.38 Special you have misread my posts, perhaps intentionally. And the false positions you attribute to me is what Wes meant by a reverse
straw man.
.38 Special said:
Again, for the record: the arguments against joining the NRA are almost universally childish and petty. "They didn't ask me to tell them all about me", "They called me at work and read from a script", "The hat makes my head look big", yadayadayada.
If it's 'on the record' let's keep it straight, honest and factual.
In this thread, the two reasons people have given for not joining the NRA, or letting their membership lapse have been:
The NRA has taken credit for the success of other pro-rights organizations, or attempted to prevent their success.
The NRA is too willing to support any pro-rights candidate, regardless of that candidate's respect for the rest of the Bill of Rights.
The reasons attributed to the posters who are not current members of the NRA are much less reasonable, I agree. But that is the origin of your straw men. Please keep your sources straight.
antsi said:
Here's your argument:
1) Most actual Democratic voters are pro-gun-rights, or at least tolerant of gun rights
2) For whatever reason, the Democratic party continues to promote an anti-RKBA and pro gun control agenda
3) This is somehow the NRA's fault
4) The NRA should support Democratic candidates who are directly opposed to the organization's pro-gun-rights agenda, on the basis that some Democratic voters you know are tolerant of your gun ownership, or on the basis that Democrats support other issues that are not part of the NRAs agenda.
1) I think most Democrats, especially those of my generation, are tolerant of guns. Perhaps those living outside of Arizona are less reasonable.
2) I don't think the Democratic party is pushing gun control nearly as heavily as before. It's not listed on their website's Agenda page, and there is only one blogger who brings up the issue. http://www.Democrats.org/page/community/tag/Guns I recognize though, that in general, conservatives have better gun rights records.
3) I think it is in part the NRA's fault through pushing candidates which can galvanize a liberal base, and which allow liberals to easily associate the things they don't like with the NRA. I want more discretion in who the NRA supports.
4)
Never said that. I don't think the NRA should move counter to it's mission at all. I do think that it should have the good sense to be more selective about who they endorse.
I think my disagreement with the NRA is pretty specific. I have more general concerns about our government and the direction of the country. Some of the blame for this state of affairs rests with the NRA-ILA as they worked hard to get our current politicians elected. Similar blame can be placed with the ACLU for their sponsorship of ardent anti-rights politicians. But the ACLU shares more of my values and concerns than the NRA, which in my opinion has tunnel vision focused on the 2A.
edit: Some people have mentioned they appreciate the NRA's single minded focus on gun-rights. I don't, and those are just value judgments - nothing to get angry over.