Recent history

So the writing was on the wall in the 1990s.  Clinton was ushering an irreversible gun control regime.  Because of the magazine size limits. 1911s got a boost in popularity because it was the best of the sub-10 round guns available.  Glock responded with baby Glocks to have something to sell to the lucrative civilian market while they still could.  Colt and HK stressed their links to military and law enforcement customer, alienating regular consumers, but who cares about them, they would be disarmed sooner rather than later and not a factor.  S&W took another path conceding to the Clinton administration alligator.  After seeing what the legal profession did to the tobacco industry, Smith didn't want that to happen to them so made a deal to avoid the liability, also pissing off us regular gun owners. 

That was then.

What a difference 20 years makes.  A dozen Vermont-Carry states.  The cusp of realizing a rights-friendly Supreme Court.  If not for a few billionaires you wouldn't even hear from the gun banners. 

Can you tell I am low on blog fodder ideas to just spit out a history paragraph?  It's still a wonder.