Tag Archives: culture war

Article – Down the barrel of a gun: How Second Amendment activism can be a gateway to extremist ideologies

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Gun shows like this have long been part of the connective tissue between mainstream conservatism and the American extremist movement. The vast majority of gun owners are law-abiding citizens, but experts and former members of the extremist far-right said a passion for gun rights often serves as a gateway to radicalization – one eagerly exploited by recruiters and leaders in the movement.

The culture war continues unabated. If they can’t stigmatize gun shows because of…well…guns, then they’ll stigmatize them as open-air recruiting centers of Timothy McVeigh-wannabes.

Its so much easier to swing the hammer of public opinion against someone if you’ve marginalized them and made them loathsome first.

Me, I like going to the range, shooting guns that look big and scary, and having a rather large variety of them. And, thus far, I am the least violent person you will ever meet. But…if you can portray me as some sort of violent extremist….well….thats a narrative that makes it much easier to oppress me and my lifestyle.

It’s not just a war on guns…its a war on people who own guns.

Article – JPMorgan Removed from Louisiana Muni Deal After Gun Scrutiny

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Some good news from the southern front in the culture wars:

 

(Bloomberg) — JPMorgan Chase & Co. was removed on Thursday from a $700 million Louisiana municipal-bond deal after the bank’s stance on guns drew criticism from state Republican officials.

After a fiery meeting, the state bond commission voted to have Wells Fargo & Co. replace JPMorgan, the largest U.S. bank, as senior manager on the deal.

 The decision came after state Treasurer John Schroder, a Republican, said his team was scrutinizing JPMorgan’s gun policies following Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon’s comments to a Congressional committee earlier this year that his firm won’t finance companies that make military-style weapons for consumers.
As it turns our, that whole “We won’t invest in funds or companies that deal with guns” thing cuts both ways. I rather like the turnabout being fair play.
I suppose you could argue, from a concerned taxpayer standpoint, that the removal of Chase means that the state will not be getting as good a deal as it might have otherwise. May be. But even I, a staunch opposer of government spending, would support this move.
I wish other municipalities had the cajones to knock some sense into some of the companies when they start getting all ‘woke’. Political posturing has consequences. This is the reason a smart business keeps its politics to itself. As Chase just learned.