By popular demand, a post devoted specifically to this borderline insane pamphlet (pdf), entitled “Freedom In Peril: Guarding the 2nd Amendment in the 21st Century,” by the National Rifle Association. The legal arguments surrounding the Second Amendment and the D.C. Circuit’s recent decision are interesting and difficult. I think most can agree, however, that with this pamphlet, the NRA has once and for all careened off the highway of reasoned discourse into the roadside ditch of genuine paranoia. The thing is so far off the wall that, when Wonkette first leaked it, there was initially suspicion that it was a hoax, but the NRA has confirmed that the pamphlet is authentic, though supposedly in “draft form.”
As I noted in a previous post, the pamphlet’s text seems fairly standard-issue paranoid right-wing fantasy material. The illustrations, though, go well beyond the ordinary. Here are a couple of samples — you really need to click the link and read the whole thing in context.
George Soros, the all-seeing Jewish guy who’s behind the conspiracy to take your guns away.
These dudes are gonna git you, sucka, if you don’t have a gun.
But it’s not just the Negroes you need to worry about — if we’re not careful, we’ll be headed for one world government, and you know what that means! That’s right: everyone better start learning Chinese.
If you don’t join the NRA, the white cops will be unable to protect you.
No comment is required.
…the NRA has in the past done very good work in regards safe handling of firearms, training, etc. But that was before it became primarily a political organization.
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I guess there’s more money to be made in being a political organization than in being a gun safety and training organization.
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The one thing I can never forgive NRA for is that they had their demented spokeman Charlton Heston running around saying that gays hate straights. http://www.nracentra… That was an out and out lie.
the “animal rights terrorists” with the girl with the hairy legs.
I have to say I love the stylized artwork, no matter what the message may be, all that aside.
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They’re saying this is “draft” but the file name says “final.” I’d say this is pretty close to the final version that represents the fear mongering the NRA has resorted to to somehow maintain its sense of self-relevance. I agree with the post above, the NRA has done some good work, but this is just insane and completely unrelated to the 2nd amendment. It’s just fear/hate speech targetting the wrong people for the wrong reasons. Damn, what happened?
how deeply deluded the NRA is. These are some of the very same people who are pro-life? I say again after reading the posts here this morning: the hypocrisy needs to be exposed and we need candidates who are willing to reframe and lead the arguments against this type of insanity.
I have this image of Henry Gibson’s character (you know, the leader of the Illinois Nazis) in The Blues Brothers as being behind this. “The Jew is using the Black as muscle!”
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We can only hope this ends with Wayne LaPierre and Charlton Heston falling from 3000 feet up in a Pinto as the Chicago skyline appears in the background. (“I’ve always loved you.”)
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WF
(who never passes up the opportunity to make a Blues Brothers reference)
This is perfect stuff for the unit we do on propaganda. It’s also a perfect piece for the Peace Studies course I’m teaching right now. Can you say non-violent conflict resolution? I knew you could.
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Holy shit; this is stunning.
Iris, there’s an aid for your lesson from BoingBoing — the “notes.”
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and
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That’s terrific. Geez, this is scary stuff….