Sunday, April 15, 2007
The National Rifle Association is simply the largest American family grassroots organization in America.
It's built around a self-evident truth, and about a God-given right: the right to keep and bear arms.
The truth is that self-defense is an imperative and a responsibility for good, thoughtful people everywhere.
America's founders, having fled the horrors of tyrants' enslavement, wrote down a list of these conscientious, overtly obvious, self-evident truths for a new nation.
What resulted was a guideline for life in this new land of the free and home of the brave, just in case anyone would be so foolish or evil as to forget.
We members of the NRA believe in the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. With all due respect, we don't need anybody to translate them for us, thank you.
So we gather once again this weekend in beautiful St. Louis, Mo., for the 136th time.
We are moms, dads, sons and daughters, grandparents and neighbors, of every imaginable walk of life. We celebrate with heart and soul that we the people have the individual right to keep and bear arms for every imaginable good, lawful use.
The Nugent family tries to coordinate family time each year to join in. We share our wonderfully thrilling, gun-loving lifestyle with others. It is a way of life. A barometer by which true freedom can be gauged.
We enjoy the hundreds of gun-related exhibits — hunting gear and arms for competition, law enforcement, military, collecting or any of the varied joys of owning these profoundly intriguing, life-saving tools.
We are proud of this 4 million-member organization. It is assembled around a principle that clearly distinguishes America from every other nation or society.
We NRA members love our freedom and our gunsand are dedicated to keep those at bay who would disarm us and force us into helplessness. Sarah Brady, eat your heart out.
Not only am I a proud life member, I am also honored to represent our 4 million members who have voted me onto the NRA Board of Directors for five glorious terms.
I am committed to standing absolute in our fight to expose the gun banners for the soulless, spineless anti-Americans they are.
Clearly to force good Americans into unarmed helplessness is to be complicit with the criminals who would more easily prey upon us.
To be so ignorant of the overwhelming global statistics and evidence that gun bans actually help the bad guys is inexcusable. Beyond being stupid, it is very dangerous.
The NRA will not let that happen, thank God.
We invite our fellow Americans, who believe in the good guys winning, and good over bad in general, to join us.
Come to our annual gathering and you will see good-looking, friendly, caring, productive, law-abiding families.
Well represented among us are heroes of law enforcement and the U.S. military who cherish the right to keep and bear arms.
We happen to know of many, many such heroes who have made the ultimate sacrifice for American rights and freedoms.
To hang out with them when NRA members convene truly is an honor and a privilege. We welcome you all.
Ted Nugent is a Waco-based musician and television show host.
Comments
By Brendan
Apr 23, 2007 12:41 PM | Link to this
When will you people realize that the 2nd amendment was written at a time when US independence depended on militias to prevent foreign invasion; the US now has the most powerful military on earth and if the originators of the constitution had known how that provision would be misused today they would have written it very differently.
How can you possibly consider carrying a gun a "right" of equal importance to free speech, or freedom of religeon ... one of these things is not like the other.
Finally, I think you forgot one statistic Frank K: number of people who voted for
Bush: 50,460,110
Gore: 51,003,926
In a real democracy, that should be the only number that matters.
By John W.
Apr 20, 2007 9:43 AM | Link to this
http://www.wacotrib.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/04/20/04202007wacNeumannplea.html
Mr. Fletcher, Above is a link to a local story that proves why one may not want a gun at home if one is not needed.
By Fletcher
Apr 18, 2007 10:06 PM | Link to this
Mr. Burnside your statements may be fact. But Better education on the control and use of handguns would cut that number in half. If you dont wanna gun dont buy one thats your option but its better to have and not need than to need it and not have it.
By jim
Apr 18, 2007 1:55 PM | Link to this
Gun control is already to tight. We have and should always have the right to "bear arms". A lesson will be learned from this tragedy similar to 9/11. Next time most likely the goblin will get bum rushed. When guns are outlawed only outlaws will have guns.
By kate
Apr 17, 2007 11:41 PM | Link to this
Great timing, Ted, and all the rest of you that try to prove something good about packing a gun from a such a tragedy. Name calling should be outlawed, fighting should be outlawed, nuclear weapons and guns should be outlawed, armies should be outlawed. Allowing Ted to write a column should be outlawed.
By moomaw
Apr 17, 2007 3:20 PM | Link to this
STRIGHT UP....TELL ROCK I SAID WUZ UP...!
By Jimmy P.
Apr 17, 2007 11:57 AM | Link to this
Get a clue, buddy. Its fairly obvious the students killed were not armed. Its illegal to carry guns on college campuses, the problem is only most people follow the rules.
By cvincenz
Apr 17, 2007 9:48 AM | Link to this
What todd burnside fails to recognise is; several well trained students in the use of a firearm, that creep(the shooter), might well not have got off the second round. Burnside, these students that were shot, were NOT armed. Got it burnside???? Cvincenz@outdrs.net >
By Frank K
Apr 17, 2007 9:13 AM | Link to this
I do believe a foreiner just shot up the school, send them packing
By Reid Feltmate
Apr 17, 2007 7:57 AM | Link to this
Too many handguns...period. If foreigners boycotted the US as a tourist or conference destination until real controls in place, the NRA psychoids would fold like a cheap suit.
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