HOME OF THE BRAVE?

The manufacturers and traders of guns are in a lucrative business in the USA and in order to protect their marketplace they have a trade organisation known as the National Rifle Association to protect that market. "There are approximately 90 guns for every 100 people in the US (a rate almost 15 times higher than England and Wales). More than 85 people a day are killed with guns and more than twice that number are injured with them. Gun murders are the leading cause of death among African Americans under the age of 44. And the NRA is no joke. Claiming gun ownership as a civil liberty protected by the second amendment, it opposes virtually all gun control legislation. It claims more than 4 million members, has a budget of more than $300m and spent almost $3m last year – when there were no nationwide elections – on lobbying." (Guardian, 18 April) Being cowardly socialists we wonder if there is a Bullet Proof Vest Association we could contact before visiting the Home of the Brave. RD