>Studying the NRA as a "political model" is not a bad idea<
And why not? I love to hear the NRA bashers rant on about the effect we have on the government, our government. I and thousands like me ARE the NRA. Just private citizens who happen to believe that freedom IS protected by the private ownership of firearms. It ain't about duck hunting, Mr. Kerry! We who know something about firearms must always fight against those who act out of ignorance of and prejudice toward firearms. We do this by calling and writing our representatives about issues that effect us. Isn't that precisely what citizens are expected to do in a representative government? Who could perceive this as somehow bad? I was taught in civics class many years ago that that was what representative government was all about. Our elected officials can't represent us if they don't know where we stand on issues up for a vote. It really does not matter whether it is a phony "semiautomatic assault rifle" issue or depriving us of model airplane flying areas, it is up to each of us to be informed about the issues and inform our representatives how we expect them to vote for us. The real power in our system is in the voting out of office those who can't bring themselves to represent our views. It certainly worked with Gore. We expect elected politicians to represent us, not "vote their conscience" once in office when they feel safe. You may hate the NRA for your own reasons but the example is still worth studying. Dennis in NH RCSE-List facilities provided by Model Airplane News. Send "subscribe" and "unsubscribe" requests to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please note that subscribe and unsubscribe messages must be sent in text only format with MIME turned off.