That's my point, there never was anything to fear for the rich. They don't fear guns in the hands of the people because they know that they're safe. They know a few AR-15s are not a threat to them.

Looking at the difference in how the police handled peaceful protests when the protesters were openly and obviously armed compared to when they weren't, the boots on the ground doing the enforcement are the ones who care.

It's not the rich who will be breaking into your house in the middle of the night to disappear you.

Plus, as we've seen recently, even when there's a actual fascist taking power and trampling on people's civil liberties, people aren't actually going to use their guns.

Do not trust that the amount Americans will bend in the face of tyranny is infinite. They colonists attempted years of bargaining and peaceful solutions before the revolution. Only 20-30% of the population at the max think Trump is an actual fascist who will seize power and overthrow the democracy, and that group is both the least armed and most violence averse. It will take something completely overt and undeniable to get people to throw what comfort they have in life away to initiate armed rebellion.

This doesn't mean the right move is to give up that option completely and hope that capitulation isn't too bad.