Think how foolish you'd feel if a Beto O'Rourke got elected and then actually did what he said he'd do.

I mean, if they tell you what they're planning to do (and they usually do), and you don't believe them...

I would feel a little foolish. But I really don't see the government doing a "give us your guns (property) or else." Every time I get a call from the NRA to donate because they're coming for my guns. I ask them jokingly "If they will give them up if the government comes knocking?" Then I jokingly tell them that I'm not concerned and The government doesn't want that smoke.

It’s definitely starting to look like some of the gun rights groups are just an advertising arm of the gun manufacturers.

That’s a bit like calling the (old school) ACLU an advertising arm of the book printers.

This is an interesting admission to me... Does recognizing it as propaganda not take away some of the power it has over you?

I can admit it only because I'm not right-wing at all. But I can see how I was convinced.

>Does recognizing it as propaganda not take away some of the power it has over you?

I would say now it does. I didn't recognize it as propaganda at the time. The way it was presented "seemed" logical at the time. There are large organized groups that are sort of trying to enact common sense gun laws and sometimes they suggest things that go a little to far but really don't seem to address the issue of criminals using guns. At the time I was seeing that and recognizing that as a threat.

I suppose I recognize it for what it is now 10 years later after my initial gun fever wore off. I'm a little smarter to advertising tactics now and much more conscious about my money. and then I saw how easily it was to dupe me, I sort of understand why so many people who aren't extreme right-wing can watch something like Fox and be "converted".

But I also can watch my local fox news and see how they're are running stories that are trying to convince the viewers that the city is crumbling, schools are shit, and crime is out of control.

> common sense

What is "common sense?"

Why is it a foregone conclusion that whatever proposal is automatically "common sense?"

In some cases, not all, The bills don't seem to address the crux of the issues. Instead, like most politicians do, they try for legislation that sounds good but don't address the problem of people already with guns and criminal enterprises that are making them[1] and selling them.

For instance, in my state, they changed the laws of where you can and can't carry. It's now more illegal to carry a gun on, say, for instance, school property. But it was already illegal. If our goal is to prevent gun deaths. This law does not prevent that from happening.

[1]https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/ghost...

Thanks for your very reasonable response :) I think recognizing these things - and more importantly how they affect us - is really important, so good for you

Gun sales spike whenever a anti-gun-rights politician wins an election it's well documented.

Also whenever there is a mass shooting