I just read where a small outfit

 called American Tactical Imports has just pulled up stakes in New York and has decided to relocate in South Carolina.

I can't say as I blame them because if I were running the outfit I would most likely leave New York, too.

South Carolina now has an estimated 117 job openings and the secondary prosperity that goes along with the creation of those jobs. It's a trickle down effect.

The new job holders will need food, clothing, housing, entertainment and so on. A lot of people will benefit from this.

New York is now going to be out the jobs and the resulting loss of these jobs will trickle down as a loss to the New York community. Rochester, New York and the rest of the state will lose.

People do not realize that the firearms business creates more jobs than General Motors and does billions of dollars a year's worth of business in this country according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF). That's a lot of change.

It should also be noted that the figures do not include the offshoot business created by the gunmakers such as clothing, camping gear for hunters, firearm accessories and much, much more.

I have no way of calculating what the trickle down effect of the firearms business is. It isn't chump change.

Part of the reason people are not aware of this is because along with the bigger companies that are known, like Ruger, Smith & Wesson, Colt, Winchester and Remington, there are countless little companies also. Many of whom do either specialty or custom work.

An example of a smaller shop might be the Shiloh Rifle manufacturing in Big Timber, Montana. They specialize in quality handmade reproductions of rifles made in the 1800s. They are not cheap and word is they are busy.

Most people have never heard of them, yet there they are up in Montana running a profitable business and creating jobs.

There are also countless custom shops around the country that specialize in various types of firearms for various shooting disciplines. The range from hunting rifles, target rifles, skeet and trap shotguns and many more firearms for the numerous shooting sports.

Even the matches and hunting trips provide for local economies because contestants have to eat, sleep and otherwise purchase goods and services on the local economy.

The National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio bring a lot of money into the local town of Port Clinton. The merchants there know this and cheerfully take the money of the shooters that arrive there starting in late June through the late part of August.

The shooting sports fields numerous disciplines ranging from huntnig, long range shooting matches, skeet and trap, cowboy action and others too numerous to mention. All of which generate revenue which is taxed.

The NSSF claims the tax revenue alone in excise taxes and state income taxes is well over 5 billion from firearms alone. One can't begin to estimate the tax base created by the accompanying sale of shooting related goods.

To find out why the blog is pink just cut and paste this: http://piccoloshash.blogspot.com/2009/12/my-feminine-side-blog-stays-pink.html NO ANIMALS WERE HARMED IN THE WRITING OF TODAY'S ESSAY