Originally Posted by
tacfoley
I've been a NRA member since 1976, and fractured it ain't. About half the legal gun-owning population of the US support it's aims, and the membership is HUGE - around five million according to the 2013 figures.
Because the LEGAL possession of firearms is a Constitutional Right, not a privilege as it is elsewhere on planet earth, it has the tacit power of the constitution behind its constitution, if you get my drift. IOW, the aims of the NRA directly support the Second Amendment - one mirroring the other.
The RKBA being the part of the CoTUoA, means that in theory at least, the power of the association is tied into the ultimate power that runs the USA, no matter what party holds the balance of power in the Senate, or the White House, for that matter.
The NRA is THE defining shooting association, but there are hundreds of others, just like there are here in UK, that are associated with it. NRA qualifications are much-prized, too, and are of professional standards where applicable.
There is no harm joining and living remote from the USA - many thousands of non-residents do so.
The other organisation in the USA, mutually supportive in its own way, is the Civilian Marksmanship Programme and its hang-off, the Appleseed Programme. Unlike the NRA, you need to be a citizen to enjoy the rights and privileges of these two. Both the CMP, that fosters the civilian application of military shooting skills - think government-sponsored Civilian Service Rifle comps with the same arms as the military, and the Project Appleseed.
See if you like this -
Project Appleseed is an apolitical rifle marksmanship training program that focuses on teaching traditional rifle marksmanship from standing, sitting/kneeling, and prone positions over a two-day weekend shooting clinic for what is termed an "Appleseed". It is one of the major activities of The Revolutionary War Veterans Association (RWVA), a 501(c) non-profit organization that teaches and promotes traditional rifle marksmanship, while also teaching American heritage and history with the intent of encouraging people to become active legal shooters within the civil community.
In addition to Project Appleseed, there is also a companion subsidiary activity conducted within the RWVA called "Liberty Seed" that is the American heritage and history portion of Project Appleseed. "Liberty Seed" has been termed a "civics class in disguise", and features content on the "Three Strikes" that were needed to start the American Revolutionary War.
The emphasis on teaching traditional rifle marksmanship within Project Appleseed centers around traditional rifle marksmanship techniques using a rifle sling coupled with a concept termed "natural point of aim" (NPOA). Project Appleseed uses reduced size scaled silhouette targets that enable a shooter to assess their effective range with their rifle using a reduced length shooting range only 25 meters (82 feet) long, while simulating firing at full size targets at ranges up to 400 yards.
As part of teaching traditional rifleman marksmanship skills, Project Appleseed also teaches the rifleman's cadence. This consists of learning to fire at respiratory pauses every 3–4 seconds, shooting in synchronicity with one's natural rhythm of breathing thereby enabling improving one's marksmanship.
Remember too that in the USA the Scouting Organisation also fosters shooting skills with guns and bows to a far greater extent than the UK's Master at Arms badge ever did or could.
tac