Dear John:
When I wrote yesterday's "OT-Forest Triumph" I was thinking of the difference between the NRA and what ordinary forest families achieved against the fiercest government and industry opposition.
Comparisons are odious, I know, but we always talk seriously to each other. There can be no spark, no advance across the barricades until we stop demonizing, categorizing, polarizing ourselves as dems, liberals, neocons, etc.
I can think of no better time in the United States than now to build coalitions around notions of liberty. To succeed you should have at least footholds in all the influential camps. The shooting sports should re-brand.
One shoe doesn't fit all. What works in one half of Nova Scotia for social and natural resource development doesn't work in the other. Education for real values should advance on the broadest front. Superb leaders are key.
Identifying the opposition is paramount, as you say. The road back requires a re-assessment of reality. People change their minds, demonstrated by current US public opinion and Congressional deliberations. Narrow political partisanship is poison.
Hammering the Aunties directly won't get you there. There are more of them and they want it more. The West's surpassing firepower and technology isn't making much headway against part-time guerillas with AK47s.
The whole stately edifice of civil rights in the United States came from moral suasion, coalitions, keeping old enemies close, building bridges, 40 years ago. My personal view, as you know, is that America always gets it right over time.
Anyway, these are my thoughts about your appeal this morning, John.
Kind regards, King
