Link to Announcement...

We were in Springfield this week and looks like it will be a tight year.  The stalemate between Rauner and Madigan has everything else locked up too.  We are expecting a big push from the anti-gunners....To get any kind of gains, it will take tremendous pressure from the electorate...

The electorate being those getting free stuff in Crook county from the gubement?

Unfortunately, they seem to have the loudest voices!!!

Congratulations I'm sure you will find a way to break through the impasse.

Congrats, you two!  Go kick some Springfield butt!

Mike, I bought you eight beers.  Log out and log back in to enjoy them.

Give em hell!

Thanks for all your hard work.

Congrats.

Frankly though, three things worry me.

1.  Todd Vandermyde never posts at Illinois Carry any more.   I liked reading his updates that used to be posted pretty regularly.  They are sorely missed.  

2.  "Valinda Rowe and husband Mike will serve as Springfield Coordinators and lobbyists for both the ISRA and IllinoisCarry.com"  Really now?  Valinda isn't listed as a lobbyist for ISRA on the IL Secretary of State Lobbyist page.  And Mike Rowe isn't listed as a lobbyist for either group.

Sincerely, I hope the flaws in this "announcement" aren't indicative of what we can come to expect.  It feels a little fast and loose, frankly, as does the claim of representing 40,000 IL gun owners.  Last time I checked the ISRA had 30,000 members.  Are you saying Illinois Carry has 10,000 dues-paying members?

3.  "It was almost inevitable that the top two Second Amendment organizations in the state should team up to form an even more effective presence in Springfield."  Gee.  Are you forgetting the NRA-ILA and Guns Save Life?  Last time I checked, GSL has a very successful network of grassroots meetings across the state and the NRA-ILA (and Todd Vandermyde) do ALL of the heavy lifting in Springfield.

I've been waiting for your attack.
Soooo we made this all up????  It is almost like you have an agenda...
We'll let the folks decide the truth of our news release...I'll leave it there.

Ooh!  Did I hit a sensitive nerve?  Feeling a little defensive, are we?  What are you so sensitive about, Mr. SwanHunter?

It wasn't an attack, merely stating facts.

http://www.ilsos.gov/lobbyistsearch/lobbyistsearch

If anyone would like to look for themselves.

Do a search over at Illlinois Carry for posts by Mr. Vandermyde.

And the two top 2A organizations?  ISRA, yes.  A forum as the second, in place of the NRA?  Your dog ain't hunting swans right.  If Internet Forums were effective at 2A activism, Arfcom would be bigger than the NRA in influence.

Sadly, they are not.

Cheers, my friend.

So you question him, he responds, and you leave that gem?

Wonder why shit in this state never works out.  Random do nothings attacking those that actually do stuff, then acting like internet tough guys.

Yay Illinois.  We're number 47!

Valinda and Mike in the Capitol making our voices heard.
(searches crowd...hmmm don't see modelcitizen anywhere....)


I think I'll swing by IllinoisCarry and send them a little more money so they can represent me.
Edit:Boom. Done. Thank you Mike and Valinda for all you do.

Brilliant idea, Attack the people who are actually fighting for your rights while you armchair quarter back everything. This is why we can't have nice things people.

 

Roadhawk:  I attend gun rights grassroots and Republican party meetings, and am close to my own legislators, some of their staff and others in Springfield.  I stay informed.  I see them at fundraising events.  They like seeing me at fundraising events.   Besides, what I do or my credentials aren't the subject of this thread.  Whats more, I'm not mistaken, call out threads at Arfcom are frowned upon at best.  And as staff, it's disappointing you're attacking *me* and calling me out, when all I did was point out that more than a couple of the primary, substantive facts claimed in that press release aren't verifiable at best, and flatly untrue at worst.  

I like to trust but verify.  If you want to attack someone who can demonstrate that claims don't match facts that are readily and publicly available (and submits proof that's the case), then that's on you, sir.  

If me offering gentle criticism that boldly proclaimed assertions aren't supported by  is a problem, let me know and I'll devote my time and contributions to the discussion here elsewhere.

The fact of the matter is Mike Rowe (who I believe is SwanHunter) titled this thread, "Well, We're Officially Lobbyists in Springfield Now...."  

Unless he's got a mouse in his pocket, "we" aren't officially lobbyists.  His wife is, as of last Monday IIRC, for Illinois Carry, per the Illinois Secretary of State's Lobbyist database.  He's not.   That's not debatable.  Facts are facts.  

Neither of them are lobbyists for the ISRA that I could find in my cursory search.  I really don't care if they are registered or not, or if they are having Illinois Carry pay their expenses which, frankly is really the main reason people register as lobbyists as I understand it.  

I think having more lobbyists in Springfield on our our behalf as gun owners is a good thing as they are all working towards the same goals.  God bless them for what they do in Springfield, as registered lobbyists or private citizens paying their own expenses to lobby.

As for membership numbers:  when I get mailings from ISRA wanting my companies to buy advertising space in the Illinois Shooter, they are touting 30,000 members.  You wanna see a scan of that too, Mr. Roadhawk?  I'm pretty darn sure IllinoisCarry doesn't have 10,000 members, dues paying or not.  Maybe they are counting likes on Facebook as members.  I really don't care.  I would have had a helluva lot more respect if they said they represented the two million FOID cardholders in Illinois, which in my estimation would be a fair statement, but instead they pull this 40,000 number out of a hat.

Yes, Mike and Valinda Rowe have done great things and donated a lot of time and energy to our cause.  They deserve great praise for the good they've done.  At the same time, so have scores of others in the fifty-plus years I've been in Illinois.  The Rowe's aren't gods.  If you want to treat them as such, hoisting them above question or criticism, it's your forum.  Participation will ebb or flow based on how you run it.

Frankly, when Mike Rowe wrote, "I've been waiting for your attack", it kinda pissed me off.  My axe is out in the shed and don't need grinding.  I certainly don't have any axes to grind with their names on it and he writes that as though he's living rent-free in my mind.  If only.  I think he's got a vastly inflated sense of self-importance if that's what he thinks, but to each his own.

That's all I've got for this thread.  I've devoted far too much valuable time to adding my concern that what was touted in that press release and this thread title couldn't be verified.

All the best, Mr. Roadhawk and to the rest of you.

Fuck it, not worth it.

MC, I hope you feel better about yourself.

 

john1911 I though you got the banhammer years ago!



 

How to do a proper search on CyberDriveIllinois 101.

go here:  http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/

scroll down to 'eSearch'

select 'Lobbyist Information Search'

Click on 'Search'

Click on 'Client Entity Search'

Select '2016'

Enter 'Illinois State Rifle Association' or 'IllinoisCarry'

click on organization name

VOILA!!  Registered contract lobbyists for that organization magically appear!

If you want to see what the card looks like, click  on the link in the original post.

Wow

I have been under the impression that all were fighting their asses off for the fostering of firearm rights in IL.

I just came from a GSL meeting where John Boch was quite eloquent in his comments about Valinda and Mike and the progress being made.  GSL is an outstanding group, with a mission and message I wholeheartedly agree with...and IC is and has been an amazing resource to the folks interested in the Carry Law.  I would hate to think that we would not be able to find a way to work together...

Rocco

Good luck to Mike and Valinda.   Richard Pearson is a good man and he and the people at the ISRA are constantly watching over and defending our rights. Combining resources to further our cause sounds like a smart move to me.  

People in Springfield bear constant watching and need the application of constant pressure to stay on the right path.  Watch the politicians closely.  They will tell you one thing, then try to submarine you through "legislative intent."  JCAR bears watching as well.

Good luck and Godspeed.

There's no reason for the bickering and infighting.  Tearing down people who are fighting for our rights is counterproductive and rude.

Thank you.

I don't understand why someone would make a post like that in here, especially having been around since 2010

I don't know whether to congratulate you both or just send lawyers, guns, and money, but thanks for all that both of you do.

Been a while since that ultimatum was put out and no apology or evidence from MC. I don't think we'll miss him here.

 

 

Congratulations. See you at IGOLD again this year.