Attendees of gun show weigh in on the discourse over shootings

Bryan Avis remembers buying a shotgun at 18 years old to go duck and goose hunting.

“We didn’t have any issues,” Avis said. “It set there in the closet, and it never did anything. My guns don’t move. They don’t ever do anything unless I do it to them.”

The 38-year-old Clear Lake resident was among the hundreds streaming into a gun show at the Pasadena Convention Center on Saturday, as the national conversation about gun control remains heated following the mass shooting that killed 17 people at Majory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida on Valentine’s Day.

In the weeks since, three major stores raised the minimum age for customers who purchase guns to 21 from 18. Kroger said on Thursday that it would raise the age limit at all its Fred Meyer locations and announced it would stop selling assault-style semi-automatic rifles at its stores in Alaska. It already decided not to sell the weapon several years ago in Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

Wal-Mart and Dick’s Sporting Goods also announced that guns would not be sold to those under 21.

Jeremy Dorsey, 37, of Pearland, who was exploring the convention center with his 5year-old son, isn’t sure whether raising the age limit will do much to keep weapons out of the wrong hands.

“I don’t think it matters to be honest with you, because if a child or a teenager really want to do something, they’re going to find a way to get it,” said Dorsey, also a manager at Wal-

Mart. “You can buy guns off the streets.”

Besides age limits, other conversations have revolved around more thorough background checks and record keeping, with critics, including the president, citing how the FBI missed a tip on the Florida school shooting suspect, Nikolas Cruz.

"Very sad that the FBI missed all of the many signals sent out by the Florida school shooter. This is not acceptable," President Donald Trump tweeted.

Avis was waiting on more details before judging how law enforcement missed warning signs, but he noted that those who sell guns should not be held at fault if the FBI misjudges the person’s eligibility.

“The guy that’s selling the gun has done his job, turned in the paperwork, waited for the response. The FBI says yes,” Avis said. “That person’s eligible to go. How can that be his fault? He’s doing his job.”

Todd Bean, 59, the founder of the gun show at Pasadena Convention Center, said he’s watched his idea grow from a mom-and-pop shop to an actual business.

The now-monthly show, which started around 1990, had about 120 vendors at the convention center on Saturday.

Gun enthusiasts had their pick of weapons, but other items were also on sale, including skinning knives, camo gear and concealed handgun purses. One vendor was selling jewelry made from bullets.

“You got to realize that I bought beef jerky today,” said Avis as he stood outside the convention center. “Just because you’re going to a gun show doesn’t mean you’re buying guns. They got helmets in there, and they got swords.”

Bean noted that Devin Patrick Kelley, who killed 26 people in the mass shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, shouldn’t have been able to pass his background check based on his past of domestic abuse.

“They’re looking at different issues, but they’re not looking at the right issues,” Bean said. “There needs to better record keeping. The federal government must report people that are mentally unstable.”

But Avis wants the dust to settle before the government makes decisions concerning new legislation around gun control.

“The thing that I really hope happens with the governments and states is that they talk it over and really understand what they’re doing before they make a quick decision that the people are going to regret in the long run,” he said. “Hopefully we have representatives that will do that.”