FEAR is the fuel that powers the NRA engine. What else could prompt Dana Loesch, NRA spokeswoman, to bellow, “[Journalists] are the rat bastards of the earth. They are the boil on the backside of American politics…. Journalists need to be curb-stomped…. I’m happy, frankly, to see them curb-stomped. I mean let’s be real about it.” (Source: INDEPENDENT, 29 June 2018) Loesch’s defensiveness unearths NRA fear of gun violence truth. She knows that truth-finding journalists threaten NRA viability.
Journalists reported that there were over 50,000 gun incidents in the USA in 2017. Journalists also reported that the F.B.I. specified a 17% increase in race incidents from 2016, a 60% increase for three years in a row. Many of the race incidents are gun related. Do you suppose FEAR has anything to do with the increase?
Do you suppose FEAR has anything to do with Milo Yiannopoulis, a former Breitbart news editor, saying “… he was looking forward to vigilantes ‘gunning down journalists on sight,’ just a month before five people were murdered at the CAPITOL GAZETTE offices in Maryland.'” (Southern Poverty Law Center, “Hate and Extremism in 2018”) There go those truth-seeking journalists telling of the paucity within Milo’s soul, something he wants to cover-up. So, kill the truth-tellers! Bring on the hit-men and man them up with guns! The poison of fear will energize the trigger fingers! Bullets will settle the issue. Fear will be exorcized by the bullet!
FEAR happens when power is threatened. I read recently that money/dues to the NRA have declined by $35 million over the past year. Do you suppose the shootings have anything to do with this change? Follow the money. Lack of money surfaces fear for the NRA.
FEAR and power go together. President Trump is an avid supporter of the NRA. He proclaimed on 31 March 2016, that “Real power is – I don’t even want to use the word – fear.” (Source: Bob Woodword’s book, FEAR) Interestingly, President Trump wants to build a wall between the USA and Mexico. Why? FEAR of the other. Brenda Salter McNeil, an Evangelical Covenant Church pastor in Seattle, says “[Fears] nourish a scarcity mindset that leads to building walls.” (SOJOURNERS, December 2018) Connecting the dots we can see: NRA, xenophobia, President Trump and walls all = FEAR.
Why is it that we usually see weapons among the demonstrations headlined by the thuggish Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer groups? (SPLC) Could FEAR be a reason? Guns and bullets drive away fear. Right?
I have yet to read or hear of the NRA putting forth game-changing laws to address gun violence other than promoting “good guys having guns.” I suggest that the NRA relies on FEAR to sell guns and dignify gun violence. The NRA uses FEAR to sicken America’s ideal of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
How do we deal with the power of fear? “Perfect loves casts out fear.” (I John 4:18) The NRA needs to pay attention to Christ’s love.
Peace!
Rev. Ron Letnes