VERY disappointed

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I too own my own business.
You should see how people act later when they've decided to make a 100, 200, or even 300 mile round trip to go out to eat, and the place is closed, for any reason.
Yeah, I didn't go.

I have written everyone I can think of though, and not just once.

My biggest fear, besides this thread closing before I get this post done is this:
We WILL stand united, and we WILL fall divided.

The one thing that stands out in my mind is a situation at a job. It was pretty bad. People were mad, and getting madder about it.
Finally it reached a point. I talked amongst my co-workers and said, you know what? If it happens again, I'm gonna quit.
They all agreed, and said, well if you quit, I'll quit too, and it seemed pretty damn solid among everyone.
Well, it happened again.

I said enough is enough! and headed for the time clock. As I looked behind me, guess who was there?

NO ONE!

That is my fear on this issue.

Everyone had a reason not to stand up and say that's it! My dog, er, my Mom, ah my kids, I gotta keep this job, I would but....

Yeah.
We will fall divided.
 
Just my .02 on this emerging topic....

I joined the NRA and also wrote to my Reps. and Senators, however, I think protest gatherings are somewhat futile. Just look at the March for Life that happens every January and draws massive crowds to DC. The media and politicians ignore them every year, and abortion is still legal after almost 40 years. IMHO, the best thing and only real thing we can do is vote against the antis when they are up for re-election. A protest is just a threat to vote against them. I say just do it - vote against them every time you can. They really don't care about protesters or the signs they carry. The politicians who are anti 2A will be anti 2A no matter if 100 people or 10000 show up for a protest. JUST VOTE AGAINST THEM IN EVERY ELECTION, and try to talk your family and friends into voting against them too.

As I said, just my .02
 
Yeah it's a cop out. I don't need to pay the rent or put food on the table.
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What part of the state are you in? If you had to work, you shouldn't feel defensive about not attending. Rather, you could have acknowledged the OP's disappointment by expressing a desire to have been there, but that circumstances just didn't permit it. Your response was unnecessarily confrontational.

The attendance in Little Rock was modest, 200-300 by my estimate. MachIVshooter, my sense of these rallies is that they were very lowlevel "grassroots." While the word was spread around via various social media, there was no big traditional media pushing awareness of these events. There was no confrontation -- say like a march on the capitol during session -- to grab traditional media's attention. I'm waiting to see if there will be any local news coverage. If not, it will not be because of the low turnout. Even with the modest crowd in Little Rock, there were good speeches, good home and handmade signs with pithy comments, Gadsden flags, and other things that a media story could turn on. But it was all just too low key, I think, for that kind of attention.

I'm sure there will be other rallies and events that do better.

However, I will say that given your location, I can especially appreciate and share in your frustration and disappointment. We've got it good, right now, by comparison, in Arkansas. No so much, there in Colorado.
 
CJW-

It's not about swaying the politician's personal opinions. It's about showing them, and the public, that we care enough to stand up in large numbers and speak out against it. Hundreds of people gathered in front of state houses gets attention, no doubt about it.

It's also about bringing attention to the issue; You should see how many passers-by don't really know anything about the fight going on, but are on our side once they do.

Yes, voting is very important. But so is writing letters and demonstrating publicly. It sends a message; If you're motivated enough to stand for hours in a city you hate on a chilly February day, you're motivated enough to campaign against your opposition 2 or 4 years from now. If hundreds or thousands of people do the same, the threat of campaign against the opponent becomes a very real and very ominous one.
 
Well, the rally in Grand Junction attracted about 400-500 people. Not what I had hoped for but a fairly solid crowd, despite the wind and cold. State Senator Steve King was there, so we are getting some traction. I had to leave early as I am sick as a dog just right now, but overall I'd say the 2-23 rally was a success.
MR
 
I had to leave early as I am sick as a dog just right now
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Thank you for sucking it up and being there!

The crowd in Denver was half that, I'd guess 200-250. Pathetic, considering the population density within 50 miles.

I'm not terribly far from Denver, but not really close, either. On a good day, it's an hour drive.
 
I'd like to thank all those who have attended the rallies, thank those who have written or called their Congressman, Senators, and local/state elected officials. For those that haven't done all or part or part of this, I'd like to request that you try do so, if possible. I'd also like to request THR members to quit taking out their frustration on fellow members when they have no idea what efforts are being put forward by any/all of us. It makes us look pathetically divided!!! :fire: :cuss: :banghead:
 
Screamin'Eagle said:
Buck,

Mach is holding fellow rkba and gun right proponents accountable and stating he was disappointed with the turnout. Nothing wrong with that. It wasn't a personal attack but more a call to action to highlight the fact we can't sit back and assume everyone is doing the work.

.
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But we also can't assume just because everyone in the gun community wasn't at the rally, that those that weren't there were sluffin' off or lazy. There are many battles on different days. You don't see a Normandy Invasion vet telling a Iwo vet he was lazy and didn't care cause he wasn't in France on D-Day. Same here. While I'm sure there are many folks that will sit back, do nothing and then, when they lose some sort of firearm privilege, scream like a little girl. That happens all the time....part of human nature. But making attacks against folks with similar passions and community for reasons as foolish as this thread, does little to cement that community. It just divides us and makes us more vulnerable.

X-JaVeN-X said:
You can't have one without the other. When my boy does something good...I praise him for it. However, when he does something wrong am I not suppose to get on his case about it? I'm sure everyone here appreciates what others in the gun community are doing. However, I wasn't raised to need the recognition of others to do the right thing. You just do it. When you screw up...you own it.

“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing." - Theodore Roosevelt
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Again, the assumption is being made that just cause some folks weren't involved today, that they are or have been doing nothing. I spend twenty nights a year teaching gun safety to youths in the area. Am I doing nothing to promote responsible gun ownership and the shooting sports because I didn't stand along side a road somewhere ONE afternoon with a sign in my hands? Exactly what did I screw up and now hafta own? Do you criticize and get on your boy's case for not getting his chores done because he was in school all day? No....you give him a chance to get them done when he gets home. You do that cause you know what his schedule and other life activities are. You know none of this about other members here.....you just automatically assume they are doing nothing and you are doing more. You are dividing the ranks without any knowledge why.
 
MachIVshooter said:
The turnout today at the Colorado capital in Denver was no where near what I had expected. I hope it was better in others cities.

If you gripe about gun control but could not be bothered to attend these rallies across the country, then SHAME ON YOU!

Some folks have legitimate excuses, but the day of resistance has been planned for a month, and was a whopping 2 hour commitment. Very few people can't dedicate a half-day with that much notice. And I don't want to hear "I didn't know about it"; it's been all over the social networking sites, and ya'll should have been searching regularly for scheduled pro RKBA demonstrations anyway.

I'm ticked right now. For all the whining about proposed gun control on this forum alone, I would have expected overwhelming crowds.

If you blew off these demonstrations, haven't written congresscritters or have otherwise done nothing more than gripe in conversation or on internet bulletin boards, you'll have no one to blame but yourself if this garbage passes in your state or at the federal level.

Laziness will be our undoing this time.

/rant off
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Yea, we can only vote. And bitch and moan also. Vote.
 
If you're feeling somehow offended at MachIVshooter... that's too bad. I don't hear him specifically blaming you. It's important to hold the broader shooting community accountable. There's a difference between placing blame and raising awareness.

If only 200 people showed up from the entire Denver area, that's appalling, and we should be trying to motivate and activate that community.
 
But making attacks against folks with similar passions and community for reasons as foolish as this thread, does little to cement that community.
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You need to read my OP more carefully. I did not say "if you weren't at these rallies, your the enemy." No. I said if you couldn't be bothered, if you haven't written letters or done other things.

You folks know what you have or haven't done, so decide whether this applies to you or not.

If you didn't make the rallies, but have sent dozens of emails, made phone calls, contributed to NRA/NAGR/etc., then you know I'm not directing my ire at you.

But if you're one who whines here or on other forums, pesters the LGS and scours online for magazines and AR parts, but has made no actual effort to oppose these laws, then you are part of the problem.

My disappointment comes from how many supposed "gun people" I personally informed of these rallies that have no excuse but didn't show up, and knowing that the situation is likely the same amongst other groups, including THR. If it's any indication of people's willingness to resist tyranny, and I believe it is, we're screwed.

There's always lots of griping and chest thumping about gun control. I've said it before, I'll say it again: If you can't be bothered to pick up a pen or a picket sign to fight for your rights, I strongly suspect you won't pick up a rifle to do so, either.
 
the sad fact is that historically, a tiny fraction of the population fights for their rights and the vast majority benefit from their work. most of that majority don't mind sitting on the shoulders of giants, but the conscience of some bothers them and they become defensive about it.
 
If only 200 people showed up from the entire Denver area, that's appalling, and we should be trying to motivate and activate that community.
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Yes, it is (appalling). We had well over 400 show up here in Pueblo. If there was a single anti in the crowd (other than Angela Giron), I would be surprised.
 
People who care take actions that they feel will be most effective. Those seeking to sway opinions often pursue actions that they feel might sway their own opinions.

Some people are impressed by large groups of people carrying signs and chanting slogans. Others perhaps not so much. Protest demonstrations have never impressed me or swayed my opinion in a positive way. If that is your thing, fine. It isn't mine. Doesn't mean I don't care, I just focus on other methods.
 
Y'all lighten up a little. Jeez. No need to get all worked up to the point of infighting. Our anti friends would love that.

Lets keep on topic, which I believe is that we need better participation in letter writing, rallies, etc.

MachIVshooter is disappointed that the turnout was poor. I understand that. Can't we let him vent a little among friends without fighting?
 
Wow, lots of the responses here literally sound like people who got caught sleeping on the job! :D "What? I was tired. I was up all night with the kids. Night shift takes it out of you"

I offer no excuses for not attending. Except for these:
There were rallies today???
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Yeah, what rallies, indeed? I hadn't heard of any, and I troll these boards constantly (was Texas left out, or something?)

And, I came down with a head cold yesterday, and didn't feel up for much besides trolling the boards (boreds :D) today. It's for the good of the group that I abstained; or else next week the entire movement could come down with a cold and be defenseless! :eek: Terrible timing. Obama must be targeting me with germ warfare again...;)

So...when are the next rallies? (seeing as I didn't' get the memo on this last round)

TCB
 
MachIVshooter said:
If you didn't make the rallies, but have sent dozens of emails, made phone calls, contributed to NRA/NAGR/etc., then you know I'm not directing my ire at you.



My disappointment comes from how many supposed "gun people" I personally informed of these rallies that have no excuse but didn't show up, and knowing that the situation is likely the same amongst other groups, including THR. If it's any indication of people's willingness to resist tyranny, and I believe it is, we're screwed.

There's always lots of griping and chest thumping about gun control. I've said it before, I'll say it again: If you can't be bothered to pick up a pen or a picket sign to fight for your rights, I strongly suspect you won't pick up a rifle to do so, either.
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Again, I understand your frustration MachIVshooter. Most of my comments were not directed towards you or your frustration. As with any volunteer scenario, be it church, local PTA or youth sports, the majority of the work gets done by the minority of the people. As a organizer you make phone calls, send letters and e-mails and get a ton of promises from folk. Then on the day you need them, a handful show up and the rest have a lame excuse. My frustration is not from having folks think I am not doing anything, but the division I have seen lately here and in the gun community in general. At a time when we should be binding together and utilizing the strength we have in our numbers, many insist on criticizing or belittling.....and yes much of it is internet chest thumping. All of us are here because we are gun enthusiasts. All of us are aware that our rights are being challenged. While everyone is good at something, none of us are good at everything. We all need to do something to contribute, but there are many ways to contribute. If some want to contribute less, we still cannot afford to push them away. We need all the help we can get. That's all I'm trying to say
 
I also didn't hear about the rallies. I don't do any social network, but I'm here almost every day.
 
We are all in this together but not every body can be every where all of the time.

The OP is right, more people need to make the effort.

Those that can should be there.

We should support those that can't.
 
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