Anyone have any idea on how seriously this is being taken? Any chance of it making it on a ballot?

It looks like a terrible piece of work to me.

In case you don't know it deals with "Universal" background checks, plus some other bull.

Overview (deliberately left cold): http://wagunresponsibility.org/about-594/
Text of the document: http://sos.wa.gov/_assets/elections/initiatives/FinalText_483.pdfhttp://sos.wa.gov/_assets/elections/initiatives/FinalText_483.pdf

For what's worth, the initiative 591 got more signatures and its supporters did not have to appeal to questionable activities such as deceiving people at storefronts, hiring paid "volunteers", etc.

So, if the decision is to go to a ballot either both or 591 should be the one chosen.  

594 is well financed by a group of Seattle elites, including Nick Hanauer, whose family owns the Sounders. Zach Silk, the guy running the 594 campaign was behind the successful gay marriage initiative.

They are a well organized group. I'm on their mailing list and sadly, I'd say they are more professional and polished than our side at this point. Except for SAF and the NRA (which are very old school), most of the opposition I've seen appears to be grass roots efforts and not well organized. And I believe the NRA hasn't really committed to fight 594 yet.

Yes, we got more signatures on 591, but the battle is just beginning. Unfortunately the NRA isn't going to have broad appeal with Seattle voters, so we need a credible alternative that is as good at organizing.

Both are on the ballot in November.

594 is going to pass, best get ready for it.

So for grins wtf happens if both pass?

Knowing how they count votes here in WA I have my doubts the one they do not want to pass will pass.  It does not matter what the majority really votes for.  

Any suggestions how an average Joe like me can help fight it (591)?

I'll admit I was fooled by the 594 people at Target.  I was THE FOOL.  I didn't THINK first.  
THEN, I found out what a scam I'd just had buggered up my ass and went to a gun shop and signed 591.
If THEY can garner signatures, I can sure as hell sign whatever I want to.
Felt like I covered my stupid ignorant move, anyway.

591, not 594.

I strongly dislike the way the LEFT guises things...

That's my shame story, and I'm stickin' to it.

It was stupid to try pro 591 at the same time as anti 594 as it caused a great deal of confusion for petition signers.

I would bet a lot of pro people got duped into signing 594 and will do the same at the ballot with what no doubt will be a vague statement of proposal that won't sound antigun at all that will be on the ballot for 594 .

There was a post on here a couple of months ago FWIW, apparently according to the Seattle Times something like 75% oppose 594...

It is a terrible piece of work.  The WAGR is more aggressive than the NRA with their fund raising tactics.  They are also buffoons when it comes to dealing with the public; in other words they think that WA voters are stupid.  

I was exchanging e-mail with them for a few months and they tried to convince me that I-594 was not a registration scheme and would not deny a private sale to law abiding person.  After I let them know that I actually read the initiative and told them that maintaining the 4473/bound book entry was a type of registration and that some dealers charge high prices for a transfer or outright refuse, they acknowledged my concerns.  They know it is a stepping stone to outlawing private sales.

I met with Senator Pedersen to discuss the SBR over a year ago; he admitted there were flaws in the nearly identical HB1588.  When I met with Representative Jinkins I told her the initiative was flawed and unlikely to pass the House or on the ballot; she did not disagree.

I think it will fail on the ballot, but I may be wrong.  We get what we deserve come election day.  If you fail to vote then you fail to care at all and might as well bend over.


The liberal Seattle Times were the ones who last year raked Kline, Kohl-Welles and Murray over the coals for their fourth amendment violating AWB bill.  Nice!

Randy

How were you fooled?

The Legislature and the Courts have to resolve the conflict as I understand it. Good luck with that!

Randy, I know you think the WAGR gun grabbers are too quick with the fundraising, but they are well organized and running the same play book as they did with gay marriage.

Gun control initiatives have failed before in WA by wide margins, but the urban liberal population of greater Seattle has boomed in the last decade whereas the rural areas that are traditionally pro gun have not grown.

My Googlefu is strong today.
Seattle Times Poll

I did not think it through.  My mistake was I didn't pay close enough attention.  I won't happen again, I assure you.

Am I the only one seeing that all of the comments are gone from the story? I remember there being 10+ pages of comments.

Typical of ST to delete & silence. I was banned from ST for leaving one of the first comments on the story of Nelson Mandela's death, disagreeing with the fawning coverage by ST and pointing out that Mandela, his wife, and his supporters were directly responsible for hundreds of not thousands of South Africans' deaths. Apparently that was racist.

Nope.  It's bad with a lot of sources.  For instance I post a bit on Huffington Post (no I am not a liberal), and apparently a lot of what I say isn't verbotten, but heavily censored.

ST is a joke.