quote:Originally posted by jetboy:quote:I just discovered this lovely little article published in the "Seattle Weekly", June 21, 2000, about the NRA - thought it might be of interest.
The NRA contends it doesn't care who gets the training, a gun owner is a gun owner. "We don't ask gender or gender preference," says NRA spokesman Jim Manown when asked about gay membership in the organization. "Personally, I run into all sorts of individuals." The rub is that many gays and lesbians might never feel totally comfortable with an organization whose political supporters include a lot of right-wing homophobes. Thus, Cease Fear acts as a bridge between the two communities, promoting safety and gun ownership without the baggage of the NRA.
But with or without the NRA, some gays are decidedly pro-gun—or at least pro-self-defense. A recent article on Salon, Jonathan Rauch, makes the case for gays being armed. In response to mounting hate crimes and gay-bashing incidents, Rauch argues that guns not only can protect gays, but transform them, just as self-defense has empowered Jews. "Guns can do the same thing for homosexuals: emancipate them from their image—often internalized—of cringing weakness. I'll warrant that this would do far more for the self-esteem of the next generation of gay men and women than any number of hate crime laws or antidiscrimination statutes."
Rauch writes, "Let's make gay bashing dangerous."
Make it DANGEROUS? What are you advocating now?
Is this a veiled threat?
Make it dangerous to assault someone - yes, I advocate personal protection. Absolutely. That is not a threat at all, and it is certainly not "veiled". I am simply saying protect yourself from assault. Legal gun ownership for personal protection is a right in this nation.
