What you can do

Shooting Industry, May, 1994 by Jim Schneider

One of the easiest but most important things that gun owners can do in the current legislative war to preserve the right to keep and bear arms is support the national pro-gun groups.

As a gun dealer, you can encourage your customers to support these groups by keeping their brochures and pamphlets in your shop.

These organizations aren't perfect, but they're important -- especially right now.

As part of their "divide-and-conquer" strategy, the anti-gunners try to discredit the premier national pro-gun group, the National Rifle Association, even in the eyes of gun owners and dealers.

The misrepresentations and just plain lies about the NRA that appear in the media regarding their positions on "cop-killer bullets," "plastic guns," etc., border on libelous.

The NRA is the main target of the antis because it is the heart of the gun lobby. Despite recent defeats, it has done an amazing job over the years considering the media war against it.

The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA) is much, much smaller than the NRA but has a veteran lobbyist patrolling the halls of Congress: John Snyder.

Gun Owners of America (GOA) does an outstanding lobbying job under the leadership of another veteran Washington pro-gun lobbyist: Larry Pratt.

And speaking of veterans, Neal Knox -- nationally known gun writer and former executive director of the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action -- heads the Firearms Coalition.

The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) is not allowed to lobby but carries on many educational and legal programs designed to preserve the right to keep and bear arms. It has same outstanding books and pamphlets.

SAF also publishes a weekly review of the political and legislative side of the gun issue, Gun Week, which has been around since 1966.

All these groups will be happy to tell you how they can support you as a gun dealer and what you can do for them as you attempt to give a solid answer to your customer's question: "What can I do?"

These groups can be contacted by writing or calling: Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, 12500 NE 10th Place, Bellevue, WA 98005 -- telephone: (206) 454-4911;

Firearms Coalition, Box 6537, Silver Spring, MD 20916 -- telephone: (301) 460-6777.

Gun Owners of America, 8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102, Springfield, VA 22151 -- telephone: (703) 321-8585.

National Rifle Association, 11250 Waples Mill Road, Fairfax, VA 22030 -- telephone: (703) 267-1000.

Second Amendment Foundation, 12500 NE 10th Place, Bellevue, WA 98005 -- telephone: (206) 454-7012.