 Minuteman Monthly Newsletter Issue 72 July 2007 |
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Welcome to this issue of the Minuteman Monthly Newsletter. This is the monthly communication from my Web site at www.SaveTheGuns.com. Thank you for reading this month's issue and for passing it on to a friend. Are you a member of the National Rifle Association yet? Were you once a member, but allowed your NRA Membership to expire? The NRA has added many benefits to membership that even long-term members are probably not even aware of. The benefits of membership in the National Rifle Association are way beyond what they used to be. Furthermore, I hear from many visitors that the NRA "compromises too much" in defending the rights of lawful and honest gun owners. First hear me on the issue of "NRA Compromise" and then see the list of great benefits of NRA Membership. Read on... SaveTheGuns.com Quotes of the Month "It is the first responsibility of every citizen to question authority."
"Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice.
Tolerance in the face of tyranny is no virtue."
"The right to defy an unconstitutional statute is basic in our scheme.
Even when an ordinance requires a permit to make a speech, to deliver a sermon, to picket, to parade, or to assemble,
it need not be honored when it’s invalid on its face."
"[T]he flames kindled on the 4th of July 1776, have spread over too much of the globe to be extinguished by the feeble engines of despotism; on the contrary, they will consume these engines and all who work them."
"We're going to hammer guns on the anvil of relentless legislative strategy. We're going to beat guns into
submission".
SaveTheGuns.com Gun Safety Tip of the Month When firing your guns recreationally, while hunting or at a gun club's outdoor range, you should always be confident that you know where the bullet will stop. Knowing where the bullet will safely come to a stop when firing would avoid more than a hundred preventable deaths every year. You would feel absolutely horrible if you shot a hunting partner by accident or hit a bystander because of a ricochet. Knowing what your backstop is, where it is and what it's made of is an important part of observing good gun safety rules. You should be aware of where your bullet is going to land in case you miss your target as well. Firearm ownership in the United States is at an all-time high and accidental firearm related deaths are almost at all-time lows. Even though this is a tremendous success story, we can and should still do better. The horror of having to explain to a shooting partner's widow on how you accidentally killed him, should be enough for any shooter to always pay attention to where the bullet will come to a stop.
NRA Membership Recruiter Corner http://membership.nrahq.org/default.asp?campaignid=XR017807 As you may already know, SaveTheGuns.com is one of thousands of NRA Membership Recruiters across America. As an NRA Recruiter, I'm officially a subcontractor for the National Rifle Association of America and not an employee. I make a small commission whenever you join, renew or give an NRA Membership as a gift. Please use the link above for all your NRA Membership needs. I have written a Web page with more information on membership in the National Rifle Association. It has a list of benefits as well as membership options and prices. For your convenience the above NRA Membership link is there as well. http://www.savetheguns.com/nra_membership.htm P.S. Remember, my link goes directly to the NRA Membership check out page. Using my special link is a lot more convenient than trying to find the page yourself. As of this issue of the Minuteman Monthly Newsletter, I've recruited 115 NRA Members through this link. I want to be the number one NRA Recruiter in my home State of Maine for 2007. Please use my convenient link for all your NRA membership needs. Contributions to SaveTheGuns.com Please use the following convenient link to securely use a credit card online to give SaveTheGuns.com a voluntary contribution: http://www.amazon.com/paypage/P3GXU3PIEM5ST1
To write me a personal check, it's almost as easy! Write out a personal check made payable to Marc H. Richardson. Sign it and put it into a stamped envelope addressed to: Marc H. Richardson My contributors have kept this informative Web site going for more than seven years. Become a contributor today... please? Thank you very much for your support! Item of the Month The item of the month is going to be a new feature in the Minuteman Monthly Newsletter. I hope you find it useful. As we all know, the Second Amendment says nothing about hunting. But more and more often we hear politicians claiming that "assault weapon" restrictions do not violate the Second Amendment because hunter's don't use them. We know that the Second Amendment does not protect hunting, but instead was designed by the Founding Fathers to protect freedom against tyranny in our own government. You can show how you feel with this great t-shirt! "The Second Amendment is not for hunters" It's $19.99 for a limited time! Minuteman Monthly Newsletter Aiming Point This is an issue of the Minuteman Monthly Newsletter to update those of you who are members of the National Rifle Association on current benefits and price structure for membership. By far, the NRA is the oldest, largest and most active of all pro Second Amendment, firearm safety and hunting rights defenders in the world. Let me first address criticisms of the NRA, then I'll get to the vastly increased and tremendous amount of benefits and perks of becoming a member. There have been fairly recent and some ongoing criticisms of the National Rifle Association and their legislative arm called the Institute for Legislative Action or NRA-ILA. Some of these criticisms are warranted and necessary, others are not. Both the NRA and myself have supported efforts to keep firearms out of the hands of violent felons and the criminally insane, while keeping firearms available for the good guys and gals. I have never supported the views of the Second Amendment Absolutist whose heartfelt view is that every single lawful citizen, miscreant, the mentally incompetent and criminally insane should all have free and equal access to the firearm of their choice. Even in the days of the colonial militia of the thirteen original states, the mentally insane were kept away from this important service to the country. For the most part, the mentally incompetent were also kept away from society as a whole and were institutionalized. Today, a much larger portion of the mentally retarded and mentally incompetent are integrated into society. It is both my view and I believe the view of the National Rifle Association as well that the National Instant Check System (NICS) should prevent the mentally incompetent and criminally insane from being able to freely purchase the firearm of their choice. I understand the position of the Second Amendment Absolutist and truly value their input and debate. I have a good understanding of the issues regarding H.R. 2640 The NICS Improvement Act. I come at the issue from the unique perspective of being a Second Amendment warrior and also being the parent of a mentally incompetent child. One of my sons is mentally handicapped. He is currently fifteen years old and has never spoken a word. According to his neurologist his brain never properly developed in the womb. My wife began to miscarry in the sixth month, but it was thankfully halted by doctors. I would never allow my son to have a firearm of his own. He simply would be a danger to both himself and others if he had one. The view of the Second Amendment absolutist who says that my son should have unencumbered access to a firearm does not wash with me. It's my belief that the National Instant Check System (NICS) should be in place and working as accurately, efficiently and fairly as possible. The National Rifle Association has always defended to rights of sane and law abiding citizens to purchase, carry, transport and use their firearms. Since 1871, the NRA has been on the frontlines of every battle to preserve the Second Amendment. Sometimes, they have done a magnificent job, other times criticism of NRA leadership was well warranted. However, that being said, there are still about 95% of America's gun owners who are not current members of the NRA. Many of the former NRA members have left because they believe that the NRA compromises too much on the intent of the Second Amendment. I don't hold that belief at this time. There are about 80,000,000 Americans who own firearms in the homes and businesses. There are currently only a mere four million or about 5% who are active members of the National Rifle Association. If this poor turnout of American gun owners continues, there will be virtually no Second Amendment rights in a few short generations. If the National Rifle Association isn't strong enough to defend the Second Amendment in the future and the Second Amendment suffers a series of setbacks in the few decades, it will not be because of supposed NRA "compromise". But it will be because 95% of America's gun owners are on the outside looking in and merely point the finger of accusation at the NRA over a cup of coffee and calling that Second Amendment activism. If anyone would like to change the direction and purpose of the National Rifle Association, I urge them to join first and then get involved. The mailing addresses of the entire NRA Board of Directors are available upon request. Occasionally they're even printed in the magazines available through membership. It frankly gets under my skin a bit when I hear of virulent criticism of the NRA from people who have never even held membership before. If firearm rights are ever diminished, it's simply because 95% of America's gun owners aren't doing anything about it. Now that that's off my chest, let me go over the price structure and benefits of membership in the NRA. Please note that the annual membership fee of $35 has been been dropped to $25 and you'll receive $10 off if you join through an NRA Membership Recruiter like myself. Membership Types and Fees
When I became a Life Member of the National Rifle Association, I went the route of Easy Pay Life Membership. I merely paid $25.00 every quarter for less than five years. It was easy and a lot less painful than coming up with $500 in a lump sum. Please note that Life Membership has increased to $750 a few years ago. Here are just some of the benefits and discounts that you could receive if you joined today. These benefits are listed in full, with telephone numbers, Web site addresses and discount codes in almost every issue of your chosen NRA Publications. SAVE ON TRAVEL Avis Car Rental Hertz Car Rental SAVE ON HOTELS (I recently used my NRA Discount and got more than $25.00 off a recent hotel stay. You could become an NRA member for one year and your hotel savings could pay you back instantly!) Days Inn Howard Johnson Knights Inn Ramada Travelodge Wingate Inn Amerihost Inn Super 8 Wyndham Hotels Baymont Inns Best Western FINANCIAL & HOUSEHOLD SERVICES NRA Visa Credit Card NRA Banking Center (benefits like high rate CDs) NRA Check Program (customized checks) Moving and Relocation Services through North American and Allied Van Lines SAVE ON INSURANCE NRA Endorsed Auto and Home Insurance NRA Endorsed Life, Health, Property, Casualty Insurance Underwritten High Limit Life Insurance TELECOMMUNICATIONS Cell phones and Service Plans Dial up Internet Service SAVE ON MEDICAL NEEDS Laser Vision Correction Prescription Drug Discounts SPECIALTY SAVINGS Hunting Videos Hunting Boot and Shoe Repair Discounts Christmas/Seasonal Cards Certificate Framing Services NRA Wine Club Of course the National Rifle Association is not the only game in town. Gun Owners of America tend to be more of the Second Amendment absolutist type of activist. There's nothing wrong with GOA, I just wish we could all get along and not snipe at one another. There's Jews of the Preservation of Firearm Ownership (JPFO) which has done great work as well. There's the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) and many more, as well as state-specific organizations as well. Every one of these groups play an important role in the fight to preserve our rights to keep and bear private arms under the Second Amendment. Please forward this newsletter to a pro-gunner in your circle of family or friends who are not currently members of any of these organizations. With an estimated 90% or more of Americans who have never taken action to defend their own firearms, we need all the help we can get. Let's get American gun owners to help strengthen the National Rifle Association by asking them to become members today. Closing Comments Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read the Minuteman Monthly Newsletter. I encourage you to pass it on. You may use this newsletter as you see fit. You may post it, blog it, print it, forward it and publish it. The only thing I ask is that somewhere in your material, make sure the URL www.SaveTheGuns.com appears prominently. Thanks, |
