Gun Control

I ran across this relatively clever anti-gun control billboard.  The billboard reads "Gun Control is Not Kosher."  The slang meaning of "kosher" is allowed or permissible.  Thus, the billboard is saying that gun control is not permissible: not a good thing.  But the technical definition of "kosher" is something entirely different relating to the Jewish faith.  Kosher is an adjective that has two meanings.  Kosher means more generally allowed under Jewish law; kosher also in recent years has taken on a meaning referring specifically to diet: allowed within the Jewish diet.

The use of the word  kosher gives the viewer a clue that the billboard may be sponsored by a Jewish group.  This view is reinforced by  a careful look at the six sided star found in the middle of the billboard.  Christian stars are five sided pentagon.  Jewish stars are six sided hexagons.  Within the  hexagon in the billboard is the acronym.JPFO which stands for Jews for the Preservation of Firearms. It is now clear that the billboard is in fact sponsored by a Jewish group against gun control.

The billboard is all in red, white and blue the colors of America.  These colors are also generally symbols of American patriotism.  The designers of the billboard are trying to link therefore anti-gun control with patriotism. There is also an American flag embedded in the star.  This is intended to reinforce the belief that it is American and patriotic to be against gun control.  There are two guns next to the stars. The viewer does not even need the words of the billboard to get the message: guns are patriotic.

The billboard of course has two species analogies.  There are plenty of Jews who believe that gun control is in fact "kosher."  There are also plenty of people in general who are in favor of gun control that are patriotic.  Nevertheless, the billboard is quite clever.