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An Idea...

sv_libertarian

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I read a brief article in the local section of The Olympian today. It was essentially a press release from some local kook organization whining about how Israel uses Caterpillar tractors to destroy Palestinian homes, blah blah blah. They were trying to get attention for their protest today at 4:30 So they are protesting Cat tractors and whining about how Rachel Corey got ran over when she stood in front of one, etc... Can't find a link online right now though...

So I thought, well if the wackjobs can use press releases, why don't we? When we settle on a place for an OC lunch, dinner or picinic, send a press release to the local newspaper and radio stations, and try and drum up some publicity. Heck tell the local fuzz too, so you can force a comment from them about it being legal behavior, etc...They don't want to get swamped with service calls about a bunch of people packing and eating potato salad after all...

Steve
 

HankT

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Sounds like a good idea to me.

Maybe get an editor interested in dispatching a writer to cover the OC lunch/picnic/whatever. It really would be an interesting story for the general public.
 

HankT

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Mainsail wrote:
I don’t want to be a kook. I prefer an approach of quiet dignity. What I’m doing is normal, and so I act normal.
I don't think sv_lib was suggesting being a kook--just sending out a press release or some other notice to achieve some beneficial coverage or acknowledgment.
 

joeroket

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I think what mainsail is saying is that there are people who will read the articel and think we are kooks for open carrying.

Remember what is normal to one is kooky to another.
 

Mainsail

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HankT wrote:
Mainsail wrote:
I don’t want to be a kook. I prefer an approach of quiet dignity. What I’m doing is normal, and so I act normal.
I don't think sv_lib was suggesting being a kook--just sending out a press release or some other notice to achieve some beneficial coverage or acknowledgment.

I still prefer to maintain some decorum. So far, everyone I’ve encountered has acted as though my pistol was no big deal. Why should I act as though it is? I think it’s best to be low key, like there is nothing out of the ordinary.

JMO
 

compmanio365

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I think it sums up to this: right now, OC in Washington State is a BIG DEAL....to Joe Blow and his family......by doing this, we would have no control of how that article was written, and we all know that the news loves to make the gun community in general sound like a bunch of crazed wackos.....this would just reinforce the notions in everyone's heads right now that we are just "crazy nutjobs, shoving their gun rights in our face every time we go out in public; we should do something about this".

I prefer to control my interactions with those that would encounter OC while I'm around, because I can have an intelligent conversation with those who would listen and hopefully succeed in showing that those of us who OC are nothing to fear or be nervous about; we are responsible citizens who simply choose to rely on only ourselves for protection and self defense, because there just isn't a police officer on every street corner. With the spin that would exist in such a news article, I think it would damage our cause, not support it.
 

kparker

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I'm with compmanio365--heck, in too many cases just the fact that you own a gun* needs to be finessed by letting people get to know you and find out you're a completely reasonable person before they learn you're a gun owner.

I've been in this situation more than once, and I don't even live in "liberal Seattle"!


-------------------------------------------------------------

*let alone many guns that would necessitate an entire rack. :p


[edited to fix the inevitable typos]
 

Bear 45/70

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compmanio365 wrote:
I think it sums up to this: right now, OC in Washington State is a BIG DEAL....to Joe Blow and his family......by doing this, we would have no control of how that article was written, and we all know that the news loves to make the gun community in general sound like a bunch of crazed wackos.....this would just reinforce the notions in everyone's heads right now that we are just "crazy nutjobs, shoving their gun rights in our face every time we go out in public; we should do something about this".

I prefer to control my interactions with those that would encounter OC while I'm around, because I can have an intelligent conversation with those who would listen and hopefully succeed in showing that those of us who OC are nothing to fear or be nervous about; we are responsible citizens who simply choose to rely on only ourselves for protection and self defense, because there just isn't a police officer on every street corner. With the spin that would exist in such a news article, I think it would damage our cause, not support it.
Two things, First I think you under rate the average citizen and how he feels about guns. The press does not and hasn't in the last 50 years represented the average citizen's views. Second, you sound scared to have an opinion and let people know what it is. Your attitude plays into the anti's hands.
 

compmanio365

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No, if you actually knew anything about me, you'd know I am quite an opinionated person, and IN PERSON, where I can control my words to make sure they are not twisted around to benefit the views of a liberal pro-gun-control media, I am perfectly capable and willing to share those views. But once you give those words to the news media, as we all know, they can twist them around to say whatever they want them to say. So what everyone else gets to see is not what you actually said or meant, and most likely makes you come off as some wacko nutjob. The media is NOT our friend 99.99% of the time. Why would you play their game? By doing so, you become little more than a pawn of the pro-gun-control lobby by letting them twist your words around to be against your cause and not for it. I think you are doing more harm to our cause than I would be by just saying "no comment". Haven't you ever heard "Discretion is the better part of valor"? In that case I would have the discretion not to give the media any more ammo to throw against us.
 

sv_libertarian

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compmanio365 wrote:
No, if you actually knew anything about me, you'd know I am quite an opinionated person, and IN PERSON, where I can control my words to make sure they are not twisted around to benefit the views of a liberal pro-gun-control media, I am perfectly capable and willing to share those views. But once you give those words to the news media, as we all know, they can twist them around to say whatever they want them to say. So what everyone else gets to see is not what you actually said or meant, and most likely makes you come off as some wacko nutjob. The media is NOT our friend 99.99% of the time. Why would you play their game? By doing so, you become little more than a pawn of the pro-gun-control lobby by letting them twist your words around to be against your cause and not for it. I think you are doing more harm to our cause than I would be by just saying "no comment". Haven't you ever heard "Discretion is the better part of valor"? In that case I would have the discretion not to give the media any more ammo to throw against us.

Ahhh, the myth of the liberal media. I hate to break it to you, but not ALL media is liberal. Of course I will admit to a certain bias here, The Olympian keeps me gainfully employed. About a month ago they published a letter of mine I wrote after some woman in Lacey, when interviewed about the Cabelas store coming in freaked out that Cabelas would be selling guns... http://www.theolympian.com/opinion/story/223293.html Read the comments section as well to see the reaction of readers to my letter.

Any reputable newspaper will ensure any news story it's staffers write will be as unbiased as possible. The opinion pages tend to reflect the readership (i.e., market share, the people who pay it's bills) I have not ever seen an official anti gun line from The Olympian.

Nor was I suggesting trying to get a story written, but rather a press release published. Again, the kooks do it, which includes their viewpoint, why not do the same thing for a decent cause? And why would you be afraid of a news story? Do you have something to hide, or just not able to articulate your case well enough to a reporter who probably has no interest one way or another in your story except doing their job and getting a paycheck?

I have seen no media bias in Oly towards gun control. I have seen a couple of stupid syndicated articles, especially after Virginia Tech, but as you can see I got my pro gun view across, and most online comments agreed.

At any rate, as I said, not all media is evil. There has been a lot of negative press, but I wonder, how much effort is given to counteract it? There needs to be outreach on our end as well. At the very least, get the stones to write a letter to the editor of your local rag.


Steve
 

HankT

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Mainsail wrote:
HankT wrote:
Mainsail wrote:
I don’t want to be a kook. I prefer an approach of quiet dignity. What I’m doing is normal, and so I act normal.
I don't think sv_lib was suggesting being a kook--just sending out a press release or some other notice to achieve some beneficial coverage or acknowledgment.

I still prefer to maintain some decorum. So far, everyone I’ve encountered has acted as though my pistol was no big deal. Why should I act as though it is? I think it’s best to be low key, like there is nothing out of the ordinary.

JMO

I think you're way off the mark on this one. Look what some OC folks did in Utah:

Utah Deseret Morning News covers OCDO meetup big time!

http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/forum52/5506.html



You can't buy the advertising that it would take to have the OC postion toget out this favorably.

Remember, Mainsail: New times, new ideas!
 

compmanio365

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sv_libertarian wrote:
compmanio365 wrote:
No, if you actually knew anything about me, you'd know I am quite an opinionated person, and IN PERSON, where I can control my words to make sure they are not twisted around to benefit the views of a liberal pro-gun-control media, I am perfectly capable and willing to share those views. But once you give those words to the news media, as we all know, they can twist them around to say whatever they want them to say. So what everyone else gets to see is not what you actually said or meant, and most likely makes you come off as some wacko nutjob. The media is NOT our friend 99.99% of the time. Why would you play their game? By doing so, you become little more than a pawn of the pro-gun-control lobby by letting them twist your words around to be against your cause and not for it. I think you are doing more harm to our cause than I would be by just saying "no comment". Haven't you ever heard "Discretion is the better part of valor"? In that case I would have the discretion not to give the media any more ammo to throw against us.

Ahhh, the myth of the liberal media. I hate to break it to you, but not ALL media is liberal. Of course I will admit to a certain bias here, The Olympian keeps me gainfully employed. About a month ago they published a letter of mine I wrote after some woman in Lacey, when interviewed about the Cabelas store coming in freaked out that Cabelas would be selling guns... http://www.theolympian.com/opinion/story/223293.html Read the comments section as well to see the reaction of readers to my letter.

Any reputable newspaper will ensure any news story it's staffers write will be as unbiased as possible. The opinion pages tend to reflect the readership (i.e., market share, the people who pay it's bills) I have not ever seen an official anti gun line from The Olympian.

Nor was I suggesting trying to get a story written, but rather a press release published. Again, the kooks do it, which includes their viewpoint, why not do the same thing for a decent cause? And why would you be afraid of a news story? Do you have something to hide, or just not able to articulate your case well enough to a reporter who probably has no interest one way or another in your story except doing their job and getting a paycheck?

I have seen no media bias in Oly towards gun control. I have seen a couple of stupid syndicated articles, especially after Virginia Tech, but as you can see I got my pro gun view across, and most online comments agreed.

At any rate, as I said, not all media is evil. There has been a lot of negative press, but I wonder, how much effort is given to counteract it? There needs to be outreach on our end as well. At the very least, get the stones to write a letter to the editor of your local rag.


Steve
Well that's great, for that ONE paper......I know that The News Tribune or the Seattle PI or Times are definitely NOT pro-gun media, neither is most, if not all of the news TV stations around here. All you have to do is listen to the news to hear their anti-gun slant to every news story that pops up.....I have rarely heard anything positive about gun ownership in any newspaper, news show, anything related to local media. Sorry, but that's just the way I see it......may be different elsewhere in the state, and in the country, but not where I live......
 

sv_libertarian

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compmanio365 wrote:
Well that's great, for that ONE paper......I know that The News Tribune or the Seattle PI or Times are definitely NOT pro-gun media, neither is most, if not all of the news TV stations around here. All you have to do is listen to the news to hear their anti-gun slant to every news story that pops up.....I have rarely heard anything positive about gun ownership in any newspaper, news show, anything related to local media. Sorry, but that's just the way I see it......may be different elsewhere in the state, and in the country, but not where I live......

I should apologize for being rather harsh before, I get a bit touchy on the matter sometimes... :p

I should also insert the disclaimer that I do not speak for TheOlympian on any matter execpt current subscription prices, practices and specials.

Apologies and legal CMA aside...

I have found through my experience that The O is fairly unbiased in their own writings and opinions regarding guns. In fact it really hasn't come up in the 7 months or so I have been reading it, and I believe that in this town anyone can get a fair shake from the paper either on the opinion page or in news reporting.

Media is market driven, if they have an decidely anti gun stance it is because it sells them papers or gets them viewership. Of course I never accused The News Tribune of being a reputable newspaper :lol:

Like I say, at the very least a well written letter to the editor, or a proposal for a guest editorial is a good start. Write to a reporter who prepares a biased article and call them on it. Write to the publisher or editor about it too. A good media outlet will read or listen to your complaints.

Remember, bad news, controversy and contention sells. I hate to admit it, but I have made some rather good money off of local and national tradgedies. VA Tech was probably worth the used P89 I bought. When Bad Things happen it is easier for me to sell subscriptions... oh well.
 

DanOSteel

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It seems thatliving in a state that "allows" open carry is a good thing.... However, bringing it to he attention of people who are inheirently nervous around guns could, and does,cause issues, and could eventually cause our laws to be changed so that we can't openly carry anymore.

Having dinners in public places or other events of this type where we proudly display our right to posess and bear arms, is supposedly to generate awareness. But does it generate support?

If being allowed to carry your sidearm with you is important,consider taking advantage of our state's shall issue policy, and get a concealed permit.

You'll be able to carry without letting everyone around you know about it... a definite advantage in all kinds of situations, especially the life and death ones.
 

compmanio365

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DanOSteel wrote:
It seems thatliving in a state that "allows" open carry is a good thing.... However, bringing it to he attention of people who are inheirently nervous around guns could, and does,cause issues, and could eventually cause our laws to be changed so that we can't openly carry anymore.

Having dinners in public places or other events of this type where we proudly display our right to posess and bear arms, is supposedly to generate awareness. But does it generate support?

If being allowed to carry your sidearm with you is important,consider taking advantage of our state's shall issue policy, and get a concealed permit.

You'll be able to carry without letting everyone around you know about it... a definite advantage in all kinds of situations, especially the life and death ones.
Dude......did you even LOOK at the title of the site before you posted here or what?
 

sv_libertarian

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compmanio365 wrote:
Dude......did you even LOOK at the title of the site before you posted here or what?

I doubt it.The reply doesn't seem to fit the thread either. Kook alert! Kook alert!:what:

Hmm a profile devoid of any info either. A throw away user name? Someone didn't like what I said about the TNT? :D
 

BluesBear

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I keep hearing about how anti-gun the Seattle TV stations are. But I haven't noticed that. I watch a lot of TV so how have I missed it? Except for that idiot Schramon KOMO4 I haven't seen any anti-gun bias on local TV. I usually watch KING 5and from what I've seen they seem to be slightly pro-gun. I only watch KIRO 7 occasionally so I don't know where they stand but I haven't seen anything anti there either. It's because of Shame er-um-I-mean Schram that I stopped watching the news on 4.
 

sv_libertarian

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BluesBear wrote:
I keep hearing about how anti-gun the Seattle TV stations are. But I haven't noticed that. I watch a lot of TV so how have I missed it? Except for that idiot Schramon KOMO4 I haven't seen any anti-gun bias on local TV. I usually watch KING 5and from what I've seen they seem to be slightly pro-gun. I only watch KIRO 7 occasionally so I don't know where they stand but I haven't seen anything anti there either. It's because of Shame er-um-I-mean Schram that I stopped watching the news on 4.

A lot of people like to believe in the "liberal media" and the "anti gun media"

Yes, there is plenty of media that is decidedly anti gun. There is also plenty that is pro gun or takes a neutral stance. Unfortunatley it is easier to complain and believe in common wisdom than to look at every major media outlet that a person is exposed to or uses and determine their stance on a particular subject.

Media is market driven.
 
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