By Don McDougall
USA – -(Ammoland.com)- Ask the NRA and they’ll tell you how many people paid dues this year.
Go to an NRA sanctioned match or drop by a gun range and ask a simple question. “Who here is a member of the NRA” and almost everyone will raise their hand.
But in reality only about 1 in 5 have paid their dues.
There are some dedicated competitors who contribute their dues every year, but most of the NRA’s memberships floats in and out of the organization. It’s estimated the NRA’s message touches over 50+ million gun owners.
Given there are over 130 million gun owners in the country and that the NRA keeps the name and e-mail address of anyone who ever belonged that should not be a surprise.
NRA sanctioned matches are supposed to be limited to active NRA members, but let’s be honest who ever checks?
I’ve been to matches and belonged to clubs where the “less than one in five” is very much the rule, the simple fact is most caual shooters do not care. Most clubs simply accept your word for it and smile as they hand you a score card. Even at the most active growing clubs there is a fear about losing a member.
More people shoot each weekend than play golf in the summer.
These shooters still consider themselves members of the NRA even if they paid their dues or not.
The oldest NRA card I’ve seen was over 40 years. It was at a Silhouette match in Southern California. You paid the club for your annual score books (That went to the NRA), and if you wanted the new Rules Book, you bought it from the NRA. I asked him once about rejoining, and he said, “Look at all the money I give them every year!”. This man was proud to have that decades old card; he was proud to have paid those dues….once. ( Back before most of you reading this were born.) And he considered his payments to the NRA for the score book and rules books to cover his dues somehow? Like most Silhouette shooters, he seems to have suffered from some kind of memory loss when it comes to spending any money.
So ask yourself a question. Are YOU an NRA member in more than just name? Did you pay your dues this year?
To be honest, I’d probably just like these guys, except I used the Easy Pay Plan decades ago. A small auto pay done quarterly and I never have to remember to pay that annual fee. Just set it up once and you get ALL the privileges of a life member FOREVER.
So come on guys – do the right thing.
Oh and if you’re running a match ask to see that current NRA card. You paid your dues let’s be fair to everyone .
About Don McDougall
Don McDougall is an NRA instructor and member of the Los Padres “Friends of the NRA” committee. If he’s not at the range you will find him setting the record straight with on gun issues and gun safety on AmmoLand Shooting Sports News.
Paying for services rendered doesn’t make you a member, it makes you a consumer.
EVERYBODY in my nuclear family is a Life Member. Donations and charges beyond that are just that, donations and charges. A little moral clarity is required here.
The benefits of membership more than cover the cost. As an old frat I remember the 80s. If not for the NRA you would have lost your right to own a gun.
Look at the membership benefits and discounts and you’ll see you get more in benefits than you spend.
Being informed is great, last I knew NRA info was available to anyone, not just members. Doing what you think is right is your choice, but membership is no more subjective today than it was when NRA started. Trouble is so many want the benefits without paying for them. No organization can run without support. NRA, like any other organization, has to ask it’s member for support. They know, like any organization, not all there members can help all the time. Do not answer the phone unless you are prepared to deal with the call. You get calls from other… Read more »
Since I got back into owning guns, I have maintained membership in NRA. I do find it annoying when within a month or two after paying my dues, I get a notice to renew my annual membership. Do they not understand what “annual” means? I’m on a very limited income so getting calls from a telemarketer claiming Wayne LaPierre asked him to call for a $100 donation is offensive. No wonder people (who I know ) have dropped out. If I gave money every time I got a request from NRA, I’d have no money for guns or ammo. Almost… Read more »
I think membership is much more subjective these days. I subscribe to Shooting Illustrated and buy products from it all adding funds to the NRA. I thus get Cris Cox’s letter each month. The NRA social media accounts keep informed of when it’s time to contact Representatives. I may not have a card, but I’m informed.
The NRA does a great job and I am a proud member and urge my friends to join. I donate to the NRA-ILA every year but object to being called once a month by a fund raiser seeking further funds. I have explained to them numerous times that I give once a year and don’t have unlimited funds to contribute $100 every month. Other NRA members have complained about the same fund raising calls have have threatened to quit because of the calls. Sometimes they are worse than the solar companies!