Posted on 02/28/2004 8:58:12 AM PST by Mini-14
I received a telephone call from a NRA telemarketer this morning. He first started by thanking me for being a loyal member of the NRA (which I am). He then went on to tell me the following:
I stopped the telemarketer at that point and told him that I had worked in a library for seven years, had a M.S. in Library Science, and worked for a leading producer of library management software. I also informed him that I had never heard of the "National Library Association", and asked where the organization's headquarters are located. The telemarketer said that he didn't know and that he would transfer me to his supervisor.
The supervisor then came online and admitted that there is no such organization as the "National Library Association", and stated that the reference to such an organization was designed to reduce the amount of explaining that was needed to get NRA members to take action. I asked the supervisor exactly what action it was that I was being asked to take. The supervisor said that I was being asked to donate $45 so that an autographed copy of the book (Amazon price is $19.57) could be donated to a public library in my public area. The supervisor went on to explain that library "x" had already agreed to accept the book.
I responded by telling him that my experience with libraries is that they never agree to accept to donated materials, and that they only agree to consider a donation. He then admitted that that statement was also part of the script that was given to him.
I told the supervisor that based on the last several days of events in Washington in which NRA actions were being called into question, that it is important for the NRA to tell the truth to its members, because when the NRA is caught in "little" lies, that everything they do cannot be trusted. The supervisor said that he agreed and would bring this issue up with his supervisors.
I did not donate money to the NRA today.
Stay Safe Ya'll !
I have been noticing he has been getting mail from the NRA at least weekly and often daily. I also have noticed he is regularly sending them checks.
Since Mother died last year, there is no one to keep up with what he does with his checkbook. I have noticed that between the church and the NRA, he is giving nearly half his monthly income away.
He is not poor but not wealthy either.
The NRA clearly has him on their sucker list. He also regularly gets little trinkets from them and videos etc.
Cripes, you could get a job with the New York Times with your ability to omit full quotations to make someone look bad.
Either you were lazy and didn't carefully read his post,or you're deliberately and maliciously cutting off his quote.
Membership and financial support for an association that is deeply compromised isn't what I give them.
Scam is, when you try to defraud people -- they identified themselves as being from the NRA and were soliciting donations FOR the NRA, they did NOT promise to give you anything in return. Scam is when they ask you to pay for something and they don't deliver.
At WORST it was a SLIGHT MISTAKE, and it wasn't much, if any of that either, and I question Mini14-s agenda. Just READ his statements.
Let's take the first statement Mini14 ALLEGES the NRA caller made:
"The President of the NRA, has written a book titled Shooting Straight: Telling the Truth About Guns in America, which the telemarketer alleged has been blacklisted by booksellers and the media."
There is absolutely NO evidence, that the above statement is not 100% correct, yet Mini14, feels the need to add "telemarketer alleged". Mini14 also offers NO evidence, nor any further discussion as to why he disputes this statement.
Mini14 further ALLEGES, that the NRA caller said:
"The NRA is working with the "National Library Association" to get the book into libraries."
Since it was a call, not mail, the NRA may have been referring to "the national library association" with SMALL letters, not caps, which would be referring to the American Library Association, see my post 11.
Then Mini14 makes the statement:
"I responded by telling him that my experience with libraries is that they never agree to accept to donated materials, and that they only agree to consider a donation."
I posted the official policy, see my post 14, which DIRECTLY contradicted Mini14's statement -- then he proceeded to claim that he didn't say what he said.
"never agree to accept to donated materials" is NOT the same as "Most public libraries in the United States accept gift books with the proviso that the library is free to decide whether to keep the book in the library's collection, put it in a book sale to raise funds for the library, or discard it." (from source in my post 14, which was the American Library Association). Mini14 said they NEVER accept book donations, the policy says they DO, IN FACT ACCEPT BOOK DONATIONS, they just want to be free to keep them or not.
What we have is Mini14 either deliberately being incorrect, or vastly overreacting, and it seems that others are more than happy to jump on the bandwagon to attack the NRA.
Doom on all who prey in such a manner on the weak and elderly who just want to try and help anyway they can.......
The NRA/ILA gimme I want money lets go crowd is getting too close to telemarketing spaming assholes status IMO. BTW does anyone know where one can find an accounting of the NRA's cash expeditures ?
Hope yer Well ! .......Stay Safe !
Yes it was a scam. The implied expectation of the telemarketer was that the book would end up on the library shelf. Donated books RARELY end up in the circulation collection of the public library. Most of them end up in book sales.
At WORST it was a SLIGHT MISTAKE, and it wasn't much, if any of that either, and I question Mini14-s agenda. Just READ his statements.
There is absolutely NO evidence, that the above statement is not 100% correct, yet Mini14, feels the need to add "telemarketer alleged". Mini14 also offers NO evidence, nor any further discussion as to why he disputes this statement.
Booksellers do no "blacklist" books. Booksellers sell books that they think they can resell. Amazon resells this book. The media cannot "blacklist" books because the media does not sell books.
Since it was a call, not mail, the NRA may have been referring to "the national library association" with SMALL letters, not caps, which would be referring to the American Library Association, see my post 11.
I asked the telemarketer to identify the location of the "National Library Association's" headquarters. The supervisor admitted that no such organization existed. If the NRA had said "the American Library Association which is located in Chicago", the NRA would have run into a lawsuit from ALA.
Should I contact ALA and let them know about this?
"I responded by telling him that my experience with libraries is that they never agree to accept to donated materials, and that they only agree to consider a donation." I posted the official policy, see my post 14, which DIRECTLY contradicted Mini14's statement -- then he proceeded to claim that he didn't say what he said.
You chopped off half of my quote.
"never agree to accept to donated materials" is NOT the same as "Most public libraries in the United States accept gift books with the proviso that the library is free to decide whether to keep the book in the library's collection, put it in a book sale to raise funds for the library, or discard it." (from source in my post 14, which was the American Library Association). Mini14 said they NEVER accept book donations, the policy says they DO, IN FACT ACCEPT BOOK DONATIONS, they just want to be free to keep them or not.
I got to knowing him fairly well and once gave him a lift after he had bike trouble. (We put the bike in the back of my pickup).
During the ride he mentioned that he used to work for one of the 2nd amendment organizations. He said one of their favorite tricks to raise money was a phony survey. They would have the person fill out a survey which would be sent to their local congressman.
Now they were honest in that they really would send the survey results, but the whole purpose of the mailing was raising cash. They would include a request for money to defray the cost of sending out the questionairre.
I have noticed the same sort of operation seems to be going on with the NRA as I have seen a few of those polls in Daddy's mail.
There's an exemption for organizations you have relationship with, thus the NRA or it's contractors acting in it's behalf, can call their membership. The only telemarketing calls I've gotten since I went on the list have been from such organizations/companies.
They pulled that on me and I filed a complaint with the post office. About a week letter I got a letter of apology from the NRA that said I could keep the video, no charge.
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