2016 Postmortem

babylonsister

(171,099 posts) Thu Dec 20, 2012, 08:13 AM Dec 2012

Second Biggest Gun Group In U.S. Based In… Newtown, CT

http://www.nationalmemo.com/second-biggest-gun-group-in-us-based-in-newtown-ct/

Second Biggest Gun Group In U.S. Based In… Newtown, CT
December 19th, 2012
6:10 pm
Josh Marks

Last night on his MSNBC show, Lawrence O’Donnell said National Rifle Association president Wayne LaPierre had “blood on his hands.” Today at a White House press briefing, President Obama said he hopes the NRA will “do some self-reflection.” But there is another powerful gun lobbying group that isn’t being talked about, and its headquarters are only three miles from the site where gun violence claimed the lives of 20 children and six adults.

The Newtown, CT-based National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) was formed in 1961 and claims a membership of over 7,000 “manufacturers, distributors, firearms retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen’s organizations and publishers.” Its mission statement is “to promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports.”

According to a story in The New Republic, NSSF takes in $26 million a year and its lobbying arm spent $500,000 so far this year compared, to $100,000 in 2008 — and $20,000 was spent lobbying Connecticut state lawmakers on gun issues in 2012.

snip//

Here are some more excerpts from NSSF’s campaign blog:

”The Republican platform plank on the Second Amendment is a breath of fresh air.”

“The question for gun owners, however, is whether the Obama-Biden ticket will respect traditional American values and rights such as the Second Amendment.”

“The key word in the Second Amendment — infringed — means the government has no business violating our right to keep and bear arms — period. There is no hedging, no ‘only if’ or ‘unless.’ Recent court decisions have upheld that reasoning.”

“Our rights are increasingly under assault by those who wish to see an end to our traditions.”

“Barack Obama now envisions not only a sweeping ban on rifles and shotguns – but is also considering new restrictions on handguns. Of course, as a state senator, Obama endorsed a total ban on the manufacture, sale and possession of handguns. Is Obama looking to travel back to the future in a potential second term?”

snip//

The question now in post-Sandy Hook America is if organizations like the NRA and NSSF will get behind common-sense gun control legislation instead of seeing every gun safety proposal as a threat to their Second Amendment right to own a “modern sporting rifle,” otherwise known as an assault weapon. Perhaps their response to President Obama’s remarks today, published on the NSSF website, provides some hope:

“We listened with careful attention to President Obama’s statement from the White House today. Being one of the ‘stakeholders’ he discussed, we would welcome the opportunity at the appropriate time to become part of a full national conversation with all policy makers that has as its goal the improved protection of our children and our communities from future violence.”

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Second Biggest Gun Group In U.S. Based In… Newtown, CT (Original Post) babylonsister Dec 2012 OP

Interesting Sherman A1 Dec 2012 #1

NRA likes to compromise, when at the brink of failure jimmy the one Dec 2012 #2

Sherman A1

(38,958 posts)

1. Interesting

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Thu Dec 20, 2012, 08:17 AM

Dec 2012

It will be interesting to see if they want to participate in the discussion or simply block it.

jimmy the one

(2,708 posts)

2. NRA likes to compromise, when at the brink of failure

Reply to babylonsister (Original post)

Thu Dec 20, 2012, 08:48 AM

Dec 2012

The question now in post-Sandy Hook America is if organizations like the NRA and NSSF will get behind common-sense gun control legislation instead of seeing every gun safety proposal as a threat to their Second Amendment right to own a “modern sporting rifle,” otherwise known as an assault weapon.

The nra is notorious for NOT doing the former, & the only time they will 'get behind' gun legislation is when they are at the brink of losing & see it & know it, THEN they will suddenly become open to compromise, seeking to hogtie or blunt the legislation as much as possible.
.. when legislation to ban plastic handguns was being discussed maybe 15 years ago, for fear of easy smuggling past metal detectors of plastic handguns onto airplanes, nra adamantly opposed the ban. Then as congressional discussion neared the end & nra realized they didn't have the votes to block it's passage, they compromised on some aspect, then the next day, with nerve, took out a large ad on USA Today bragging how they had helped with legislation to ban plastic handguns!

There's a possibility nra might go along with a reduction in the size of ammo clips, I would say down to 15 - see the compromise when most are calling for a 10 round limit? But I can't see anything more from the nra except specious pretentious rhetoric and the red herring of reining in mentals & criminals.
.. on criminals btw, fopa1986, which is firearm owners protection act of 1986, supported by orrin 'gunnutah' hatch & arlen specter, was pro gun congressional legislation passed during reagan's term. Well, the nra fought hard that legislation in fopa ensured that most criminals, felons, could have their (alleged) gun rights restored once they had done their time & had been restored to law abiding citizens (or not been convicted) - excepting felons convicted of violent crimes such as attempted murder, robbery, aggravated assault.
.. But today the nra generally keens in on 'ex criminals' being involved in guncrimes, so as to create a separate category to offset from 'law abiding citizens', thus having the best of both worlds.
IE ex criminals committing new crimes, recidivists, should have been prevented from getting gun in the first place if it weren't for some govt bureacrat! nra crows, hushing up that it was in part because of their own efforts they got guns back.

(PS actually I sorta agree for most non violent felons - perjury is a felony, & petty larceny etc, you could own a gun if you want, just register it).

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