This is not going to be pretty.
For those of you who are NRA members, as I am (Endowment Life Member), this might be of interest. Those of us in the hunting, public land conservation, and shooting world have a keen interest in the topic. Non-hunters who shoot fund over 2/3 of the Pittman-Robertson funds that go to state wildlife agencies. A robust recreational shooting community is helpful for many reasons, including the funding of wildlife conservation.
I knew that Ackerman-McQueen, the NRA's long-time consulting firm, had an incestuous relationship with the NRA. Those "in the know" will tell you that Ackerman-McQueen has decided who would be the NRA executive team, they have greased the skids for who would be the Board Members, who would serve as the corporate officers, who would be the "paid talking heads" of the NRA, etc.
This power of Ackerman-McQueen over NRA direction was no secret to anyone who is in the shooting industry and has the inquisitive mind to ask around. And if you ask too many questions, expect push back. I had no idea just how deep the NRA-Ackerman tryst was until recent articles started digging into it. If proven true, I doubt most NRA members are keen in the amount of money paid to "pals and promoters" with nothing but huge debts and failed PR efforts to show for it.
I have heard the NRA debacle rumors over the last two years. Most anyone asking questions or involved in hunting/shooting politics has heard the rumors the last two years. Personally, I attributed a lot of it to folks wanting to make a name for themselves.
I read an article in the New Yorker that covered this topic, but it was much more indepth than anything I had previously seen, read, or heard. Given the New Yorker is known to be left leaning, I searched for more information before using it as confirmation of the rumors that have been whispered about, even though the New Yorker is known for pretty high factual standards.
We didn't have to wait long or search hard to find more intel. A lot of chit is pouring out on this topic, with the lead up to the NRA Annual Meeting coming up later this week in Indianapolis.
This first series of articles is from a gun advocate, Jeff Knox, whose father was once on the NRA Board. If you know of his background, he is on the other end of the spectrum as would be a journalist from the New Yorker. Knox's pieces were printed in AmmoLand, a pretty large newswire known to most everyone in the shooting industry. This is not pretty stuff to read.
Part 1 - https://www.ammoland.com/2019/04/nr...-as-pro-gun-group-cleans-house/#axzz5lxJZdxp3
Part 2 - https://www.ammoland.com/2019/04/nras-future-only-two-options-can-the-bod-save-us/#axzz5lxJZdxp3
In the Ammoland articles, Knox references the New Yorker article I mentioned above. Knox claims in his Ammoland pieces that even though the New Yorker is left-leaning publication, the article is factually accurate and opens the curtains on what Ackerman-McQueen has been doing with/for/to the NRA. If the facts in the New Yorker article are correct, there needs to be some questions answered and some people sent down the road.
New Yorker article here and it paints an even uglier picture than the Ammoland articles - https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-greed-at-the-nra
I am not sure how the NRA is going to handle this blow up that has come out in the last few days. If the facts prove to be true and the NRA has squandered so many millions of donor's/member's money and if the NRA is as far in debt as is claimed, there are dark days ahead.
Having sat on a national non-profit Board of Directors, it is hard for me to imagine this kind of self-dealing being allowed. Or, how this type of fiscal irresponsibility could unfold, to the benefit of a few and at the expense of the donors/members/mission? If proven true, what sort of governance protocols exists, if any?
Folks I talk to in the shooting/hunting industry whisper, "It was only a matter of time." Whether or not the facts will hold out to be true, I'm not sure. The fact that the NRA, under pressure from a revolt, has filed a lawsuit this month against Ackerman-McQueen, tells me there is probably more fire to this smoke than most know.
If I learn more, I will post it here. I won't be at the NRA show, but with a lot of friends there, it will be interesting to hear what the tone/mood/response is at the gathering.
For those of you who are NRA members, as I am (Endowment Life Member), this might be of interest. Those of us in the hunting, public land conservation, and shooting world have a keen interest in the topic. Non-hunters who shoot fund over 2/3 of the Pittman-Robertson funds that go to state wildlife agencies. A robust recreational shooting community is helpful for many reasons, including the funding of wildlife conservation.
I knew that Ackerman-McQueen, the NRA's long-time consulting firm, had an incestuous relationship with the NRA. Those "in the know" will tell you that Ackerman-McQueen has decided who would be the NRA executive team, they have greased the skids for who would be the Board Members, who would serve as the corporate officers, who would be the "paid talking heads" of the NRA, etc.
This power of Ackerman-McQueen over NRA direction was no secret to anyone who is in the shooting industry and has the inquisitive mind to ask around. And if you ask too many questions, expect push back. I had no idea just how deep the NRA-Ackerman tryst was until recent articles started digging into it. If proven true, I doubt most NRA members are keen in the amount of money paid to "pals and promoters" with nothing but huge debts and failed PR efforts to show for it.
I have heard the NRA debacle rumors over the last two years. Most anyone asking questions or involved in hunting/shooting politics has heard the rumors the last two years. Personally, I attributed a lot of it to folks wanting to make a name for themselves.
I read an article in the New Yorker that covered this topic, but it was much more indepth than anything I had previously seen, read, or heard. Given the New Yorker is known to be left leaning, I searched for more information before using it as confirmation of the rumors that have been whispered about, even though the New Yorker is known for pretty high factual standards.
We didn't have to wait long or search hard to find more intel. A lot of chit is pouring out on this topic, with the lead up to the NRA Annual Meeting coming up later this week in Indianapolis.
This first series of articles is from a gun advocate, Jeff Knox, whose father was once on the NRA Board. If you know of his background, he is on the other end of the spectrum as would be a journalist from the New Yorker. Knox's pieces were printed in AmmoLand, a pretty large newswire known to most everyone in the shooting industry. This is not pretty stuff to read.
Part 1 - https://www.ammoland.com/2019/04/nr...-as-pro-gun-group-cleans-house/#axzz5lxJZdxp3
Part 2 - https://www.ammoland.com/2019/04/nras-future-only-two-options-can-the-bod-save-us/#axzz5lxJZdxp3
In the Ammoland articles, Knox references the New Yorker article I mentioned above. Knox claims in his Ammoland pieces that even though the New Yorker is left-leaning publication, the article is factually accurate and opens the curtains on what Ackerman-McQueen has been doing with/for/to the NRA. If the facts in the New Yorker article are correct, there needs to be some questions answered and some people sent down the road.
New Yorker article here and it paints an even uglier picture than the Ammoland articles - https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/secrecy-self-dealing-and-greed-at-the-nra
I am not sure how the NRA is going to handle this blow up that has come out in the last few days. If the facts prove to be true and the NRA has squandered so many millions of donor's/member's money and if the NRA is as far in debt as is claimed, there are dark days ahead.
Having sat on a national non-profit Board of Directors, it is hard for me to imagine this kind of self-dealing being allowed. Or, how this type of fiscal irresponsibility could unfold, to the benefit of a few and at the expense of the donors/members/mission? If proven true, what sort of governance protocols exists, if any?
Folks I talk to in the shooting/hunting industry whisper, "It was only a matter of time." Whether or not the facts will hold out to be true, I'm not sure. The fact that the NRA, under pressure from a revolt, has filed a lawsuit this month against Ackerman-McQueen, tells me there is probably more fire to this smoke than most know.
If I learn more, I will post it here. I won't be at the NRA show, but with a lot of friends there, it will be interesting to hear what the tone/mood/response is at the gathering.
