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It has been quite a while since the last major speech by NRA’s President, Wayne LaPierre. He will speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC 2014) TODAY, March 6, beginning at 2:30 p.m. EST. The coming year will bring great political change and as gun owners and 2nd Amendment supporters, we need to keep abreast of the political landscape and what the NRA’s perspective is moving forward. You will find his speech here and will be able to stream it live below, please bookmark this link and set a reminder. Our gun rights are in jeopardy, and we will only prevail if we remain united!
Tag Archive for NRA
TODAY! LIVE stream Wayne LaPierre’s speech at CPAC 2014
Category: Gun Rights, Uncategorized / Tags: #NRAwomen, 2nd amendment, Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC, CPAC 2014, gun rights, March 6, NRA, speak, speech, Thursday, washington DC, Wayne LaPierre
New Missouri law allows schools to teach gun safety to first-graders
Along with math, science and social studies, gun safety could soon be part of the first-grade curriculum in some Missouri public schools. A new measure that advocates for such classes for first-graders was signed into law last week. But the idea has prompted worry from some parents and experts about the role and effectiveness of gun safety programs in a classroom setting. “I don’t have a gun. My family doesn’t have a gun. There is no reason for them to be teaching about gun safety when there are children with parents like me,” Aimee Patton, a Kansas City blogger and mom to a 6-year-old girl, told CNN in a phone interview. Read more via CNN.
While I truly believe that gun education, as in how to use a gun, should be taught only by experienced, well-trained people, and the decision to teach a child how to use a gun should 100% be up to the parent, teaching a child how to safely react when they encounter a gun is really no different than teaching them how to react when there is a fire or “stranger danger” situation. With all the accidental deaths in the news, deaths that are caused by children shooting themselves or accidentally shooting other young friends or siblings, how could this be a bad thing? Especially for children who live in homes without guns. These children may not understand that a firearm should always be assumed to be loaded. Something like the Eddie Eagle program simply teaches kids:
If you see a gun:
- STOP!
- DON’T TOUCH.
- LEAVE THE AREA.
- TELL AN ADULT.
I have not witnessed the actual training taking place, and have not reviewed the curriculum for Eddie Eagle, but one of the criticisms in the article is that there is no “Practical Application” training included. All a teacher would have to do is spend about 15 minutes role playing with a toy gun. They know how to call 911, they know where to go for a fire drill, there is no reason a child couldn’t be taught to NOT touch a gun. It seems to me that children in homes with no guns would be the most likely kids to touch a gun if they found one (though it may be less likely they would find one.) Should they come across a gun, it seems they would be much more curious about it and more likely to touch it since the odds are that their parents never educated them about a firearm. If you never see one, you never play with a toy gun, you can’t make a paper gun, you can’t bite your pop tart into a gun, when would the teaching moment ever arrive in a child’s life? Cops and Robbers, Cowboy vs. outlaw games we all played as children helped us work out the difference between good and evil, but it also gave our parents a reason to talk to use about gun safety.
I guess the parents who don’t have guns and the School districts who won’t even let a “Pop Tart” gun exist would rather just pretend that guns do not exist at all and then pray and hope with all their might that their children never happen across one of the 300,000,000 guns out in our society. Yep – hope is a great plan.
For me, I have and will continue to talk to my children and train them in gun safety, and as they grow – the proper use of a firearm.
Full Disclosure: I am the mother of a first grader.
Category: News, Politics / Tags: 6 year old, Aimee Patton, eddie eagle, Gun law, Gun safety, Kansas City, Missouri, NRA, pleasantly eccentric, teaching gun safety to first graders
New App “Gun Geo Marker” Targets Gun Owners
From the NRA site: This week’s outrage comes to us from a rather unlikely source: the Google Play app store. The new app is called the Gun Geo Marker, and encourages users to “geolocate dangerous guns and owners” in their communities.
The app could enable thieves to target and steal firearms from law-abiding gun owners, while conversely advertising that other residences are “gun free” and therefore easy targets for criminals. Read more via NRA-ILA.
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I did go to the developer’s website, and they have listed the following guidelines for “Marking” someone as a dangerous gun owner:
Try to keep the following warning signs and guidelines in mind when determining if a local gun owner may present a threat to your children or your community. While the remainder of the guidelines are fairly obvious cases for marking if true, it is important to remain clear headed about your assessment and avoid misunderstandings. Users of the Walkingtools Gun Geo Marker hold the responsibility for the quality of the information the system presents while remaining anonymous so try to be as clear about your concerns as possible.
- Unlocked, loaded, or carelessly stored weapons
- Dangerous Gun Owners to include 1st time gun owners who have not take a gun safety class.
- Places with an unsafe gun culture
- Uncertain Situations
- The general guideline is that you should mark any location about which you have a gun related concern, while trying to provide enough extra information for others to make their own determination about safety.
There is A LOT more information and suggestion about who to “mark”. The developer’s site spends a lot of time encouraging people to not mark safe gun enthusiasts or safe hunters, but the guidelines (especially the #5 general guideline) outline that anyone could be marked.
What do you think?
Category: 2nd Amendment, Good vs. Evil, Politics, protection, Safety / Tags: APP, dangerous gun owners, Google Play App, Gun Geo Marker, innocent gun owners, mark gun owners, NRA
Sneak Peek: New Series of “Tips and Tactics” videos BY women FOR women.
I am excited to tell you about a new “Tips & Tactics” series from NRA Women, with the first episode to be released tomorrow. I would like to thank NRA Women for sending me an advance preview. If the first video, “Rifle Manipulating” by Kim Heath is any indication, this is going to be a great resource both for those ladies just starting out learning how more experienced ladies operate their firearms, to the more seasoned female shooter, as there is always something new to learn. This series is designed to provide weekly tips a lady can take to the range each week. You can look forward to a new short video with a new tip or tactic every Thursday.
Have you ever had a firearms instructor, or other male friend try to explain to you how to clear a rifle malfunction, but due to their strong upper body strength, they make it look much easier than it seems when you try to clear your rifle? Watch this video by Kim Heath as she gives you an alternate plan for holding the rifle, and allowing a nearly infinite hold while you check for malfunctions or reload your rifle. Thank you for the tip Kim!
Category: Education, Girl Power, Rifles / Tags: #NRAwomen, clearing a malfunction, firearm tips for women, Kim Heath, ladies with guns, malfunction drill, NRA, NRA Women, pistol tips for women, Rifle Manipulation, rifle tips for women, series of Tips and tactics, small frame, tips and tactics, tips for women
NRA WOMEN.TV “NEW ENERGY”: VICKI KAWELMACHER
“You are either going to be the victim or the victor.”
~Vicki Kawelmacher
NRA Women presented by Smith & Wesson is proud to present the latest New Energy profile sponsored by Remington Arms Company on Vicki Kawelmacher. After her daughter was nearly abducted, Vicki opened The Women’s Shooting Academy to “educate, encourage and empower” women. The firearms instructor strongly believes every woman is responsible for her own personal safety, and offers free classes to any woman with a signed protective order.
Category: New Energy / Tags: #NRAwomen, abducted, child abduction, firearm training, NRA, NRA Women, protective order, VICKI KAWELMACHER
NASCAR and FOX are spineless
I have had a busy week, but I sat down to watch the NRA 500 at Texas Motor Speedway tonight. After all, if you read the “About me” on this blog, you know that I love NASCAR and I love my firearms! During the race I was talking to my fellow 2nd Amendment supporters on Facebook and Twitter – and one of them told me that NASCAR has decided to alienate their main fan base by suggesting they do not support the NRA Sponsorship of the Texas race tonight. I looked it up and sure enough – ESPN had the story.
NASCAR plans to become more involved in race-sponsorship decisions by speedways in light of the continuing controversy surrounding the National Rifle Association’s sponsorship of the Sprint Cup race Saturday at Texas Motor Speedway.
“The NRA’s sponsorship of the event at Texas Motor Speedway fit within existing parameters that NASCAR affords tracks in securing partnerships,” said NASCAR spokesman David Higdon. “However, this situation has made it clear that we need to take a closer look at our approval process moving forward, as current circumstances need to be factored in when making decisions.”
Let’s try to keep all this in perspective, NASCAR Nation. Saturday’s NRA 500 at Texas Motor Speedway is just another Sprint Cup race — one that you likely won’t want to miss, writes David Newton. In some respects, this weekend at TMS has become more about politics than racing for the NRA 500, as the sponsorship coincides with the current national gun control debate to become the prevailing storyline.
Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut wrote to News Corp. chief Rupert Murdoch asking the Fox network not broadcast Saturday night’s race because of the NRA sponsorship. TMS president Eddie Gossage and Speedway Motorsports Inc. chairman Bruton Smith answered questions regarding Murphy’s request and the NRA sponsorship Friday. Gossage said it would be the only time they would address the topic. Read more here.
I watched the race, and NASCAR on Fox also decided to minimize the coverage. The camera angles barely ever showed the giant painted logo at the start finish line, there was a mention here and there, but not like normal. I also heard that the NRA did not “Purchase the TV package.” Well, that may be true, but to avoid some of the painted logos, the camera men would have to be under specific orders to avoid showing them.
I am disappointed in FOX Sports, I am sick about NASCAR abandoning their fan base. In the words of one of my favorite country songs, “You have to stand for something or you’ll fall for anything.”
There are still 7 laps to go. I think I will turn it off.
Gunmakers and their economic impact on our country
Not a single executive from a major U.S. gunmaker was among representatives of firearm victims, law enforcement officials and gun rights advocates — including the National Rifle Association — when the Senate Judiciary Committee hosted its first major gun hearing last month. Nor will gunmakers be among the witnesses at Wednesday’s hearing, when the panel begins considering a new assault weapons ban.
While the NRA stands as the most powerful voice for gun rights in the United States, firearms makers have arguably the biggest financial stake in the outcome of a debate that has threatened to ban one of the industry’s biggest money-makers — known among gunmakers as the “modern sporting rifle” and to gun-control advocates as the “military-style assault weapon.”
The rifle’s popularity helped 465 U.S. gun and ammunition makers generate an estimated $12 billion in revenue last year, surging from about $9 billion in 2007, according to an industry analysis by IBISWorld, a market research firm.
“Despite the economic fallout generated by the global financial crisis, guns and ammunition have proved to be items that many people believe they cannot live without,” IBISWorld senior analyst Nima Samadi wrote in the firm’s October report.
The spike in revenue comes as a record 6.2 million firearms were produced in 2011, a nearly 20% increase from 2010.
Included in that number, according to data compiled by the firearms industry trade association National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), was another record 2.3 million rifles of all kinds, part of thriving overall industry that employs nearly 100,000 people in the U.S., from assembly-line workers to sales people at local sporting goods stores.
Sturm, Ruger & Co., based in Southport, Conn., is ranked as the nation’s largest gunmaker; it accounted for 17% of total firearm production in the country with 903,968 total guns made in 2010, the foundation’s data show.
The enormous growth, analysts said, can be tracked in part to two major familiar themes running through the past decade: the government’s demand for firearms in the prosecution of two wars and the 2008 election of President Obama.
Concern that Obama would pursue new gun legislation helped ignite the market almost immediately with a sustained spike in gun and ammunition sales. Though guns were never part of Obama’s first term agenda, the next four years — post Newtown — promise something altogether different.
“This administration represents the most serious threat to the industry since the 1990s,” said Larry Keane, the National Shooting Sports Foundation’s general counsel, referring to Congress’ enactment of the decade-long assault weapons ban that expired in 2004. “The stakes are very high.” Read more here.
Category: News / Tags: ammunition, AR-15, gunmakers, IBISWorld, manufacturers, modern rifles, NRA, Ruger & Co., Stag arms, sturm
Four Senators seek compromise bill on gun-sale background checks
I just read on Fox News that there are four US Senators who are trying to strike a “compromise” on gun control. The private discussions involve:
- Democratic Senator Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, who is the No. 3 Senate Democratic leader. The NRA has given Senator Schumer an “F Rating” when it comes to protecting the 2nd Amendment.
- Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, an NRA member and one of the chamber’s more moderate Democrats.
- Republican Sen. Tom Coburn, Oklahoma, another NRA member and one of the more conservative lawmakers in Congress
- Republican Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois. Fox News called him a moderate, but he is not moderate when it comes to Gun Control. He is ready to vote for most any Bill the Senate brings to increase Gun Control. The NRA has given Senator Kirk an “F Rating” when it comes to protecting the 2nd Amendment.
The deal, given a good chance by several participants and lobbyists, could add formidable political momentum to one of the key elements of President Obama’s gun control plan. Currently, background checks are required only for sales by the nation’s 55,000 federally licensed gun dealers, but not for gun shows, person-to-person sales or other private transactions.
The senators’ talks have included discussions about ways to encourage states to make more mental health records available to the national system and the types of transactions that might be exempted from background checks, such as sales among relatives or to those who have permits to carry concealed weapons, said people who spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to describe the negotiations publicly. Read more Here.
Category: Firearms, Gun Rights, News, Politics, Uncategorized / Tags: assault weapons, Background checks, Charles Schuman, charles schuman with gun, F rating, Four senators make gun deal, Illinois, Joe Manchin, joe manchin with gun, Mark Kirk, new york, NRA, NRA members, Oklahoma, Senators, senators with guns, Tom Coburn
David Keene, NRA president, blasts Colorado gun checks system
I read this in the Denver Post tonight: National Rifle Association President David Keene called Colorado’s backlogged system for gun background checks an unreasonable burden on a citizen’s right to bear arms and addressed the matter with Gov. John Hickenlooper when the two met privately Thursday.
“If I were a Colorado resident, and told I had to wait an undetermined period of time to buy a gun, I would go to court,” Keene told The Denver Post Thursday before the meeting.
The checks, which federal law says should take 
no longer than three business days, have taken as long as nine days to begin processing since the mid-December shooting in Connecticut and the wait continues to average about seven days in the queue.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is facing questions over its inability to meet the three-day federal gun background check mandate — told The Post on Tuesday it would have the state’s Attorney General review its policy for processing the checks. Read more here.
The above video is an interview that Denver Post Editor, Greg Moore conducted with David Keene tonight.
Category: Firearms, Gun Rights, News, Politics / Tags: assault weapons, Back Ground Checks, buy a gun, CBI, Colorado, Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Colorado Law, David Keene, Denver Post, Federal Law, Greg Moore, Newtown, NRA, NRA President, school shooting
Why I am a female gun owner: It’s not what the media assumes
The media does seem to have a bias that assumes that most female gun owners only want their guns for self defense. That is one of the reasons I bought my first gun. BUT – I also bought my first gun because my very best male friend really enjoyed the sport, and I was interested in learning more and trying out some of the competitions he enjoyed. It opened up an entire world to me that, in spite of my military career, I had not expected to find. I also discovered that I LOVED everything about guns, tinkering with them, shooting all types, learning every detail I could – and I love that even if I live another 60 years, I will never learn it all. Firearms satisfy the geek in me, learning ballistics, various calibers, which type of firearm is better for a given purpose, how to make that firearm reach optimum performance, optics, and reloading. Firearms give me a goal to be more athletic, focusing on future tactical long range matches and the challenge therein.
Firearms give my daughter and I something fun that we both enjoy to do together. Firearms give me a topic that most of my family and many of my friends are interested in discussing, and since the topic is so broad – almost everyone can teach everyone else something new. Lastly, maybe most importantly, firearms give me security – the knowledge that I have a chance to protect my children, that we are not just sitting ducks, should our home be chosen by a criminal. All of this, and MORE, is why I love my guns. Ladies, why do you own a gun? How did you get started? Do you enjoy using your firearm? What is your favorite part about being a knowledgable gun owner?
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