Sighting
in on the Gun Grabbers
by Sunni Maravillosa
In a lovely sequence over the past several
months, much like dominoes toppling, we have seen Rosie O�Donnell, Citibank
Visa, and now Smith and Wesson take the consequences of their choices to try to
restrict an individual�s right to keep and bear arms in the United States. As
gratifying as that is, the forces driving those falling dominoes are even more
worthy of note. While these are but small victories in the ongoing struggle to
keep our rights as affirmed by the second amendment, the fact that they are
positive steps is encouraging.
Rosie O�Donnell, long a
spokesman for K-Mart, was fired
in November, 1999, primarily because her strident gun-control carping is at odds
with the company�s success as a leading national retailer of firearms (She�s
also apparently something of a hypocrite, as her bodyguard has recently applied
for a concealed carry permit.) According to K-Mart officials, the relationship
was severed because of the negative publicity Rosie brought the company. K-Mart
admits that much of it was from individuals who value and understand the
importance of gun ownership by private citizens.
Four months later, in March
of this year, Citibank Visa found itself receiving nasty letters, cut-up cards,
and calls for a boycott of its services after it informed the Nevada Pistol
Academy that its account would be closed because of Citibank�s policy of
�not maintaining accounts for businesses that deal in weapons� The
company �explained� that the decision was that of a branch bank, and not the
official company, yet hastily issued a statement clarifying that �small
businesses engaged in the manufacture or sale of small firearms will be
evaluated in the same manner as any other small business�. Citibank�s turnaround
came after the academy shared copies of the letter with gun dealers it does
business with. They then spread the word to gun dealers across the country via
fax and e-mail, and effectively pressured the company to reverse the decision.
And just last week, Smith and
Wesson announced that it�s closing
two of its manufacturing plants for at least a month, in part due to �normal
summer softness in the firearms market�. Mmm-hmm. That�s why I generally see
a surge in the number of people at the gun range about this time of year, as
they test their new weapons and sight in new rifles before the start of hunting
season. S & W did acknowledge that �the reaction of some consumers to the
agreement� (with the Clinton administration to put mandatory locks and other
features on all their guns in exchange for being dropped from several lawsuits)
also contributed to the closings. �Some consumers�, eh? How about just about
everyone who values the second amendment and doesn�t want to see it further
emasculated, particularly not by a company which should
have the integrity to proudly support its products? I know of no one�and I
know a fair share of gunnies from the various places I hang my
cyber-hat�who�s buying from �the traitors�. Many of them have also
signed on to L.
Neil Smith�s campaign to change the name of a .40 caliber round from
�.40 Smith and Wesson� to �.40 Liberty�, to make the point clear that
they want to have absolutely nothing to do with RKBA sellouts.
While it�s much too early
to begin popping the champagne to celebrate the end of the assault on RKBA, each
of these decisions represents a significant step forward to stem the tide of
increasing gun control. It�s generally been assumed that the gun grabbers
speak for mainstream America. Even if that is accurate�something I harbor
strong suspicions about, as lots of Americans have grown up and continue to grow
up with an educated exposure to firearms�these wins show that to be largely
irrelevant. What mainstream America may or may not want counts little with those
who understand and want to preserve their right to firearms ownership, and
they�ll continue to get engaged in the battle.
And that�s really the crux
of the matter here. As happy as I am to see these bits of progress, we�ve
still a long, long way to go with the 2nd amendment before we can
claim a victory�if ever. The do-gooders will always be around, and will always
want to watch out for us, poor benighted souls that we are, who can�t be
trusted to live responsibly on our own. What counts is that in each of these
cases, it was individual action that
spurred the avalanche that ultimately toppled the high and mighty.
I don�t dismiss the value
of the true pro-RKBA organizations out there. Older ones, such as Jews for the
Preservation of Firearms and Gun Owners of America, have been doing good work
for years. Their emphasis has been largely in the electoral political arena,
however, and that�s a tough sell these days. Other, new organizations have
taken up the fight on different fronts, and have done so with positive results.
Keep and Bear Arms (http://www.keepandbeararms.com/) is a new, terrific
informational Web site that is still getting set up, but is seeing a lot of
positive activity according to executive director Angel Shamaya. And the Second
Amendment Sisters, born out of the need to refute the silliness of the Million
Moms March, is the creation of several women who recognized the need for
action and put the organization together themselves, rather than wait for
someone else to take the initiative. They�re now working on longer-term
strategies and activist projects.
In a way, these new
organizations underscore my point: their approaches are largely fresh and
different, and attract support from individuals who may be soured on the
electoral avenue of activism. They all can be traced back to the inspiration and
dedication of one or a few individuals, and speak effectively to the power of
the individual in bringing about change. Every victory begins with someone
holding the flag aloft and shouting, �Charge!�
Don�t think you have it in
you to be a leader? Not everyone needs to be; for a battle to be successful,
many troops need to be massed behind that flag, carrying the energy forward to
win the day. Taking part in protest actions, writing letters to gun
manufacturers and other businesses regarding their RKBA policy, forwarding
e-mail announcements of pro-RKBA Web sites and activities, or taking a
non-shooting friend to the range for an afternoon are all important actions that
are small individually, but can add up to powerful results. Each action is
important. Each individual who gets involved to defend our second amendment
rights is crucial to our success.
Sunni is a psychologist and
longtime freedom activist, with a special interest in RKBA. More of her work is
available at http://www.DoingFreedom.com
and http://home.LRT.org.
We highly recommend her DoingFreedom project, and we are grateful for her
passionate stance for FREEDOM. Go, Sunni, GO!
