'When the looting starts, always be prepared': James Woods slams Alyssa Milano for her anti-gun remarks
James Woods has taken a dig at fellow actor Alyssa Milano as she urged Americans to stop stockpiling guns amid the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Sharing a video on Twitter, the 47-year-old actress said, “Americans bought over 2 million firearms in March of 2020, over a million more than this time last year. We have to keep each other safe by social distancing and washing our hands and not bringing dangerous firearms into our homes.”
“I know that we are all scared and really stressed out during these uncertain times. But that's exactly why stockpiling weapons could have dire consequences for our personal safety and those around us,” said the ‘Who’s the boss?’ star while encouraging her fans and followers to practice gun safety during the pandemic.
However, it seems the message did not go down well with the 72-year-old conservative actor, who has also an ardent pro-gun stance, as he replied online, “Thank you for the reminder. When the looting starts, always be prepared. Buy more ammo!”
This comes after reports claimed that people in the US are rushing to gun and ammunition shops to buy weapons amid the uncertainty due to the deadly bug that has gripped the whole world. Mostly the states like, California, New York, and Washington that have been hardest hit by the virus have witnessed a massive surge in gun sales.
It has been said that people are buying guns because of varied reasons. Some are getting guns to their homes to protect their families' from looters who can attack their homes in search of food and essential supplies. There is a surge in the number of Asian-American people buying guns as they sought to protect themselves from potential racist attacks.
Some have also bought guns fearing that the government's emergency powers could restrict their right to buy one, the Daily Mail reported. “Queues to buy guns in LA. Buyers tell me they’re scared of what will happen if people run out of food and supplies, and they need to protect their families,” US correspondent for Australian network Nine News Amelia Adams tweeted about the current situation.
John Gore, 39, who lined up outside the Martin B Retting store recently said, “Politicians and anti-gun people have been telling us for the longest time that we don’t need guns. But right now, a lot of people are truly scared, and they can make that decision themselves.”
Another person named Anna, who had never bought a gun before, said, “It’s not like an active panic, more a preoccupation with making sure everyone is adequately prepared, myself and family and friends. Better to be prepared and not need it than need it and not have it.”
Meanwhile, online ammunition store Ammo.com stated that it has noticed an increase of 68 percent in sales from February 23 - when Italy's major outbreak was first reported. Arcadia Firearm & Safety David Liu told CBSN that many are fearing for their safety should people in their local area catch the bug.