Why the NRA may be America's only hope

By Dean Rieck

Five years ago, I was not a gun rights supporter. I was not an NRA member. I didn't even own a gun.

In fact, I bought into the common notion, nurtured by nanny state zealots and perpetuated by the media and Hollywood, that guns are bad. And except for the police and military, only bad people have guns.

Boy was I wrong.

Want to know what changed my mind? I went to see Michael Moore's "Bowling for Columbine." I thought it was funny. But I also thought it was dishonest.

What did I do? I challenged my own ideas and *gasp* signed up for a basic pistol class at a nearby shooting range. It felt like I was doing something wrong. Like I had ventured onto the wrong side of the tracks. But I did it anyway.

The result? I immediately realized all those things I thought I knew about guns were utter nonsense.

Gun owners aren't wackos, they're normal people. Shooting isn't deranged, it's fun. Guns don't cause crime, bad things happen because there are bad people. It was an eye-opening and life-changing experience for me.

Before I knew it, I bought my first gun, a Ruger Mark II, and worked my way through the NRA Marksmanship Qualification Program. I advanced rapidly and began shooting in bullseye matches. I won medals. Life was good.

I did something else around this time. I joined the NRA. All my life, I'd read about how the NRA is some evil organization that supports all the wrong ideas. But in fact, I discovered the NRA is not only a gun-owner's best friend, they are the linchpin for freedom in America.

You see, as I became more familiar with guns and the shooting culture, I realized that guns are about more than just "guns." They're really about civic power. They are the symbol for who is really in charge in this country: ordinary citizens, not presidents or congressmen.

I realized that when you try to take legal guns away from law-abiding citizens, what you're saying is "I don't trust people." That's what politicians are saying when they try to pass laws to restrict guns. "I don't trust you. You shouldn't have that much power. Only people like ME should have that power."

I finally understood what the NRA is all about. They're a civil rights organization that guards our most precious right of all: to hold the reins of power in America as the Founding Fathers intended. The NRA fights to make sure that the nanny state is kept in check so our freedoms remain intact. They help to nurture and strengthen our sense of independence and self-worth.

If you doubt this, look at what has happened to England, the country many of us came from just a few generations ago. They don't value personal civil rights the way we do. They have a bill of rights, but it's not even taught in schools. So they bans guns and watch crime increase. They set up cameras on every street corner to spy on you as you drive to the grocery store. They allow immigrants to set up their own court systems so they don't insult those who choose not to obey the law. They throw people in jail when they fight back against muggers and rapists.

I hear people say they're not an NRA member because they don't like getting letters asking for donations, because they disagree with someone the NRA endorsed, because they think the NRA isn't tough enough or they're too tough. There's always a reason. But you know what? Who cares?

I became a Buckeye Firearms Association leader because I could see how effective this group is. But we couldn't win all the battles we do without the NRA at our back. Sure, there are hundreds of other state and local gun organizations out there. But they couldn't survive if the NRA didn't exist, if it weren't out there hammering politicians, exposing lies, and kicking deep-pocket activists in the teeth.

The NRA is the big dog on the block snarling at all the yappers and making them run away, tailed tucked between their legs. Thank God for the NRA.

A few days ago my five-year membership came to an end. So I decided to renew and become a life member. Yes, it's expensive. But not nearly as expensive as losing my rights, watching America turn into yet another nanny state, and seeing the dream of the Founding Fathers die a slow death as the citizens of the United States allow the great maw of government to swallow them whole.

That's why I think the NRA may be America's only hope. That's why I ask you now to please click here and join the NRA. Renew your membership. Give a membership to your son or daughter or friend.

No. The NRA won't do all the things you want. Yes. They'll ask you for a donation now and then when they need your help. But we need the NRA to remain strong, especially after this last election. Especially because there is a powerful worldwide movement to restrict, register, and eventually ban all guns. Especially since losing our gun rights means more than losing our guns, it means losing control of the country we all love so much.

Join. Renew. Give. Do it now.