A company at the SHOT Show hates the NRA

[contender1]

First,,, this is NOT political.
It's a statement about how I was treated at the SHOT Show by a vendor when I asked them about a donation to help my local Friends of the NRA banquet.
I'm the Chairman of the WNC FoNRA event in Asheville NC. One of the things I do at SHOT is try & find unique items by companies willing to donate an item or two to be used at my Friends event. Things you can't get at Wally World etc. And for those of y'all who aren't familiar with the FoNRA, it's a 501c3 non-profit educational division of the NRA. Monies raised are granted to various shooting educational programs. Such as; BSA, Hunter Safety Teams, JROTC, 4-H, FFA, WOT, Eddie Eagle etc.

As I went by a small booth, one that was showing & taking orders for firearm accessory parts,,, I politely asked if they would be interested in making a donation to my event. The response I got was very negative & I was told "I hate the NRA & I'll never give them anything." I politely told him that I hoped he went out of business since he couldn't see fit to support the biggest organization that the politicians listen to in DC.

No offense to any other gun organization, and I know the NRA isn't perfect,,, but it is the 800 lb gorilla the wimps in DC listen to, AND attack when gun issues arise.

So for anybody who wants to spend money on stuff, thinking that the company will support the NRA, (normal logic at least,) I will share the company's name here so you can use your own judgement as to where to spend your money.

The company is;
Tactical Inc.
345 Sunrise Rd
Bonners Ferry ID 83805
208-267-1585

Now, this person appeared to be the main man in charge, as the only other person working in his booth was much younger & didn't appear to be management. Also, this person could have easily told me; "No thanks, I can't contribute" and I would have politely thanked him & went on my way. Since he chose to unload upon me,, I will reflect his attitude to as many folks as I can.
BTW; in case you are interested, they have stuff for Ruger 10/22's, AR-15's & MAC's along with many other items.
This post is for informational purposes,,for those folks who like to spend money with the folks who support our rights!

[P.K.]

http://www.tacticalinc.com/

[waksupi]

I can almost see his point. A friend of mine who owns a small gun shop helped run the Friends of the NRA banquet every year for about ten years. Never once was a firearm purchased from his shop to use as any of the items to be given away, or auctioned. The procurer always went to the two biggest shops in town to buy. Pretty ungrateful.
Having been a small business owner for years, I was constantly begged for donations for shoot prizes, but never had any of the prizes purchased from me. I've been a range officer at those shoots for over thirty years.
It's pretty easy to get jaded when treated like that.

[btroj]

They are entitled to an opinion. It would be interesting to know the rest of the story, there must be a reason.

Waksupi, I fully understand your point. A business makes some donations in hopes of generating sales. If sales don't follow the. The donations simply become a loss for the business. Ultimately a guy is in business to make money, not to support charity events.

[Recluse]

I can almost see his point. A friend of mine who owns a small gun shop helped run the Friends of the NRA banquet every year for about ten years. Never once was a firearm purchased from his shop to use as any of the items to be given away, or auctioned. The procurer always went to the two biggest shops in town to buy. Pretty ungrateful.
Having been a small business owner for years, I was constantly begged for donations for shoot prizes, but never had any of the prizes purchased from me. I've been a range officer at those shoots for over thirty years.
It's pretty easy to get jaded when treated like that.

Gift certificate. Surefire way to get the recipient into your store/business--and chances are better than even that they'll spend a little more than just the face value of the gift certificate.

But at a time of discourse like this when the gov't is staging an all-out assault, this Tactical Innovations bunch just pooped in their mess kit.

:coffee:

[contender1]

It wasn't that I was asking for a firearm, it was for anything he was willing to donate. As for supporting the local shops,,, I will say that different committees do things a bit differently,,, especially in the past. The NRA has tried to change much of that. For instance, they are able to get firearms "vendor direct" and at a deeper discount than buying from local shops. BUT,,,,,,,,,,, my committee not only has a dealer there to do the transfers, we also buy some guns from him. Plus, a few other shops who do support us donate guns & such get a BUNCH of advertising from us, and if we need something,, we go to them to buy guns & stuff.

No, the attitude I got from this guy wasn't anything like that.

[JIMinPHX]

First,,, this is NOT political...

...I politely asked if they would be interested in making a donation to my event. The response I got was very negative & I was told "I hate the NRA & I'll never give them anything." I politely told him that I hoped he went out of business since he couldn't see fit to support the biggest organization that the politicians listen to in DC.

No offense to any other gun organization, and I know the NRA isn't perfect,,, but it is the 800 lb gorilla the wimps in DC listen to, AND attack when gun issues arise.


So, if a company that supports the Second Amendment by manufacturing high quality firearm parts & accessories doesn't like the NRA, then you hope that they go out of business? I find that to be a difficult position to justify.

But then again, when I read the amicus brief that the NRA filed in the Sylveria case, I found that to be a difficult position to swallow too. The position the NRA took on the Parker case was another tough one for me. I could list plenty more.

The NRA may be an 800 pound gorilla, but the NRA is not the most legislatively productive supporter of the Second Amendment from what I have seen in the last several years. Other, smaller, groups have had a much better track record lately.

If your goal is to support the Second Amendment, then perhaps you might want to find a more productive direction in which to channel your efforts, rather than to harass a manufacturer in the industry that you claim to defend.

JMHO

Jim

[runfiverun]

thanks jim..
ohhhh,, the younger guy is the partner in the business.
apparently they are a little more conservative in their political views than you are.
you might have asked why he held that opinion.
jim outlined some of the reasons.

[L1A1Rocker]

Is this the same NRA that tried to derail the Parker/Heller case? The same NRA that after failing to get the Parker/Heller case tossed out tried to have it combined with THIER own case that they wanted to "settle"; the same NRA that after all their failed attempts to torpedo Parker/Heller are now trying to claim credit for it? The same NRA that is now considering a "compromise" with the antis to ban all private transferrs without going through the feds?

I agree with Tactical Inc. My money is better off with the GOA than the back stabbing turncoat NRA.

[41 mag fan]

It's all political for the NRA. What used to be a show of force by membership numbers is now nothing more than a set of moves on a chess board. But then again, it seems the congress and political faction we have had in office for the last 30 yrs are going to do what their party says not what the constituents want

[Recluse]

How many new ranges--or ranges at all--has GOA opened up?

How many instructors has JPFO taught and qualified in the past thirty years?

How many children's safety programs (Eddie Eagle) has Alan Gottlieb produced and put into schools?

How many shooting championships has NGRA hosted?

Want me to continue?

Do not confuse politics with anything/everything the National Rifle Association does. Again, the fact that over 90% of all gun-owners are freaking deadbeats when it comes to joining up with ANY pro-gun association is the reason NRA has been taking black eyes when "rights get compromised."

It's almost like military service in some aspects. Why the hell was it all right for me to go and give X amount of years of my life to my country and yet at present, some 98% of the American population has never served so much as one (expletive deleted) day in uniform.

Lending one's name and a few bucks to a pro-gun association doesn't even require one to get off their lazy *** because it can be done via the telephone or computer and with a debit card.

Instead, too damned many gun-owners sit back and self-righteously point their fingers at groups like the NRA and piously point out every political fault there is and then use THAT as a convenient excuse for not joining, then wonder why the NRA doesn't have the clout they WANT them to have?!?

There will always be that low-class group of people content to let others do the heavy lifting, then complain about how the lifting was done.

:coffee:

[cbrick]

How many new ranges--or ranges at all--has GOA opened up?

How many instructors has JPFO taught and qualified in the past thirty years?

How many children's safety programs (Eddie Eagle) has Alan Gottlieb produced and put into schools?

How many shooting championships has NGRA hosted?

Want me to continue?

Do not confuse politics with anything/everything the National Rifle Association does. Again, the fact that over 90% of all gun-owners are freaking deadbeats when it comes to joining up with ANY pro-gun association is the reason NRA has been taking black eyes when "rights get compromised."

It's almost like military service in some aspects. Why the hell was it all right for me to go and give X amount of years of my life to my country and yet at present, some 98% of the American population has never served so much as one (expletive deleted) day in uniform.

Lending one's name and a few bucks to a pro-gun association doesn't even require one to get off their lazy *** because it can be done via the telephone or computer and with a debit card.

Instead, too damned many gun-owners sit back and self-righteously point their fingers at groups like the NRA and piously point out every political fault there is and then use THAT as a convenient excuse for not joining, then wonder why the NRA doesn't have the clout they WANT them to have?!?

There will always be that low-class group of people content to let others do the heavy lifting, then complain about how the lifting was done.

:coffee:

:awesome: :awesome: :awesome: :awesome:

Wish I had written that.

Rick

[Love Life]

Interesting.

On a side note why would you need a muzzle break for a 10/22?

[1Shirt]

As a small business person (studio potter) I am often asked for donation for worthy causes, (usually for silent autions, etc.) and I never turn anybody down. What ever I donate has my business card with it, and often I have gotten return business from people who have received these donations. Regardless of how a business is approached, the response should at the very least be polite and curteous. An old 4 star General at SAC used to keep a brass plaque on his desk that said "There is nothing in your Job Discription that entitles you to be an SOB!" Think that applies here.
1Shirt!

[cbrick]

Recluse, another little thing you could have added. How many cops has the GOA trained?

And on a side note, a few years back and the GOA was asking for donations and I told them that sounds like a good plan you have, let me see your financial statement to see where the money goes and how it's spent. Never got it, they refused. Now to my way of thinking there is ONLY ONE reason why anyone would ask for your money and refuse to let you know how it's being spent.

Rick

[BoolitSchuuter]

Interesting.

On a side note why would you need a muzzle break for a 10/22?

Have you ever felt the recoil on one of them things??? Gawdamighty!!!!:kidding:

[Freightman]

Let Joe or Dick or Fred do it they have lots of money I need to play, sorry but if I do not put my money where my mouth is it aint nothing but HOT air. When they come after your guns are you going to want Joe, Dick or Fred to help?

[snuffy]

No gray area, with us or not.

I have little extra money to contribute to any gun rights org. CCRKBA, GOAL, or other alphabet soup gun rights groups don't have the clout to support our rights that the NRA does.

10 years ago, I started in the pay-as-you-go-joe NRA program to become a life member. I was about half way paid to the 750 bucks needed, when I got layed off. I tried to keep up with the monthly payments, but had to give up. They applied the money I had already paid to paid up yearly memberships. Those came to an end last Dec. So I scraped together enough $ for another yearly membership.

I won't do business with anybody that's NOT solidly behind all gun owners. I'll vote with my wallet every time.

[wv109323]

You must also remember that the NRA was founded to promote pistol and rifle competition. That consisted of local, regional, national and international competitions.
They are about the only dog in that race. The NRA gave their "rights" to the USSF because the NRA was not internationally or universally accepted. The political aspect to get involved with the anti-gun issues was an "add-on" to what the NRA was founded for.
There are now more competitions that you can shake a stick at. All are good. The more the merrier.
There is no other organization that has the clout or membership that the NRA has. If you want to join other organizations feel free to do so. The NRA can not be everything to everybody. They have to pick their battles as everyone else does. Even they not not have the resources to fight every battle as it should be fought. Sometimes I feel they are in error.
The one thing that no one needs to do is publicly bash the NRA. Inside conflicts are as bad as the outside enemy or maybe even worse. If there is a cause you want to take up and another organization holds your opinion better ,than the NRA ,join in with them. If you have problems with the position the NRA takes let your opinion be known to the organization management internally.
The NRA is what we make it. All three year members and above gets to elect a board of directors. You can not get much more democratic than that.
We can more effectively fight the anti-gun crowd with a united front than one that has internal bickering.
Look at how the gay community has influenced public opinion and law and they represent 4-7% of the population ,but they are united and active.

[boltons75]

To bad to hear, I have a half dozen of their TI25 10/22 25 round adjustable mags. And they seem to be an honest company with some decent after market pieces for the rugers.

[captaint]

Well, let's see...I joined the NRA in 1972, I think. Been an annual member ever since. Never regretted it. I like to think I have convinced a number of other people to sign up. It is amazing how many shooters are not members. I really want to ask some guys - "you like your guns ? wanna keep them ? might want to consider signing up." For my money, it's our best chance. No apologies. enjoy Mike

[shooter93]

I'll agree with JD on this one......as an aside.....Thre is a huge Outdoor Sportsman's show here in Harrisburg every year at this time. It has been an institution for many years. You'll find even most of the male population absent from the schools for a day or two because they are attending. This year because of Sandy Hook they asked vendors not to bring hi-cap magazines or Assualt rifles. Cancellations started immediately. Cabela's etc but also many like the Pa Turkey federation and a number of places that don't sell those types of guns, Outfitters who book hunts etc....all cancelled which will cost them lost sales at the show no doubt.......the result?....the show has been cancelled for the first time ever because too many would not show up. We have to stand together on this...all of this and I applaud those vendors who are on board.

[Sergeant Earthworm]

The stakes are too high in this fight for defenders of the Constitution to fight among themselves. I'm sure the anti-liberty crowd responds with glee when they see that happening. Notice how you very seldom see the left attacking each other in public. Maybe they do during primary election seasons, but that is for the cameras and as soon as they pick their favorite socialist they all kiss and make up and continue attacking our liberty.

Instead of writing the fellow in question a nasty email or boycotting his business, maybe we should write him an email explaining that instead of telling people how much he hates the NRA he should get busy trying to change some of the boneheaded positions the NRA has taken. Our family business should be just that, keep the internal disagreements within the family.

The other thing we might do is join ALL legitimate organizations working to defend liberty. With caution, though, because there are definitely some wolves in sheep's clothing out there.

[1616s16]

to bad, here we are playing that game that can not have a winner

[TXGunNut]

How many new ranges--or ranges at all--has GOA opened up?

How many instructors has JPFO taught and qualified in the past thirty years?

How many children's safety programs (Eddie Eagle) has Alan Gottlieb produced and put into schools?

How many shooting championships has NGRA hosted?

Want me to continue?

Do not confuse politics with anything/everything the National Rifle Association does. Again, the fact that over 90% of all gun-owners are freaking deadbeats when it comes to joining up with ANY pro-gun association is the reason NRA has been taking black eyes when "rights get compromised."

It's almost like military service in some aspects. Why the hell was it all right for me to go and give X amount of years of my life to my country and yet at present, some 98% of the American population has never served so much as one (expletive deleted) day in uniform.

Lending one's name and a few bucks to a pro-gun association doesn't even require one to get off their lazy *** because it can be done via the telephone or computer and with a debit card.

Instead, too damned many gun-owners sit back and self-righteously point their fingers at groups like the NRA and piously point out every political fault there is and then use THAT as a convenient excuse for not joining, then wonder why the NRA doesn't have the clout they WANT them to have?!?

There will always be that low-class group of people content to let others do the heavy lifting, then complain about how the lifting was done.

:coffee:

Well said Recluse! Well said. There's more to the NRA than the NRA-ILA but right now we need the clout of the ILA. Good point cbrick; I attended NRA PPC Nationals (and many regional matches) and benefitted from the training, support and programs offered there. Since I'm not the wordsmith either of you are I'll let my checkbook do my talking before I toddle off to bed.

[Fishman]

"It's almost like military service in some aspects. Why the hell was it all right for me to go and give X amount of years of my life to my country and yet at present, some 98% of the American population has never served so much as one (expletive deleted) day in uniform."

Recluse, thank you for your military service. Please keep in mind that there are lots of ways to serve your country and fellow citizens that don't require going to war. I would bet that a lot of those 98% who haven't served in the military would take up arms to defend the country if necessary. It happened in both of the World Wars.

For the record, I have not served in the military.

[troyboy]

United we stand divided we fall. Real simple.