I hope so since the indecision VCDL exhibited this year might very well have resulted in the passage of one or more CD bills which could have had unintended consequences and weakened the protections we already enjoy.
By all accounts, if not for the near revolt at VCDL's "neutral" CD stance at the Annandale meeting on Valentine's Day, the drum User had been beating would never have been heard in time to stop the train wreck. At least once the breadth and depth of the membership's displeasure with VCDL leadership on the 2012 VA Castle Doctrine initiatives was highlighted, things changed rapidly and we saw the infamous midnight alert...VCDL's CD stance suddenly changed from "neutral" to "strongly opposed." And the rest, as they say, is history...bruised egos and all.
"the indecision VCDL exhibited this year might very well have resulted in the passage of one or more CD bills which could have had unintended consequences and weakened the protections we already enjoy."
Isn't that interesting. Other groups were PUSHING those bills, we stood neutral to study them out of concerns that we shared publicly. Even at the beginning we took a position that they should be sent to the crime commission for studying (see VCDL's 2012 Gun Bill Analysis document given out on Lobby Day in early JANUARY), and VCDL is part of the problem?! What group beat us to the punch on being concerned about them? I don't remember any other group doing anything but fawning over them at the beginning. A lot of people wanted those bills and VCDL took a brave stand to not fawn over them along with everyone else.
"By all accounts, if not for the near revolt at VCDL's "neutral" CD stance at the Annandale meeting on Valentine's Day, the drum
User had been beating would never have been heard in time to stop the train wreck. At least once the breadth and depth of the membership's displeasure with VCDL leadership on the 2012 VA Castle Doctrine initiatives was highlighted, things changed rapidly and we saw the infamous midnight alert...VCDL's CD stance suddenly changed from 'neutral' to 'strongly opposed.' And the rest, as they say, is history...bruised egos and all."
So VCDL has a public discussion on the Castle Doctrine bills initiated by VCDL leadership at the Annandale meeting and such a discussion is now considered a revolt? So that alert was because my hand was twisted behind my back by a few people at a membership meeting? You really don't know me very well - I'd wait for my arm to break first. Convince me with logic and reason, that I respond to. The meeting influenced me, sure, but not for fear of a revolt. I heard some good arguments, did some further checking on some issues raised while driving back to Richmond that night, and the decision was made.
I was getting conflicting information from a variety of attorneys from the beginning on this bill. VCDL is representing thousands of gun owners and we have to step carefully and methodically. If the bills would have moved the ball forward, then they would have deserved support - some of our attorneys thought they did. If they moved the ball backwards, then they deserved opposition - some of our attorneys thought they did. You make it sound oh, so easy - of course armchair quarterbacking usually is.