As I am writing this, there have been mass shootings and mass deaths from shootings twice in California in the past couple of days, and a school shooting in Des Moines, Iowa that killed two. And there's still lots of talk about the six-year-old kid who brought a gun to school and shot his teacher, who fortunately survived.
America has a culture and love of guns. Can that be broken?
Maybe, according to this New York Times article, it already is breaking. Slowly.
Republicans Are Breaking With the N.R.A., and It’s Because of Us
There's this:
"The N.R.A. is not vanquished, but it is walking wounded. The primary battleground over gun legislation has been the statehouses, where Parkland set off a startling reversal. After decades of getting trounced by the N.R.A., activists saw 67 gun safety laws passed at the state level in 2019, compared with nine pro-gun laws. This year, 45 new gun safety laws have been adopted in states, while 95 percent of gun-lobby-linked bills have been blocked, according to an Everytown report."
And also this:
"It’s why Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa — an N.R.A. darling who ran for office by firing a handgun in a major ad campaign — broke with the organization leading up to the June vote. She said her phone lines were swamped, with callers six to one in favor of the gun safety bill, urgently repeating: “Please do something.”
Senator Todd Young, Republican of Indiana, reported calls 10 to one in favor. Senator Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia did not endorse the initial compromise, but then she met with Republican constituents. “Do something,” they also demanded. She voted yes."
So maybe there's a chance. Today I had an unthinkable thought about what would really change minds. But I can't say it.
Unfortunately, I can't unthink it, either.
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