Nightly Nuance - June 1, 2021

Hello, my friends. Hooray for a whole new month!

I’ve been thinking about freedom a lot over the holiday weekend. Chad and I have argued a bit over the Chinese government’s restrictions on how many children families can have. I’ve gotten very riled up about building permits, speed traps, and HOA restrictions. All of this has made me realize, more deeply than I have before, that we don’t share a common definition of the most animating principle in our country.

When you think about freedom, it’s hard not to think about guns. Gun ownership symbolizes freedom for so many people, and the impact of guns deprives so many people of freedom.

I intended to talk about the NRA today, but my research led me in a different direction. The NRA seems to be slowly dying, and gun ownership is skyrocketing to the point of creating ammunition shortages.

How do we balance your peace of mind with mine, and is freedom in that balance? I look forward to you thinking with me about this today.

Thanks, as always, for being here. - beth

Resources:

Sabrina Tavernise in the New York Times on the rise in gun ownership

Kelefa Sanneh in The New Yorker on gun “rights”

The Dispatch Podcast on Guns in America 

Stephen Hayes on The Changing Face of Gun Politics (for The Dispatch) 

Gavin Esler in National News (UK) on America’s gun paradox

Hannah Denham and Andrew Ba Tran in the Washington Post on the rise in gun sales

Brad Tuttle in Business Insider on the NRA and Wayne LaPierre’s vast wealth

Pew Research on Gun Owners and NRA Members

NPR on the NRA’s bankruptcy

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