Gun Control & RKBA
Related: About this forumFound more anti-gun "talking points" guides
http://www.progressivemajorityaction.org/gun_messaginghttps://progressivemajorityaction.nationbuilder.com/assets/pages/64/Voicing_Our_Values-To_Curtail_Gun_Violence.pdf
Voicing Our ValuesTo Curtail Gun Violence
Voicing Our ValuesTo Curtail Gun Violence
This is an addendum to our book, Voicing Our Values: A Message Guide for Candidates. Our purpose is to help lawmakers, candidates and activists understand how to argue in favor of current proposals to curtail gun violence. As we explain here, we have tried to make this resource as easy-to-use as possible by placing model language in boxes throughout. We encourage you to adapt the language to your own voice and personalize it with your own knowledge and experience. Much more comprehensive, detailed or technical talking points are available from advocacy groups listed at the end of this paper.
QUICK LINKS:
How to introduce your argument
About Background Checks
About Military-Style Assault Weapons
About High-Capacity Ammunition Magazines
How to rebut common pro-gun arguments
Sources for more detailed talking points
A PDF copy of Voicing Our ValuesTo Curtail Gun Violence
Our most important advice: (1) Lay out the problem in very simple termsmost Americans have no idea how easy our laws make it for dangerous people to buy handguns and assault weapons; (2) Dont let pro-gun advocates sidetrack the debate into straw man arguments, obscure facts, or a focus on the technical properties of gunsabout 90 percent of their arguments are actually designed to change the subject so you need to insist on a debate that is relevant to the legislation at hand; and (3) Generally:
Dont say . . .
Gun control
Stricter gun laws
You oppose the 2nd Amendment
Preventing gun violence
Stronger gun laws
Support for the 2nd Amendment goes hand-in-hand with keeping guns out of the hands of dangerous people
Why . . .
People have negative reactions to gun control and stricter laws, and they feel positive about the 2nd Amendment. Also, average voters have a favorable view of the National Rifle Association (NRA). You are welcome to criticize the NRA when speaking to the progressive base, but it wont help you persuade swing voters. Thats why these talking points dont include anti-NRA language. If the situation requires you to attack the NRA, then condemn NRA lobbyists or the NRAs out-of-touch leaders. Do not attack average NRA members or local NRA leaders; that language doesnt work.
http://www.progressivemajorityaction.org/sources_for_more_detailed_talking_points
More information from the experts:
Brady Campaign on background checks, on military-style assault weapons, and on high-capacity ammunition magazines.
Mayors Against Illegal Guns on a variety of gun measures and "Demand A Plan."
Center for American Progress on Changing the Conversation: Preventing Violence, Not Gun Control
Message Matters one-pagers on guns.
For an excellent book by Dennis Henigan about how to debate the NRA, read Lethal Logic: Exploding the Myths that Paralyze American Gun Policy.
Here's the Center for American Progress one
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/141743245/CAP-Memo
Changing the Conversation: Preventing Violence, Not Gun Control
Duckhunter935
(16,974 posts)only the NRA had talking points. I am seeing more documents for the other side then the NRA.
rrneck
(17,671 posts)AnotherMcIntosh
(11,064 posts)They offer talking points, but what about meaningful solutions?
Here's four, but accept them or reject them as you want. Or add to them.
1) Economic reform.
2) Increase prison time for criminals caught using firearms in their criminal activities. Separate gun-using criminals from guns in a real way by keeping them locked up longer. Gun-carrying gang members in Chicago, for example, should get more than 2 years (and then discounted to 85% of that if they are on good behavior while in prison).
3) Adopt universal mental-health care. The passage of the ACA, with penalties for those who don't purchase health insurance, is not a good alternative for universal mental-health care.
4) Drop the strategy which contributed to the loss of 58 seats in the House in 1994, and contributed to the shift of the control of Congress to the Republicans for the first time since 1954. Stop demonizing people who choose to own firearms for lawful purposes such as deterring some criminals from engaging home invasions. Voters who own firearms for lawful purposes don't like it, including Democrats and Independents. Seek cooperation instead of alienation.
Duckhunter935
(16,974 posts)very rarely have I seen anyone on that side offer suggestions and I do not think I have ever seen a compromise.
Eleanors38
(18,318 posts)"former" GOPer Bloomberg and the GOP-founded, GOP-led Brady Center.
Does ANYONE think these banners want to use government social policy as a means of addressing social problems? I believe a DU group has as its "mission statement" a goal of working with any group which shares their special interest in gun bans and control.