I confess I'm guilty of having presumed that National Rifle Association members were in lock step agreement with the organizations leaders and lobbyists. I've never read about rumblings within the group that would suggest anything other than the rank and file is in complete accord with the big guns of the organization (pun intended).
So, E.J.Dionne's Washington Post column was really interesting to me.
In (a) survey of 832 gun owners, including 401 NRA members, (the pollster) found that 82 percent of NRA members supported "prohibiting people on the terrorist watch lists from purchasing guns." Sixty-nine percent favored "requiring all gun sellers at gun shows to conduct criminal background checks of the people buying guns," and 78 percent backed "requiring gun owners to alert police if their guns are lost or stolen." Among gun owners who did not belong to the NRA, the numbers were even higher.
The...poll offered respondents this statement, antithetical to (recently passed legislative) rules: "The federal government should not restrict the police's ability to access, use, and share data that helps them enforce federal, state and local gun laws." Among NRA members, 69 percent agreed.
It strikes me that there may be some similarity here to the previous post on Americans rejection of religious dogma. It seems a mistake to assume that all, or even most, of the members of a religion or gun rights group or political party are necessarily all on board with that groups doctrine - that there's an opportunity for common sense and compromise to still prevail.
"I confess I'm guilty of having presumed that National Rifle Association members were in lock step agreement with the organizations leaders and lobbyists."
Most NRA members find that attitude insulting; we are not a bunch of mindless sheep following orders; we tell them what we believe, not the other way around.
You might want to look at the situation from a different point of view.
http://www.snowflakesinhell.com/2009/12/10/maig-is-smart/
Posted by: BobG | December 11, 2009 at 09:35 AM
No insult intended. But the "official" positions the organization takes are clearly quite different from the majority of its members views.
But it appears the membership isn't very influential in shaping the organizations positions.
Posted by: Jay McDonough | December 11, 2009 at 10:06 AM
The majority do NOT match the poll.
Posted by: BobG | December 11, 2009 at 11:27 AM
Do you have data that contradicts the poll?
Posted by: Jay McDonough | December 11, 2009 at 12:15 PM
The poll bears the burden of proof; I see no reason to believe what they say unless they can prove they even talked with NRA members. There are a lot of people who claim to be members who are not.
Posted by: BobG | December 11, 2009 at 06:10 PM
The poll was conducted by Frank Luntz, somehow who I would guess is sympathetic to the NRA.
It would seem that, in fact, it's you that has the burden of proof.
Posted by: Jay McDonough | December 11, 2009 at 07:59 PM
NRA Members?
How old do you have to be , to be a member in the NRA?
Also can you tell me what its about> I know what its mainly about. Just give me some info please....
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