Fighting Anti-Gun Legislation and Next Gen Marxism

On April 5, 2024, Allen Thomas, Nephi Cole, Katie Gorka, and Jim May joined the show. Fills in for Kim Monson, covering headlines on California minimum wage, euthanasia statistics, and Elon Musk’s free speech lawsuit against Australia Details HB 24-1270 firearm liability insurance mandate and HB 24-1349 firearms excise tax, explaining how these bills target lawful gun owners while doing nothing to address crime Traces the.

Colorado’s Assault on Second Amendment Rights

Start listening at 31:37 – Hour 1

Nephi Cole, Director of Government Relations for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, breaks down two alarming anti-firearm bills working through the Colorado legislature. House Bill 24-1270 would require all firearms owners to carry liability insurance, with fines starting at $500 for first offenses and $1,000 for subsequent violations. Cole points out the absurdity of the requirement, noting that fewer than 500 accidental firearm deaths occur nationwide annually, a rate of just 0.16 per 100,000 people.

The bill’s enforcement mechanism proves equally troubling, potentially turning neighbors against each other as citizens could report suspected non-compliance. Cole emphasizes that no other state has enacted such legislation, though San Jose, California attempted something similar and now faces litigation. The second bill, HB 24-1349, proposes a 9% excise tax on all firearms and ammunition at retail, which would appear on the November ballot, pitting the 55% of Coloradans who don’t own firearms against the 45% who do.

“It’s an opportunity for them to punish a lifestyle that they don’t participate in. That’s the reality of it.”

Nephi Cole, Director of Government Relations, NSSF

Understanding and Combating Next Gen Marxism

Start listening at 73:49 – Hour 2

Katie Gorka, national security analyst and co-author of the newly released Next Gen Marxism: What It Is and How to Combat It, traces the evolution of Marxist ideology from its economic origins through Antonio Gramsci’s cultural Marxism to today’s identity-based revolutionary tactics. Gorka identifies 1989 as the pivotal year when Marxism went mainstream in American universities and critical race theory was formally established at a conference featuring scholars like Kimberly Crenshaw.

The book documents how earlier revolutionary attempts, from the failed Italian and German uprisings to the 1960s student movements, informed subsequent strategies. When the working class refused to overthrow their employers and student radicals failed to sustain their revolution, Marxist thinkers pivoted to identity categories like race, gender, and sexual orientation as the new locus of revolutionary energy. Gorka reveals the disturbing history of Weather Underground leaders Bernadine Dohrn and Bill Ayers, who remain influential in education and community organizing despite their violent past.

“What I find so hateful and so distressing about Marxism is that it takes the opposite view. It says people cannot work together to solve common problems. It basically says people must fight each other until one group wins. That’s Marxism.”

Katie Gorka, Author and National Security Analyst

A Tribute to the Greatest Generation

Start listening at 62:58 – Hour 2

Jim May, owner of Lavaca Meat Company, shares a cowboy poem written as a tribute to his World War II veteran father. The poem captures life lessons passed down through generations, from simple truths like “that red sign don’t say slow down, that sign says stop” to deeper wisdom about honesty and hard work. May reflects on how his father’s generation, shaped by the Depression and war, demonstrated remarkable resilience that contrasts sharply with rising nihilism in Western culture today.

“Our family is a product of the things our father said. That’s how we’ll remember the man we called our dad.”

Jim May, Lavaca Meat Company