- Jan 30, 2013
- 34,196
I'm kinda surprised someone in "performing arts" would take a job with a company involved in firearms.
Maybe she's a firearms person who was sidetracked by the performing arts, then found her calling.
I'm kinda surprised someone in "performing arts" would take a job with a company involved in firearms.
Paloma Heindorff was interviewed by Gun Talk Radio about a year ago, just prior to DD releasing the cutting codes for the Ghost Gunner to do 1911s. Goes into how she came up and how she joined DD. Recorded at last year's Gun Rights Policy Conference.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Defense_Di...loma_heindorff_interview_on_gun_talk_october/
Good interview. Thanks for posting this. It resonates with me in some ways.
I went 42 years without guns in my life, left leaning. On a summer trip to see the in-laws down south, all of that changed. My brother in-law that traveled along with us, unbeknownst to me, took his firearms along since there was a lot of property to shoot on. One day while we were there he said, "let's go out back and shoot". The whole family present (about 10 of us all together) went out to a flat spot in the rough with a hill in front of us. After a few people had their first crack at the fun, it was my turn. I was extremely excited! The first gun that shot was A Ruger 9mm handgun, followed by a British .303, then a .45 1911, then last but not least a .22 revolver. That is all that it took. I had a new hobby! Keep in mind that we were just shooting at cans sitting on dirt. For the next couple of days I went to their local wal-mart and bought box after box of ammo and shot with the younger kids that were having just as much fun as I was.
About a month later I bought my first round of guns. A few months after that.... Newtown Connecticut happened. Even though I was only into firearms for a short time, I immediately saw the amount of disinformation that was coming from the media and our administration. I began questioning some of my views as a result of that incident. I always throw myself headfirst into my hobbies and guns were no different. I did a lot of studying and learning over the course of the following year (before FSA kicked into gear) to educate myself about guns as well as the politics of guns. The national scare was bad but once that subsided we Marylanders still had plenty to fear before October 1, 2013. I was shocked to find out that my friends who liked to shoot, mostly their whole lives, had no idea what a lot of the current gun laws were on a state of federal level and what was being proposed. I found myself knowing way more than they did about the laws and politics in a very short amount of time.
I can't believe how much that I have learned over the past 5 or so years. The biggest thing that I realized is that the fear that I had regarding guns & shooting simply was not there. It was not a real fear. It was all in my head. Keep in mind that I was not an anti-gunner prior to that, I simply had little opinion at all and no knowledge whatsoever. I only knew what was shown on the news,etc. I did not understand where or how guns had a place in our society for citizens. My wife who used to work for the NRA in Virgina a long time ago had different views but I never really dove into the topic with her. I challenged my views that I had and came out on the other side. I feel like i found a "truth". I am a convert by all means.
Paloma Heindorff is clearly not a lifelong pro gun person but is very clear in her stance as a convert. Now, as a member of MSI, Second Amendment Foundation, FPC, and lifelong NRA, I get it! I hope that she does well in her role and the company thrives.
Wow, Kicken Wing, your story is very similar to mine. Not to derail the thread, but I'll put my story up too. I went 44 years without firearms in my life, but from the right. That changed 10 years ago.
When I was about 21, my father and younger brother took me out to the range they shot at. That was their thing, since my brother was destined for the armed service (now a retired Army LTC). I had shot BB and pellet guns no prob, but had never shot a firearm. My first and only shot on that day was my Dad's 12 gauge. They didn't really tell me what to do or expect. It kicked in the uncontrolled way that someone who had no assistance might experience. They started laughing at me. I should have manned up, but instead I took it like a wuss. For the next 23 years I would say, "No guns in my house. Don't want one." I wasn't anti-2A (so I thought) - just a not in my house type. I never chastised folks for firearm ownership. Along the way, I got married. That's when her Taurus 85 revolver moved in. I told her, "I don't even want to know where it is located, and it's your responsibility to take care of it. Hmmph!" So, I still considered myself to have retained "no firearms in my life status" by ignoring the one whose location I didn't want to know about.
Then, one day while visiting at my brother in-law's place, he was out in his backyard shooting an Enfield .303 British. He appeared to be enjoying his time out there. He said, "Hey, you want to try it?" I said, "Yeah, sure." He said, "Do you need help? Have you ever shot a rifle? Do you know how to safely handle it?" I told him that I'd done BB and pellet and knew how to use irons. He told me what to expect and helped me with safety and how to work the action. I knew nothing at that time about firearms. I kept the rifle in a safe direction, finger off the trigger until my sights were on the can on the fence at 85 yards and pulled. The can went down on my first shot! I never looked back. Soon after, I purchased my first handgun, a Beretta 92FS. It is still my favorite 9mm. Then I got a pump action 12 gague. I eventually purchased my first AR, a Colt LE6920 SOCOM. That's about the time I found MD Shooters. I got involved at Annapolis vs. SB281 and subsequent infringements.
Oh, and that whole 12 gauge thing back when I was 21, well, I only wish my dad and brother had introduced me to that shotgun in the same way that my brother-in-law did with his Enfield. I'm also making darned sure that my 9 year old son gets the type of instruction that I didn't receive until I was decades older. He has never known a day without firearms in his house, and he is a crack shot for his age with my .22 pistol and his .22 rifle. We're a shooting sports family.
My perspective: I spent several days with Cody and Paloma. She is the most worthy successor. Obviously Cody is one of a kind, but Paloma is 100% his intellectual equal and was Cody's trusted advisor. She is a true friend of freedom.
Anyone else going to CATO thursday? Josh Blackman will be speaking.
https://www.cato.org/events/catodigital-right-bear-3d-printed-arms-first-second-amendment-issue
Great seeing babalou, kicken, and aob last night. Wish 295 traffic weren't so brutal. Waiting for CATO to post the recording of the event.
Great seeing babalou, kicken, and aob last night. Wish 295 traffic weren't so brutal. Waiting for CATO to post the recording of the event.
I didnt know of Paloma Heindorff but after reading her comments I’m actually excited again. I liked the fact that CW was cockey with lefty interviewers but that approach doesn’t win hearts and minds of those in the middle who don’t really understand what is at stake. I will be anxiously awaiting her first high profile interviews. I also don’t feel like my donations were waisted.
Also. Kickin and PowWow thanks for sharing. I too never owned a firearm until I was 47. I didn’t have and political reason for not owning, just lack of time to really understand how the would benefit me or the money buy them. After becoming a gun owner I found out that I had somehow automatically taken sides in a great a political and ideological battle going on right under my nose. I never really examined my personal political opinions with such thought and rigor until I found my beliefs under attack.