I think what we are seeing is that for generations, many Americans have believed unequivocally what they had been taught growing up. That the .gov and police will protect them. As children, at a very young age, we were taught "Dial 911" and help is on the way. We were told if there was a hurricane or a flood that the .gov would make sure we were safe and fed, and in the land of plenty, with vast resources, everything would be ok.
But in my mind, the shift started with 9/11 and Katrina. The .gov let us down. They let the bad guys kill a whole bunch of us, and then when people were huddled in the Super Dome, they couldn't even get water brought in.
But still, most believed these were isolated instances. And those of us who were taking extra steps to ensure our safety were thought of as just a little crazy, and going a little overboard. And when unrest broke out, it really only effected inner city areas.
And then, Covid 19 started. At first, the left saw this as the perfect way to ensure Trump would be voted out. " He is a racist! Banning travel because he is a bigot! Come to Chinatown!" and then " He is not doing enough!". But still, to most Americans. It was really only the cities, and .gov will provide.
Then..the toilet paper ran out. And you couldn't find water and many items became scarce. Now all of a sudden, those of us with well stocked pantries and toilet paper in bulk from Costco, were not so crazy. And your average American began to realize that all of the things they take for granted rely on a pretty fragile supply chain that does not react well to major stresses or wide spread panic buying. Suddenly, suburbia was locked in their homes and worrying about how they would wipe their ass and feed their kids. They spent way to much time watching the news and reading stuff on Facebook and suddenly realized that even suburbia may not be as safe as they have been taught their whole lives.
The perfect stage had been set. And a white cop killed a black man slowly in front of running cameras. It was despicable. disgusting and indefensible. Outrage spread. Those that were angry had every right to be, and they protested. These protests started from a position of absolute righteousness. And then, like every NES'r predicted, it turned violent. Murder, assault, arson, occupation and looting became the buzzwords. And the unthinkable happened.
It spread to suburbia. Not just inner cities. Calls to defund police, whole police apartments quitting, cops sitting back and watching crimes be committed.
Now, Wendy Whitebread is at home. Locked down for 3 months with her 2.5 kids. Hubby is working from the dining room table in Zoom meetings and the kids take online classes. She sees news stories of statues being ripped down, businesses being burned and looted, white folks apologizing for things they didn't do and the head of BLM on tv saying they are gonna burn it down.
Next thing you know, all of those gun nuts are not so crazy, and they are calling that guy they know, but are not really friends with, asking how they can buy a gun and what should they buy. And in states like this one, they quickly find out that the stories about how easy it is to buy a gun are total bull shit.
I suppose the country is better off with the Whitebreads being "woke" and realizing that ultimately their families well being rests solely in their hands, and maybe they are starting to understand 2A folks a little better. But from my point of view, they are probably going to remain sheep, will screw up the market and never even practice or train with their new gun. But if it changes they way they vote, its probably a good thing. If not, we can always bang Wendy ( she probably works out) and throw hubbys keys on the roof. The whole upper decker thing is gross.