4 Mil

Trey Smith

Four million sounds like a large number. If it represents the amount of dollars in your bank account, then I'm guessing you're sitting pretty. If there are 4 million rats in your town, then you have something of a serious vermin problem. But if we're talking about 4 million as a subset of 310 million, then 4 million isn't very big at all. In fact, it's kind of small. It's only 1.2% of the total.

As it so happens, the National Rifle Association (NRA) -- the most feared lobby in federal and state circles -- boasts that it represents 4 million members. From my experience in the nonprofit sector, I can tell you that most organizations inflate their membership numbers, so the NRA's real membership roll most likely is less than 4 million, maybe as low as a mere 1% of the population.

Since the NRA represents so few actual members, why is it perceived as so powerful?

I think the answer is twofold. First, though they may not be official members, a lot of people take their cues on gun issues from the NRA. So, the number of NRA-influenced voters is far higher than their real membership numbers.

Second and more importantly, the NRA is the official mouthpiece of gun manufacturers. The military-industrial complex is made up of some of the wealthiest corporations in the world. Consequently, the NRA represents many of the biggest political campaign contributors.

What this means is that, when elected officials and politicians SAY they fear a voter revolt, their real fear is that the spigot of campaign contributions will be turned off if they oppose whatever idiocy the NRA is peddling.

This is how it goes with most political issues. It's all about the money.