It’s no surprise that former ad exec and current Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence President Dan Gross begins his TED talk by waving the bloody shirt about his brother’s injuries inflicted by a gunman at the Empire State Building. Fair enough? I’m not sure. I do know that his opening stat — 90 Americans Killed by Guns — tells us pretty much all we need to know. In Gross’ world, people don’t kill people. Guns kill people. Gross claims to seek “common ground” on gun control — as long as Second Amendment supporters use their guns to hunt and support universal background checks. In fact . . .
Gross reckons the increasing number of Americans who believe a gun in the home makes a family safer is the result of The Big Lie. Repeated by “the corporate gun lobby.” “Bad people who know what they’re doing but just don’t care” spending “billions of dollars” blocking the CDC, anti-gun doctors, smart guns, etc. Despite the evil gun lobby’s best efforts, Dan reckons he and his acolytes can cut “gun deaths” in half by 2025. In other words, the ends justify the means. Sigh. When did TED talks become simple-minded mean-spirited propaganda?