Are you PRO-active or RE-active?

[JTHunter]

Most of you are familiar with the old joke about closing the barn door after the horse has bolted and this is a good example of PRO- vs. RE-active.

We also know that lawmakers can make bad laws faster than they can be challenged in court. Many times, it is too late to undo the damage that has been done by these bad laws.

So, what do we do to try and block these poorly conceived ideas before they cause these problems? We MUST be PROactive and by that I mean we need to expose both these bad bills AND the politicians that write them. Better yet, we discuss the candidates BEFORE they get entrenched in office and prevent them from creating this mayhem. We have seen the results of this mayhem and, unfortunately, it isn't limited just to firearms and our Second Amendment rights. I include the First, the Fourth, and Eighth through Tenth Amendments as examples of the continuing degradation of everybody's rights.

If we fail to take these corrupt politicians head on and beat them at their own game, we and the United States are doomed.

 

[yugorpk]

I buy way more stuff than I ned so when it gets banned my stuff will be grandfathered or just squirreled away so no one finds it. When guns are outlawed I'll be an outlaw sort of thing. Not sure which -active that is.

 

[JTHunter]

Yugo - prepping is essentially "reactive" as you aren't doing anything to try and prevent a SHTF scenario.

What I'm talking about is doing the investigative legwork the "mainstream" media is no longer willing to do. Get out to the rallies a candidate has, ask questions, check out their claims of what they have done, and verify or disprove those actions.

If a candidate is shown to be "disingenuous", we must get that information out to as many people BEFORE the primaries or elections. Granted, far too many people are so apathetic that they will do nothing themselves. These are the "sheep" being led to the slaughter and are so uncaring of the outcome, nothing will change them.

It is for those others who listen and understand (or try to) that the struggle must continue.

 

[CDW4ME]

Most people are reactive.
Statements like, "I can't believe that happened here" are indicative of it.

Proactive is carrying what you would carry to the "bad" side of town all the time.
Proactive doesn't let time of day, location, or lack of perceived threat influence them to carry smaller or less capacity.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Arkansas was a Yellow Dog Democrat state just a few years ago. I tried to recruit and support candidates, and failed, So I ran for Congress myself -- I didn't win, but I showed it could be done, and had more credibility when recruiting others.

I formed the County Republican Committee -- for a long time, we only had three members.

Over time, we grew. We found good candidates -- a great breakthrough was when we recruited the wife of a respected local physician to run for State Senate. She won, and we were more successful after that in recruiting candidates.

We formed a network, sharing ideas and supporting other County Committees. We recruited more and better candidates. As our candidates succeeded, we were more successful at raising money.

Today, Arkansas is a Red State -- almost 2/3s of the State house are Republicans (and we expect to increase our numbers in November.) More than 2/3s of the State Senate are Republicans. All 7 of the Constitutional officers (Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, etc.) are Republicans. All 75 County Election Commissions are Republican majority.

I submit that the Arkansas Republicans are indeed pro-active.

 

[FROGO207]

I am under the impression that most on here are PRO active as much as practically possible. We each tend to debunk the misinformation/outright lies that the MSM and other ANTI organizations try to use to influence the public on a one on one basis. We also tend to teach by example that PRO RKBA/2A citizens are good people and are basically looking out for the good of the Nation in particular. Yes, we have to be ever vigilant to threats in the lawmaking sector and their sponsors, calling them out for the flawed emotions they use to make their point. Truth and facts will win the day if they are presented in a non confrontational, logical way to an open minded individual.

Conversely we have to become RE active, often when surprised with some sleight of hand politics that are suspect even in the beginning but get shoved down the throats of the average citizen to become bad laws/policies. The recalls of elected officials in Colorado and other areas prove that being RE active has its uses and works in practice as well.

We all have to take the time to learn the whole truth/facts on the issues to effectively become individual ambassadors/teachers for this unified education to help. I am doing my part to educate the local people as to why universal background checks for face to face sales on the Nov ballot will not be the magic bullet to stop any kind of violence in this great state of Maine. It will just burden the lawful purchasers with more rules/expenses/taxes and probably put buyers on some database in the near future.
My two cents.

 

[JTHunter]

Frogo - that is why I suggested gun owners should try and do what the media is no longer willing to do and that is "investigate" the candidates.

There was some politician 10-15 (maybe more) years ago that basically dared the media to try and catch him in the apparent belief they wouldn't find anything. They did and it scuttled his campaign very quickly. This is what they won't do anymore to the libs and why we must pick up the slack. Then we blog about it, put it on FB, Twitter, etc. to spread the word.

The more eyes and ears there are watching them, the sooner we can bring them down.

 

[cdk8]

Most of you are familiar with the old joke about closing the barn door after the horse has bolted and this is a good example of PRO- vs. RE-active.

We also know that lawmakers can make bad laws faster than they can be challenged in court. Many times, it is too late to undo the damage that has been done by these bad laws.

So, what do we do to try and block these poorly conceived ideas before they cause these problems? We MUST be PROactive and by that I mean we need to expose both these bad bills AND the politicians that write them. Better yet, we discuss the candidates BEFORE they get entrenched in office and prevent them from creating this mayhem. We have seen the results of this mayhem and, unfortunately, it isn't limited just to firearms and our Second Amendment rights. I include the First, the Fourth, and Eighth through Tenth Amendments as examples of the continuing degradation of everybody's rights.

If we fail to take these corrupt politicians head on and beat them at their own game, we and the United States are doomed.

This is an incredibly relevant discussion given current events. In my opinion, there needs to be more proactive 2A outreach. The reason for that is because I think the more Americans that support the 2A, the more trying to push gun control bills would be political suicide. There are millions of Americans that are Democrats, but not ultra-liberals. If the 2A is to survive, we need their help and we need to do more to engage these people, in my opinion. This is where we need to be more proactive.

Just a few days ago, we saw an evil action fueled by intolerance and hatred...and why more gun control would NOT have changed the outcome. However, it was well known prior to this incident that members of the LGBT community have been targeted for acts of violence. Minority cohorts, as a whole, can often be more prone. I wish we did more outreach in this areas.



For example, there could be even more targeted outreach...
The President of the United States blamed Americans for a violent and senseless act of terrorism. We do not blame our fellow citizens, and we certainly do not blame members of the LGBT community, unlike the President. Where as the President feels that vulnerable cohorts will be safer with stricter gun control, doing so will cause an increase in violent hate crimes, and innocent citizens (unable to defend themselves) will die. Members of the LGBT community have, and should continue to have, the right to defend themselves. Where as laws provide a legal context for civil rights, laws do not change how criminals or terrorists behave. The Second Amendment exists to defend these rights.

• The 2A community, as a whole, welcomes & respects diversity...the media stereotypes are ridiculous and completely inaccurate.
• The 2A is how civil liberties and diversity is ensured & defended, if need be...and yet the end result rarely involves violence. Despite what the media says, concealed carry can actually reduce the number of violent confrontations -- in almost all incidents where a CCW holder uses their firearm for defense, no shots are ever fired.
• Ultimately, an innocent person should not have to die due to another's hatred...when someone is targeted for a hate crime due to their sex, race, religion, sexuality, etc., that individual should not have to suffer as an outcome of bigotry. Despite what the President may say, criminals are criminals because they disregard law, and an average citizen does not have a secret service or law-enforcement detail with them 24-7. When the 2A was written, both of these factors were taken into account and, despite it being 200+ years later, it applies just as much today as it ever has.
• Do some research, come out to a range where you can meet community members & get safety and tactics lessons, buy a firearm, and apply for a CCW. You don't have to take a gun with you everywhere, but should you need it you will have it. In the process of doing this, you will understand why preserving the 2A is so important, and how ridiculously misleading media outlets frame 2A supporters and gun owners.