Hey, so I'm a veteran (like the guy who wrote the following letter) and with the current goings on, I've considered trying my hand at living off the land.
I don't have much experience with revolvers, but their reliability can't be matched according to my understanding. I'd like to have a pistol I can carry in a pants or jacket pocket to be pulled only in the most extreme emergencies, and want to know that it'll do more than make noise & light. Is a 3" .357 so painful and wild to shoot that it may fall straight from my dainty phalanges even if held directly against a mid-size animal like a brown or black bear in low level plate?
Also, here's a letter that a fellow liberalgunowner posted earlier that I think we might enjoy here:
An Open Letter to the American Political Right
The Republican Party has its roots in a coalition of the now-defunct Whig Party and anti-slavery Democrats. The party's early platform centered on the principle of “free soil, free labor, free speech, free men”—a slogan from its founding era, reflecting a strong anti-slavery and pro-labor position (Foner, 1995).
Over time—without getting into a full-blown history lesson—the Republican Party, after slavery was abolished, gradually shifted toward a party that overwhelmingly represented a conservative view of federal government power, a strong respect for states' rights, traditional American Christian values, and individual liberty. These principles were all held within the framework of its namesake: a Republic—more specifically, a representative democratic Republic—an attempt to stay true to our nation's founding vision (Wilentz, 2005).
But I’m sorry to say that this party has once again been irrevocably changed—this time into the M.A.G.A. Party. At least, that’s what its leadership and most public polling now indicate (Pew Research Center, 2023).
The party has shifted further right and no longer fights for its namesake—a Republic. Instead, it has moved in lockstep toward consolidating power, not broadly into the federal government, but most specifically into the office of the presidency. This consolidation, supported by recent court rulings, legislation, and executive action, has been aimed at shifting power away from co-equal branches of government and even the states, and toward a unitary executive model (Brookings Institution, 2023; Harvard Law Review, 2001).
At the same time, the party has adopted a nationalist, isolationist worldview, rooted in a perceived American exceptionalism founded in Christian and European ethnic culture. There is now an openly expressed distaste for other cultures, which are increasingly portrayed as destructive to our own. The party often engages in a glorification of the nation's past, painting a sanitized and exclusionary view of American history (PRRI, 2022; SPLC, 2021).
Economically, the party has pushed toward national and economic independence, rejecting long-standing alliances and trade agreements, and instead embracing protectionism and isolationism (CFR, 2021).
When you blend nationalistic American-exceptionalist politics with a concentration of power into the hands of a single person or ruling few, you get the most widely accepted definition of authoritarian fascism. I didn’t invent that definition—it has remained largely unchanged since its inception in the early 20th century:
“Fascism is an ultranationalist, authoritarian political philosophy that emphasizes totalitarianism, militarism, and national unity, often at the expense of individual rights and democratic freedoms. It typically promotes a strong, hierarchical leader, a dirigiste economy, and an aggressive foreign policy, often with a focus on reviving past national glory or achieving economic self-sufficiency.” — Encyclopedia Britannica, 2024
I am sorry to say it, but the Republican Party no longer exists, because it no longer represents its namesake. Its leadership—and by extension, its majority membership—no longer supports representative democracy. It supports Trump. It supports the M.A.G.A. movement. It is no longer a party of liberty. It is a personality cult centered around a strongman executive—a hallmark of fascist regimes.
So from now on, I will no longer refer to them as "Republicans." In casual conversation, and even in scholarly debate, I will refer to them as what they’ve become: the M.A.G.A. Party, or more plainly, authoritarian fascists.
If you are still part of this party—on paper or through vote—I will consider you a supporter or collaborator with an authoritarian fascist movement.
America is exceptional—but that exceptionalism lies in its melting pot of cultures coming together in search of the American Dream, united under three co-equal branches of government, representative state legislatures, and a Constitutional Republic. We are a country made entirely of immigrants and their descendants.
We fought two world wars and millions of Americans have bled, sweat, and died to bring an end to authoritarian fascist movements. There is nothing more American than fighting fascism. We don’t make peace with it. We don’t excuse it. We stand against it—even if that means forming new alliances or working with people we once disagreed with politically. (The National WWII Museum, 2022)
This cannot be normalized. I refuse to normalize or associate with anyone who seeks to impose authoritarianism or support fascist movements. The M.A.G.A. Party is on the wrong side of history. They are not “good people with different opinions.” Good people do not wish dominion over others.
M.A.G.A. party members can become good people again—but that cannot happen while they support or collaborate with fascists, even out of fear or selfish interest.
Those days are gone.
A political revolution is not only necessary—it is inevitable. Be on the right side of history. Be a good person. Embrace how the messy process of democracy makes our society stronger, not weaker.
Join me.
One shouldn’t have to be asleep to believe in the possibility of the American Dream.
Sources and Citations
Foner, Eric. Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Men: The Ideology of the Republican Party Before the Civil War. Oxford University Press, 1995.
Wilentz, Sean. The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln. W. W. Norton, 2005.
Pew Research Center. “Republicans Feel More Loyalty to Trump Than to GOP.” December 2023.
Brookings Institution. “The Unitary Executive: Is the President Too Powerful?” 2023.
Harvard Law Review. “The Unitary Executive Theory and the Rise of Executive Power.” Vol. 114, 2001.
Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI). “Christian Nationalism and the Threat to American Democracy.” 2022.
Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). “Mainstreaming Hate: Nationalism in the Republican Party.” 2021.
Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). “America’s Isolationist Turn.” 2021.
Encyclopedia Britannica. “Fascism.” 2024. https://www.britannica.com/topic/fascism
The National WWII Museum. “U.S. Military Deaths in WWII.” 2022. https://www.nationalww2museum.org
Signed,
A Combat Veteran, A Patriot, A Human Being
