Posted on 04/18/2005 10:59:22 AM PDT by weegee
The National Rifle Association may have fond feelings for Houston, but that affection apparently does not extend to the mainstream news media.
"We love Houston. It's a great facility. Great hotel. Great people in Texas. It was a very successful annual meeting," said NRA spokesman Jorge Amselle as the organization's three-day conference at the Brown Convention Center came to a close Sunday.
Official figures were not available Sunday, but NRA officials had estimated that at least 50,000 people would attend. The event was expected to have a $50 million impact on the local economy.
Members and visitors checked out nearly five acres of guns and optics, accessories and collectibles and had the opportunity to handle and compare shotguns, rifles, handguns and gear from most American manufacturers and many European brands.
"This is where the rubber meets the road for us," said Al Russo, with Remington Arms Company. "These people know our products."
However, as the convention attendees prepared to return to their homes around the country, members of a closing-day panel on news coverage encouraged them to find alternatives to mainstream media — which panelists variously described as elitist, biased and ignorant.
"We all know the media is biased," said Cam Edwards, an NRA online talk show host who also has worked as a radio reporter in Oklahoma City. "An anti-gun bias is prevalent in the media. But they won't admit it."
Edwards, who acknowledged he also has some biases, said there should be more stories about gun owners who successfully defend themselves, and less coverage of celebrities such as Michael Jackson and Britney Spears. The talk show host also suggested that news organizations should have full-time firearms writers, just as they do for topics such as education and politics.
"The media risks becoming irrelevant if it doesn't change," said Edwards. He also accused news organizations of lacking "intellectual diversity."
Political media consultant Tom Edmunds, another of the panelists, credited NRA-financed television advertising campaigns in 2004 with the reelection of President Bush and Republican victories in key Senate races. He pointed specifically to the defeat of Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle.
Edmunds also said that former Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry "overplayed his hand" with media photo opportunities of himself in hunting gear in an attempt to win the vote of gun owners. The NRA responded, said Edmunds, with an ad campaign depicting a poodle wearing a Kerry sweater and featuring the phrase, "That dog won't hunt."
Perhaps the most dramatic moment of the conference was Saturday night's address to NRA members by embattled House Majority Leader Tom Delay. The Sugar Land Republican is under pressure by some members of Congress — including a few from his own party — because of alleged ethics violations.
Delay and the NRA attracted a small contingent of protesters to the area across the street from the convention center.
Pam Olson and a friend carried signs to protest, but they were not well received by those attending the conference.
"It was just the two of us," Olson, "and it was horrible."
A handful of conventioneers talked with the women, sharing opinions and challenging each other's statistics in calm debate, Olson said, but as many or more people loudly cursed the protestors and their beliefs.
"I'm not even saying there are too many guns," Olson said, "just that it's too easy to access them, especially for children."
Next year, the NRA's annual convention will be held in Milwaukee.
Gun bump.
Does anybody know if this will be telivised?
I remember Cspan airing Heston "From My Cold Dead Hands"!
Does anybody know if this will be televised?
I remember Cspan airing Heston "From My Cold Dead Hands"!
Next year, the NRA's annual convention will be held in Milwaukee.
Is this true? I don't think Milwaukee has the hotel space or convention center to handle a crowd of 40-50,000. It would be great for me as I live here, but I'm surprised about the news. I read my NRA magazine and may have missed the Milwaukee news.
Perhaps after 37 years of lies, abuse, and slander, some gun owners' good manners are wearing a little thin...
NCAA Frozen Four in Milwaukee in 2006 also.
Woo-hoo, sign up for the lottery before the May deadline.
NCAA Frozen Four (College men's ice hockey) and the NRA in Milwaukee for 2006 ??
Milwaukee must have some smooth snake oil salesmen doing the convention recruiting circuit.
The Bradley Center is nice for local hockey, but small as far as seating and hospitality. None of our convention halls can match Huston or other big convention town. The NRA will be shoehorned into a couple of halls.
Plus, our governor and mayor hate guns and Second Amendment rights. We have few downtown hotels and no parking. The last mayor we had was a green and sold off or forced out parking lots. Other than the Miller Brewery tour and the Indian gaming hall, you won't find much fun in town in April. April is when the snow melts enough to see the curbs and the bottom of the parking meter poles.
Yea, but I can still go to Mader's and drink a boot of ale.
Yes indeed!
Your own boot or one of their glass ones!
Visit Maders for me while you're there.
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