Monday, July 25, 2016

#1696: Michael Hammond

Gun Owners of America, Larry Pratt’s group, is probably one of the most delusional and deranged organizations in the US at present. GOA is a rightwing group whose guiding idea seems to be that the NRA are liberal weaklings, and they have made a mark by promoting conspiracy theories that would make even Alex Jones blush (ok, that’s hyperbole; Jones and GOA see level on quite a number of things). Mike Hammond is one of their spokespersons and has, as such, been given the opportunity to explain for instance how GOA opposes a comprehensive immigration reform since a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants would lead to an increase in “anti-gun voters.” Just think about it for a second.

In an interview with Jim Schneider on Crosstalk radio Hammond shared his theory that universal background check legislation might well lead to government-led “extermination” and “genocide”, not unlike what happened in Nazi Germany (the Nazis’ confiscation and ban of firearms was the main reason they were able to carry out their genocide, according to Hammond, an idea that is as silly as it sounds but has become remarkably popular). He also, helpfully, explained how (well, asserted that) gun control advocates “bear some responsibility” for the Sandy Hook shooting and that liberals have become “paranoic” and “racist against people who hold traditional American values.”

At least Hammond is a stellar example of the workings of the conspiracy theorist mind: In 2013 GOA was pushing the (silly) conspiracy theory that the Obama administration was using the Environmental Protection Agency to institute backdoor gun control, as exemplified by a Missouri lead smelter that in reality shut down rather than complying with clean air regulations (a demand issued during the Bush administration) but which the GOA claimed was in reality forced shut by the guv’mint to suppress the supply of lead used for manufacturing bullets. The conspiracy was so silly that even the NRA (and major bullet manufacturers) were compelled to issue statements to the effect that there really was no cause for concern. Like any good conspiracy theorist, Hammond took those statements to not only fail to undermine the conspiracy theory but to confirm it.


Diagnosis: This is really whale.to-level idiocy, but the GOA has had surprising (or not) success in promoting it. Which tells you something that ought to scare you just a bit (but which in these presidential election candidate times was probably abundantly clear to you already).

1 comment:

  1. Diagnosis: This is really whale.to-level idiocy, but the GOA has had surprising (or not) success in promoting it. Which tells you something that ought to scare you just a bit (but which in these presidential election candidate times was probably abundantly clear to you already).

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