Not Satire: New NRA Video Endorses Gun Permits For Blind People

Several weeks ago, we covered one of several bizarre new videos released by the National Rifle Association in which a “commentator” pitches one or more ridiculous ideas for how to expand gun rights in the United States. In that video, a hipster commentator, Billy Johnson, made a case for government subsidies for guns, including free ammunition, justifying his plea by suggesting that the government subsidizes healthcare, so why not? Johnson went on to suggest that a right to an education is the same as the right to a firearm, clearly forgetting that guns are intended to hurt or kill living beings, while knowledge is generally intended to help living beings.

At the time, it was difficult to imagine a more absurd video from the group that gave us Wayne LaPierre and pearls of wisdom like “guns make people’s lives better.” But wow, the NRA just released a new video and it absolutely tops anything from its previous repertoire. I can’t imagine they’ll ever top this one.

Yes, the new video suggests that blind people should be allowed to own and use firearms. Clearly when the NRA titled its previous video “Everybody Gets A Gun,” he meant it.

Has it really come down to this? The NRA has reached a level of collective dementia in which all safety considerations should be jettisoned in lieu of making sure people who can’t see should be allowed to carry and discharge firearms — in public no less. This isn’t meant to disparage the blind, but there are two basic requirements for successfully using firearms in public places: the ability to hold and aim the gun, and the ability to see the target. But now, according to the NRA and commentator Dom Raso, those qualifications are irrelevant.

I swear this isn’t a parody video.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmjbjRvatbk&w=560&h=315]

1) If you disagree with Dom Raso, “you don’t take your rights seriously enough.” I’m pretty sure I do. I’m just not interested in being shot in the face by someone who can’t see me, or who can accurately find “a bad guy with a gun” in a crowded mall. Besides, even though Raso is built like brick shithouse and there’s heavy metal music playing in the background, obviously to convey badassery, he might as well be dressed in a Gumby suit, squatting a giant bowl of tapioca pudding. I simply refuse to take anyone seriously who’s telling me that blind people — people who have entirely lost their sight — should be able to publicly carry firearms. Or run around swinging samurai swords. Or drive cars. Or perform neurosurgery. This video is a serious-free zone.

2) Again, no, this isn’t from The Onion. John Rambo continues by asking, “Do you think that because they’re blind, they’re gonna start shooting in every direction and kill everyone?” Not everyone, and not in every direction, but again, they can’t see and therefore they can’t see their target(s). But while Dom Raso presents this somewhat plausible scenario, a graphic appears next to him of a old blind man wearing dark glasses, holding a white cane and flanked by a guide dog. The only thing missing from the stereotype is a tin-cup filled with pencils, accompanied by the sad music from the “soap poisoning” scene in A Christmas Story.

3) Better hearing solves everything.… CONTINUE READING

By: Bob Cesca

Bob Cesca is the managing editor at The Daily Banter (www.thedailybanter.com) and a Huffington Post contributor since 2005. He's worked in journalism since 1988 as a print writer/editor, a radio news anchor, a digital media columnist/editor, a book author and blogger. He's the co-host of the Bubble Genius Bob & Chez Show podcast and a Thursday regular on the syndicated Stephanie Miller Show. He's appeared on numerous other radio shows including the John Phillips Show and Geraldo Rivera Show in Los Angeles. Bob has been a commentator/analyst on the BBC (TV and radio), MSNBC, Current TV, CNN and Sky News. Following him on Twitter: @bobcesca_go