The NRA Blues
G
Today Orlando, tomorrow who knows where? C D G C
Automatic weapons, and the sound of final prayer. C D G C
But for America, it’s just another day, and B7- Em C
Look who’s taking money from the NRA. C D — G C G C
Can’t protect the children, and you can’t step out of line.
Second amendment’s gonna get ‘em every time.
Gunmakers’ lobby just blows them all away, yeah,
Look who’s taking money from the NRA.
Follow the money, what more is there to say.
You can buy a Congressman for only $50k!
That’s all it takes to make ‘em look the other way.
Look who’s taking money from the NRA.
We’ve lost the right to privacy, to D —
Peaceful assembly, but G – Em –
Doesn’t matter what you’ve done, you’ve C – D –
Got a right to buy a gun, you can G – Em – —
Be a safety risk, you can C – D –
Be on a terror list, you don’t G – Em –
Even need to know what’s real, to get C – D –
Weapons for a battlefield, if G – Em –
That’s all that you can see, when you C – D –
Look at our community. G – Em –
mmmmmmm….. C – D – G —
I believe in freedom, I believe in having fun,
and I believe that staying alive is freedom number one. —
So if you’re asking me, all I’ve got to say, is
Look who’s taking money from the NRA.
© Doug Hendren 2016
The American nightmare continues. While we mourn for the victims and families, we never seem to address the underlying conditions that make these tragedies possible. Every time, the issue of gun laws comes up, people say “this is not the time!”. But this is precisely the time to discuss our unique problem. Our attention span is simply too short for any other approach.
A couple of basic observations. 1) It’s about money, not about the Constitution. 2) The NRA is an industry group disguised as a grassroots organization. 3) They give millions to people in Congress every year to make sure we don’t do anything that might diminish their profitable market. 4) Gun laws can work very effectively: Look at Australia. They enacted sweeping legislation years ago, and have not had a single mass shooting since. Look at the facts.
The United States is the only advanced country in the world that has mass shootings with the scale and regularity we have come to accept as normal. If you are not outraged, you’re not paying attention. It is not accidental. The arms industry is one of our biggest and most profitable industries, whether small arms at home or military hardware for export. It all comes down to money, and enough of it is going into the pockets of Congress to keep things from changing. If you see something, say something. Think what we could do as a society if we weren’t so focused on the technology of killing people! We might have enough money to feed the hungry and educate our children!
References:
Thoughts and Prayers and NRA Funding, New York Times Op-Ed, Oct 4, 2017
Actually, it is time to talk about gun violence — and science has a lot to say.
NRA: Nonsensical Rifle Addiction. Hilarious and spot-on video about America’s strange epidemic that is killing thousands every year.
CBS Poll: Majority Backs Assault Weapons Ban
VOX World: A huge international study of gun control finds strong evidence that it actually works.
AMA Journal of Ethics, Physician “Gag Laws” and Gun Safety. Did you know that doctors in several states are not legally permitted to ask patients about gun safety (like whether any guns in the home are kept out of reach of children)?
Business Insider, How the Gun Industry Funnels Tens of Millions of Dollars to The NRA. The NRA publicly represents itself as a grassroots organization without major corporate influence. This article shows otherwise.
Washington Post, Has your US Congress person received donations from the NRA?
