When it comes to guns, the Second Amendment, gun control, and all that it entails, the most common denominator is the Nationa Rifle Association of America. The NRA was established on November 17, 1871, with the mission of advancing rifle marksmanship, firearm safety, and competency. They claim to be the oldest civil rights organization in America, older even than the ACLU.

I, for one, am a Life Member of the NRA because they do perform and support great services like marksmanship training and standards, amongst many others. I also have certifications as a Range Safety Officer, as well as a rifle, pistol, and shotgun instructor. The NRA continues to provide training services to many police departments across the country such as training facilities, targets, standards in training, safety, and maintenance programs as well. As far as these services are concerned, the NRA is top-notch. They excel at teaching people about firearms and how to use, store, maintain, and train with them.

San Francisco's declaration: NRA is a "domestic terrorist organization." pic.twitter.com/GhUREGa3VW

— NathaliePTremblay (@NatTremb_) August 20, 2023

Democrats in the past 15-20 years, have equated the NRA and its members to a terrorist organization with absolutely no basis in reality to support that statement. Along with gun control advocates, they always ignore this when they trash and blame the NRA for any shooting that occurs in the country. If they could do just five minutes of researching, they'd find this out for themselves, but we all know they're lazy and don't really like to refer to facts.

The NRA has participated in political lobbying activities for gun rights since shortly after its inception as an organization. However, if we want to really be factual, the real lobbying arm of the firearms industry isn't the NRA, rather it's the National Shooting Sports Foundation which serves as the official firearm industry trade organization. Additionally, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of other gun rights groups around the country that also fight for the Second Amendment. 

That's where the glowing spotlight on the NRA ends. For, if you really cared about the Second Amendment, you'd want nothing to do with the NRA. Remember when I mentioned that the NRA started lobbying in 1872, not long after their formation a year earlier? The NRA created a Legislative Affairs Division in 1934 and testified before the 73rd Congress to support the very first major federal attempt at gun control: the National Firearms Act. That's right, ladies and gentlemen, the NRA, in their first major lobbying effort, lobbied for gun control, not against it. In fact, for the majority of the 20th century, the NRA not only supported gun control, but they lobbied for and even drafted gun control legislation.  

The NRA, historically, was the original "fudds." For reference, the term "fudd" is defined by Wiktionary as "A gun-owner who supports traditional hunting guns but favors gun control for other guns such as handguns or tactical rifles." Throughout history, especially recent history, they have been supportive of "red flag laws" and even the ban on bump stocks. Again, there are plenty of other organizations in the country that do support the Second Amendment and support it blindly and ferociously. One such organization is the Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), which was founded in 2013 and has arguably done more to protect the Second Amendment in its 10 years of existence than the NRA has in its 152 years of existence. 

In recent years, the NRA has been embroiled in controversies with corruption allegations, backdoor dealings, and more. In 2020, the NRA, along with four of their top leaders, including the Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Wayne LaPierre, was sued by New York AG Letitia James, alleging fraud, financial misconduct, and misuse of charitable funds, among other charges. Pubic records showed that the executive board and others were making millions a year in salaries and other compensation, which doesn't look good when they're constantly asking for donations to fight gun control.

Points made in the video below speak to the frustration that many gun owners like myself have with all the gun groups, but mainly the NRA. It is not as effective as it could be, and it needs to change, just like all of us as a community need to change. One thing needs to be a priority: Defend any and all gun rights, no matter how trivial, controversial, or mundane it may be.  

The NRA spends millions of dollars in lobbying efforts and political contributions, whereas organizations like the FPC spend their dollars on funding lawsuit after lawsuit against cities, states, and the federal government to fight gun control laws. If you want to compare the NRA and the FPC, where the NRA claims to be a civil rights organization, they do a very poor job of fighting for them. The FPC spends a quarter of the amount of the NRA, yet their printer doesn't stop (according to them) printing fresh lawsuits and legal briefs. When it comes to fighting for civil rights, their Libertarian mindset makes them extremely efficient. 

The opening brief was filed with the DC Circuit today in a lawsuit challenging the district's magazine ban. You can read it here: https://t.co/GZWbB84OMl pic.twitter.com/0egoYZnwEq

— Firearms Policy Coalition (@gunpolicy) August 26, 2023

It is high time for the firearms community as a whole, including the NRA, FPC, NSSF, and other groups and members, to coalesce and organize to best fight the Democrat Party agenda of taking away your rights. The only way we move forward is to look in the mirror and recommit ourselves to the preservation of our civil liberties. Then, and only then, can we succeed in that noble goal.