I had to join the NRA to be allowed to join a shooting range

[helpmetohelpyou]

This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by Raine1967 (a host of the General Discussion forum).

Are there other DUers in the same boat?

[SummerSnow]

1. figured a state id would suffice

[helpmetohelpyou]

2. I have a drivers license and a pass port

They said you needed an NRA card

[Just for Fun]

6. Tell them that they are violating your 2nd Amendment rights..

and NRA is considered a horrible organization. Tell them you'd rather go stuff a live bear instead of joining the NRA.

[KamaAina]

18. W00t!

And welcome to DU!

[Warpy]

22. Welcome to DU

You're going to get along just fine around here.

[NYC_SKP]

3. I've never gone to a range.

And if I did, it wouldn't require "joining", though there are probably skeet clubs and duck clubs with membership requirements.

Ranges around here, I'm guessing, don't have that requirement, but I could be wrong.

Have you shopped it around?

[helpmetohelpyou]

8. These are all clubs around here

To shoot you have to be a member

[Fred Sanders]

11. Like a cartel, they have the area covered...no progressive types need apply.

[helpmetohelpyou]

12. What's weird is I live in a blue state

I still haven't been able to pick up the shotgun , waiting for a license from the state now.
After Sandy Hook my governor passed some common sense gun laws.


I think a lot of the members there are probably Democrats

[Just for Fun]

5. Quit the range..

and tell them why.

Go find another non-NRA sponsored range.

[helpmetohelpyou]

7. There's a public one on the other side of the state but everything within 100 miles of me

are private so to be able to shoot a gun you have to join as a member.

[Fred Sanders]

10. Go no where near an NRA sponsored site, your dollars should not go there.

[Skittles]

9. I hope no other DUers would do that

fuck no, that is disgusting

[helpmetohelpyou]

14. It felt disgusting but I've never shot a gun before and they offer instruction

I didn't want to go drive some where by myself out in the woods and try to shoot it

[Skittles]

15. I would not join the NRA under ANY circumstances

no fucking WAY

[branford]

13. As a point of fact, I would remind people of the difference between the NRA and the NRA-ILA.

The NRA-ILA is the lobbying arm of the NRA, and separate from the NRA itself.

The NRA, like it or not, is still the largest gun safety and training organization in the USA, and the gold standard in firearm training and certification.

Private shooting clubs and ranges are certainly free to make NRA membership mandatory or part of their dues, and given the obvious pro-2A sentiments of such clubs and the NRA safety reputation, it's hardly surprising. The NRA will similarly be well represented in public shooting ranges. If you wish to avoid the NRA and its influence and members, shooting ranges are probably not the best social or recreational venue.

Lastly, none of the above was meant to advocate or oppose the NRA or whether you should join as a condition of membership to any particular range or club, just provide some practical context.


Disclaimer: I do not firearms, and am not, nor ever have been, a member of the NRA.

[helpmetohelpyou]

20. The person I have to make the safety appointment with at the club told me she was

a trained NRA safety instructor

[branford]

28. Then you will probably be well trained and taken care of.

Good luck, and don't forget that there are a lot of very liberal gun owners.

[NutmegYankee]

32. Connecticut requires NRA trained instructors by law.

That's normal.

[petronius]

21. From a practical perspective, I think there are benefits to ranges from this requirement

As I understand it, '100%-NRA' ranges have access to NRA range improvement grants, legal assistance, and perhaps liability insurance. It could be the difference between remaining solvent or not for some clubs...

[saltpepperdoor]

24. and their insurance rates

Are probably lower if they have strictly NRA members

[Hoyt]

35. Almost every PAC is controlled by the mother organization. Don't be naive.

[branford]

37. I never stated otherwise. Read carefully.

My point was that the NRA membership will not directly fund NRA-ILA lobbying. It will, however, provide other direct and ancillary benefits such subsidizing the range's insurance, certifications, safety, events, and numerous other matters.

Whether you approve or not, NRA affiliation is often a necessary lifeblood to the existence of shooting clubs and ranges.

[Hoyt]

38. Well, I've long believed the majority of gun fanatics are right wing. That probably has

more to do with this issue than the incentive funding.

[branford]

40. Feel free to create a more left-wing analog that provides the same benefits and training as the NRA.

You would be surprised (and for you, probably saddened) at how many Democrats and liberals would readily join. You definitely need a nice visit to Vermont, one of the bluest states in the nation with a socialist senator, and also with some of the most classically liberal firearm laws and culture.

Gun ownership is far less a D vs. R issue, and more about historic regional and rural culture.

[Hoyt]

41. The region I live in has a very right wing gun culture.

[branford]

44. Then you definitely need a nice vacation to Vermont. nt

[aikoaiko]

16. Without the NRA a lot of ranges probably wouldn't be in business.

I'm an NRA member. For years as a DU Member I waffled on joining, but then I realized I would not be allowed to own most of the firearms I do without NRA.

So I hate their hyperbole and that the republicans have a strangle hold on the Board of Directors. I hate WLP and his ilk.

But I support their efforts to defeat useless gun control.

I'm conflicted. I'll always vote Democratic I how I resolve it. That and I now vote for the least whackadoo board members

[helpmetohelpyou]

17. They sent me a package with different auto and home owner insurances

they say are offered at lower rates for members.
The one thing that I thought was very right wing was the magazine that came with it.

They had some articles on guns but most of it was political .
I'm going to call them and tell them to please stop sending it.

[aikoaiko]

23. Fair enough. And you get to save a tree by not accept their mag.

[doc03]

19. I ran into that a few years ago and dropped the idea of joining. Oh on edit

they also asked for a sponsor because they had (limited) membership. It wasn't that same club but I asked a member about joining and he told me you need a sponsor, he said it was just to be sure you aren't black. He used the other word.

[helpmetohelpyou]

26. wow

I would never belong to club like that , never

I really don't think this club is like that at all. If I ever hear anything like that not only would I walk out
immediately . I would write a letter to my local paper telling them exactly why I walked out

[branford]

27. That's evidence that the club was racist, but not the NRA.

In fact, I would imagine the NRA would be quite irate.

[doc03]

31. All of them around here that I know of require you join the NRA and I don't

know of any that don't require a sponsor. I ran into the same thing with the American Legion, I was asked who my sponsor was. I told the guy I am a veteran you required my DD214 to join but you have social members and Sons of the Legion why do I need a sponsor. They need to check you out you could have legal problems. I don't have any use for them either.

[Hoyt]

36. Take a look at NRA's leadership. Heck the current President Big Jim Porter

is a known racist, and he was elected.

[sarisataka]

25. Look at it from the range's perspective

Even if we ignore politics, which likely plays a part in their rules

-who offers advice and assistance to make sure the range complies with all legal requirements - the NRA
-who provides all of the standardized safety rules for day-to-day operation of the range - the NRA
-who certifies the safety and training instructors for the range and its members - the NRA
-who provides the range safety officers for any events and competitions - the NRA
-who will sponsor events and competitions - the NRA
-who provides them the insurance against liability - the NRA

note that not one of these things has anything to do with the NRA - ILA lobbying arm.

The sad truth is the NRA is the only show in town when it comes to teaching and providing gun safety; no one steps up to challenge their stranglehold.

[branford]

30. The NRA used to be completely apolitical.

Their lobbying and activism was a result of historically recent gun control efforts.

Even now, the NRA supports and endorses some pro-2A Democrats. If the majority of our party believed in a liberal interpretation of the 2A as they do with the rest of the Constitution and positions we held in years past, the NRA and its affiliates would happily return to being just a simple firearm safety and sporting organization.

[NutmegYankee]

29. It was optional at the sportsman club I joined, so I didn't.

But a lot of ranges/clubs do require it.

[helpmetohelpyou]

39. This one required it

It's a nice club and if I go on a weekday I was told many times no ones there.

A big plus for me it's a great place to be able to take my dogs for a walk on the grounds there.

[branford]

43. Contrary to the lamentations of many here on DU,

most gun owners are actually very nice and law-abiding people of impeccable character.

Many even like dogs . . .

[helpmetohelpyou]

46. I love my dogs so much

They have trails and a private lake on the property. It's going to be nice to be able to take them
and throw the ball for some fetch or walk them there after a snowfall

[branford]

48. Are you joining a shooting range or a country club?

[helpmetohelpyou]

49. Well they call it a rod and gun club

but the grounds were just beautiful when I was taken on a tour.

[branford]

50. It sounds very nice.

I hope you fully enjoy your membership, and good luck with your firearms training.

[helpmetohelpyou]

51. thank you

[Hoyt]

33. Ever looked at the right wingers in NRA leadership

roles and what they support -- Grover Norquist, John Bolton, Ollie North, Teddy Nugent, gun profiteers, and worse.

[SummerSnow]

34. I found the reason why the shooting range demands you to join the NRA..here is the article

For U.S. gun clubs, NRA membership has its privileges

BY ANDY SULLIVAN
CAPE ELIZABETH, Maine Sun Feb 3, 2013 10:12am EST

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/02/03/us-usa-guns-clubs-idUSBRE91208320130203

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, a trade association, estimates there are 10,000 shooting ranges in the United States. Ranges that are open to the public can't exclude customers who do not belong to the NRA, but private clubs may set membership rules as they wish.

For a $35 annual fee, more than 14,000 affiliated organizations also get access to attorney referral services and discounts on business services such as credit-card processing. More than 8,000 clubs get their insurance through the NRA, according to the group's promotional materials.

In return, the NRA gets a recruitment channel to reach millions of gun enthusiasts who aren't already members. Clubs can earn up to $10 for each new NRA member they sign up and $5 for each annual renewal, according to an online manual for club officers.

Clubs that require all of their members to join the NRA get another important benefit: the chance to apply for grants of up to $5,000 per year to help improve and develop shooting facilities.

[helpmetohelpyou]

45. Thank you for the information why.

She never explained it to me she just said it was required here to join.

[mwrguy]

42. Everyone who buys guns or ammo ultimately supports the NRA

Whether you directly join or not.

[d_r]

47. I am not an nra member

but I've always thought that it was better to change something from the inside and through personal contact with the members than it was to complain about something from the outside and be antagonistic towards the members.

[Raine1967]

52. Locking: Via the GD SOP:

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