The Shit Storm that is the NRA Today & How We Got Here

[ralph]

I just skimmed the bylaws, and it is worse than I thought. 75% of the board is required to remove the top leadership.

Save the Second appears to have the right set of goals. If those goals fail, plan B should be planning the successor organization.

For the long term, I think plan B may be the better option..It's begining to look like WLP and his friends are having a purge. Anyone who is disloyal or preceived to be disloyal, is gotten rid of. This is the same tactic dictators use to conslidate power, only in this case without the firing squads and gulags, just pink slips.. I think the time has come to start kicking around the idea of a successor organization, one that has clear stated goals, transparency at every level.. There are four stages to a organization like the NRA..It starts out as a movement, turns into a organization, and then into a business, and finally evolves into a racket. I think there's no doubt we're at the racket stage. The only way I can see to oust WLP and his cronies is by denying them money, the problem with that is, WLP and company will drive the NRA right into the ground before they cede their grip on power. And when they do, there is going to be little left to salvage.. I have no doubt that when they walk away they are going to leave behind an enormous mountian of debt,which will hamper the ability of those who try to pick up the peices to be effictive in protecting our rights for decades to come..Knowing that, I see no reason to wait around, we need to get the ball rolling, now.

[Stephanie B]

For the long term, I think plan B may be the better option..It's beginning to look like WLP and his friends are having a purge. Anyone who is disloyal or perceived to be disloyal, is gotten rid of. This is the same tactic dictators use to consolidate power, only in this case without the firing squads and gulags, just pink slips.. I think the time has come to start kicking around the idea of a successor organization, one that has clear stated goals, transparency at every level.. There are four stages to a organization like the NRA..It starts out as a movement, turns into a organization, and then into a business, and finally evolves into a racket. I think there's no doubt we're at the racket stage, The only way I can see to oust WLP and his cronies is by denying them money, the problem with that is, WLP and company will drive the NRA right into the ground before they cede their grip on power. And when they do, there is going to be little left to salvage.. I have no doubt that when they walk away they are going to leave behind an enormous mountian of debt,which will hamper the ability of those who try to pick up the pieces to be effective in protecting our rights for decades to come..Knowing that, I see no reason to wait around, we need to get the ball rolling, now.

I agree with most of this. I only hope that the museum is its own entity and can be spared, but I am not hopeful.

I think that whatever succeeds the NRA has to be gotten off the ground, now. We're going to need an effective pro-2A organization before the NRA is demolished. There are too many well-funded anti groups to have a gap in advocacy for our side.

[HCountyGuy]

I think there's no doubt we're at the racket stage, The only way I can see to oust WLP and his cronies is by denying them money, the problem with that is, WLP and company will drive the NRA right into the ground before they cede their grip on power. And when they do, there is going to be little left to salvage.. I have no doubt that when they walk away they are going to leave behind an enormous mountian of debt.Knowing that, I see no reason to wait around, we need to get the ball rolling, now.

That’s my issue with the “stop sending money” response as the only thing most people are willing to do.

I’m dead serious about pissed-off NRA members needing to show up on the doorstep of NRA HQ en-masse to demand WLP be booted, by-laws be damned because they were obviously written very poorly in order to allow folks like him to stay in. I’m sincerely doubtful you’d get 75% of the board to do anything as some are likely buddies of his or are afraid to speak out for fear of being tossed out.

At this phase, incessantly whining about it and cutting off funding is likely to result in more bad than good. Not to mention the whining without action is getting old. Somebody local ought to be mad enough and proactive to organize a protest consisting of other gun-owners to head over to NRA HQ and read them the riot act.

Cutting off funding is like starving an animal for doing something bad. Rather than let it starve and die, how about engaging in other measures to correct the unwanted behavior?

[GardoneVT]

That’s my issue with the “stop sending money” response as the only thing most people are willing to do.

I’m dead serious about pissed-off NRA members needing to show up on the doorstep of NRA HQ en-masse to demand WLP be booted, by-laws be damned because they were obviously written very poorly in order to allow folks like him to stay in. I’m sincerely doubtful you’d get 75% of the board to do anything as some are likely buddies of his or are afraid to speak out for fear of being tossed out.

At this phase, incessantly whining about it and cutting off funding is likely to result in more bad than good. Not to mention the whining without action is getting old. Somebody local ought to be mad enough and proactive to organize a protest consisting of other gun-owners to head over to NRA HQ and read them the riot act.

Cutting off funding is like starving an animal for doing something bad. Rather than let it starve and die, how about engaging in other measures to correct the unwanted behavior?

A closer analogy is a takeover of a country’s government by a dictator and his cadre. The idea of a Board of Directors is to oversee the organizational management ; not the other way around. When the management screws up, the BoD is intended to act in the best interests of the group, including terminating the executive management.

Instead NRA management is giving orders to the BoD; as such the organization is totaled beyond repair. It may be time to start over with a more effective organization, as removal of WLP and Co is not going to happen. Id imagine the folks invested in the RKBA will move hats to the new NRA 2.0, leaving only the corrupt and deadweight at NRA 1.0.

For what it’s worth, rebooting the NRA into a new leaner organization isn’t all doom and gloom. In this new world of social media and generational acceptance of technology we need an agile RKBA advocacy group that’s relevant to modern voters. It’s an opportunity to shed the institutional deadweight and image of the old crooked NRA 1.0 and adopt a fresh pursuit of RKBA advocacy . One rooted in the 21st century, instead of 1976.

Edit; a name change is also in order. Rifles aren’t the only firearm in town.

[HCountyGuy]

My concern in trying to escalate another organization to replace the NRA is the amount of ridiculous in-fighting we’re likely to have. That, plus there are organizations with worse money practices that have more (perceived) support than they should: such as GOA and NAGR.

I’m really worried that when/if (though when seems to be more accurate at this phase) the NRA goes Tango Uniform, gun owners are going to be well and truly boned trying to fight legislation at the national level.

[ralph]

My concern in trying to escalate another organization to replace the NRA is the amount of ridiculous in-fighting we’re likely to have. That, plus there are organizations with worse money practices that have more (perceived) support than they should: such as GOA and NAGR.

I’m really worried that when/if (though when seems to be more accurate at this phase) the NRA goes Tango Uniform, gun owners are going to be well and truly boned trying to fight legislation at the national level.

This is why we have to get something going..NOW. I think if the goals are clearly stated, we have a BoD that has real teeth and is able to stop any would be WLP's before they got too far, Has term limits for all BoD members, Presidents, Vice Presidents etc, and is transparent in it's actions, a NRA 2.0 could become a reality, without too much hassle. I see your point, but going down to NRA HQ and protesting will solve nothing, and give the media a field day, besides, WLP and his cronies through their actions, have made it crystal clear they don't give a shit about the members. Protest all you want, WLP and his cronies are going to continue to fleece the NRA, until there's nothing left.. The way I see it, we have some choices here, continue to support the current NRA, support somebody else, or try to start a replacement organization, and cut the NRA adrift, and let them implode.. At this point, setting up another organization that addresses all the shortcomings of the current, corrupt NRA, may be the way forward.

[scjbash]

I think one of the bigger issues to deal with is that the average NRA member is clueless about all of this. When I've brought this stuff up to people who don't spent time on shooting related forums they've had no idea what I was talking about. The older NRA members have all had the same response: disbelief that WLP isn't a saint who runs the greatest organization on the planet.

The NRA may have five million members but how many actually know and admit there's a problem?

[ralph]

That’s my issue with the “stop sending money” response as the only thing most people are willing to do.

I’m dead serious about pissed-off NRA members needing to show up on the doorstep of NRA HQ en-masse to demand WLP be booted, by-laws be damned because they were obviously written very poorly in order to allow folks like him to stay in. I’m sincerely doubtful you’d get 75% of the board to do anything as some are likely buddies of his or are afraid to speak out for fear of being tossed out.

At this phase, incessantly whining about it and cutting off funding is likely to result in more bad than good. Not to mention the whining without action is getting old. Somebody local ought to be mad enough and proactive to organize a protest consisting of other gun-owners to head over to NRA HQ and read them the riot act.

Cutting off funding is like starving an animal for doing something bad. Rather than let it starve and die, how about engaging in other measures to correct the unwanted behavior?

Other measures are all but impossible..With a 76 member board who is too stupid, or too scared to do anything, WLP has effectively turned the tables around..He tells the BoD what to do, and they do it. It's supposed to be the other way around.. The membership cutting off funding is the only thing we as members can do, and it's something we can control. At this point, about the only thing that would get WLP kicked out of his NRA kingdom, is if he took a ride on the "Lolita Express", and was at Epsteins private island..

[Glenn E. Meyer]

The problem is that the NRA's voice will be seen as corrupted. Any statement by them will only resonate with true believers who have lost critical judgement. A person interested in the cause as compared to themselves would realize when it is time to go. An NRA endorsement may get you some money from true believers but for anyone on the fence it can be seen as a negative. If I were a gun rights supporter as a candidate, I would speak to the need for the RKBA but strongly distance myself from the current leadership.

Unfortunately, such behavior is very rare.

[ralph]

I think one of the bigger issues to deal with is that the average NRA member is clueless about all of this. When I've brought this stuff up to people who don't spent time on shooting related forums they've had no idea what I was talking about. The older NRA members have all had the same response: disbelief that WLP isn't a saint who runs the greatest organization on the planet.

The NRA may have five million members but how many actually know and admit there's a problem?

I don't know..but I guess we're going to have to spread the word, either on social media talking, to people at the range, but the word needs to be spread, ALL of the membership should be made aware of what's going on, and a grassroots type of action is probably the most effective.