Those of you who are arriving on Thursday shouldn’t miss out on the meet and greet with NRA-ILA Public Affairs staff at 6:30pm at the Maker’s Mark Bourbon House & Lounge located in Downtown Louisville’s Fourth Street Live. Above is a map from the Kentucky Expo Center.
By now all of the registered bloggers should have received information about check-in to receive their media credentials by email. If you did not receive this information, please email me at organizer -at- 2ablogbash -dot- com, and I’ll be happy to respond.
Banquet keynote speaker Glenn Beck has declared this week to be “Gun Week” on his shows. It starts out with this interview with Chris Cox, head of NRA-ILA. Obviously, the week will conclude with his speech in Louisville.
For those of you flying in, you might be interested in this new offer from NRA:
NRA has arranged Airport Shuttle Transportation with Sandollar Limousine.
For pick up upon arrival into Louisville International Airport, proceed to Baggage claim, and then go to Ground Transportation. Once outside you will go to the “Hotel-Motel Shuttle Area” between the green pillars. Look for the Sandollar vehicle with the NRA signage.
If the shuttle is not there shortly after your arrival, call (502) 561-4022.
Airport Shuttle to Downtown Louisville and Southern Indiana Hotels is $10 per person one way.
Airport Shuttle to the Kentucky Expo Center and Surrounding Area Hotels is $4 per person one way.
We previously posted a very thorough overview of Kentucky’s concealed carry laws provided by a local blogger GreatBlueWhale. Today we received a report about a change with at least one local museum in time for the NRA meeting. Chaz reports:
The GOOD NEWS is the the Frazier Historical Museum, just down the street from the Louisville Slugger, has now taken down their “no weapons” signs and informs us that they welcome CCDW permit holders as long as they observe the laws pertaining thereto. Their web site is http://www.fraziermuseum.org and if you love edged weapons, firearms of all types and all ages and the history that surrounds them they you’re going to LOVE this place! They even have a large section of arms on loan from the Tower of London armory!
By all means, if you love history and guns and knives and swords, take the time to visit the Frazier museum, you’ll have a ball. They have fencing demonstrations in addition to the static displays, and the layout is as modern as it gets, very nicely done.
He goes on to mention another local museum that is sticking to its (lack of) guns policy.
Unfortunately, some few places still haven’t gotten the word and they prohibit legal CCDW on their premises and in their buildings. Sadly, one of those is the Louisville Slugger museum, where they show you how they make the famous hardwood baseball bats. Their website is at http://www.sluggermuseum.org. They have signs posted on their doors prohibiting lawful citizens from exercising their right to carry in their building. Sounds to me like a reason not to go there, if that’s what they want.
That’s too bad to hear.
I’ll add one final personal thought about carry. I’ll premise this with the fact that I don’t know what the situation will be until we arrive, but this is based on previous experiences.
With Senator McCain now a confirmed speaker at the event, those attending the Leadership Forum on Friday might want to reconsider carrying that day if they were planning on doing so while in Louisville. Last month, McCain accepted Secret Service protection. I can’t speak for the exact set up this year, but when Vice President Cheney spoke in Pittsburgh, the Secret Service did send everyone through a metal detector at the entrance to the room. I can only assume it will be the same. Should the policy be the same this year, please understand that it is out of the hands of NRA. Ask anyone who was waiting to eat in Pittsburgh that evening…
UPDATE: The day after I posted this, it has been announced that the Secret Service will not be an issue and carry will be allowed to the event.
UPDATE II: Looks like the report is potentially false. I would play it safe on Friday and not carry to the McCain event based on previous experience with the Secret Service.
UPDATE III: It is confirmed, there is no carrying in the Leadership Forum.
Scott Bach serves on the Board of Directors of the National Rifle Association, but his involvement doesn’t end there. Scott is also the President of the Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs, the Garden State’s NRA affiliate that also runs the Cherry Ridge Range, and a contributer to NJ Voices, a series of blogs run by the Star-Ledger.
Scott will be dropping by to chat with bloggers during the Second Amendment Blog Bash, so I sent a few questions his way to find out more about his thoughts for new media and the Second Amendment rights movement.
2ABB: Your blog is one of two pro-Second Amendment blogs in the nation to be affiliated with a mainstream media outlet (The New Jersey Star-Ledger and NJ.com). How did your blog come about?
SB: When a prominent gun ban extremist was given a blog by the media outlet, I requested equal time. The request was greeted with some skepticism and a challenge to first demonstrate my qualifications. After presenting copies of two full-length op-ed pieces of mine that the media outlet had previously published, as well as other credentials, there was no rational basis on which the outlet could refuse and the blog was hesitantly (at first) approved.
2ABB: What differences are there between pro-gun blogging on a mainstream media outlet and blogging on a “private” outlet?
SB: Because the blog reaches a mainstream audience rather than just those interested in the issue, the writing must be based on the assumption that many readers will have no familiarity with the subject matter. At the same time, the writing must also be sophisticated enough to interest the pro-gun community, forceful enough to dispel anti-gun myths, persuasive enough to influence policy makers, and adept enough to avoid giving skeptical editors a reason to terminate the blog. It also needs to be concise, punchy, and educational enough to keep everyone’s interest. It’s quite a task.
2ABB: You have a website, something that’s not common for NRA Board Members. Before you began blogging for the Star-Ledger, did you consider starting a blog on your own page?
SB:I considered starting my own blog in 2003 at the urging of a dear friend in the blogging community, but concluded that I would not have sufficient free time to do it justice back then. But that friend’s suggestion planted an important seed that sprouted when the Star-Ledger opportunity presented itself.
2ABB: Have you received any feedback from New Jersey gun owners about your blog posts?
SB: Actually, I receive a surprising amount of positive feedback about the blog from around the country. I have also learned that it is read by a number of New Jersey mainstream media editors and writers, legislators, and of course, local and national gun ban groups. I have even drawn the fire of the Huffington Post.
2ABB:What do you view as the most important role of the blogosphere in shaping the pro-gun debate?
SB: In my view, rapid and widespread dissemination of information and advocacy is one of the blogosphere’s key roles right now. While our ability to reach the world in an instant is at unprecedented levels, we must always remember that the quality of the message delivered is more important than the method by which it is disseminated.
2ABB: Blogger SayUncle has said that bloggers are the grassiest of grassroots. Do you agree with this, or do you think traditional outreach efforts are still the core of the movement? Is there room for the two to merge?
SB: I actually agree with both statements, because I believe we are in a transition that will span several generations. There are still large numbers of people who are either not online or not fully comfortable being online. Until everyone is online, traditional outreach efforts should and must continue in parallel with blogging efforts. Eventually the two will merge, of necessity. It is also possible that other technologies will evolve and supercede what we now know as blogging, in the same way that music downloads are now displacing CDs.
2ABB: Beyond politics, do you see any role for blogs or other web technology and communities in the shooting sports? As the president of a state association with a very busy range, do you see how ranges could benefit from an active online presence?
SB: Absolutely. Electronic media offer unlimited possibilities to the shooting community, from marketing and communications to training and everything in between. The now-embryonic field of “haptics,” or force-feedback computer and peripheral technology, is of special interest to me. When fully developed, I believe it has the potential to provide realistic firearms training in any environment. In the meanwhile, we’ll have to settle for the mundane, and in that vein, I’m pleased to report that the NJ State Association range may be the first range in the nation to provide free WiFi in its club house.
2ABB: Do you think being active in the pro-gun web community has given you special insight into concerns of NRA members that has helped you in your role on the Board?
SB: Being active in the pro-gun web community has helped me interact very efficiently with more members than ever before possible. I am able to get feedback, and be responsive, with tremendous speed.
2ABB: More than 60,000 people are expected in Louisville at a time when we could be mere weeks away from the decision in Heller. Do you have any predictions for what the atmosphere will be like?
SB: The atmosphere is going to be electric. Between the anticipation surrounding Heller and the daily unfolding Presidential election drama, we’re going to get charged up in a big way, as only defenders of Freedom can. See you there!
Executive Producer K. Danny Glover will offer an exclusive introduction to Eyeblast TV to pro-gun bloggers in Louisville on Friday, May 16. Join us at 8am in the Clubhouse Room of the Downtown Louisville Marriott for the peek into Media Research Center’s new project for bloggers.
Eyeblast TV is a free gift to the conservative movement from the Media Research Center, the premier watchdog against liberalism in the mainstream media. If you can’t beat ‘em, bypass ‘em! Be the media. That philosophy has animated bloggers, and now they’ve been given another weapon for their new media arsenal.
The site combines the video-sharing powers of YouTube and the social-networking tools of Facebook into one forum — and without the liberal censorship that regularly rears its head on YouTube. Users can grab videos from our site to embed on their blogs, or they can upload content to share with the conservatives who frequent Eyeblast. They can create their own recurring shows, and after uploading a steady stream of content, they can get a channel to promote those shows.
Second Amendment Blog Bash attendees and followers will want to keep an eye on the site for the Blog Bash channel where video from the first time event can be easily uploaded and shared.
Former and current candidates seeking the Oval Office will be stopping by the NRA meeting next month. During the Celebration of American Values Leadership Forum (not the banquet of the nearly identical name), you’ll hear from Senator John McCain, as well as former Governors Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney.
He holds four World titles, nine National titles and has won over 50 Area championships and countless other action shooting events. He is currently the only USPSA/IPSC Triple Crown Winner in the world.
Todd Jarrett, a guy who can clearly shoot faster than most of us can even think, will join us for Happy Hour on Friday, May 16!
Todd is joining us courtesy of Para USA. I might add that since quite a few of you are political bloggers, you’ll enjoy their new ad.
NRA recently announced that their lineup for the Celebrating American Values Leadership Forum has been expanded. If you’re not coming to the Blog Bash, you could miss out on:
Don’t say I didn’t warn you…
In addition, NRA has also announced they will award the the Harlon B. Carter award for service to the Second Amendment to Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal at the Celebration of American Values Annual Banquet on Saturday, May17. The banquet will also feature Glenn Beck as the keynote speaker.
To sign up for special reserved seating for bloggers, follow the directions here.
If you’re not registered for the Blog Bash yet, why not?
A recent post by The Gun Shots said this about FNH USA:
Rick DeMilt is a man on a mission. As senior vice president of sales and marketing at FNH USA, he wants to raise the profile of this firearms manufacturer.
“Who is FN?” he asked, in a commanding voice at a recent FNH seminar. “Too many people have no clue what we are! The fact is, we supply seventy percent of the U. S. military’s small arms, including the M240, M249 SAW, and M16; we have a manufacturing facility on U.S. soil in Columbia, South Carolina; and Browning and Winchester are part of the FN Herstal group.”
Now you’ll have an opportunity to meet with representatives of this Belgium-based company privately on the show floor for an introduction to their product line. Don’t miss out on this meeting on Saturday, May 17.
If you haven’t figured out by the posted schedule, there are going to be many events for everyone from the shooting sports enthusiasts to the political junkies.
No doubt that as policy leaders, industry representatives, and leading activists learn about the new media force, some will be interested in meeting many of you. In order to make sure Blog Bash attendees don’t miss out on the best opportunities, I’ve set up a Twitter account for the Bash.
For those of you who don’t know what Twitter is, check out this video: Twitter in Plain English.
You can create an account and have updates sent to your phone as text messages! Messages are limited to less than 140 characters, and updates would only be sent when unique opportunities or meetings arise. Your cell phone number won’t be revealed. It’s a great way to avoid missing great events while enjoying the exhibit hall or taking a break without being tied to your computer.
Sign up, add your cell phone to the account, search for 2ABlogBash, choose to follow the account, and switch the Device Updates to on. It’s that simple!
Here are highlights from the confirmed speakers at the NRA Annual Meeting:
Senators Mitch McConnell & Kay Bailey Hutchison, Oliver North, David Keene, Ted Nugent, Greg Stube, Marcus Luttrell, Sandra Froman, and Ralph Z. Hallow
And don’t forget the Celebration of American Values Banquet with Glenn Beck. Or the infamous Sebastian from Snowflakes in Hell. Oh yeah, and that free concert with John Michael Montgomery.
This will by far not be the last of the updates, so don’t miss out just because you’re not that impressed right now.
Blog Bash attendees will have the opportunity to sit down with the head of GunsAmerica.com to learn more about what this web-based company has planned for 2008. As a company that has been the largest gun buying and selling website since launching in 1997, they feature over 50,000 guns on sale 24 hours a day. This company is one of few in the outdoor and firearms world that is truly using technology to transform the industry. Join us on Sunday, May 18 at 9am for this conversation.
