Baton Rouge area trends have mimicked national gun sales in the aftermath of the presidential election out of fear of future federal restrictions, according to local gun owners.Many surprising theories, some predictable, have surfaced to explain the recent deluge of weapon sales.The most intriguing supposition predicts an inevitable race war and points to the sales increase as an indicator of its imminence — and if you think race wars are improbable, just imagine the aftermath of the racially motivated assassination of the first black president.The fact remains that many people in this country are so threatened by the thought of a black president that they feel compelled to arm themselves with the heaviest firepower available to anyone not in uniform.But get real. This race war thing is a joke.Stephanie Hayden, of Red Jacket Firearms on Mammoth Drive, explained gun sales increase every time a candidate who is viewed as anti-gun wins an election. Hayden said gun sales have risen significantly since the election, and it’s partly because of President-elect Barack Obama’s victory.”I sold 140 guns in the past two days,” Hayden said in an interview the week after Election Day. “I sell five or six on a typical day.”Hayden’s calm rationale for the surge in sales is also the most likely to be correct. Her take on the recent spike in sales had little, if nothing, to do with race.White gun owners aren’t bent on protecting themselves from their black counterparts. Black gun owners aren’t preparing for war with those damn honkies.People just want their guns.”Prices are insane right now, but that hasn’t stopped people from buying,” said Hayden, who stressed that people are purchasing weapons out of fear.”They’re not scared because they think they need to protect themselves,” Hayden said. “They’re scared that they won’t be able to buy any more guns.”  Hayden said people have no reason to fear for their gun rights at the moment.”It takes at least a year for a federal ban to have any effect on sales,” said Hayden.The federal ban on assault   weapons had a shelf life of 10 years. After it was signed into law by former President Clinton in 1994, it expired under President Bush in 2004.The Federal Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 prohibited the manufacture, transfer and possession of designated semi-automatic assault weapons, including 19 specific firearms. It also banned other features like flash suppressors, grenade launchers, folding stocks, larger magazines, pistol-grips and bayonet attachments.Semi-automatic pistols, rifles and shotguns are all considered assault weapons.In a recent story in The Advocate, Jim McClain of Jim’s Firearms and Randall Dupont of Bowie Outfitters said lately sales have increased on weapons and accessories previously banned by the last Democrat to hold the White House.Keith Gaffney, engineering senior, said he couldn’t understand why people were anxious to stock up on weapons.”I don’t understand what they’re so afraid of,” said Gaffney. “Do people really think assault rifles are necessary just because Obama won?”Michael Scullin, kinesiology senior, disagreed.”Everyone has a right to own a weapon,” said Scullin. “It’s part of the Second Amendment. We have a right to keep and bear arms. That’s what prevents the bad guys from coming over here and invading.”The federal ban has received mixed reviews from both sides. Gun rights advocates claim responsibility for gun crimes rests not with legal gun owners but with criminals who purchase weapons on the black market.The National Rifle Association called the previous federal ban a “misguided law, which had no effect on the actions of criminals, but penalized law-abiding citizens,” in a 2004 USA Today article.But according to the U.S. Department of Justice, “the ban may be linked to declines in the criminal use of assault weapons, violent crime and the number of enforcement officers killed by assault weapons.”And in 2004, the National Institute of Justice reported the ban was not responsible for the national reduction in gun violence.In short, there is no consensus on the effects of the ban, but there is no evidence the ban played any significant role in reducing gun crimes.Also, the DOJ’s Bureau of Justice Statistics explained most gun crimes involve handguns, which are preferred over assault weapons.The DOJ said after the federal ban was enacted there was no decline in homicides in states with assaults weapons bans and a 10 percent decline in states with no bans.These statistics probably won’t prompt Obama to oppose another federal ban on assault weapons but don’t necessarily negate his promised commitment to uphold the Second Amendment.And they certainly don’t furnish any evidence of an impending race war.—-Contact Daniel Lumetta at [email protected]