by In the lead story in both the Outdoor and Shooting Wires, it is reported that HiViz Shooting Systems is leaving Ft. Collins, Colorado due to the new gun control laws recently signed by Gov. John Hickenlooper (D-CO). HiViz makes fiber optic sights for rifles, shotguns, and pistols. The President and CEO of HiViz, Phillip Howe, said they were in discussions with officials in an undisclosed neighboring state to move operations to that state.
Mr. Howe comments, “I make this announcement with mixed emotions. Colorado is a beautiful state with great people, but we cannot in clear conscience support with our taxes a state that has proven through recent legislation a willingness to infringe upon the constitutional rights of our customer base.” Mr. Howe notes that prior to the changes in law in Colorado, he made several attempts to persuade state officials via emails and telephone calls to proceed slowly with gun control legislation that would impact individual shooters and the shooting industry as a whole.
HiViz will move their corporate headquarters first and then their other operations.
In the same issue of the Shooting Wire, it was announced that the Rocky Mountain Western States Regional IDPA Championship scheduled to be held in Montrose, Colorado in July was cancelled. The cancellation comes due, like the HiViz move, to the new Colorado gun control laws.
This is the second major shooting competition to be either cancelled or moved from Colorado. The 2013 Ruger Rimfire Challenge World Championship was scheduled to be held at the Colorado Rifle Club in Byers in July. It is being rescheduled and will be relocated to another state.
If I were a Colorado resident or even a potential Colorado visitor, I’d be reminding Gov. Hickenlooper that actions have consequences. Here is a link to his email page.
Dear Governor Hickenlooper,
By signing the recent spate of ill-considered and badly-written gun control legislation, on the pretext of responding to recent mass shootings including Aurora and Newtown/SandyHook, you have failed to address the real dangers, and are simply enacting "feel-good" measures whose only real effect will be harassing, inconveniencing, restricting and denying freedom to the law-abiding, on a patently false pretext.
The critical common elements in the Aurora, Sandy Hook, Columbine shootings, and most other mass shootings were:
1) These and most other mass shootings were carried out by disturbed or angry individuals who under properly enforced existing laws, would not have had access to firearms, or for whom there was a clear indication that they were mentally disturbed and could have been so identified, and a psychiatric or parental intervention carried out by reasonable persons under reasonable commitment laws
2) These and most other mass shootings have occurred in gun-free zones, including schools and theaters, where no further precautions or special measures were taken to protect the disarmed lawful citizens, including children, on the premises. No armed civilian security guards, no off-duty police, no volunteer teachers, staff or parents with concealed carry authorization on the premises; no extra measures beyond the nonsensical idea that declaring a gun-free zone would somehow magically dissuade, prevent or defend against a disturbed or angry individual who was already intent on murder and mayhem….and to whom such a thing as a "gun-free zone" sign is utterly meaningless. Gosh, why didn't the Mayor of New York City or of New Orleans declare their cities hurricane-free zones, if that kind of magic worked so well?
Nothing in any of this recent legislation would even remotely conceivably have prevented any of these recent mass shootings, and you have pointedly ignored these two characteristics and focused on things that infringe on the rights and freedoms of hundreds of thousands of lifetime-law-abiding gunowners and their families, …and which potentially create a body of records which can, and likely will, be used in the future as a registry of weapons which would enable confiscation. You have also taken these steps knowing that there would be a significant negative economic impact on jobs in manufacturing, hunting, tourism and other industries, causing jobs and people to either leave Colorado or avoid coming here to begin with.
As in the Easter story, with Judas' thirty pieces of silver, you have chosen to side with the Bloomberg lobbyists and their money rather than with the wishes and legal rights of the people of Colorado, and you fully deserve to be recalled at the earliest opportunity.
Your legacy as Governor now includes a clear and concrete betrayal of your oath to uphold and defend the Constitutions of both the State and the Nation. You deserve to forfeit your office, your reputation for integrity (if a mere political hack can be said to have such a thing), and your future political career, and I (and many other Coloradans) will happily spend my time and resources in an effort to bring about exactly that end.
they all need to know we wont take this B.S. anymore !
Well said
Linked for Kalishnikat's comment.
We would love to have you in Oklahoma 🙂
come to tennessee theres plenty of low cost land and low taxes no state taxes for employees