A recent front page story in the local Arizona paper described how Gabrielle Giffords had finally been told of the other people that were murdered that awful Saturday morning last January. She certainly had to already know the fate of the people that accompanied her to the event. But to learn of the little girl, the judge and others had to be very, very tough information to process.
Around the same time, a good friend had received a solicitation from the NRA and thought I would be interested in having a look at it. OMFG. The 2-1/2 page letter starts out with this sentence: "Today, I'm sending out this "Final Notice" to gun owners and freedom-loving Americans across the country to let you know that time is running out - unless you act now, your Second Amendment rights are certain to be dismantled and destroyed". Gulp! I had no idea things were so precarious for a freedom loving American like myself, that my gun rights were about to be destroyed, and on top of that it's the "final notice" to the recipient before being drug from their homes in the middle of the night and locked away forever in some gulag unidentified by this letter. How else to lose one's freedom? Evidently, powerful gun ban politicians like Hillary Clinton, Charles Schumer (oh, he's a scary guy) and Michael Bloomberg stand ready to fight for an agenda that will ban hundreds of popular rifles, pistols, shotguns (really, shotguns?); limit what guns you can own; bankrupt gun manufacturers and close gun shops and shows. Hellfire, the infamous "THEY" is coming to get your guns boy, and if you don't send 25.00 to this "non-partisan" organization of greedy, bat-shit paranoids it's all over dude. Interestingly, the word "fight" is used many times, and usually precedes the word freedom. I guess the NRA believes that the word "fight" is key to getting gun owners wound up.
Now, maybe I'm the one that's bat-shit crazy here, but I do believe the state of Arizona just passed a number of freedom-enhancing gun-laws in the last Legislative session. For instance, anyone 21 years or older can carry a concealed weapon without a permit, even into a frickin bar. Yeah, alcohol and guns, now that's freedom. Of course, an unconcealed gun can be carried on a person anywhere in the state, including while riding your horse to the round-up. This little known fact was on full display by some glory seeking schmuck at an anti-Obama rally in Phoenix a while back. Another new state law stripped cities and counties of the ability to limit firearms from being discharged within their boundries, the only limitation being if the gun is within 1/4 mile of an occupied structure. Huh? Can't bullets easily travel up to a mile? Well that's certainly sensible. Oh, and people previously diagnosed as mentally ill who then become "cured" can buy guns again. Yippee! Now in the spirit of full disclosure, the Gov did veto the right of people to carry guns on state university campuses, and the gun lobby was shocked. Yet I did not see Jan Brewer's name in the NRA letter next to Hillary's - uhm, perhaps it was just an honest oversight.
So, what's the big deal about over-selling a membership in a "grass-roots" organization like the NRA? I mean, the people being targeted have the liberty, the freedom to send in their 25.00 and save this country from this apparent oppression. I am, in fact, a gun owner - several rifles, a shotgun and a hand gun. Last time I checked, this allows me to hunt just about any type of wild beast around these parts and protect my home. But this kind of talk is too rational, too sensible, and distracts from the bullshit message that this country is in a "fight" to keep the citizens armed when in fact it's just the opposite. The U.S. already has the most unbelievably laxed gun laws on the planet. In Arizona, they just keep getting more gun friendly - and dangerous. Who wants some whack-job firing off a high-powered rifle 1/4 mile away from their home? And what is the purpose of having an assault, fully-automatic gun available for purchase by the average hunter? This is a weapon to kill people, nothing else. Yet the ban on these guns was not reenacted when that provision of the Brady bill came up for a new vote years ago. No other country in the world has such liberal and stupid gun laws, and no other country comes remotely close to the number of violent deaths of it's citizens from guns. But in the twisted logic of the NRA, that's the reason for easier access to guns so we can "fight" the perps using guns to kill and maim with even more guns to kill and maim and so on and so on.
Gabrielle Giffords' shooting was framed this way. Instead of a coherent, logical discussion of some type of changes to our laws to help keep guns out of the hands of violent, unbalanced people, we just need more guns to shoot them first. Yeah, that's what's going to happen. This message of fear continues it's ugly march forward, reminding us that we must elect politicians that deficit spend on wars and defense budgets to protect us from terrorists that several generations ago used sling-shots to fight each other (until we armed them), and also reminding us we must contribute cash to bully organizations that feed this frenzy of fear because THEY are coming to get your guns! And THEY are absolutely not the least bit concerned about the fact that they're coming to get a device that is completely lethal. THEY better show up in a tank.
You are so right.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who has no problem with gun ownership, I couldn't agree more. This notion that gun rights are under attack, in the most gun-friendly first-world nation on earth, is so ludicrous that it defies belief. It reminds me of Christians crying that Christmas is under attack, in a country where there is literally no nationally relevant elected official who is an admitted atheist--despite polls showing that a decent percentage of Americans are (especially those with a college education or more).
I think it really just boils down to thinly veiled racism. There is certainly the fear that "the government" is going to come take your guns, but the real point that the NRA is making is that you NEED guns in the first place to protect yourself in the inevitable race war that is supposedly brewing. These gun nuts live in an alternate reality. They are being fucked on a daily basis by the corrupt politicians they elect and the greedy corporations they beg for employment and are none the wiser. They don't care that their income has stagnated for the last 20 years while corporate profits have skyrocketed. They don't care that this country spends TRILLIONS of their dollars blowing up the rest of the world while their infrastructure deteriorates. They don't care about the hordes of American children that die for lack of health care while they rail against the "murder" of fertilized embryos that can barely be seen with a microscope. They are literally so scared of blacks and Mexicans that it is the only issue that motivates their vote. It would be hilarious if it weren't so tragic.
Oh, and the funniest thing of all is that these dumbass libertarian gun right assholes think their right to bear arms can stand a chance against the US military. Guess what, rednecks: if THE GUBMENT wants to kill you because you're about to rise up in protest, your M16 is not going to cut it. They will push a button from a thousand miles away and your little militial compound will be glass. Maybe instead of prepping for the apocalypse that you think is so inevitable, you should start electing politicians who actually care about your rights and interests. But that would require taking some personal responsibility and where is the fun conspiracy nuttiness in that?
Best rant yet....I totally agree, with both you and Donovan. If only there were a way to convince the masses.
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