Wayne LaPierre
United States – -(AmmoLand.com)- When we are discussing the present situation, to include how to defeat the long game being used by anti-Second Amendment extremists, one big thing we need to do is to understand that the fight has shifted. We’re no longer just fighting the normal battle on political and legislative fronts. The fight has now expanded to cultural outlets, corporate boardrooms, Silicon Valley censorship, and social stigmatization. It is now a full-spectrum fight.
The fact is, Second Amendment supporters and the organizations we have relied on to defend the Second Amendment, including the National Rifle Association, Gun Owners of America, and others, have been really ill-equipped for this expanded fight. The blame for the lack of preparation goes to everyone, from Wayne LaPierre, Larry Pratt, and other big names to the average Second Amendment supporter, including myself.
The fact is, Second Amendment supporters were too busy fighting amongst ourselves when we should have been keeping an eye on what Michael Bloomberg and other anti-Second Amendment extremists were doing, and either preparing to address their schemes or finding ways to minimize the damage. This failure of planning belongs to all of us.
Pro-Second Amendment groups and Second Amendment supporters did little, if anything, to put pressure on Hollywood to respect our rights. Corporate boardrooms were ignored – as long as they weren’t bothering us, we left them alone. The same applied to Silicon Valley. All in all, it was a stew of complacency that has now come back to bite us. It wasn’t like we didn’t have warnings going as far back as 1995.
This is why Wayne LaPierre should step down after the 2020 elections. If President Trump wins re-election, we have time and breathing room to address these new threats. If he is defeated, then it will be time for new blood to address a situation worse than our present situation. At a minimum, the social stigmatization of Second Amendment supporters would be backed by the bully pulpit in the White House. More likely, we would see a replication of the same tactics used by Andrew Cuomo, as well as something akin to the “John Doe” investigations in Wisconsin in addition to the increased social stigmatization.
This is no small matter. In fact, that combination could be devastating to the many grassroots volunteers who are working to protect our Second Amendment rights, to say nothing of those who have devoted their professional lives to it as well. The chilling effect of the “John Doe” investigations could very well have swung the 2018 gubernatorial election against Scott Walker, a champion of our Second Amendment rights.
Second Amendment supporters win the arguments when they can present the facts to the American people. Pending campaign finance legislation threatens the right to make the argument in the first place. In addition, such legislation would likely be struck down on First Amendment grounds with the present Supreme Court, but a packed court would be a different story altogether.
The reality is that the fight for our Second Amendment rights is now one that covers the full spectrum. We not only need to fight bad legislation and enact good legislation as well as supporting those officials who defend our rights, but we need to expand our horizons. The fight for our freedoms now extends from comic books to a cubicle in the headquarters of Facebook. It could take place in a meeting room at a Fortune 500 company or in a local PTA meeting.
We will need creative writers who can tell compelling stories that counter anti-Second Amendment narratives as much as we need lawyers for legal action. We will need people who speak fluent Spanish, who could go on Univision or Telemundo to explain Second Amendment issues as much as we need lobbyists. We will need Second Amendment supporters who are into information technology to work at places like Facebook and Google – or to start the next big IT company – as much as we need NRA-certified instructors. It short, it will be important for Second Amendment supporters to reach out to all walks of life and to come from all walks of life.
About Harold Hutchison
Writer Harold Hutchison has more than a dozen years of experience covering military affairs, international events, U.S. politics and Second Amendment issues. Harold was consulting senior editor at Soldier of Fortune magazine and is the author of the novel Strike Group Reagan. He has also written for the Daily Caller, National Review, Patriot Post, Strategypage.com, and other national websites.
