Why should I re-join the NRA?

[Kendal Black]

WE= the citizens of the United States of America

THEY= the leadership and marketing machine of the NRA.

Thank you for the clarification. One of the ways we citizens get things done is by supporting advocacy and lobbying concerns--like them. Like it or not, that's one way stuff gets done.

I'm not a single issue voter, but they are certainly a single issue organization. For other issues, I must turn elsewhere. It is certainly true that the politicians who can be persuaded to our side on gun issues have baggage in other areas. I can think of no solution, since it applies also to any other issue I can think of.

As noted earlier, I do not agree with everything the NRA does, and one of the things they could do much better is member contact and recruitment--just look at how many long term supporters prefer not to get all of that crap in the mail.

 

[Wil Terry]

NO DO NOT !!! We old timers have been paying for you worthless scalawags for decades now so it does not matter any more and neither do you. IN my case I have been doing so since 1958 and have had the unmitigated pleasure of seeing a lot of those cheapskates cash in their chips. As per usual in all things there are the doers and those who are.... too cheap even to carry their own weight and wated it all handed to 'em as a freebie. <deleted> And so it goes....

 

[rellascout]

Thank you for the clarification. One of the ways we citizens get things done is by supporting advocacy and lobbying concerns--like them. Like it or not, that's one way stuff gets done.

I'm not a single issue voter, but they are certainly a single issue organization. For other issues, I must turn elsewhere. It is certainly true that the politicians who can be persuaded to our side on gun issues have baggage in other areas. I can think of no solution, since it applies also to any other issue I can think of.

As noted earlier, I do not agree with everything the NRA does, and one of the things they could do much better is member contact and recruitment--just look at how many long term supporters prefer not to get all of that crap in the mail.

I hear you. I am glad to hear from other who do not let a single issue dominate who and what they support. For me when I look at the people who take the money from the NRA I do not like what I see. I have common ground with them on this single issue but on too many other issues which are important to me I am at odds with them. So when I support my gun rights through the NRA I am undermining others which are equally important to me. No organization is perfect but too often the NRA creates too many conflicts for me.

PS I agree there can be a fine line between focused and myopic.... LOL

 

[Art Eatman]

Funny-odd: On another website, a member there was seriously exercised against the NRA because it included teaching, shooting and hunting. He wanted it to focus exclusively on 2A issues.

Mike Irwin, a moderator at TFL, once worked in the NRA Hq. He stated that the net return on mailouts is very positive. When you need money and you find a method which works, isn't it logical to keep on keeping on?

It is Congresscritters who say that the NRA is second only to AARP for lobbying power. The political parties give credit to the NRA efforts for the Democrats' loss of the House of Representatives in 1994. That also held for the sunset provision of the assault-weapon law.

For those who say it is silly for the NRA to "sell fear", I can only comment that the new appointee to head BATFE has a lengthy track record as being anti-gun. Attorney General Holder is not our friend. Harry Reid still bosses the Senate, and the President has a track record as being anti-gun. We have the EPA continually getting involved with lead in bullets as pollutants, and the USF&WS regularly reducing access to public lands hunting.

If not fear, I suggest that one be at least a trifle nervous.

 

[69Rebel]

^^^Good point.

 

[Shanghai McCoy]

I am a certified Pistol Instructor through the NRA and because of that was able to get certified as a CCH Instructor here in Kansas. The NRA is more than just the political lobby for the 2nd Amendment. Through Friends of NRA groups like the 4H shooting sports are able to get grants that allow us to teach kids and promote the shooting sports in our state.
I'm an annual member and now too danged old for a Life Membership...

 

[Kendal Black]

@rellascout It's appalling to me how many Democrats get NRA "A" ratings.

http://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C...ceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=nra+a+rating+Democrats

 

[SwampWolf]

Craig...I could care less about your lack of patience. If you want to support them that's your decision. My decision is not to. Period.

This is the very kind of attitude that give anti-Second Amendment people great hope that their purpose will prevail in the end. I love how so-called progun people never whine about all the junk mail they receive from hundreds of different sources and yet, when the NRA asks for contributions, you'd think it was the end of the world from all their wailing and gnashing of teeth. All organizations need money to accomplish their goals. That's why they're always asking for it. Should the NRA be any different? Where, if not from members, do you suppose they could fund our mission?

Yeah, I'm with Craig and the others who are getting pretty darn weary of carrying the water for people who do nothing in return but sit back and snipe from the sidelines. "Scalawags", Wil Terry called them. I'm much less charitable; I find them to be a contemptible bunch of free-loading bums. Oh, wait, I think that's what scalawags are!

Hope to see some of my fellow NRA members next week-end at the Convention in Pittsburgh.

 

[rellascout]

@rellascout It's appalling to me how many Democrats get NRA "A" ratings.

http://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1...ting+Democrats

Why would you assume my issue is with Democrats? LOL

 

[Kendal Black]

@rellascout. I didn't say who is appalling to you. I am endeavoring to point out that, as a single issue organization, the NRA gets the strange bedfellows politics are famous for. Some are appalled at the bedfellows on the right, some with the ones on the left.

As a national org that tries to represent the interests of all gun owners, the NRA need not and should not alienate half the political spectrum. I think it quite even handed in its endorsements. It endorses fewer Dems because fewer have stances and records positive to the NRA's interests--of course.

 

[wgp]

I remain a year-to-year member of the NRA, not a lifetime, because I want them to continue focused on the issues and not take my membership for granted. I don't like the volume of mail but I can live with it.

I don't see anybody else with what appears to be the political clout of the NRA. I am not a single-issue voter; but, in my opinion how a politician stands re guns says a lot about their views on personal freedoms in general.

My brother-in-law once told me he didn't see any reason to join the NRA. I looked at his collection: a Mini-14 with folding stock and big magazines, a snubbie .38, a high-capacity SIG .40 and an 870 with extended magazine. I just shook my head.

America has, to me, become a place where too often people who don't like something, don't want you to do it either. I don't like politics, but there are political issues that I think I have a stake in and this is one, and for me the NRA appears to have the best record at representing my views on this issue.

 

[Frank Ettin]

Yes, by all means renew/maintain NRA membership. Some things to think about --

[1] The NRA is the most effective RKBA organization. They have the largest membership of any of them, and they do the best that they can with that membership base. Politics is strictly a numbers game. If the NRA had more members, it could be that much more effective. And those folks who complain about the NRA's so called failures need to tell us who did, or could have, actually accomplished more.

[2] Facts of political life -- politicians don't listen to individual voters. They care about numbers. One hundred phone calls or letters in support of or against something are better than 10. Ten thousand would be a lot better yet. It doesn't matter all that much what the caller or writer says is the reason to support or oppose the thing. What matters most is the number on each side of the question.

[3] An NRA with 4 million members gets attention. An NRA with 5 million will get more, and an NRA with 10 million members could get some real serious attention. As annoying as the NRA can be, it's in our interests to see it grow and prosper.

[4] At the end of the day, politicians are swayed by how many voters (and potential voters and contributors) line up on each side of the question. They are influenced by political and economic power.

[5] Given all that, the NRA does what it reasonably can do in the political climate in which it operates. It can not perform magic. Under the right circumstances, it can, and has, effectively moved affirmative pro-RKBA legislation (like the law protecting gun makers from frivolous law suits and the National Park carry legislation). And sometimes it can block legislation we don't like. But sometimes the political deck is so stacked against our interests, the best we can reasonably expect the NRA to be able to do is help make the best of a bad situation.

[6] It's fine to talk about "no compromise." But remember that he who insists on all or nothing gets nothing. If the votes aren't there they aren't there.

[7] The NRA is at the forefront of shooter education and safety training. Their program for certifying instructors in a variety of disciplines helps make competent training more readily available to the public. And their "Refuse to be a Victim" program is excellent.

I'm a Benefactor Member of the NRA and an NRA certified instructor in Basic Handgun, Personal Protection Insider the Home, Personal Protection Outside the Home and Shotgun.

 

[M-Cameron]

a lot of people give the NRA crap because they arent "radical" enough...or dont "get enough done"


apparently these people dont realize that the NRA has a very fine line to walk.....


they simply cannot go into court and say " THESE GUN LAWS ARE AGAINST THE CONSTITUTION AND WE WANT THEM ALL TO BE GONE BY TOMORROW MORNING!!!!!"..........they would be laughed out and no one would listen to them.....they would loose all credibility and any political foothold they have......


to many politicians, its not the RIGHT to bear arms.....its the ABILITY to own arms........and thats the way it needs to be treated......( im not saying its right or thats the way it should be, but thats the way it is...and that is something we need to deal with)

the NRA realizes that they have to bargain, they have to compromise, they have to deal.........because they realize that being flexible and having some rights, is much better than remaining rigid and having none.

because taking 2 steps forward is 1 step back......gets you a whole lot farther in the long run than an occasional step forward with many steps back.

 

[mrbro]

I'm sorry if this sounds like script, but I believe the NRA is responsible for us still being able to enjoy recreational shooting in the US. Without them, we would have lost our handguns years ago. Without them nothing would have a removable magazine. Without them the Camp Perry matches would have disappeared years ago, CMP Garands would not exist, all rifle ammo would be frangible so as not to penetrate a kevlar vest, and a lot of the current generation of soldiers would have had no marksmanship training other than the few hours the Army gave them before deployment. I'm not even sure that we would be able to hunt with anything but a bow or black powder if it were not for the NRA. You would have given all up all this because to get less junk mail?

I've got a solution for you, become a Life member and send them just 1 more check, then toss out any mail you get from them for the rest of your life. I converted to Life membership 20 years ago and just bought a Life membership for each of my sons.

 

[22-rimfire]

Party has nothing to do with NRA's rating system. It is specifically based on surveys or a voting record on a limited set of things that center around the 2nd Amendment and shooting sports in general.

Support the NRA, there is nothing better out there.

 

[AlexanderA]

All pro-gun-rights people should be members of the NRA. There's strength in numbers.

That said, the NRA, like many other advocacy groups, is a money-making machine for its management. (Probably the worst offender is the AARP.) The anti-gunners, like the Brady Campaign, do exactly the same thing. Scare tactics are the prime money-raising tool.

Become a Life Member of the NRA and vote in the Directors elections if you don't like the NRA fundraising tactics.

 

[Toforo]

I was warned of this before I joined and opted out of all promotional mail, email, and phone calls. My son is overseas and his membership is also at my home address.

For the two memberships there is practically no junk mail, spam, or calls from the NRA except for the reminder to renew my membership. My son is a life member.

YUP - it's THAT darned easy.

It was JUST as easy last week when this forum-topic came up and I BET it'll be JUST as easy to "opt out" of mail/email/solicitations NEXT week when this comes up!

I get my month magazine (American Rifleman) and ILA/EMAIL alerts that affect MY AREA only.

Call today or go to their website and change your account settings.

It's THAT easy!

Or.......... simply don't read the entire forum, ignore everyone who say it's simply "THAT easy" and we'll see'ya again next week!

 

[Kendal Black]

So, Usmc-1, are you convinced yet?

 

[withdrawn34]

Sure, keep whining about a few pieces of mail and don't contribute to the largest pro-gun advocacy group in the country. While the NRA-ILA is the legislative lobbying arm of the NRA, the regular NRA still has a lot to do with education and related things that are very important in the 2A struggle.

Just opt-out. I get very little physical mail from the NRA. I get the occasionally "NRA Store" e-mails. Not a big deal. Otherwise, I get relevant NRA-ILA e-mails telling me what is going on IN MY AREA. It is not a request for donations.

I really don't understand some people.

 

[rellascout]

YUP - it's THAT darned easy.

It was JUST as easy last week when this forum-topic came up and I BET it'll be JUST as easy to "opt out" of mail/email/solicitations NEXT week when this comes up!

I get my month magazine (American Rifleman) and ILA/EMAIL alerts that affect MY AREA only.

Call today or go to their website and change your account settings.

It's THAT easy!

Or.......... simply don't read the entire forum, ignore everyone who say it's simply "THAT easy" and we'll see'ya again next week!

Please explain to me why I keep getting all the crap sent to me. I have opted out of the email lists, the phone list etc... but still get called from time to time and still get mailings.

 

[Water-Man]

Art...You mean THAT Harry Reid who the NRA supported?

 

[Toforo]

Hey, Red Cent--The NRA has a special deal on Life Memberships for those over I think 65. They know they won't have that member forever so you get a break. I am far from rich myself, and when I became eligible for the elderly Life Memb. I signed up. They even let you pay for it in installments if you want.

Don't know about everybody, but being a Life Member feels special to me. I'm glad I did it.

Never too old! Never!

They offer the SAME deal - "Distinguished Life Membership" - to disabled vets that they offer to retirees - $300.00 for a "Distinguished Life Membership"

 

[M-Cameron]

Please explain to me why I keep getting all the crap sent to me. I have opted out of the email lists, the phone list etc... but still get called from time to time and still get mailings.

how are we supposed to know....if you really want an answer...call the NRA for yourself and find out.

 

[crracer_712]

Not sure, but I get my monthly magazine online, its the way I preferred. I also get email notifications of laws pertaining to my state. No phone calls and no junk mail.

In fact when I joined, after a couple of months, I had to call them and ask where my membership card was, never got it. They sent out another and had it in a couple of weeks.

 

[dho3]

This is simple. There is only one organization lobbying for our right to own and use guns lawfully and that is the NRA. They are doing a fine job of that, no doubt. Does everyone like everything they do? No. But, if we want as a group to continue this freedom we must unite for the good of our freedoms and forget about what we do not like about the NRA and focus and what we do like and want. Too many people do ride the coat tails of those members of which I am one. I get the junk mail, do not think anything of it and throw it out with the trash. I believe I will e-mail them and tell them to save the money for more important purposes. I would suggest to anyone who is not a member to join and sign a friend up and give the membership to him or her as a gift, I think I will.