you notice something else that Joe Biden admitted? He’s not very good at this.

He admitted that the U.S. was only responsible for about 15% of carbon emissions and we’ve actually continued to cut back our emissions.

Guess who emits more than us and who old Joe isn’t about to try to hold to account?

You got it, his friend, China. They emit almost twice as much as them.

So Joe would destroy our economy to achieve even more than we’ve already done, while China will continue on and not restricting their economy in any way. What’s wrong in this scenario?

But just remember? If we don’t do it, we’re threatening the existence of the world!

No, but for sure we would face very real and existential threats from Biden himself.

A Supreme Court in Hiding is Dangerous for Our Country

In accordance with Art VI of the Constitution, every sitting Supreme Court justice has taken an oath swearing that he or she will “support this Constitution.” The Constitution the justices have sworn to protect is predicated upon free and fair elections so that the government reflects the will of the People. When the justices refuse to protect election integrity, they are violating their sworn oath and putting our constitutional republic at grave risk.

I recently wrote a suggested Supreme Court opinion. It said the Court must decide “credible and significant” claims of election wrongdoing on their merits before elected officials are sworn in—-except for the President, where the Constitution provides a fallback political method of election. My article suggested what the Supreme Court should do. This article discusses their inaction and warns of the consequences if the justices continue to run and hide.

Continue reading “”

[Well Regulated] The pit in my stomach

On December 23, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) withdrew its letter on brace classification from the Federal Register. Many in the firearms world were quick to herald this as a victory for gun rights, an example of the people making their voice heard, and a government agency backing off.

While this is the preferable interpretation of the withdrawal to have, something in my gut tells me that this was not a victory at all. Consider that this letter was provoked by several congressmen sending a letter to the ATF asking for specification as to what constituted the legal characteristics of a stabilizing brace.

It was then withdrawn after another letter (this time signed by 90 representatives) was sent in opposition to the ATF’s “clarification”. Anyone with even a modicum of firearms knowledge could tell by reading the ATF’s list of “objective features” that the verbiage was imprecise and sloppy at best, and maliciously vague at worst. But for such an opinion letter to be issued and then abandoned in a week, with less than a month until the inauguration, does not instill in me any confidence of actual progress being made in favor of gun rights.

In November, the firearms community was made aware that the Biden transition team had met with ATF director Lombardo, and discussed their top two gun control priorities: braces, and 80% receivers. Which is more likely, that the ATF suddenly changed their minds and realized the error of their ways, or that they’re willing to wait a few weeks to implement regulations on gun owners? In firearm circles, the analogy of boiling a frog alive is often brought up: you place a frog into cool water and turn the temperature up very slowly so that it doesn’t realize it needs to jump out.

Continue reading “”

Store clerk shoots man attempting to rob convenience store

TUNICA,Miss. — Unexpected shots were fired when a young man attempted to rob a Mississippi convenience store, Tunica County Sheriff’s Office reported.

According to police, at exactly 6:42 p.m. on December 23rd, they received a call about an armed robbery at a local store.

The suspect walked into the store with a handgun and demanded money from the store clerk, police said.

During the robbery, the store clerk shot the suspect who then fled out of the store, per reports.

Forensics used the evidence and determined that 22-year-old Joshua Johnson of Horn Lake, MS is the person responsible for the crime.

The evidence also led them to a home where they learned that someone dropped him off at a nearby hospital for treatment.

Officials said there will be criminal charges against Johnson as this investigation is ongoing.

Homeowner shoots burglary suspect 3 times in north Houston

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A burglary suspect was shot three times in the leg by a homeowner early Sunday in north Houston, according to police.

It happened at a home in the 6500 block of Jensen around 3 a.m.

Police said the homeowner went outside with a gun to investigate the noises he said he heard coming from his backyard.

That’s when he found a man breaking into his shed.

Officers placed tourniquets on the burglary suspect, and he was taken to the hospital. Police said he is expected to survive.

“I’m not exactly sure what he was thinking, but he was inside the shed taking some items from the owner when the owner came outside,” a police officer said.

Woman Shoots Suspect Who Forced Way Into Home And Assaulted Her On Christmas

STOCKTON (CBS13) – A man involved in a dispute with his neighbor was shot after allegedly pushing his way into the woman’s apartment and assaulting her and her family on Christmas Day, the Stockton Police Department said on Saturday.

The neighbor, a 29-year-old woman, was confronted by the suspect and engaged in an argument, police said. This happened just before 2:45 p.m. on Friday in the 1700 block of Quail Lakes Drive.

Stockton police said the suspect, a 32-year-old man, forced his way into the woman’s home and began the assault, which prompted the woman to shoot the suspect. His identity has not yet been released.

The suspect was taken to the hospital to be treated for what police described as a non-life-threatening gunshot wound.

Stockton police said the case was handed over to the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office. No further information was released.

U.S. appeals court blocks NY governor’s limits on religious gatherings.

The federal appeals court in Manhattan on Monday blocked New York state restrictions on the size of religious gatherings put in place to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

In a 3-0 decision, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, the Orthodox Jewish group Agudath Israel of America and two synagogues in enjoining New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Oct. 6 attendance caps at “houses of worship.”

The governor limited attendance to the lesser of 10 people or 25% capacity in “red” zones where the coronavirus risk was highest, and 25 people or 33% capacity in slightly less risky “orange” zones, even in buildings that seat hundreds.

Circuit Judge Michael Park said the plaintiffs established irreparable harm by showing the restrictions impaired their free exercise of religion.

He also said “no public interest is served by maintaining an unconstitutional policy when constitutional alternatives are available to achieve the same goal.”

Continue reading “”

ATF Pistol Brace Ruling May be a Trojan Horse for Biden Administration

America’s 700,000 owners of pistol braces received a gift from an unlikely source the day before Christmas Eve. However, the gift may be a Trojan horse.

On Dec. 23, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) announced it was withdrawing a notice and request for comments regarding stabilizing braces, titled “Objective Factors for Classifying Weapons with ‘Stabilizing Braces.’” These braces are devices that replace buttstocks and are designed and intended only for use as forearm supports to provide a more stable firearm platform. They are neither designed nor intended to be fired from the shoulder. This notice effectively affirms the subjective criteria ATF uses in determining whether a firearm is an NFA item or not; it is not a “new” directive.

While the ending of public comments and withdrawal of the guidance seems like a victory, the issue is still pending the Department of Justice review, according to the ATF statement. It opens up the possibility of more aggressive action being taken by the incoming Biden administration.

The withdrawal of the guidance came hours after U.S. Rep. Richard Hudson (R-North Carolina) and 89 other Congress members sent a letter to the ATF demanding that the bureau “immediately take action to correct this injustice.”

The “injustice,” as we previously reported, was that the proposed guidelines were confusing to owners as well as vendors and could potentially lead to felony charges.

“We would like to thank the NRA members, gun owners, and members of Congress who stood up for the Second Amendment rights of all Americans,” a press release from NRA-ILA stated. “And, special thanks to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Congressman Hudson for taking the lead in pushing ATF to rethink its arbitrary and unhelpful ‘guidance.’”

Continue reading “”

Another one of these ‘not on the radar’, ‘very personable’, ‘quite out of character’, ‘no known motive’.

NASHVILLE EXPLOSION: Anthony Warner died in explosion, was ‘bomber,’ authorities say.

Anthony Q. Warner, 63, has been identified as the “bomber” in the Christmas day explosion in Nashville by U.S. Attorney Don Cochran.

Cochran announced the update to the investigation in a Sunday afternoon news conference.

“Anthony Warner is the bomber. He was present when the bomb went off, and he perished in the bombing,” Cochran said.

DNA found at the scene was matched to samples taken at another location searched by investigators, TBI Director David Rausch said Sunday. The TBI was involved in testing the evidence.

Because they had identified a suspect, investigators said they were able to match samples to a potential family member quickly.

At this time, officials said there is no indication that anyone outside of Warner was involved in the explosion. Authorities reviewed hours of surveillance footage and they say they only saw Warner.

A motive in the bombing has not been released and is still under investigation according to FBI Special Agent for Public Affairs Doug Korneski.

The types of explosives used in the bombing were still under investigation, authorities said. The FBI said Warner wasn’t on the radar of authorities before Friday’s explosion and declined to deem the explosion an act of terrorism.

Continue reading “”

BLUF:
“We keep hearing about how we should follow the science,” Tucker added. “The claim is tired by now. We know what’s really happening.”

He closed his commentary with the question: “With solid evidence that asymptomatic spread is nonsense, we have to ask: Who is making decisions and why?”

Asymptomatic transmission of COVID-19 didn’t occur at all, study of 10 million finds.

ANALYSIS

WUHAN, China, December 23, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – A study of almost 10 million people in Wuhan, China, found that asymptomatic spread of COVID-19 did not occur at all, thus undermining the need for lockdowns, which are built on the premise of the virus being unwittingly spread by infectious, asymptomatic people.

Published in November in the scientific journal Nature Communications, the paper was compiled by 19 scientists, mainly from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, but also from scientific institutions across China as well as in the U.K. and Australia. It focused on the residents of Wuhan, ground zero for COVID-19, where 9,899,828 people took part in a screening program between May 14 and June 1, which provided clear results as to the possibility of any asymptomatic transmission of the virus.

Continue reading “”

Trump signs COVID-19 relief bill with $600 stimulus checks

President Trump on Sunday signed a $2.3 trillion COVID-19 relief and government funding bill that includes $600 stimulus checks for most Americans.

The nearly 5,600-page bill passed the House and Senate by overwhelming margins on Monday night, just hours after its text was released.

The bill authorizes direct checks of $600 for people earning up to $75,000 per year. The amount decreases for higher earners and people who make over $95,000 get nothing.

There’s an additional $600 per child stimulus payment.

In a statement, Trump said that Congress on Monday would vote on a separate bill to “increase payments to individuals from $600 to $2,000.”

The bill creates a new $300 weekly unemployment supplement and replenishes a forgivable loan program for small businesses. It also creates new criminal penalties including prison time for violating copyright laws with online streaming.

Because the bill mashed together COVID-19 relief with ordinary government spending legislation, some social media users urged Trump to veto the bill, pointing to its billions in foreign aid and legislator pet projects.

The good news about guns in America

Once upon a time, as a Democrat who grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, I was such an anti-gun fanatic that I donated to the Brady Campaign. Thankfully, I saw the light after Hurricane Katrina (when seconds counted, the police were days away), and have made up for my past bad judgment by being an NRA member, using my writing abilities to promote the Second Amendment, and helping the bottom line at several local gun stores. That’s why it gladdens my heart to tell you one of the good things about 2020: It was a banner year for gun sales!

When it comes to guns, the anti-gun crowd lacks imagination. To them, guns exist for one purpose: To murder people or, occasionally, to kill people accidentally. If you take away guns, they “reason,” you will take away murder and accidental deaths.

People with a deeper and more nuanced understanding support the Second Amendment because they understand that guns don’t commit murders or cause accidents. They are tools and lack agency. People who want to murder someone will commit murder with or without guns. And people who are careless can always kill someone else with everyday objects (e.g., cars, wine bottles, etc.).

While guns lack agency, they confer empowering agency on the people who hold them. Having a gun allows people to oppose oppressive government, as happened during the American Revolution. Guns give women the ability to fight back against predators bigger and stronger than they are. Guns allow people to defend themselves and their property when the civil government collapses, as happened after Hurricane Katrina. Guns allow ordinary people to make crime too costly for criminals. Guns allow good people to take down the bad guys quickly in what can otherwise become a mass shooting situation. Guns give those far from grocery stores the ability to feed themselves. And as sports enthusiasts know, guns are fun when used safely and appropriately.

Guns work in a society that has more good people than bad. And despite the “if it bleeds it leads” approach that has characterized the American media for more than 100 years, and that has escalated appallingly in the last 20 years, most Americans are good people. They are infinitely more likely to defend each other than to kill each other.

Continue reading “”

Man with concealed carry permit shoots and kills robbery suspect inside Chicago cell phone store

CHICAGO – A man was shot and killed while trying to rob a cell phone store in Chicago on Saturday, police said.

The would-be robber entered the cell phone shop on the 3400 hundred block of West Chicago Avenue in Humboldt Park around 7 p.m.

A man on the scene shot the robbery suspect in the chest and abdomen, police said. It is not clear if the man was the owner, employee, or another customer.

Police said the shooter, 29, had a valid concealed carry permit.

The robbery suspect was transported in critical condition to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Police confiscated the robbery suspect’s gun and the gun belonging to the concealed carry permit holder.

Driver shoots man during attempted Denver carjacking; witness shares account

DENVER — A man allegedly involved in two Denver carjackings was shot by one driver he was trying to rob, according to the Denver Police Department.

It started around 6:30 a.m. Thursday with a carjacking at Speer Boulevard and Colfax Avenue. The man who was involved in the carjacking then tried to carjack another driver in the area of Buchtel Boulevard and Downing Street, according to police. The driver at the second location shot and wounded him.

The injured man took off in the original car taken from Speer Boulevard and Colfax Avenue, police said. Officers found him around 8 a.m. in the 2100 block of S. Ash Street in Denver.

Alex Valdes witnessed the initial carjacking at the intersection of Speer and Colfax. He said he chose to call 911 after seeing other bystanders drive away,

“I just witnessed a carjacking [and] I see nobody reacting. It takes no energy to call 911.”

The man who was shot was taken to the hospital. The investigation is ongoing.

String of armed robberies ends with suspect shot at corner store in Rochester

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A string of armed convenience store robberies that started in Victor ended on Thurston Road in Rochester Wednesday night, when an employee of Angelo’s Grocery Store shot the suspect.

That’s according to Rochester police, who say the suspect — a 25-year-old Rochester man — is in custody.

Investigators say the suspect began by robbing a Kwik Fill in Victor and then robbed a FastTrac on West Ridge Road and a Family Dollar on Dewey Avenue. They say the suspect was shot while attempting to rob Angelo’s Grocery. The timeline is as follows:

3:38 p.m.: robbery at Kwik Fill in Victor (a suspect and vehicle description was broadcast to RPD)
6:49 p.m.: robbery at the FastTrac at 375 W Ridge Road
7:07 p.m.: robbery at the Family Dollar at 706 Dewey Avenue
7:26 p.m.: attempted robbery at Angelo’s Grocery and Deli at 579 Thurston Road
While attempting to the last of the robberies, RPD officials said the store owner produced a legally owned hand gun and fired at the suspect, striking him. The store owner stayed on scene until police arrived.

“The first sergeant on the scene was by herself but did a great job taking the male suspect who had been shot into custody, as well as detaining the two clerks from the store,” said RPD Captain Naser Zenelovic. “She recovered two handguns, one from each person. You can imagine how stressful that was.”

Rochester police say the suspect is being treated at Strong Memorial Hospital and is expected to recover. The investigation is ongoing.

And We Should Trust You Now, Dr. Fauci, Because …?

“When polls said only about half of all Americans would take a vaccine, I was saying herd immunity would take 70 to 75 percent…. Then, when newer surveys said 60 percent or more would take it, I thought, ‘I can nudge this up a bit,’ so I went to 80, 85.”

EUGENE VOLOKH

From the New York Times (Donald G. McNeil Jr.):

At what point does a country achieve herd immunity? What portion of the population must acquire resistance to the coronavirus, either through infection or vaccination, for the disease to fade away …?

In the pandemic’s early days, Dr. Fauci tended to cite the same 60 to 70 percent estimate that most experts did. About a month ago, he began saying “70, 75 percent” in television interviews. And last week, in an interview with CNBC News, he said “75, 80, 85 percent” and “75 to 80-plus percent.”

In a telephone interview the next day, Dr. Fauci acknowledged that he had slowly but deliberately been moving the goal posts. He is doing so, he said, partly based on new science, and partly on his gut feeling that the country is finally ready to hear what he really thinks….. [H]e believes that it may take close to 90 percent immunity to bring the virus to a halt ….

Dr. Fauci said that weeks ago, he had hesitated to publicly raise his estimate because many Americans seemed unsure about vaccines …. Now that some polls are showing that many more Americans are ready, even eager, for vaccines, he said he felt he could deliver the tough message that the return to normal might take longer than anticipated.

“When polls said only about half of all Americans would take a vaccine, I was saying herd immunity would take 70 to 75 percent,” Dr. Fauci said. “Then, when newer surveys said 60 percent or more would take it, I thought, ‘I can nudge this up a bit,’ so I
went to 80, 85.“

Errors happen; scientists’ understanding changes; but Dr. Fauci’s statements here aren’t just about changed medical understanding, right?

Thanks to Randy Barnett for pointing this out, in a post on a discussion list that I’m on.

Bass Pro (Johnny Morris’ alter ego) is at it again. Around 50 years ago, Morris was a young aimless man with only one thing that inspired him; a love of bass fishing on southern Missouri man made lakes built by the Corps of Engineers to provide hydroelectric power to the area.

His Dad  – the family still- owning the Brown Derby liquor store chain, ceded a significant amount of floorspace in several of the stores to his son and Morris stocked bait, fishing tackle and camping gear for people heading to the lakes who had stopped by to pick up a case or two of beer.

He made enough money in a few years to buy an old strip mall, where the defunct Robert Hall menswear store chain had recently closed a store (now the multiple city block location of the Bass Pro main office, ‘home’ retail store and wildlife museum) to start out, and surprising pretty much everyone in town who was acquainted with him, kept going from one success to the next until today, Bass Pro is a – maybe ‘the’ – dominating force in all facets of sports retail, fishing boats, resorts, golf courses etc., etc., etc.

A bit of little known history; When he bought the new location, he started selling ‘shares’ of his operation for $1000 a pop.
Being in my early 20s, I was too young, too impecunious and too leery of his known history to buy in. But a few people I knew had the excess cash to give him a shot. As I understand it, Morris bought back all the shares, at steadily  increasing prices for those who were reluctant to sell out, until he finally bought back all of them by the late 80s.

Sportsman’s Warehouse to join The Great American Outdoors Group 

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. and WEST JORDAN, Utah, Dec. 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — In an effort to better serve its loyal customers, Sportsman’s Warehouse has entered into a definitive agreement to join the Great American Outdoors Group, parent company of Bass Pro Shops, Cabela’s, White River Marine Group and a collection of nature-based resorts. The Great American Outdoors Group will remain a private company with a long-term view to do what is best for its customers, team members and conservation initiatives. As part of the agreement, Sportsman’s Warehouse will be acquired for $18.00 per share in cash.

The driving force behind the partnership is the two companies’ similar histories and highly complementary business philosophies and geographic footprints. Both entities share a passion with their customers for fishing, camping, hunting, boating and other outdoor activities. Likewise, both are highly acclaimed retailers with well-deserved reputations for a broad offering of outstanding brand name and proprietary products, superior customer service, deeply knowledgeable team members and an unwavering passion for conservation. Uniting together represents an unprecedented “win-win” opportunity for outdoor enthusiasts.

“We are excited to be joining the Great American Outdoors Group. This merger brings together the greatest brands in the outdoor industry. As we look to the future, the combined entities provide our passionate associates with greater opportunities to serve the outdoor enthusiast. I couldn’t be more proud of the nearly 8,000 Sportsman’s Warehouse associates and their success in building our brand over the last 33 years. We look forward to a smooth transition and building our partnership,” said Sportsman’s Warehouse CEO Jon Barker.

“Today is a happy day for our companies, outdoor enthusiasts and for the cause of conservation,” said Bass Pro Shops Founder and Great American Outdoors Group Leader, Johnny Morris. “As outdoor sports specialists with unwavering dedication to people who fish, hunt and enjoy the outdoors, we greatly admire the passionate team at Sportsman’s Warehouse for their commitment to their customers and the sports we all love. By combining our best practices, our aim is to give our customers a best-of-the-best experience while further uniting them to support conservation,” added Morris.