None of the 2A groups "allowed" the progressive super majority to do anything. We get the government we deserve; blame your fellow voting citizens for the shit show that is the MGA. The NRA has sent representation to the MGA on multiple occasions... that representation was as soundly ignored as me (both as an individual and lobbyist) and every other 2A supporting citizen that attempts to testify in front of openly hostile people.Have No idea if this is true,, but,, with all their posturing about protecting the 2A, the NRA has, none the less, allowed Maryland libtards to eliminate the Second Amendment, under a mountain of INFRINGEMENTS.
If one's goal is to secure their 2-A rights a strategy based on the idea of maintaining a perpetual, uninterrupted stream of conservative presidents and justices seems foolhardy.
What has worked for the majority of our history is the overwhelming consensus among ordinary Americans that we all have the right to bear arms.
Yet many gun owner's thinking is still informed by the NRA's stoking of paranoia in order to line their pockets. A paranoia that also leads people to proactively undermine or skirt laws with devices such as 80% lowers and bump stocks. Which in turn stokes paranoia among non-gun owners who can see this law skirting for what it is.
It is self-defeating. Paranoid, armed, law-breakers are perceived as bad guys in the eyes of most ordinary Americans. They are only "good guys with guns" in the eyes of a minority of Americans. Not only is the NRA totally, irretrievably corrupt but they have completely failed in their stated mission.
Long-term it's the voters that matter, not politicians or judges.
A simple rebranding will not solve this problem. It's time to garner consensus and put support behind a single alternative organization with an effective long-term strategy to ensure that a majority of ordinary Americans continue to value their 2A rights.
The fact of the matter is that collectively, we, the members of this forum, I'm guessing - are pretty much armed to the teeth. Not because of the NRA but in spite of it. It's time to let go of all the NRA's ******** tactics of fear-mongering. Cool heads will prevail - don't get your panties all tied up in knots.
None of the 2A groups "allowed" the progressive super majority to do anything. We get the government we deserve; blame your fellow voting citizens for the shit show that is the MGA. The NRA has sent representation to the MGA on multiple occasions... that representation was as soundly ignored as me (both as an individual and lobbyist) and every other 2A supporting citizen that attempts to testify in front of openly hostile people.
Until those eligible to vote actually want change, this is the status quo.
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NRA-ILA Maryland representative Shannon Alford worked tirelessly to preserve our 2A right. Just saying.
None of the 2A groups "allowed" the progressive super majority to do anything. We get the government we deserve; blame your fellow voting citizens for the shit show that is the MGA. The NRA has sent representation to the MGA on multiple occasions... that representation was as soundly ignored as me (both as an individual and lobbyist) and every other 2A supporting citizen that attempts to testify in front of openly hostile people.
Until those eligible to vote actually want change, this is the status quo.
Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
None of the 2A groups "allowed" the progressive super majority to do anything. We get the government we deserve; blame your fellow voting citizens for the shit show that is the MGA. The NRA has sent representation to the MGA on multiple occasions... that representation was as soundly ignored as me (both as an individual and lobbyist) and every other 2A supporting citizen that attempts to testify in front of openly hostile people.
Until those eligible to vote actually want change, this is the status quo.
Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk
NRA-ILA Maryland representative Shannon Alford worked tirelessly to preserve our 2A right. Just saying.
All I can say is "amen" to this. The NRA has been there. MSI has been there. The MSRPA has been there. All three of these organizations have sued in court (and spent a ton of time and money doing so). We haven't sat on our thumbs. We have collectively stopped a ton of bad stuff. But the super majority gets its way. Won't change until the grabbers start to lose in elections. Want to help? Then get to know your legislator, show up at hearings and testify. Join and help financially. Do *something.* The suggestion that we have "allowed" anything is beyond unjustified.
Let's face it, the NRA's main political weapon is the organization of votes and voters, none of our foes every talk of their fear of the Second Amendment Foundation or the Gun Owners of America, there is just one organization that makes Bloomberg, Gifford, Brady and their minions shiver, the NRA. So give to the political victory fund or, if putting your money where your mouth is is too darn hard for you, you should at least vote for the candidates they endorse, or the best rated one. In Maryland a D rating may be as good as we will get. You may want to assist Virginians in their struggle to same some fragments of freedom.
Only votes win elections, only the NRA has the reach to enough votes to win elections. They don't promise we will win, just that we can give it the best shot we can have at the ballot box.
That poor lady beat her head against the wall for years on our behalf, but all she got for it was a headache. I'm glad she went to more fruitful endeavors.
We'll have to see how the new guy whatshisname works out. He stepped into a snake pit in flip flops.
Dave was one of the folks nailed by the multiple layoffs at NRA. He is no longer with the organization. We do have a new NRA-ILA rep, but I have not met him as of yet.Dave Weber. MSI, MSRPA, etc. had to bring him up to speed on a few of thestupiderfiner points of MD law/history last session, but he was good. He actually redeemed a little bit of my faith in NRA...a little. I hope we keep him around for a while.
Dave was one of the folks nailed by the multiple layoffs at NRA. He is no longer with the organization. We do have a new NRA-ILA rep, but I have not met him as of yet.
Steny is NOT unopposed THIS time,,, Chris Palombi is the man who is going to knock him out.One of the biggest obstacles we face here is the dreaded "Unopposed Contest". I read, for example, that Steny (who runs unopposed every time) raised a BUNCH of money for his "campaign" this Fall. This is the norm at the Delegate and Senate levels. We need to identify and groom viable opposition to these lifers. You could get your cat elected to the MGA if it ran unopposed...
If the NRA, with it's army of high priced lawyers and almost unlimited funds, is using an A thru F grading system to influence people, I have to wonder, as do those who received the "F"s - - - WTF? Who GIVES a Crap?Something I learned a long time ago.
It is true the NRA has limited effectiveness in Maryland. A big part of this is the simple reality that an "F" from the NRA to many in the Maryland General Assembly is a badge of honor. There's only so much you can do when the law makers and the people who elect them celebrate getting a failing grade.
That said, in other parts of the country, a bad grade from the NRA can sink a candidate so in those places the NRA has considerable power and through those Senators and Representatives, the NRA can project power.
The NRA's house is def a train wreck, but there is no other organization with as much clout or power as the NRA, so I really think 2A people should be very careful. Politicians want to hold on to power, and will cling to the organizations that can ensure they stay in power. We don't want a power vaccum that allows a group like AnyTown to become the authority on gun politics.