Anti-gun billionaire and former mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg, recently launched yet another attack on the Second Amendment. Mr. Bloomberg is a veteran in the war on guns waged by the Democratic Party and has funneled millions of dollars into the campaigns of many Democrats – and even a few Republicans – across the nation. However, his attempts to buy elections have backfired in more recent years, a fact that seems to necessitate a change of strategy. His ironically named answer to the NRA, Everytown for Gun Safety, revealed its new author’s council in mid-May. If this sounds a bit confusing, check this out:
Everytown for Gun Safety—the largest gun violence prevention non-profit in the country with more than three million supporters—has joined with a consortium of acclaimed authors to launch the Everytown Authors Council.
The group is open to authors, illustrators and editors; agents; and others deeply connected in the literary community. It is designed to harness the power of the literary community to amplify the gun safety movement. The group uses its collective reach and cultural influence to support commonsense solutions proven to save lives from the gun violence that claims 93 American lives every day and injures hundreds more.
Though the description avoids the word “propaganda” and similar terms, it is clear that they intend to advocate for gun control through art. The claim that they promote gun safety, however, is a bit misleading. Everytown’s ‘Who We Are’ page displays a timeline of victories. Among these gun-control victories is only one that apparently has anything to do with gun safety:
At Mayors’ urging, Congress repeals an NRA-backed provision prohibiting military commanders from talking to service members at risk of suicide about guns.
This 2012 win seems dubious at best. Why would the NRA back a law that prevents military commanders from talking to their soldiers about guns or suicide? According to a ThinkProgress article from 2011, the NRA-backed legislation is to blame for the high rate of suicides among military service members. However, in the midst of vilifying the NRA, they cited a report that explains the real reason the NRA supported the law:
The National Rifle Association pushed for the ban on personal gun restrictions earlier this year after learning these kinds of rules were being put in place locally at posts around the U.S. Chris Cox, director of the NRA’s lobbying arm, said in a message to members earlier this year that it was “preposterous” that commanders at Fort Riley, Kan., wanted troops to register privately owned weapons kept on and off base.
It’s not that the NRA opposed counseling for depressed soldiers – rather they just didn’t support a mandatory gun registry. Well, so much for the single gun safety win that wasn’t about cataloging and taking guns.
Don’t be fooled by the devious branding. Everytown is not a gun safety group. It’s an anti-gun group. Real gun safety and advocacy groups – like the NRA – actually teach firearm safety, encourage parents to teach their children how and when to use guns, and if financially possible, sponsor shooting ranges and other firearm safety instructors. The author’s council is simply an attempt by Michael Bloomberg and his minions to further influence common thought by politicizing the literature we read in our leisure time.
Given the well-established progressive bias in both the film industry and the media in general, Mr. Bloomberg’s attempt to propagandize American literature was probably inevitable. Perhaps it should be more surprising that a unified and politicized literary movement is only now beginning.
