Day 2 of the 2010 NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits in Charlotte proved to be a packed day, just like the first day of the NRA convention. Staying in the center of town made for a short walk to Charlotte Convention Center and the few panhandlers I saw didn’t pester me. I should note that Charlotte’s panhandlers did have the newest and cleanest clothes I’ve seen on beggars anywhere, the Charlotte Observer should be proud.
Honored American Veterans Afield, also known as HAVA, has a booth in the main lobby area. We’ve written about the great work HAVA does, backed by the outdoor industry, to help injured and disabled soldiers transition back to civilian life. I participated in their fund raising raffle and happily departed with a few HAVA branded Smith & Wesson lockback knives. We hope you’ll support their efforts too. Despite the large attendance at the show, I was able to get a photo of the HAVA booth in main lobby area.
(Click on the pics for a larger version)
Even though the lobby was fairly easy to navigate, the show floor was very active and crowded around the popular booths.
Lauer Weaponry, maker of Duracote gun paints, had a display of custom painted firearms. I looked at the graffiti laden Manhattan paint scheme momentarily before this brightly painted AR-15 with a rail mounted .45 caught my eye, then apparently blinded me.
I missed that it was the Bloomberg edition rifle, until blogger JayG pointed out the Mayor’s face and spoofed approval. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg discriminates based on color, when it comes to guns. He’s even banned Lauer’s gun paint from NYC, but as head of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, that shouldn’t be a surprise.
Wandering around the show floor, putting my fingerprints on rifles, pistols, and neat accessories, I forgot take photos of the guns. Fortunately, other bloggers picked up the slack. Check out Simple Musings From a Guy With Guns – Show Floor part1 and Show Floor part 2, Excels at Nothing, NRA Blog, Caleb at Gun Nuts Media and The Ten Ring for more show floor photos.
Alan at SnarkyBytes managed to catch the few photos of the momentary gun protest. I guess the banners aren’t afraid of law abiding gun owners after all, they just like attention.
Another Gun Blog and Joe Huffman at The view from Northern Idaho both have some photos of my fellow gun bloggers. Joe also managed to find a neat little accessory that I wish I had found while I was at the Annual Meeting, video glasses for improving competitive shooting performance.
In the afternoon, it was time to attend the “In Their Own Words” seminar put on by the NRA Institute for Legislative Action Grassroots Division. The session had a panel of NRA-ILA’s top activists from around the country discussing their experience and insight surrounding the promotion of our Second Amendment rights. These activists, also known as Election Volunteer Coordinators (EVCs), discussed their grassroots methods of volunteer coordination and motivation, local outreach, social networking (Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, etc.), and recruiting of fellow gun owners. These grassroots efforts by gun owners are often referred to as the “Powerful Gun Lobby” by the major media and gun ban nuts. The session was informative and explained how EVCs use different approaches to activism, based on the situations in their locale.
After the seminar, it was back to the floor to add my fingerprints to more firearms, before heading off to meet with Darren LaSorte, NRA ILA Manager of Hunting Policy and Lacey Biles, Hunting Policy Liaison. Minutes before the meeting, the AZ Game & Fish Commission voted to fund the purchase of Foster Ranch for the planned Northern AZ Shooting range. This gave me the chance to sincerely thank Mr. LaSorte for his, and NRA’s support of the purchase of Foster Ranch, so that we could have more great shooting ranges in Arizona.
The discussions of Hunting Policy included the importance of hunters sticking together, as firearms hunting, crossbow hunting, and archery hunting all face the same threats. Conversation quickly turned to state efforts to pass Right to Hunt Constitutional amendments to prevent animal rights activist from successfully banning hunting and fishing. Again Arizona was discussed, as Arizonan’s will vote in November on HCR2008, the Right to Hunt and Fish constitutional amendment and the importance of passage for sportsmen. Sensing that the bloggers from the East coast, like the VSSA, might be growing tired of hearing how great the shooting sports are in the West, I shut up, for a little while.
Dinner was at Mert’s Heart & Soul, a well known Soul Food ‘Heaven’ in downtown Charlotte. The food was awesome and the staff was great, a winning combination that can be hard to find for a lone diner in the Southwest. I thoroughly enjoyed my salmon patties with collard greens, homemade macaroni and cheese, served with cornbread.
The Breda Fallacy put on a shindig for some of the gun bloggers at Rí Rá Irish Pub. You can check out the 2nd Amendment celebrity attendees for Breda’s event at The Blazing Orange blog. Mert’s however, would continue to earn my business throughout my visit to North Carolina.
Next up, the NRA’s Celebration of American Values Freedom Experience at the Time Warner Cable Arena. The Freedom Experience included speeches by Wayne LaPierre, Chris Cox, and Lt. Colonel Oliver North.
The absolute highlight of the evening for me was the opening ceremony appearance by Major Theodore “Dutch” Van Kirk. Major Van Kirk’s medals include the Silver Star, the Distinguished Flying Cross, and 15 Air Medals. He is also one of the two surviving crew members of the Enola Gay, serving as Navigator of the famous B-29 Superfortress that dropped a nuclear bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. There are very few men alive who’ve had to carry the burden of changing history so dramatically. I had chills from the moment Major Van Kirk walked on stage, all of the way through, as he led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance. Years ago, I had the same sensation watching a Hiroshima survivor retell her experience of the blast to Japanese school children. It’s a very humbling experience to be in the presence of people who’ve had a role in such historic events.
The Keynote Speakers for the night were Newt Gingrich and Glen Beck. Mary C. Curtis has written a great recap of Beck’s speech over at Politics Daily, as well as more great coverage of the NRA Annual Meeting.
Glen Beck received an original, signed James Madison document from the NRA. Newt Gingrich was presented with an original document signed by James Madison and Thomas Jefferson (if I remember correctly).
Lt. Colonel Oliver North gave another awesome salute to our troops on Armed Forces Day, always a treat. Colonel North invited R. Lee Ermey on stage to receive an autographed copy of North’s latest book, before North started his inspiring tribute to our troops.
North’s speech was followed by the Charlie Daniels Band. I was done for the day and headed back to the hotel to rest up for the next three days of NRA activities. To be continued…
