Online financial magazine TheStreet.com profiled a recent visit to the Beretta Gallery on New York City’s Madison Avenue, where “cashing a bonus check or two beforehand might be advisable.”
Read TheStreet.com’s article and see its video interview with Beretta vice president Peter Horn.

Smith and Wesson has made remarkably great strides over the past two years, navigating a turnaround that has astonished skeptics and rewarded investors.
Last week, the New York Times profiled the 154-year-old company’s comeback.

Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest firearms retailer, announced Friday that it would stop selling firearms in one-third of its stores, about 1,000 outlets. No details have been announced on which locations will be affected.
The decision was widely reported through an Associated Press story. “While from a customer perspective we don’t like to see a reduction in the number of retail outlets for our industry’s products, the Wal-Mart decision to eliminate firearm sales in some locations may open the door for increased sales among independent retailers and outdoor ’superstores,’” said Doug Painter, NSSF president.
Although Wal-Mart cited lack of demand in certain markets as the reason for its decision, recent nationwide data show that firearm and accessory sales remain strong. According to the latest statistics from the National Sporting Goods Association, U.S. firearm sales increased by nine percent, while hunting gear sales saw the fastest growth of all sporting goods categories, in 2004.

NEWTOWN, Conn. — A new report from the National Safety Council shows that accidental firearm-related fatalities remained at record lows in 2004. Statistics in the council’s “Injury Facts 2005-2006″ show a 48 percent decrease over a 10-year period ending in 2004.
The council’s most recent data show 106,742 U.S. residents died in accidents of all types. Less than 1 percent involved firearms. The most common deadly accidents involved motor vehicles, poisonings and falls, claiming 74 percent of all accidental deaths.
“Increased awareness of gun safety and responsible firearms storage have undeniably played a huge part in keeping these numbers at their lowest levels ever,” said Doug Painter, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation , the trade association for the firearms industry.
NSSF directs and funds a number of initiatives focused on firearms safety, including Project ChildSafe®, which, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Justice, will have distributed more than 35 million free gun safety information kits, including gun locks, across the country by the end of 2006. NSSF also distributes safety literature and videos that emphasize outreach to schools. Additional support is provided for hunter safety programs.
“Continued persistence in communicating the importance of firearms safety will only help drive these record numbers even lower,” Painter added.
Other new findings from the National Safety Council include:
There were 700 accidental firearm-related fatalities in 2004, the same as the previous year. Firearm-related fatalities are down 48 percent from the 1,356 accidents reported in 1994.
Accidental firearm-related fatalities among children ages 14 and under declined 17 percent when compared to the previous year.
Firearms accounted for only 1.1 percent of all accidental injuries to children ages 14 and under, down from 1.3 percent reported the previous year.
Accidental firearm-related injuries were down 3 percent among teenagers when compared to the previous year.
Accidental firearm-related fatalities continue to have the largest percentage decrease of all measured types of accidental fatalities.
NSSF, formed in 1961, is the trade association for the firearm industry. It directs a variety of outreach programs to promote greater participation and better understanding of shooting sports, emphasizing safe and responsible ownership of firearms. For further information, visit www.nssf.org.

“What’s stylish this year in home design? Bold graphic patterns. Blue and brown, used together. Bamboo.
Green walls. And guns,” writes Boston Globe columnist Linda Matchan.
Firearms have become the latest craze among fashion designers, who are including them in everything from Victorian-themed pillows to lamps that go for $1,500.

Though Boston’s mayor was quick to blame guns for his city’s violent crime problem, New Hampshire’s Union-Leader pointed out last week that a rise in the city’s murder rate can be attributed to more criminals in the city. “Last year Boston Mayor Tom Menino blamed an influx of guns from northern New England for the city’s spiking murder rate. But an analysis by The Boston Globe last week found a more plausible culprit. A rise in young men.
Typically, cities that see large increases in their population of young males also see large increases in crime. Boston was no exception,” the Union-Leader explained. “If Boston officials don’t want a repeat of 2005, they’d do well to turn their resources toward finding and locking up gang members and drug dealers rather than changing gun laws in New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont.”

In an effort to strengthen the voices of law-abiding firearms retailers in New York and New Jersey, two state organizations affiliated with the National Association of Firearms Retailers have formed.
Retailers in both of these states are facing new threats from anti-gun lawmakers this year. The New York State Association of Firearms Retailers and the New Jersey State Association of Firearms Retailers will help give retailers the voice they need in Albany and in Trenton.
By joining NYSAFR or NJSAFR today, members will receive a combined one-year’s membership in NAFR. They will also receive membership in NSSF and have access to its member benefits and receive all of its publications. To join, contact Bettyjane Swann at 203-426-1320 or bswann@nssf.org.
New York and New Jersey retailers planning to attend SHOT Show are encouraged to attend meetings of their respective state group in Room N236 of the Las Vegas Convention Center on Friday, Feb. 10. NYSAFR will meet at 11:30 a.m. NJSAFR will meet at 10:30.

A former co-owner of the gun store that was the source of the rifle used in the Washington, D.C., area sniper case was sentenced last week to three years probation for failing to file several years of tax returns, reports the Associated Press.
Brian Borgelt, 41, pleaded guilty to failure to file federal tax returns between 1997 and 2001. He was also ordered to pay nearly $231,000 in back taxes, penalties and interest.

Boston leaders’ claims that an increase in gun crime in the city is the fault of northern New England states’ gun laws is an “urban myth,” New Hampshire’s U.S. attorney told Foster’s Daily Democrat. U.S. Attorney Thomas Colantuono cited data from the federal Project Safe Neighborhoods that show Massachusetts itself is the top source of guns sold and used to commit crimes within its borders.
Earlier this month, New Hampshire’s Union Leader blasted Boston leaders for blaming other states for their own problems. “If Boston leaders really want to reduce gun-related crimes in their city, we have a suggestion. Forget the guns; catch and lock up the criminals,” the newspaper said.

More than 600 firearms were looted from Louisiana pawnshops, stores and other gun dealers after hurricanes Katrina and Rita, reports The Times-Picayune. Local law enforcement agencies and Crimestoppers Inc. are teaming up to track down the stolen firearms.
Rewards of up to $2,500 are being offered for the arrest and indictment of individuals responsible for the thefts from 20 businesses in the New Orleans area. Rewards are also being offered to the public for the recovery of the stolen guns.

A UCLA political scientist has confirmed what we in the firearms industry have known all along–that the mainstream media does indeed have a liberal bias.
“I suspected that many media outlets would tilt to the left because surveys have shown that reporters tend to vote more Democrat than Republican,” said Tim Groseclose, a UCLA political scientist and the study’s lead author. “But I was surprised at just how pronounced the distinctions are.” Read more about the study.

NSSF on Monday contributed $25,000 to the National 4-H Shooting Sports Foundation in support of its youth shooting program. “4-H’s dedication to introducing thousands of America’s youths to hunting and the shooting sports will translate to great things for the future of our industry,” said NSSF president Doug Painter, who also serves on the 4-H foundation’s board of directors.
“This contribution is to show our support in helping more youngsters across the country get involved in these lifelong activities.” With over 300,000 participants and nearly 20,000 adult volunteers in 46 states, 4-H manages the nation’s largest youth shooting program.

Today’s firearms retailers face an increasing number of challenges — stringent regulatory compliance, mounting legislative initiatives and tighter profit margins. To meet these challenges, the National Association of Firearms Retailers strives to provide firearms retailers with a united voice and a host of support services. Among them, seminars July 13 in Tampa and August 2 in Atlanta for dealers and FFL employees to help reduce the criminal misuse of firearms and to provide guidance and education on the rules and regulations governing the sale and transfer of firearms.