Posted on 06/15/2013 4:26:42 PM PDT by forty_years
Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York City, billionaire, desiring to rewrite the constitution, and countrywide buttinski suffered a major "gun control" loss on Thursday in Nevada. He and his pet group, Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG), "spent hundreds of thousands of dollars" to buy passage of the Nevada state legislature's bill SB 221, another dangerous piece of gun control legislation dressed up to look palatable by applying the innocuous-sounding "background check" label to it. Bloomberg lost, and lost big-time, not because of a paid opposition wading in money, but because of a viral grass-roots effort organized by average Americans provided with information by several pro-Second Amendment advocacy groups. Bloom-baby: Money can't buy you love.
New York City's mayor plays machine politics, thinking that his billions can be used to buy the hearts and minds of American citizens. Bloomberg is thinking top-down. He is "a founding member of the group" MAIG, so how could this group be a spontaneous offspring of concerned citizens? He's paying mercenaries to pursue his own agenda, and the ethics of his money-pump are being investigated by Judicial Watch. He and his allies immediately concluded that the ricin-tainted letters sent to him were an effort to stop his anti-gun crusade, but the truth behind the story was that some pathetic has-been actress decided to throw a tantrum and frame her soon-to-be ex-husband. Bloomberg's efforts are not grassroots, while the opposition to his recent Nevada campaign was grassroots.
So let's explore an example of how an average schmo like me lent a hand to supporting Nevadan's gun rights. I was working from home when a new email popped up in MS Outlook from the Gun Owners of America (GOA) entitled, "You Could Encourage the Nevada Governor to Veto Gun Control!" It stated:
... Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval (R) is trying to decide whether he should sign or veto SB 221, a bill so extreme that the left-of-center United States Senate even voted down a version of it.
If he signs this Universal Background Check bill, it will have ramifications for you -- even if you don't live in the Silver State.
So please call 775-684-5670 and press "2" -- to vote AGAINST the universal background check bill (SB 221). You don't have to live in the state. You don't even have to give your name or address -- the entire process is automated and it will take you less than 13 seconds. ...
I leapt for my weapon, my cell phone, called the number provided by the GOA and pressed 2 (urging Nevada's governor to veto SB 221). I called about 15 friends and acquaintances. Most of them called and pressed 2. I forwarded the GOA email/link to all my many pro-Second Amendment allies. I posted the GOA link to many groups on Facebook. I tweeted the GOA link to many people via Twitter. I posted the GOA link on conservative sites like Free Republic. I noticed that many people people "Liked" and "Shared" the GOA link, spreading it all over Facebook. People left comments like, "Done," "Shared," and, "Just called." I noticed that many people on Twitter re-tweeted my link and responded to me similarly with comments like "Re-tweeted," "Thanks!," "Done," "Will do..." Do you think I'm the only person who responded to GOA's email?
Lot's of other average Joes and Janes did the same thing I did. The word was out. The genie was out of the bottle. I'm sure other pro-Second Amendment groups and individuals acted immediately. The GOA reported on the veto of Nevada SB 221 yesterday -- tooting its own horn -- but they earned the right to:
... The Associated Press reports that, "It is a significant defeat for New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's gun control advocacy group, Mayors Against Illegal Guns [MAIG]. The organization spent hundreds of thousands of dollars working to get the bill passed through to the governor."
Despite Bloomberg's fortune, his anti-gun MAIG simply doesn't have the grassroots behind it.
GOA was joined by other groups on Tuesday, June 4, in asking Nevada gun owners to urge Sandoval to veto the legislation.
The next day, reports the Las Vegas Review-Journal, "2,200 people called his office between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.... Four out of five calls [were] for the veto."
According to the Journal, this onslaught was one of the chief reasons that the Governor set up a hotline number. His office simply couldn't get work done as they were being "bombarded by calls from people who want the governor to veto the gun control bill passed by the Legislature."
Once the Governor set up a hotline number -- and Bloomberg started running ads urging people nationwide to call it -- GOA urged gun owners nationwide (last Friday) to call Sandoval's office.
As of this past Tuesday, more than 100,000 calls had already been placed to the Governor. And this just underscores how important it is for gun owners to join GOA's email service. ...
Note that Alex Newman, writing for the The New American, feels that:
... Gun Owners of America, widely considered the most principled gun-rights organization, pointed out that citizens made the difference -- defeating big money from out-of-state Astroturf groups like Bloomberg's "Mayors Against Illegal Guns," which spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on its effort in Nevada. ...
Earlier this year, I organized a grass-roots effort by average New Mexicans to oppose "gun control" at the state level. Note that many other New Mexicans also did their thing to oppose anti-Second Amendment sentiment in the state house, so by no means am I trying to take credit for the fact that a bunch of individuals and small, loosely organized groups, with no funding, defeated every "gun control" measure introduced into the New Mexico State Legislature in the 2013 session. (Click here for details of what I did personally). My success was due greatly to the work of my compatriots spreading the word about two websites I coded and put online enabling New Mexicans to contact their state reps and defeat New Mexico House Bills 77 (3328 emails sent) and 402 (4914 emails sent), two very dangerous "gun control" measures. How did I get started?
Because I'm a National Rifle Association (NRA) member and the NRA is so well organized, they send me timely action alerts via email based on my address, providing me with legislative summaries, bill numbers, bill sponsors, talking points, etc. I acted on that information and didn't get paid a dime for my efforts. I actually pay dues to the NRA, GOA, and the National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR). So why is it that billionaires are losing and common folk winning?
The answer lies in the spirit of good old American citizens -- those who were raised with good, old-fashioned values; those who were taught about faith. People who support the Second Amendment understand that our Constitution is the law of the land, is a very common sense document, and was drafted by some of the greatest figures in world history, the Founding Fathers. Second Amendment supporters are free thinkers of the live-and-let-live variety. They believe in enlightened self interest -- in this case the right to self-defense and the responsibility to ensure that our republic remains a representative one. Unlike Mayor Bloomberg, who believes that "our interpretation of the Constitution will 'have to change'," gun owners generally are not moral relativists. They believe in the sanctity of our Constitution because the document has worked so well and has become the model for many fledgling democracies throughout history.
On the other hand, the belief system of Bloomberg's followers who oppose gun rights is largely rooted in nihilism and moral relativism. If the words "faith," "patriotism," "Christianity," and "Israel" are an anathema to them, what is there for them to believe in except what their "leaders" like Bloomberg tell them to believe? They have a whole lot of nothing that is well financed. Do they have any true cause? Because they live well while others don't, they feel guilty to the point of seeing the destruction of everything that has meaning. They're so possessed by fear of say, terrorism, that they'll appease their enemies in the false belief that those enemies will be placated. They are afraid even of defending themselves. So afraid of thinking for themselves, they cede control to people who like telling other people what to do. All their money and organization cannot fill or assuage their fears; cannot fill their huge gaping hole -- a natural human yearning for meaning. Their fantasy island does not provide a moral or intellectual firmness to truly accomplish anything.
In an article entitled, "To Obama's dismay, America not outraged by gun control fail, poll suggests," the author perhaps gets to the heart of the gun control failure:
... But the real takeaway, some say, is that the gun control debate played into the broader narrative of America's enduring libertarian streak. ... Americans are loath to tell their neighbors what to do. ...
Thursday's defeat of Nevada's SB 221 highlights the possibility that:
... out-of-touch billionaires and their bogus polls were losing the nationwide battle to strip Americans' God-given right to keep and bear arms. ...
"Bogus polls" indeed:
In the wake of the Senate defeat of a measure to expand background checks on gun purchases, an AP/GfK survey shows that, contrary to Obama's insistence that 90 percent of Americans favor tightened gun laws, there is a healthy -- and increasing -- resistance to the president's gun control plan, which includes a universal background check, a provision Second Amendment advocates warn will ultimately lead to a national registry of gun owners.
While 49 percent of those polled in the survey said they think gun laws should be tightened up, the Associated Press noted that those numbers are down from 58 percent in January -- just a month after the tragic Newtown, Connecticut, shootings, when the president and congressional Democrats were capitalizing on the emotions of the moment. Over the past three months, even as the White House has trotted out Newtown parents and others impacted by violence committed with guns as props in its gun control strategy, Americans have begun reconsidering the implications of increased federal gun regulations. The AP poll noted that a total of 52 percent of Americans now disapprove of Obama's gun control efforts. ...
Many other public opinion surveys are providing evidence that Americans are not very interested in "gun control," and that the issue is not a priority for them. I've gathered some poll numbers that anti-Second Amendment politicians should take into account before national elections in 2014 (so tell your reps). Of Americans surveyed, 1) "58 percent of people worry that stricter gun legislation would make it more difficult for people to protect their families;" 2) only 4 percent consider gun control the "most important problem facing this country today;" and, 3) only 47 percent "say they are 'angry' or 'disappointed' that gun legislation failed to pass." Regarding a very important subset of U.S. citizenry, "15,000 verified law enforcement professionals" taking part in a recent gun control survey "oppose the theories brought forth by gun-control advocates" and "feel that those [gun] controls will negatively affect their ability to fight violent criminals." Click here to read the original article containing details on these surveys. Also note that, since that article was written, I've found that:
... the latest Reason-Rupe national poll finds just 33 percent of Americans feel the "Senate should debate and vote on gun control legislation again," while 62 percent want the Senate to "move on to other issues." ...
The so-called "gun lobby" isn't some monolithic political machine buying votes. There are some large pro-Second Amendment organizations like the National Rifle Association (NRA), Gun Owners of America (GOA), and Nation Association for Gun Rights (NAGR). They do engage in lobbying, but that's how the game is played. Bloomberg's MAIG is proof-positive of massive money being used for lobbying, and MAIG and their ilk play hardball; so naturally, their opponents need to play some hardball too. There is a great difference between Bloomberg et al and the pro-Second Amendment groups: those supporting the right to bear arms are all about grassroots politics, and their greatest strength is in their memberships of citizen activists who largely accomplish their lobbying by directly communicating with their elected representatives. As we saw with the Nevada veto, the defeat of anti-gun legislation in New Mexico, and the defeat of the Obama/Schumer/Toomey/Manchin/Reid federal "background check" legislation, gun owners/supporters won these battles by deluging their political representatives with individual faxes, phone calls, letters, and emails. Pro-Second Amendment citizen activists tend to know the Constitution, current laws, bill specifics (often better than their reps), and they know how to contact and communicate with their reps effectively.
There is an article in Forbes entitled, "Five Reasons The NRA Won The Recent Gun Control Debate That Have Nothing To Do With Politics." It is a must-read. Here is a teaser:
... I'm going to share with you 5 reasons why the NRA won, and they have nothing to do with the often reported reasons like their PAC funds, their ability to turn out pro-gun voters in every legislative district, and the abundance of their skilled in-house and external lobbyists, although those are all true.
They simply execute the basics extremely well. ...
1. Transformational vs. Transactional Leadership...
2. Superior Grassroots Volunteer Quality...
3. Volunteers Who are Intrepid in "Showing They Know"...
4. Investment in the Power of FTF ["Face To Face"]...
5. Narrative Goes Both Ways...
Politicians know that individual citizens who take the time to personally contact their representatives are voters, and votes win elections. Bloomberg can spend all the money he wants, and hire all the mercenaries he can afford, but his efforts smell of automation and a lack of sincerity. The mayor and his crowd are not winning the hearts and minds of Americans. Citizens of the U.S. -- gun owners -- are acting out of faith, patriotism, and a reverence for the founding principles of this nation. In this struggle between power-mongers like Bloomberg with nihilistic, paid acolytes against true American patriots with faith, the patriots will win.
Now is not the time for complacency. Email, call, fax, and/or send a letter to your state and national elected representatives reminding them to provide unwavering support for the Second Amendment. Don't worry if you're represented by someone like Harry Reid or Dianne Feinstein. Just contact them. Make your voice be heard. Remind them that you're a constituent. Also, consider joining a pro-Second Amendment advocacy group. At the least, you'll benefit from the timely action alerts they send you so you'll be aware of what's going on regarding legislation in your state and at the national level. At best, you'll become a citizen advocate, a defender of the Second Amendment, and a defender of the Constitution -- and you will be supporting the efforts of other like-minded people.
Resources for you to get involved
Contact your elected reps
Join organizations advocating for the Second Amendment (I belong to all of these personally):
Learn how to lobby
Vote with your wallet
Bloomberg lost, and lost big-time, not because of a paid opposition wading in money, but because of a viral grass-roots effort organized by average Americans provided with information by several pro-Second Amendment advocacy groups.
The great pity is Bloomberg and the rest of the self-proclaimed "progressives" never learn anything from history, so they'll return to fight the same battle, and fight it again, and again, and again until they achieve some large or small portion of a so-called "compromise," which will prompt them to fight new battles for the next incremental loss of our freedom.
Some day, self-proclaimed "liberalism" and "progressivism" will take their rightful place on the same shelf with slavery, Jim Crow, racial segregation, and other monumentally, utterly wrong ideas. America makes progress. Self-proclaimed "progressives" fight it every inch of the way.
Just wait for the midterm elections! The left will never show it but I do think they know what’s coming.They are going to hit the gun agenda HARD before then.
Money for nuthin’ and checks for pffft!
It will be average citizens who take back America and restore her greatNes not politicians.
Bloomberg didn't lose anything. He simply failed to destroy some of out rights, but he and his evil friends lost nothing. Money you say? Inconsequential to him. He'll simply pass the cost on to the morons of NY who voted for him
When we lose, we actually lose something. When the antigunners lose they haven't lost any rights. They're not in danger of having their property confiscated or going to jail for violating some tyrannical malum prohibitum law They face no consequences for losing.
Bloomberg didn't lose anything. He simply failed to destroy some of out rights, but he and his evil friends lost nothing. Money you say? Inconsequential to him. He'll simply pass the cost on to the morons of NY who voted for himWhen we lose, we actually lose something. When the antigunners lose they haven't lost any rights. They're not in danger of having their property confiscated or going to jail for violating some tyrannical malum prohibitum law They face no consequences for losing.
I'm going to have to stand mostly corrected, from occupied ga. I hadn't thought of it in terms of "They face no consequences for losing," so thanks, eh?
I think anti-Second Amendment bigots do lose face, as well as momentum in the marketplace of ideas. Are those great losses or trivial? I have a hunch we can make them great losses if we try hard enough.
President You Didn't Build That and Joey "the Genius" Biden are said to be on the verge of trying to recreate the momentum of their recent efforts in anti-Second Amendment bigotry. Will they succed? Won't they? I suspect the answer to that resides in whether they can capitalize on another uncommonly ugly mass murder.
I live in Colorado, whose wholly Democratic [sic] party-controlled government recently went berserk with anti-Second Amendment bigotry legislation. Two high representatives of that party are now facing recall elections, and the governor, the whacko leftist extremist former mayor of Denver, is dead in the water politically. It's too soon to declare victory, and even if we win, these won't add up to triumphs for the American way, but they'll be modest victories.
Will that be enough to warn off other leftist extremist predators? Maybe for awhile. Even when we win, our victories are never better than temporary, and for some reason, it doesn't seem to have occurred to us to stop fighting defensively and start fighting offensively.
Best of luck with that
Will that be enough to warn off other leftist extremist predators?
As long as there are two types of people - those who want to be left alone to enjoy their lives, and the other group, those who want to control everyone, I suspect that there will be anti-guners ceaslessly crawling our from under rocks. Again the problem is asymmetry. There are no consequences for anti-gunners if they fail to pass their tyrannical legislation. I frankly don't know how you would practically attach consequences to them. Boycott their businesses? Most of them don't seem to work. You'll notice those who attend anti-gun rallies don't even look gainfully employed let alone own businesses. Doing what y'all in CO are doing - recall elections? That is an expensive project with no sure outcome. I really hope that you kick those smug liberal bastards out on their asses, but there are always more of them to take their places.
I heard on the radio this morning that 50% of the population doesn't trust 0bama. Really? What's wrong with the other half? Same applies to the anti-gunners. There are a number of them out there who fear freedom and firearms, and no only don;'t want to be free but don't want anyone else to be free either. There isn't anything that you can take away from them that they care about. Maybe REAL welfare cutbacks. Stigmatization in social media? I just don't know.
There are a number of them out there who fear freedom and firearms, and no only don;'t want to be free but don't want anyone else to be free either. There isn't anything that you can take away from them that they care about.
I sorely wish I could argue against your statement, occupied ga. It doesn't even take half the population, but a small percentage who hate freedom, to make life miserable for the rest of us.
I would say New Yorkers on the whole fall into the category of hating and fearing freedom in themselves and others. Notice how many GOA F- rated politicians come from NY.
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