As gun stocks soar–returning approximately 7 percent on Monday alone–anti-gun groups are urging retirement investors to make sure their 401(k) does not invest in firearm manufacturers.
According to The New York Times:
There is a growing movement among public pension funds, public advocates and other organizations to help investors divest themselves of financial stakes in the gun and ammunition industry. A number of these initiatives began after the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting in Newtown, Conn., and have been reignited over the killings in San Bernardino, Calif. The perpetrators of last week’s shooting bought a cache of guns and ammunition–legally–including a Smith & Wesson M&P .223 caliber assault rifle and a Smith & Wesson handgun.
The guns used in the Sandy Hook attack were stolen, while the NYT points out the guns used in the San Bernardino attack were acquired legally. Yet regardless of the means of acquisition or the motive behind the heinous attacks, the anti-gun left is targeting the guns and those that make them.
The NYT explains:
The Campaign to Unload, for instance, is a group of more than 50 organizations across the country that are attacking the sources of funding for gun makers. It set up a website–Unload Your 401(k)–that allows users to look up their retirement plans to see if they have financial exposure to gun manufacturers. Snoop Dogg, the rapper, has endorsed the Campaign to Unload. “I’m unloading for my loved ones that I’ve lost,” he said in a statement. “I’m going all in for gun-free investing.”
New York City public advocate Letitia James sent a letter to TD Bank following the San Bernardino attack, urging the bank to cut ties with gun manufacturers. She wrote, “As we stare at the financial smoking gun that enables gun violence, inaction is not an option. If you want to do business with New York City, you can’t be in bed with companies that manufacture the agents that kill our children and families.”
It was not that long ago that picking stocks for retirement was about picking those that would perform strongest over the long haul. But the modern day anti-gun left appears content to have retirement portfolios framed on political correctness instead. Thus their growing animosity toward a firearms industry that KSL.com reports has returned “300 percent” for investors over the past five years.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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