Thread: The anti gun lobby

From Gundoc:

The NSA exists to fight for the rights of firearms owners, particularly in regard to the government and its various departments acting within the law, and in accordance with the various rights that we have as NZ citizens. I use the words 'rights' advisedly!

The various people that set up the NSA originally, did so against a background of failed attempts to bring about change by the various shooting sports organisations. Their failure was due entirely to their 'give up something in exchange for something else' attitude, even with full knowledge that they were being shafted. Their attitude was one of 'not rocking the boat in case we lose everything' when in fact what they had could NOT be taken away.

Most of the original founders of the NSA had long history of refusing to back down in the face of strong opposition. These people, by their relatively singular efforts had achieved the following for NZ shooters; the introduction of IPSC and 3-gun shooting (against the NZ Pistol Assn. and the NZ Police), the introduction of Metallic Silhouette shooting (against the NZ Pistol Assn and the NZ Police), defining what constitutes the overall length of a firearm in the Courts (against NZ Police), taking the Commissioner of Police to Court over blanket ban policies and winning (a far-reaching decision that made legal history), etc.

Thus the NSA was formed to provide a single entity to pursue these goals, not by negotiating but by drawing a line in the sand. Since then the victories have mounted as outlined in a previous post by JayDee. These efforts have been partly member funded and partly by various NSA founders putting up the balance. The NSA is fortunate to have the services of Richard Lincoln who, despite still being a law student, has performed exceptionally well in Court on our behalf. The initial Court battle in Palmerston North saw the Crown Solicitor shake Richard's hand and warmly congratulate him on a very well presented case. That is not too bad for a student who only had completed one year of study at that stage. I was there in Court to assist with the technical aspects of firearms for the benefit of the Judge.

The NSA seldom meets face to face but uses email and phone calls when a decision needs to be made, takes the appropriate action, and slips back into the lair, watching and waiting. It is not an organisation that has regular meetings, puts out newsletters, etc. The various people who chew these things over all have other jobs to do to keep food on the table, and Richard is very busy with his studies. The NSA funding is used specifically and exclusively to fight these battles when they are identified, and our legal team has all their ducks in a row. Jaydee and I are both laymen but we both have a sharp eye for the written law (and a bit of Celtic fire in our blood), the others are qualified lawyers. First and foremost however, we are all shooters.

I would have define the NSA as a movement, rather than a club.