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Firearms Silent Night Guns

Under fire 'Silent Night' gun ad maintains it wasn't trying to arm Jesus

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By Tony Connelly, Sports Marketing Reporter

December 7, 2015 | 3 min read

A US firearms outlet has provoked both anti-gun lobbyists and Christians with a Christmas billboard ad which reads ‘Silent Night’ featuring a picture of a gun fitted with a silencer extension.

Silent Night gun ad

The Palmetto State Armory has come under fire for the advertisement which puts a unique spin on the ‘Silent Night’ Christmas carol with a billboard ad showing a silencer extension for a semi-automatic pistol.

The festive campaign is running across billboards in Columbia, South Carolina and has generated a lot of negative feedback across the board.

Jack Swerling, an attorney general in South Carolina, flagged up the controversial ad on his Facebook page with a post saying “I'm a gun owner myself with a concealed weapon permit so I'm not opposed to the legitimate use of weapons by responsible people; however I don't find this advertisement to be funny or appropriate as a holiday advertisement considering the current climate in our state or country.”

Hundreds commented on the ad with many firearms supporters condemning the approach as “inappropriate” and “disgusting”.

Palmetto State Armory’s marketing officer Adam Ruonala defended the approach used in the ad which he created. In an interview with CCN Ruonala maintained that “there are a lot of people who really enjoy the humour behind the ad.

He acknowledge that there were many people who “didn’t necessarily like it” but argued that the ad was not trying to “tie Jesus to firearms”.

Gun crime in the US has been a huge source of contention following a string of mass shootings this year and President Obama’s call to end the gun debate and ban firearms.

The New York Times recent front page editorial, its first in almost 100 years, called for tighter gun controls in the aftermath of the San Bernardino shootings. It was met with both support and anger, with one US blogger sharing images of the page covered in bullet holes after shooting it as a sign of protest against the stance.

Firearms Silent Night Guns

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