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An excellent franchise
Wayne Lapierre and his National Rifle Association have an excellent franchise; they sell fear and they do that superbly.
When you're frightened of either crime or your government you buy a gun or maybe 10. Lapierre makes about a million dollars a year as executive vice president of the NRA and has held that job for over 20 years.
The 4 million dues-paying members are carefully informed about the current crime or government outrage. Gun sales are skyrocketing. Gun manufacturers, both foreign and domestic, contribute another $80 million to help support NRA's lobbying efforts against gun control.
Lapierre tells us that we need armed guards in our schools to keep the kids safe; an armed deputy at Columbine was joined by another officer, but with semi-automatic weapons the kids and the shooters were dead before these policemen could be effective.
The Newtown shooter's mother had trained with her personal weapons; he killed her first, then stole her guns.
Their mantra is "law-abiding citizens." All inmates in Jackson Prison were once "law-abiding citizens—¦ until they weren't. The Texas Tower sniper who killed 14 and wounded 32 was an Eagle Scout and a "law-abiding citizen" — until one day he wasn't.
Henry E. Klugh
Traverse City
