As some of you know, I sell a gun cleaning product called Strike-Hold through my company, 3 Part Supply. We were at the Indy 1500 gun show this Fri, Sat, and Sunday.
Near the end of the show, a black couple were wandering around, with the male wearing what appeared to be a brand new "Obama" T-shirt. I have no idea how long he had been at the show, but the Obama t-shirt did stand out. (the show, while primarily attended by whites, did have a fair amount of other ethnicities and races but few, if any admitted Obama disciples. He stopped across the aisle from our table and I commented to another vendor about the foolishness of wearing that t-shirt at a gun show. After looking at several pistols, he filled out a 4473 and waited while his info was called in to the NICS database for verification/approval. Being the good capitalist that I am, I figured that he was a potential sale for a can of Strike-Hold for maintenance of his newly purchased firearm, (and things were slowing down as it was the end of the show...) so I engaged him in conversation. ( Besides....I just had to find out if he was sane or ballsy or whatever for wearing that t-shirt to the gun show).
Somewhat defiantly, he asked if I was willing to talk to him even though he was wearing an Obama t-shirt (apparently, he had gotten some comments from other show attendees and vendors that he had found offensive). I replied that "I really don't care about your choice of president, and you are now a gun owner", and attempted to tell him about the benefits of Strike-Hold. He kept bringing the conversation back to his choice of t-shirt and to Mr. Obama. I suggested that, while his choice of apparel was not well thought out, he did have the right to wear whatever he wanted, even though Mr. O was not a favorite amongst the gun show crowd. He replied with something about "free speech", and that some vendors had refused to sell him anything, and implied that it might be about his race. I countered that free speech works both ways, and suggested that had I been wearing a KKK shirt, he might have chosen to not talk with me or to buy my product. I pointed out that "freedom of speech works both ways", but he seemed to discount that concept (the implication was that only his view mattered, often an attitude of the "thinking" liberal). I also suggested to him that most vendors here cared more about the color of his money than the color of the hand that he used to hand it over when he made a purchase.
I asked if it was his first handgun purchase, and he said that it was. I suggested that if he had not had training, that a handgun course was a good idea , and that the folks at the NRA booth could help him find training. I also mentioned the 4 rules for firearms, and suggested that he learn to follow them for his safety and the safety of others. The man was nice, decent, fairly well educated, spoke well, and seemed to be genuinely interested in my suggestions. But there was something wrong....He just didn't seem right.
His paperwork went through, and he took possession of his new GLOCK handgun in .40 S+W (no stereotypes at work here....). I congratulated him on his purchase, and moved away so he could complete his transaction.
He did come over to the table, and, after asking a few questions, purchase a can for maintenance and cleaning of his new firearm.
To get to the point: He didn't seem like the typical firearm purchaser....Not because of his race, but because of his liberal leaning, and because of his demeanor. Something Ican't put my finger on, but something wasn't right. HE had stated that he had "just put that shirt on that morning, and I wear it all the time" yet it was brand new....I sincerely hope that the FFL/seller did everything correctly, because on the drive home, I came to the conclusion that, while I cannot be sure, he was there to find something for an upcoming story, perhaps on television or something. Perhaps something about discrimination based on his choice of shirt, or president, or an expose' of racial discrimination at gun shows, or how easy it is to buy a firearm at a gun show, or something or something like that... His companion always had her purse held under her arm, and always pointed at he and myself....Video perhaps?
Perhaps I am wrong. Perhaps I will never know. But there was something just not right about this dude.
Look for something in the Indianapolis paper, or TV, or something in the near future.......I would bet money that he (and perhaps I?) will be in a story. Sure hope I look good and sound good on the hidden video.
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