"Just don't criticize us! We'll do whatever you want!"

Terrified corporations assure left-wing activists they will stop offering the NRA any group discounts

By Dan Calabrese —— Bio and Archives February 27, 2018

Comments | Print This | Subscribe | Email Us

Strictly cowardice. One hundred percent. Not one of the companies listed below is acting on some sort of moral objection to the NRA and its positions on gun rights. Those positions have long been known by all of them, and they have not changed since Parkland. What has changed is that activists on Twitter have started threatening corporations with boycotts unless they disown the NRA in any and every way conceivable. So a perfectly legitimate organization that negotiated group discounts with major companies will not see those companies welch on those agreements, for no other reason than that they are terrified of the criticism they'll get on social media if they don't:

Delta Air Lines Inc. and United Continental Holdings Inc. became the latest companies to cut ties with the National Rifle Association after a call to boycott the lobbying group became a top trend on Twitter Friday. The online furor continued into the weekend after the NRA’s leaders attacked the media and Democrats, claiming the fallout from last week’s Florida high school massacre was being politicized. One user, with almost a quarter of a million followers, tagged a slew of brands in his post, including NRA partners Hertz Corp. and LifeLock Inc. “There are only 5 million NRA members but over 300 million of us! Businesses have a choice whose business they prefer,” tweeted another. Delta and United, two of America’s largest passenger carriers, said Saturday they would back away from the group. Delta said in a statement it was “ending its contract for discounted rates through our group travel program,” and having its information removed from the group’s website. United said it would no longer discount flights to the NRA’s annual meeting. Their announcements followed similar moves Friday by security-systems makers Symantec Corp., owner of Lifelock, and Simplisafe Inc.; Hertz and fellow car-renter Avis Budget Group Inc.; movers North American Van Lines and Allied Van Lines; and insurer MetLife Inc. “Symantec has stopped its discount program with the National Rifle Association,” a spokesperson said in an emailed statement. A MetLife spokesman said “we value all our customers but have decided to end our discount program with the NRA.” Security systems maker Simplisafe Inc. also dropped the gun group today. The five million-member NRA has partnerships with dozens of businesses, ranging from car rentals to hotels, and even offers a branded credit card. First National Bank of Omaha, which backs the card, said it would not renew its contract. Enterprise Holdings Inc., which operates Alamo and National car rentals as well, said it had ended its participationeffective March 26. Wyndham Hotel Group LLC announced it was “no longer affiliated with the NRA.”

Understand, these companies didn't agree to give group discounts to NRA members out of the goodness of their hearts. They did it because it's good business to incentivize members of large groups to give them high-volume business. The customer loyalty that takes the form of frequent business more than makes up for whatever the discount costs the airlines, rental car companies and whatever else. This is why group discount arrangements like this are common, and have nothing to do with agreeing or disagreeing with the group's beliefs. You just what that group's members using your service, and the more the better. But all that apparently pales in comparison to their fear that they might get beaten up on Twitter by busybodies who have decided to demonize an organization that has, in real life, no culpability whatsoever for what happened at Parkland. What the NRA does is advocate for the protection of a constitutional right granted to citizens. That hardly makes it some sort of fringe organization that needs to be shunned by those in polite business society. None of that matters, though, when the people with real power in society are those who call out and shame others on social media. Then again, the online shamers wouldn't have any power if the leaders of America's corporations weren't such abject cowards.

Dan Calabrese -- Bio and Archives | Comments

Dan Calabrese’s column is distributed by HermanCain.com, which can be found at HermanCain

Follow all of Dan’s work, including his series of Christian spiritual warfare novels, by liking his page on Facebook.