In which crazy comes out… (Get off my side)

Initially I was writing up a post and just ran out of time on it but that is melding into this one. You see there was a group of people who engaged in attention seeking behavior during the January 15th rally and legislative meet that has quite honestly created a serious rift. Not only has it created a rift but there is a bit more of a history involved than just, “the crazies showed up.” It should be noted that the following is my observations only and is not in any way to be attributed to any group I may volunteer for or work with.

Brief Background:

Before the tally was even fully complete an individual started organizing a rally December 13th. There were numerous other individuals who were attempting to help ensure:

  1. The event went off without any serious problems and remained a positive event.
  2. That people would stay engaged and continue to be supportive come the opening of the legislature.

The group support route was heavily rejected. So much so that it actually made the Seattle Times as the organizer made decisions that were not exactly positive. Free permit, oh my god it’s the end of the world because they’re wanting a logistical heads up. But I digress. The permit thing became a very serious craw and caused many to just walk away to leave that organizer on his own. We didn’t detract from his protest but we weren’t supplying effort to support him, he was on his own.

At the same time, actually starting in September, conversation was started regarding an event at the capital in the event 594 passed. We directed the effort of all the groups trying to help with the December 13th rally to one where input, help, and unification actually came in to play. This however didn’t stop claims from the other group of how we were undermining or attacking them. How no one really knows.

As we closed in on January 15th, it became more and more common. Attacking people who were working to support what they felt were going to be effective methods instead of what many felt of the December 13th rally where it would be a giant circle jerk where nothing was really accomplished.

Well nothing happened at the December 13th rally, there was no actual outcome or changes because of the rally. Not saying that people shouldn’t have gone, but I have limited amounts of time and I have absolutely no interest in wasting my time on symbolic gestures. My goal is to be effective and actually achieve what I set out to do. I am also strategic about it and am willing to play the chess game to make it happen.

Some of people also tried to claim the rally was the work of SAF, CCRKBA, POGR, etc. Nope, sorry, hate to break it to you, it was 100% grass-roots. Know how I know? Because I was sitting at the tables helping plan the damn thing.

What Happened:

The morning of the 15th the rally was set up and all was well and good. At the start of the rally everyone was gathered on the steps and the speakers began. There were a couple outbursts yelling at speakers from a group of about 15-20 in the back who eventually moved all the way to the top of the Capitol steps. They had banners from the December 13 rally and were waving them. They yelled a couple of times to garner attention with one-off statements. Everyone for the most part ignored them. They started becoming more disruptive during Paige Biron’s speech. I just ignored it, that is until we heard the familiar sound of charging handles and bolts. I was mortified when I looked back to see loaded magazines being pulled and inserted and charging handles struck. This happened about midway through Joe Huffman’s speech. Who they kept trying to talk over as well. Joe did a fantastic job refusing to engage the misbehaving and distracting children in the back.

After the children started playing with their firearms there was a rapid influx of Washington State Patrol officers. One officer immediately approached the MC to find out how we would like to deal with the situation. I at the time was searching for another organizer so we could effectively talk to State Patrol. Everyone around me in the crowd, many of who were long time gunnies were noticeably alarmed and uncomfortable with what was going on. At least 3 people made comments about why WSP was not arresting them under R.C.W. 9.41.270.

Source, The News Tribune

I need to buy that WSP officer a coffee.

After chatting with the M.C. the WSP officer immediately went up the stairs and shortly after the group dispersed into the Capitol. One lone individual came out yelling, “Patriots come help us storm our capitol.” After 3 times he gave up and moved on. It should also be noted they did this just before Matt Shea spoke about HB-1245 and other pro-gun bills were discussed. I suppose not being at the center of attention was too much for them.

From there they entered the Capitol, I wasn’t present for it but the news media was.

988-SqfHe.AuSt.55

 Here’s a copy of the video of what happened in the gallery.

As much time as I spent in the legislative office buildings I didn’t see any of these individuals there. I only ever saw them in the capitol building so I don’t think they were there to actually engage and talk with their legislators.

Stop coon fingering your weapon, leave it alone unless you actually need it, you narcissistic attention whore.

From there we move into more WTFery.

10356329_10155058810195405_2362466223343182067_n

This does not help engender relations or confidence with those on the other side, much less the fence. I found out that calls were coming into Olympia dispatch about an active shooter at the Capitol. It appears there were some Legislative Aids who were unaware of the rally, and the presence of masked men and long arms raised their concern.

Boy wonder himself makes an appearance in this thread, though I’m not sure it’s publicly accessible. Watching him get roasted by our side was quite entertaining.

Fallout…

Press coverage did exactly what you expected. Focus on the crazy, ignore the every day individual.

Anette Wachter is interviewed by Q13 fox.

Anette Wachter is interviewed by Q13 fox.

Thankfully Q-13 did air part of their interview with Adina, however most of the actual photo coverage is the individuals above. As usual our buddies at the CSGV used the stupidity to their advantage.

CSGV-Jan-15-Rally

The worst part though is there is now a threat to open carry in the Capitol. The initial shot came this morning:

Lt. Gov. Brad Owen announced Friday that the public will no longer be able to openly carry firearms in the state Senate chamber’s public viewing area.

Owen said a notice of the change will be posted outside the gallery at the Capitol, likely before Monday’s floor session.

“We’re just noting that open carry is a form of demonstration and it’s no different than carrying a placard or something else of that nature,” he said.

I suspect this is going to backfire as anyone who can legally own a firearm but does not have a CPL must open carry. I don’t concealed carry or open carry, I just freaking carry. The problem is we have people like the above who carry at people and that is the problem. I suspect a bar on long guns could probably stand, doubly so as this particular group was trying to use the long guns in a form of protest which is expressly forbidden in the gallery.

Dave Workman had this to say:

UPDATE (Friday, 5:45 p.m.) The Associated Press is now reporting that the State Senate is banning the open carry of firearms in the Senate gallery. This announcement underscores the backlash being expressed by many rights activists, including people who were at Thursday’s rally, who were not favorably impressed by the open carry demonstration. There were several people in the crowd who were openly carrying sidearms, and who have been critical of the long gun exhibition.

Honestly I wish that WSP had nailed them under 270 or the violation of the gallery rules regarding protest and use of props. If you want to carry, then carry. But don’t carry and then try to break the rules thinking your special. All you do is look like an ass and make the rest of us look bad, and in the end sabotage the efforts of the people you claim to support. Not only that but you may run rights backwards by being retarded.

Additional side notes:

The organizer for the December 13th rally was arrested on the 15th. It appears yelling at a judge while approaching the bench is not acceptable courtroom behavior.

In addition, he allegedly took exception to a ruling by Judge Judith L. McCauley because she did not want spectators live-streaming video from the courtroom.

“Seim began yelling at the judge and walking toward her bench,” Gjesdal said. McCauley “ordered him removed from the courtroom.”

When deputies tried to escort him out, he allegedly began to pull away and resist. He was placed under arrest and later booked into jail for interfering with a court, disorderly conduct and contempt of court, Gjesdal said.

Most entertainingly the stupidity appeared to be genetic as his father decided to get arrested in a show of solidarity with him.

How I feel…

Honestly I feel a bit betrayed by my own. Get the hell off my side. As someone reminded me tonight:

“Politics is the art of the possible.”

We are quite literally trying to accomplish the impossible in a not totally friendly environment. We need 2/3s majority to touch anything and that isn’t possible without fence sitters. Further when people on our own side are shaking their heads you can turn what was a level battle into an uphill one. We most likely won’t actually get a full repeal this round, after yesterday it most likely will be DOA as it won’t even make it through committee since that’s not full of friendlies. My goal is to be effective and get shit done. Acting like a child and throwing a tantrum doesn’t help anyone. All it does is make you look like an ass. Tell me, is anyone other than the child excited when throwing a tantrum in a store?

Podcast Post 594…

Part two of my 2A Today podcast just went up. I talk about the details of what happened, what the future looks like, and what’s on the horizon.

I also discuss the December 13th rally and some of the interesting bits that have come across my desk about it. Again if you want to go, go. It is symbolic and there has been no clear-cut plan of what or how they plan on what their going to accomplish. There has also been plenty of drama from the organizer that makes me want to keep as far away from it as possible. Doubly so as the drama is unnecessary and detracts from the goal and merely serves to draw him attention, drive away those in the middle, and give ammunition to an already hostile media.

I’ve had a few people tell me that it is going to “establish precedent” that it’s unenforceable. Internally all I can do on that one is laugh. That is not going to affect a legal case, no matter what you think. The goal of this law is, and always has been, selective enforcement and to provide a chilling effect regarding the free exercise of the right.

If you want to go, go, I’m not stopping you. I have other things to do and better ways to apply my valuable time. If you do go, be aware, be vigilant, and have an escape route. Do not be surprised to find bad actors, or people who are otherwise there to merely manipulate a crowd of that size. Remember mob dynamics and that there is a large difference between a person and a group of people. There are people out there who look to take advantage of that.

Sidenote and update:
I do have one correction, when we recorded we were planning on January 13th, 2015 for the rally at the start of the legislative session. After chatting with a bunch of other people who work regularly with state legislators it has been moved to January 15th, 2015. This is because legislators will still be largely busy with unpacking and other items on the 13th.

You can watch for updates and more information here. Here is the announcement notice.

On January 15th, 2015 at 9 a.m. the Washington Firearms Leadership and Activism Group (WAFLAG), Protect Our Gun Rights Washington and the Gun Rights Coalition will host and both the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep & Bear Arms and the Second Amendment Foundation will sponsor the first 2015 Legislative Rally against I-594 and other bad gun laws on the front steps of the Washington Capitol building in Olympia.

This grass roots event will include hundreds of voters, supporters of Second Amendment rights with speakers Adina Hicks (Executive Director, Protect Our Gun Rights Washington), Rick Halle (National Coordinator, Gun Rights Coalition) and Paige Biron (President, Pink Pistols of Seattle) helping to kick off a day of sharing the concerns of Second Amendment supporters with legislators throughout the Capitol campus.

The legislature is in session for this rally, legislators are on campus and this is a great opportunity for us to make our voices heard. To drive home to our legislators that you should be taken seriously please dress to impress and make sure that all sidearms are securely holstered. Wear business semi-formal or formal if you’ve got it (slacks, good denim, suits, dresses, etc.).

Please leave your long arms home to avoid scaring uncommitted legislators into the arms of Bill Gates, Nick Hanauer and the rest of the 594 crowd. We’re going to Olympia to create a positive impression and WIN, not to put on a media show.

After the rally, attendees will visit their individual legislators to talk with them about the many flaws of I-594 and other firearms rights issues. For help scheduling meetings with YOUR legislator, call Adina Hicks of POGR at (425) 351-4088.

Help will be provided at the rally to folks unsure of who their legislator is and how best to meet with them. In the meantime, locate your legislator by using http://app.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/ or contact them using the legislative hotline at 1-800-562-6000. Let them know your views!

Be Present. Be effective. Fight the Fight!

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.

I find this fitting…

So I saw a post from Oleg today and I saw the post before I saw his email. Considering I saw the image before anything else I had to do a double take for a second. bro_I594_5034web

Joe has some comments on it. I largely agree. Rights are rights, they are natural. However in the grand scheme we all did lose something because of 594. It makes education, competition, hunting, and recreational shooting all perilously difficult. It isn’t a joke or off the wall either, these fears are being confirmed. It has chilled the rights to the point where we have lost parts of them for fear of exercising them.

So why do I find this fitting… Well my expression nails the statement above oh so well. Most significantly is that rifle in my hands. That is my baby. If you don’t understand, go read it will make sense. It ties me to how I entered the frey.

Thanks for the pic Oleg!

I-594, the Political War and Educating Outsiders…

I had a request come in last week to be a guest host on 2AToday to talk about I-594 and I-591, Washington political history, and basically provide a solid overview to educate people on the situation, especially those outside of Washington.

The creator worked his tail off and got it posted at BF 30 this morning.

There will be a part 2 follow on episode for after the election where fallout and the political horizon will be discussed.

While you may not live in Washington so you have no ability to vote on the initiatives I highly recommend you listen. I didn’t do this  just because of Washington politics. There is more going on that many people realize and we’re already seeing the glow of smoke on the horizon. We’re in a fight whether you like it or not and I suggest finding out what’s going on from people currently on the front lines before you find yourself in a middle of a political war zone with no clue what’s going on.

You will notice I broke out the “It Can’t Happen Here” category, because I suspect we will be hearing a lot of it in the near future.

The Worthlessness of Background Checks…

So this came across my inbox today via Sean and my immediate though was of I-594.

According to an Executive Summary “on the investigations the Oregon State Police (OSP) is conducting regarding denied firearm transactions through the Firearm Instant Check System (FICS) Unit”   of the 331 “denial” investigations only 8 people have been arrested. That’s a total of only 2.41% of the people denied!

And of course, there is no way of  knowing how many of the people taken into custody were arrested for actual offenses and how many were victims of the same sloppy record keeping that kept most of the other 97%  from completing transfers.

Honestly this is not surprising to anyone who is actually active in this community or works with the facts on the subject. Doubly entertaining is when you also consider that criminals need not take part in this system since that would require them to self incriminate.

I am one of those who has received a NICS denial, got a couple of them actually while the state took it’s time updating records associated with a felony charge. But I hear you cry, how do you know you were legal? Because the prosecutor who charged me ordered the firearm I was carrying the day of the wreck returned to me.

So let’s think about this, what does an overly broad definition of transfers, where any handling of a firearm can be classified as a transfer get the other side?

The answer is simple, it makes firearm ownership so dangerous and precarious that very few will want to exercise their rights. Further even fewer of those will be willing to risk felonies to educate others. Not to mention the costs of attempting to stay within the bounds of the law given transfer fees and the use tax involved.

Vote NO on I-594. Don’t let the 1% confuse you in to vacating your rights.

Apologists, Syncophants, and Surrender Monkeys

imgresSo the last piece related to the NRA had two distinct responses. There was a third type but that was largely only done by a single individual and he was the exception more than the rule.

The first type of response was simply that of agreement and relaying that they had encountered similar issues within fights in their .

The other, largely the source of this blog post was blindly defensive of the NRA without actually discussing any of the issues why, there was one exception as noted above. Which brings me around to the post title.

What was I really focused on?

It appears that the crux of my complaint was missed or oblivious to people so let me lay it out here:

Why should I donate money to an organization who is not working to defend my rights in the fight with is going to have the largest impact on ME?

Think about that for a second, they called asking for money but are no where to be seen in the 591/594 fight. End result I am spending my personal time and effort doing what they aren’t.

The response from others:

There were people who left comments to the effect of:

It’s just so much easier to bitch about the NRA than get off your ass and do something for yourself though.

Or the ever entertaining:

The gun culture will be destroyed when your last neuron stops firing from blood loss. Apparently, people like Barron, are cowards who will obey gun laws, gun confiscation,etc. If you have and love guns, you need to understand and be prepared to do the unthinkable if it comes down to it. I would hope that the gun culture in Washington will only be destroyed when there is physical death and destruction of every gun loving resident in that great state and not before that point. I guess people in New York and CT have harder balls than people i Washington.

That last comment is by someone who obviously is not familiar with the legislation and what it’s actually doing. Not to mention this seems like the rantings of someone perpetuating the “deranged knuckle-dragging stereotype.” I’d also like to point out that the goal of combat and war is not to die for your cause or principles, it’s to make the other poor bastard die for his. I-594, while certainly creating a system of backdoor gun registration, does much worse. I-594 makes felons from those who engage in instruction, sport, and education with its overly broad definitions. You’re right, the gun culture will die with my last breath because I was effectively prevented from bringing new people into the sport.

Where it all comes together:

The biggest gold mine was Facebook:

Screen Shot 2014-08-16 at 10.59.18 AM Screen Shot 2014-08-16 at 10.59.33 AM

First, a quick reminder, let’s I wrote the post. Now lets rip apart those arguments shall we?

The NRA is working to elect pro gun candidates in every state. That’s a very bold statement, that would mean they’re working to elect pro gun candidates right here in Washington since it’s every state. Let’s look at the PDC shall we?Screen Shot 2014-08-17 at 8.44.34 PM


The reason that the I-676 numbers are specifically called out is because the argument is the NRA is supporting candidates right?  We quickly discover that by far the biggest contributor to elections in Washington since 1998 isn’t the NRA but WAGOAL. By a ratio of ~1.5 to 1. But lets see exactly where the NRA is spending our donations.Screen Shot 2014-08-17 at 2.01.17 PM

So it seems the NRA has a solid covering, but what is interesting is some of those candidates aren’t in serious battle areas. They are already very “red” and quite pro-gun as it’s the more rural parts of the state. Interestingly though Pam Roach, who is quite honestly one of the most gun friendly people up for reelection, is in a heated showdown to retain her seat has only a single contribution from the NRA this year. Know what’s interesting about that? She is quite literally in the middle of some of the most gun unfriendly territory in the state. So explain how the NRA is going to be helping pro gun candidates, when it seems their philosophy is to fire a shotgun at the wall and hope that something sticks. If you have limited funds, one should make sure to maximize the effect from what you do spend. Same goes for residents, comparing the NRA to say WAGOAL in terms of supporting candidates, I’m sending my money to WAGOAL.*

WAGOAL may look light on this years donations to political candidates, however they have contributed heavily to the 591/594, where normally they would be focused on candidates not an initiative battle; which when taken into account easily moves them to twice what NRA has contributed this election cycle, even with the NRA’s shell campaign.

What changed?

In 1997 the NRA committed, quite heavily I might add, to defeating I-676.  As you can see above the NRA brought over $2 million into the fight. This time we get crickets.

We get a lack of commitment on an opposing initiative that would help secure a legal challenge in the even I-594 passes. We get a battlefield of restraints our local representatives are constrained by. Ultimately I see the process of engineering for failure.

So how do I view this overall?

When you criticize the NRA or question the notion that the NRA is the “gun owners best friend and can do no wrong” mentality, you get excuses. Sort of like the battered spouse crying “Sure he beats and rapes me but he protects me from all these other things! He’s a good provider!”

Others see that parallel with the NRA’s relationship to gun owners. They claim that the NRA is fundamentally opposed to any idea that didn’t originate in Virginia, that the NRA is unwilling to work with other pro-gun organizations and that the NRA is the first to claim credit when things go well – and shift the blame with equal vigor.

These same people who then tell us that the NRA response to I-594 and I-591 is precisely what we should expect – a token effort or a shell campaign opposing I-594 so that NRA “leaders” in Virginia can claim victory if I-594 is defeated, and that “well, we tried” should it win. That we should be unsurprised when the NRA dismisses I-591 as irrelevant – as, after all, not only was I-591 not born in the depths of the NRA halls of Virginia, it was homegrown. After all, nothing good EVER happens when gun owners think for themselves and take the lead. That is the modern NRA – not the NRA of 1997, still equipped with a spine and marching into the fight with $2,000,000 in their pocket.

Objectively it almost seems as if there’s actually two different NRA’s.  There is local NRA and field reps trying to find ways to be effective locally — whether that is testifying to the legislature or standing behind a booth at the fair, working a gun show, or any other task an activist must do.

Then we have the second NRA, sitting on the pocketbook – dismissive and uninvolved, a bureaucratic multi-headed monster in Virginia that works against those local representatives. The body that coughed up a total of $25,000 late in the game, in a seeming act of self-serving symbolism.

Representing that NRA we have Brian Judy, an NRA Senior State Liaison, has worked tirelessly within the dysfunctional ball field the Medusa of Virginia created in the Washington initiative battle and was fantastically effective during the Legislative Hearings in Olympia. Judy literally crushed the opposition without blinking an eye and did it effectively, without reserve, with an educational tone that nailed the subject at hand.

The NRA serves a purpose – but I seriously wonder how much they are really self-serving versus actually serving gun owners. They were helpful during the national fight January 2013, but at the same time they stabbed Washington State in the back – was that two NRA’s working to cross purposes?

Maybe it’s time to start working on solid local leadership we can depend on – if we cannot depend on the NRA of Virginia.

*Note I do not represent or claim to represent WAGOAL and could care less where you send your money. I am merely providing the information as an educational service. Do with it as you please.

Area of Operations
Why should I donate money to an organization who is not working to defend my rights in the fight with is going to have the largest impact on ME?
The representatives local to the state of Washington.

Where the F*** is the NRA?!

Background

46f45fc1d77a6c0a37791ab4003e0e0aFor those of you who don’t know, a serious fight kicked off last January in Washington state. Lately I have volunteered my time to speak at gun shows and other events and let me tell you something, I am terrified. Out of the people visiting their local gun show you would expect at least 90% of the people to have at least heard about what’s going on, it’s more like 50%. Most have no real knowledge of either of the initiatives or their real legal impact and what it means for them as gun owners.

Recently gun owners accomplished a great feat in Missouri and everyone is all ecstatic, thing is strategically Washington has a lot of ground to cover and is quite likely to cause failures in other states. Not to mention they had no opposing ballot initiatives in their fight.

For those who don’t know, Bloomberg and his “Everytown” group have pledged 50 million dollars to aid in pushing Initative-594. Bloomberg has been stating he wants to crush the NRA, what better way when the NRA doesn’t even bother to show up, I’ll explain in a bit. Quite literally this is the biggest fight going on between gun owners and Bloomberg.

There is also an opposition bill, I-591, which Washington gun owners want to pass that will prevent the state from confiscating firearms under a declared emergency.


Current State of the Fight

Polling DataYardSignSTOPGUNblackfinal

First off, current polling data I’m getting through the grape vine, remember this fight began in January we’re 8 months in with 3 to go.

The news is, frankly, bad. We’re 8 months into a 11 month fight and running out of time. According to my sources, the numbers are running against us on the anti-gun I-594 stealth gun registration scheme, with voters polling over 2:1 in favor.

On I-591, the Gottlieb sponsored initiative banning gun seizures and forcing Washington to refrain from background checks at least until a consistent federal standard is passed is doing better – about half of voters polled support it. We can win 591 if folks get off their flabby… and start volunteering and writing checks.

The War Chests (The core data showing something’s wrong)

Our Side

Now lets talk war chests and who’s been providing support and where:

Data for the contribution statistics above can be seen here.

The good news is there have also been a pile of individual donors so the total contributions thus far are in the $1 million range.

What about those pushing for I-594?alt_pro594

What does it actually look like?

Total raised: $3+ million dollars, including a single $30k contribution from MAIG.

What about the NRA?

The NRA has showered this fight with a whopping, wait for it, $25,000. You read that right, MAIG has actually put more money into this fight than the NRA.

What’s being done with the war chests?

It isn’t always about how much money you raise, it’s about how you spend it. Here’s how each group, on our side of the fight, has spent their contributions to the war effort.


 

imgres-1

  • Created POGR
  • Created I-591/594 Campaign Art
  • Created I-591/594 Bumper Stickers
  • Created I-591/594 Yard Signs, currently in productions
  • Staff for the Washington Arms Collectors, Falcon, Knodel, and other gun shows regarding I591/I594

logo recreaction

  • Reference section regarding 591/594
  • Comped tables for anyone associated with POGR at any WAC show
  • Comp’d tables through CCKRBA for the NRA
  • Public Representation
  • Law Enforcement Networking*

*Quite honestly that is probably the biggest thing WAC, or anyone has done in this fight. You would think the NRA would have been able to do this but it was WAC. What am I talking about?

WACOPS declared support of I-591 noting that it protects background check uniformity, allows the background check debate to continue on the federal level and allows WA state standards to change if, or when, federal standards change.

At the same time WACOPS noted the many flaws of I-594 and made clear their opposition to the measure as an organization.


NRA-logo

  • Two field reps, who are forbidden to support I-591
  • No campaign materials
  • Outdated self-promoting material
  • Complete lack of coordination in working with any of the above for the common goal
  • A committee with an unknown name and no resources to actually be allowed to call itself such.

I wish I was making the above up but I am not. I have met both of the lovely young women who are working as field reps for the NRA, they expressed frustration at the way the NRA seemed to be dragging its feet. Even more importantly how they are restrained from being fully effective. The reps are being constrained from being effective by the NRA.


What exactly is the deal with I-591?591-594 Bumpersticker

If you are a Washington state resident you want it to pass, doubly so as it creates a very interesting legal problem if I-594 passes as well. This is a part of a legal chess game and honestly this all goes back to 2013 when I wrote this earlier article. Gottlieb saw 594 on the horizon and was trying to cut it off at the pass, destroy the Washington state pistol registry while really giving them nothing. The key to screwing our enemy is make them think they have a win when they actually get nothing. Well it was done so well that the NRA that sounded that alarm, portrayed Gottlieb as a traitor and move their residential members to have the bill struck down.

Now we find our selves facing 594, and 591 was created as a response to try to help gun owners, as usual though the NRA doesn’t like it, presumably because they didn’t come up with it and their committee to form a committee hasn’t come back with an agreement yet.

Interestingly the NRA doesn’t even seem to be really reaching out to their local members except to call up and ask for more money. Tell me, why would I give a contribution to the NRA to “Help fight Michael Bloomberg” when in the biggest ongoing battle with him you’re nowhere to be found? <- Seriously they called me last week wanting me to donate money and I was starting to dig up this information. I’m about ready to say I will not be getting the life membership I was thinking about getting this December as a birthday present, much less renewing.


Does the NRA hate Washington State?

It certainly feels that way. I have heard through the rumor mill that the NRA has a serious dislike for Gottlieb and they view this as a “let’s screw Gottlieb” moment. The catch is they’re screwing over every gun owner in the state of Washington over petty personal politics.

No one has been able to figure out why the NRA hasn’t endorsed I-591, it’s only a page long and so simple even a child can understand it.

If the NRA feels that 594 is too likely to pass so why bother investing in the fight, why not then endorse 591 to give the best possibilities in a legal challenge? Preventing a total victory for our opponents.


Tactical fallout:

There is, as with any battle, a list of tactical consequences that come with defeat and it is no different in this political fight. There are implications both nationally and locally.

First, despite the NRA seeming to think they do not have a dog in this fight, should 594 pass and 591 fail, MAIG, Every-town, and every other wholly owned subsidiary of Michael Bloomberg Inc. will declare this a victory over the NRA.  The NRA has been portrayed to be the big evil nasty villain that is impossible to conquer. This fight, the opposition may do exactly that.  That gives the opposition momentum. Momentum creates opportunity and allows for more losses.

Which brings us to similar types of initiatives being brought forward in Nevada, Arizona and elsewhere shortly there after should they win.

And then the local fallout.  Expect to see attempts for a semi-auto and magazine ban in the state of Washington most likely in 2016 when there is also a presidential and gubernatorial election and the Peoples Republic of Puget Sound will be out in full voting fury.


Conclusion:

There is no doubt this fight is a big deal. A bigger deal than most people realize.  Implications are reaching far and wide and it seems that the largest most effective group with the largest reach is sleeping at the wheel.

We have a fight on our hands, if you’re a gun owner in the state of Washington, be sure to educate your friends and family about I-594 and I-591, the implications and facts behind them.  If you’d like to volunteer in some way hit up this contact form.  If you’d like to donate to Protect Our Gun Rights, go here.

And I will say it again, “Where the F*** is the NRA?”  Feel free to ask that the next time they call asking for money.

*It should be noted that my main complaint here is that the NRA is more than happy to take my money but then is no where to be found when things actually go sideways. While some would say, “quit complaining and do it yourself,” well that’s exactly what I am !@#$ing doing. As such I’ll be taking my money with me, cause obviously I need it for the fight they’re not willing to take on.