RE - INDEPENDENT SHOOTERS

[Les Bishop]

I know i dont post much and lurk a lot but ive been shooting for a long time and always trad even before trad and i have always been an aba member even when i havent belonged to a club and alot of times i havent agreed with there views and have said as much even if it didnt count . But as this incident shows we all should belong to some form of association and i dont care which one you choose or decide to create but stand up and be counted even if you think there are no benifits to yourself as there is power in numbers . I love to shoot and hunt as much anybody it is my choosen sport Regards Les Bishop

[Grunter Hunter 63]

Totally aggree Les............
We should all stand up and be heard...........

Lets do it smart and do it right.....

[longbowinfected]

Good on you.
It is definitely the way to go.
Even after this episode with these numbers it could even enhance grass roots funding for the sport.

Kevin

[Benny Nganabbarru]

Spot-on, Les!

[Gringa Bows]

thats right Les ,power in numbers,and i too want to keep bowshoot -hunt......................Rod

[looseplucker]

I am a devotee of Groucho Marx - I wouldn't belong to any club that would have me as a member.

I admire the sentiments re membership, but having been a member of a number of different clubs and associations over the years I have thrown some good money after bad for little more than a warm inner glow. And no, I am not currently a member of any club or association. I don't range shoot enough to warrant it and I hunt just enough for me to be happy to ride under my own banner.

There is a power in numbers but in the current age of a 24/7 news cycle, email, the internet and mass media penetration at the press of a button you can run a lobbying campaign with little more than a laptop and a prepaid wireless broadband plan. The groups that oppose hunting or firearms have proved that. And at the end of the day the debate on bows and bowhunting is not mired in legal issues and what have you - it is a battle of ideas and the effective management of communication.

For mine I think whether we belong to a club or association or not, the ONLY way this debate will be won is by us getting a lot smarter in how we deal with these issues. And it doesnt take a university education, or a whole mess of social sophistication. Clear headedness, keeping an eye on the ball, a consistent message and standing shoulder to shoulder, regardless of membership of this or that or lack of it are what is required. Good old fashioned commonsense, I would suggest.

Who am I to preach? Well, I may be relatively new to bowhunting but I know a thing or 5 about lobbying, campaigning and so forth and I have to say that as a group we have to get a whole lot better a whole lot quicker and play the the issues management and communication game better than the opposition. And it is not difficult, believe me.

Is there a valid criticism that there might be thousands of indepedant shooters out there who have not joined a club? Not really - last time I looked it was still a free country and you let's face it, you don't have to be a member of a political party to vote.