A Google Shopping search for ammunition will now result in, “ Your search – ammunition – did not match any shopping results.” An innocuous word for most, is now one of many terms that no longer fit into Google Shopping’s Family Status. The new weapon’s ban, announced May 31, 2012, is part of a policy where Google elects, which products are safe for the family shopping experience and which are adult oriented. While the ban is on several products, it appears that the firearms industry is the target of the ban. The list of weapons banned varies from guns and gun parts to knives and brass knuckles, just to name a few. Yet, stun guns, tasers, and swords are some of the items that made the cut and are considered safe for “family status”.
Google is trying to protect its first amendment right to promote what it considers family safe products, while firearm enthusiast are forced to concede their google shopping experience completely. The second amendment can protect the right to bear arms but can it not protect the right to advertise arms, sell arms, or shop for arms? The firearms industry has been steadily expanding for several years and e-commerce is an essential tool for dealers and consumers. Google might be surprised when the impact of their “family safe shopping” policy hits home as consumers and FFL’s support other e-commerce options. Firearms enthusiast don’t just buy weapons online.
If the policy is really about family and safety, where is the danger? National Shooting Sports Foundation reminds us of the already stringent regulations required for an individual to purchase a firearm on the internet. For instance, while an individual can “purchase” it, the firearm must be delivered to Federal Firearms Licensee. No transfer takes place until the consumer passes a criminal background check. Many American families share the experience of providing for and protecting the family with the use of a firearm or edged weapon. Many of these families would say there are more dangerous things on Google Shopping than firearms. Most would agree that the consumer should choose what is inappropriate by not making the purchase. It is baffling to think which is more dangerous, a firearm or the constant erosion of access due to ignorance.
Written by Amy Buser, reviewed and approved by Joshua Prince, Esq.
Published by Joshua Prince, Esq.
With our 2nd Amendment rights being attacked at both the Federal and State level, and the ATF (Burea of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives) trying to close down FFLs (Federal Firearms Licensees) for minor infractions while making FFLs the scapegoat when the ATF's records are inaccurate, I want to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I am one of only a handful of attorneys across the US that practices in the niche area of law known as firearms law. I decided to concentrate my legal practice on firearms law not only because I am a shooter and firearms enthusiast, but also to ensure that our inalienable Right to Keep and Bear Arms is never encroached upon.
I handle cases at the Federal and State level for both FFLs and individuals. At the federal and state levels for individuals, I actively defend the 2nd Amendment of the US Constitution and Section 21 of the PA Constitution, as well as, help individuals with:
- License to Carry Firearms Denials;
- Challenges to Erroneous PICS Denials;
- Relief from Firearms Disabilities;
- Estate Planning Advice;
- Gun/NFA Trusts; and
- 42 USC 1983 Actions for Deprivation of Civil Rights
At both the state and federal levels, I represent FFLs and SOTs throughout Pennsylvania and the US regarding:
- ATF Compliance Inspections;
- Warning Letters and Hearings;
- FFL Revocations;
- Corporate Structure Advice
- Indoor/Outdoor Range Implementation; and
- Forfeiture Proceedings
In following my love for firearms and firearms law, I have taught several Continuing Legal Education (CLE) seminars on Firearms in Estates and Trusts and Firearms Law 101 for several Bar Associations, including Berks, Cumberland, and Dauphin Counties. I also planned and taught several Firearms in Estates CLE classes for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute (PBI).
While at Widener Law School, I was a member of the Widener Law Journal. I wrote an article on the Inaccuracy of the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR). I also had an article published on Fee Disputes in Workers Compensation cases in the Widener Law Journal, Volume 18, No. 2.
You can often find me posting on several internet forums, including Subguns, Uzitalk, AR15, and PAFOA. I also hold PA Firearms Law classes for local ranges to inform the public on the firearm laws of the Commonwealth.
Following in my father's footsteps, I am also a Board member for the Pottstown Police Athletic League (PAL).
View all posts by Joshua Prince, Esq.
Prince Law Offices Blog 
You may want to consider pulling this blog altogether, as it does not reflect reality on January 29, 2014, and frankly, I don’t recall ever having issues searching for any firearms related content on Google search.
FWIW,
A. Contreras, Esq (Tx Bar)
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