Not many sectors of our economy enjoy constitutional protections, and such a passionate base as the gun. While the firearm is an essential tool and right to life by many individuals, when it comes down to it, it is just another market, with customers to keep, and sales to make.
People don't consider guns to be a market, because they so passionately believe in their importance to their safety and protection of their family. When you start breaking this down, the first sign that this is false, and guns are market driven is the most passionate gun enthusiasts amongst us own not just one or two guns, but potential 10, 20 or more. If they are for protection, this doesn’t fly. Why would you need 20 guns to protect your home?
Beyond the consumer you can see quickly see the market driven decision in what laws gun manufacturers choose to get behind, with support or attack and kill with all of the resources at their disposal. When it comes to laws limiting the manufacture and sale of almost any gun or ammunition, gun makers will throw everything they have at defeating such bills. Except when it came to the laws around 3D printing of gun parts we recently happen in Washington DC, in which gun manufacturers chose to support—clearly they don't want people printing their own guns, this would forever impact their sales.
The market nature of guns is why so many conservative principles are so tightly woven. A strong military industrial complex is needed to create new markets globally, a passionate stance on 2nd amendment is needed to secure your consumer base, and a climate of fear is needed to keep your customer base passionate and living in constant fear that the opposition will take your guns, and create shortage of ammunition. Waves of fear is how you create rolling cycles of sales that encourage consumers to hoard guns and ammunition, and stay good customers.
While the gun market is not the largest market, or the most influential like religion, it is a powerful combination of market forces masked with blind 2nd amendment passion, and secured through a strong military industrial concept that ensures there will never be peace, there will always be fear, and of course there will always be more gun sales.
