| The Knox Report |
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| Written by Daniel White | |
| Thursday, 18 October 2007 | |
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The Knox Report From the Firearms Coalition GRPC 2007 By Jeff Knox (October 16, 2007) The 22 annual Gun Rights Policy Conference sponsored by the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) and the Citizens’ Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA), was held just outside of Cincinnati, Ohio on October 5 through 7 and I was pleased to once again be invited as one of the presenters. I was further pleased and honored to be named “Grass Roots Activist of the Year” during the Awards Luncheon on Saturday The Gun Rights Policy Conference (GRPC) is an annual opportunity for gun rights activists to get together and share knowledge and ideas, make connections, and find out what’s going on in other parts of the country or other areas of the fight. GRPC is an excellent opportunity for local grassroots activists to meet and get to know some of the most recognizable leaders of the fight. This year’s conference surpassed all previous records with close to 500 attendees. Another first for this year’s conference was the participation of Presidential Candidate, Representative Ron Paul who delivered a well-received speech to the attendees plus about two hundred supporters who showed up just for the occasion. The most newsworthy aspect of the appearance was not Dr. Paul’s presence or presentation, nor the size of the crowd, but the fact that probably two hundred or more of those present were carrying loaded sidearms. At least a dozen were carrying openly in accordance with Kentucky law. I can’t help but think that most of the other candidates for President would have balked at the idea of walking into a room full of gun-toting Second Amendment advocates. Dr. Paul and his small security detail (a couple of Kentucky Troopers and one or two plainclothes staffers) didn’t even blink at the prospect, and of course, there were no incidents. The GRPC crowd strongly agreed with much of Dr. Paul’s message, particularly when he talked about restoring the Second Amendment, though many were a bit more skeptical about some of his other ideas. The elephant hovering in the room throughout the weekend was the controversy over H.R.2640, the NICS Improvement Bill. Many expected some fireworks when Larry Pratt, Executive Director of Gun Owners of America, and Chuck Cunningham, Federal Affairs Director for NRA-ILA were both scheduled to present on the Federal Legislative panel. Chuck and Larry disappointed the fight fans though when they chose to remain civil and simply deliver contradictory descriptions of the bill without either of them directly addressing the statements of the other. I would have liked to have seen an hour or so set aside specifically to address this controversial isue since it that has so dramatically widened the rift between various factions of the gun rights movement. NRA has been slow and ineffective in defending their position on the bill and GOA has been relentless and freewheeling in their attacks on the bill. The end result is a gun rights community divided and polarized over what, in my opinion, amounts to a rather insignificant piece of legislation. We initially reported the bill a wash since it has some important improvements and nothing really harmful in it, but added bloat from the Senate and attachment of other “school safety” bills has caused us to wave off on this one. Unfortunately there is no longer a leader of the movement with the credibility to straighten the mess out, so this rift could poison relationships within the movement for years to come. The net result will be a weakened and less effective gun rights advocacy. One of the most important lessons gun rights advocates need to learn is that just because they disagree with an individual or organization on one issue, that does not mean they can’t work together on the next. We must not let differences in strategy, tactics, or philosophy keep us from uniting to achieve common goals – and we need to actively look for those common goals to unite around. That’s what GRPC is really all about, getting to know each other and find unifying themes. It offers the opportunity to meet and talk with local and national rights activists and learn about their projects and plans. Being able to discuss important articles, books and video projects with the authors and creators is well worth the price of admission – which, by the way, is absolutely free. SAF and CCRKBA throw in a tall stack of free books for each attendee and many of the presenters provide additional free materials and information. Next year GRPC will be held in the Phoenix area which means the Knoxes will be out in force. If you live within driving distance of Phoenix or are willing to fly in, I would encourage you to plan to attend. Registration won’t be available until spring of next year and I’ll try to post a reminder as that becomes available. Permission to reprint or post this article in its entirety is hereby granted provided this credit is included. To Receive the Firearms Coalition’s bi-monthly newsletter, The Hard Corps Report, send a contribution to The Firearms Coalition, PO Box 3313, Manassas, VA 20108 or visit FirearmsCoalition.org and ShotgunNews.com ©Copyright 2007 Neal Knox Associates |