Check out the NRA's enemies list — featuring Boyz II Men
The rogues gallery also includes Sean Connery, Hallmark, and the American Academy of Pediatrics
Since the school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, the National Rifle Association has proved that it is no wallflower when it comes to protecting gun rights. Indeed, the powerful lobby appears to believe that offense is the best defense, going after President Obama and any other lawmaker that seeks to bolster the country's gun laws. Politicians have long felt the NRA's intense scrutiny, with the organization keeping track of every single vote and issuing report card-style grades to keep congressmen in check. And it turns out that the NRA may have its eye on you, too — that is, if you belong to any of the numerous organizations and companies compiled on the lobby's enemies list.
Available on the NRA's website, the list, titled "National Organizations With Anti-Gun Policies," seeks to inform gun supporters of nonprofits, corporations, and individuals who have "lent monetary, grassroots, or some other type of direct support to anti-gun organizations." Many on the list are also guilty of backing gun-control legislation like the 1995 "Campaign to Protect Sane Gun Laws" and the Brady Act. "All have officially endorsed anti-gun positions," according to the NRA.
The rogues gallery includes some unsurprising entries, such as the American Civil Liberties Union. But it seems almost no organization or person has escaped the NRA's gaze, including the AARP, the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, the National Association of Public Hospitals, and the Police Foundation.
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Then there are the "individuals and celebrities," which include Boyz II Men, Sean Connery, Geraldo Rivera, Doug Flutie, Barry Manilow, and Sting. There is a long list of Americans who are members of the Brady Campaign's National Committee, as well as journalists who "editorialize in favor of gun control laws."
The companies listed, with addresses included, feature the Kansas City Chiefs, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Hallmark, Sprint, and Time Warner. Publication and media outlets that "have assisted in the attack on Second Amendment rights" include pretty much every mainstream media outlet, with the notable exceptions of Fox News and The Wall Street Journal.
Read the entire list at the NRA's official website.
(Via Daily Kos)
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Ryu Spaeth is deputy editor at TheWeek.com. Follow him on Twitter.