Expanding Our View at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous

It's easy to get tunnel vision by reading only familiar magazines, newsletters and blogs, watching only the best-known television shows and frequenting only the most-visited Web sites. We were reminded of that after attending the fourth Gun Blogger Rendezvous (GBR-IV), where we met bloggers of different voices and enthusiasms and where our experience has indeed expanded our view.

The bloggers we met in Reno--from an 11-year-old champion pistol shooter to a 78-year-old grandmother who took up handgun shooting a year ago, and a lot of bloggers in between those ages and interests--have dedicated followers in the worlds of competition shooting, Second Amendment activism, gunsmithing and personal protection. One of them was Phil, who does not blog about firearms but regularly comments on various gun blogs and who made the trip all the way from Oxford, England, to be at GBR-IV. Say Uncle, a veteran blogger with a big audience, was among the bloggers in attendance.

It was Mike Gallion, a Steel Challenge competitor and author of The Mr. Completely blog, who reached out to NSSF, and we're pleased he did. NSSF provided dinner one evening and shared presentation time at the conference with the National Rifle Association and Alan Gura, the attorney who won the District of Columbia v. Heller case. In its presentation, NSSF emphasized how it can be a resource to all bloggers by providing research and statistics, and how potential content can be found in NSSF’s Bullet Points weekly newsletter, legislative alerts on federal and state firearms issues, and on this blog. Additionally, we provided an overview of NSSF high-priority issues, such as the AR-15/Modern Sporting Rifle education campaign that is about to launch (stay tuned for more on that).

And we listened. In freewheeling discussion (bloggers like to give their opinions), we received good suggestions about how to increase the effectiveness of this blog, and we will be acting on some of those suggestions.

Days were spent at the Washoe County Shooting Facility, where there was no lack of equipment to shoot and where a lot of photos and video were captured that are now on blog sites. On Saturday evening we listened to compelling keynote speaker Captain Charles "Chuck" Ziegenfuss, who suffered serious injuries in a roadside bomb blast in Iraq and who today champions Project Valour-IT, a project of Soldiers Angels. Project Valour-IT provides laptops and voice-recognition software to wounded vets so they can continue blogging and sending e-mail even though they may be temporarily or permanently unable to use a keyboard.

NSSF has made a donation to Project Valour-IT, which has provided 3,000 laptops to date to wounded soldiers. After watching Captain Chuck give a demonstration of the voice-recognition software and the benefits it provides to wounded veterans, we encourage readers to visit the Project Valour-IT Web site to add their support for this worthy program.

Industry that was represented either in person or by providing product or service support included  Brownell's, Crimson Trace, Para Ordnance, Hi-Point, Glock, Dillon Precision, Front Sight Training Academy, Hi-Cap Gun Works, Lucky Gunner, Cowboy Fast Draw Association, Western Nevada Pistol League, Steel Challenge Shooting Association (USPSA/SCSA) and Springfield Arms.

The gun blogger community is large, passionate, independent-minded, opinionated and influential. There are many who have felt its sting on occasion, including NSSF, but we also recognize its ability to drive messages that help educate and ultimately unite firearm owners. We’re learning.

We refer you to the Mr. Completely blog for a list of gun bloggers (not all who are listed there attended GBR-IV but many did) and to Derek at The Packing Rat for photographs.

Comments

[D.W. Drang]

Him Bill
It was good to speak with you at GBR-IV.

Despite the fact that I declared Saturday night that "I hate officers", I must correct you: Chuck Ziegenfuss is a Major, currently attending what (in my day, before I retired) the Army called Command and General Staff College. (I guess they call it something else now.)

Also, Molly is now 13; she won her most recent championship at age 12, though. (THE MOLLY MINUTE) She told us that she took up blogging about her shooting because she could not discuss it with any of her friends, what with going to school in California and all...

I look forward to seeing you at next year's GBR, and to working with you to advance the cause of Freedom.

[DirtCrashr]

Hi Bill, It was great to meet and shoot with you last weekend, and to hear you talk gave me a much get a better idea about how to use the NSSF as a resource in my blogging, and for that I am much obliged! It was also great to have Alan with us and provide a note of temperance and legal restraint among the charged-up gunnies.

Thought you might be interested (or perhaps you know about this already), as far as the problems associated with lead in the environment and actual scientific evidence goes it's very clear to me now, given that a top scientist for the California Air Resources Board got his fake PhD for $1,000 at a UPS drop.
http://weblog.signonsandiego.com/weblogs/afb/archives/036157.html#

The "Antis" create their opposition on purely ideological grounds, not scientific ones. His tainted and untrustworthy "scientific" recommendations were upheld, despite his lack of qualifications and despite the Board being aware of those problems.
We need to make this kind of revealing information public, because California's CARB is an unelected oligarchy of appointees who can't otherwise be affected - apparently not even by shame.

[Mr. Completely]

Hi Bill,
We are all glad you had the opportunity to attend GBR-IV. It's truly an amazing event with an amazing bunch of folks. We all owe NSSF a big THANK YOU for not only the work you all do, but for helping Project Valour-IT. Buying us all pizza was cool, too!!

I hope you can find the time in your busy schedule to make it to GBR-V next year!

Mr. C.