Company's 'Block19' Covers Guns in Legos

A company in Utah is facing backlash after bringing a "childhood [dream] ... to life." That dream, per Culper Precision: a kit that allows handgun aficionados to encase their Glocks in red, yellow, and blue Legos. "We have been building guns out of blocks for the last 30 years and wanted to flip the script to aggravate Mom," the company said on its site during its initial promotion for the Block19, which was selling for between $549 and $765, reports the Washington Post. The company added on social media and its website that the product was the sole "logical solution" against those trying to "tread on" the Second Amendment, as well as a way for gun owners to enjoy their firearms. "We ... built this to highlight the pure enjoyment of the shooting sports ... and the inherent fun, satisfaction, and joy that comes from participation in them." Not everyone agrees, including parents and gun safety lobbyists who are outraged by the design, which experts tell the Post is legal.

"Unintentional shootings among children have risen by 30% in the past year," Shannon Watts, founder of the Moms Demand Action nonprofit, noted in a tweet. Even commenters on a gun blog promoting the product seemed wary. "This, if real, is the most irresponsible gun modification I have seen in a long time," one person wrote. Culper Precision President Brandon Scott tells the Post that most of the people he'd heard from thought the Block19 was "super cool," and that if a customer's child ended up accidentally getting shot with one, that would be the customer's fault, not his company's. On both social media and its site, Culper Precision doubled down, saying it's "grateful for the attention" its product is attracting. "People have the right to customize their property to make it look like whatever they want," its site notes. Lego apparently doesn't agree: Scott says that before he'd sold 20 kits, the company sent him a cease-and-desist letter, which he has decided to respect. (More guns stories.)