Monday, February 16, 2009

Showdown Under the Big Sky

I just posted a second Gun Rights Examiner column today to feature a development in Montana that should be of interest to us all. [More]

Please help spread the link around...


[Via Les K ]

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow, there ARE people paying attention..... BTW I keep seeing links to your column in Craiglist political forums... often!

David Codrea said...

I postthem there, JG. Just as I ask readers to help spread the word, I spend more time promoting the Examiner columns than I do writing them.

And you should know you are not the only one noticing. The antis do as well, and increasingly, I'm finding the Craigslist posts are being flagged and removed.

It's just a reality, because I have no PR machine, no advertising budget, nothing to help me spread the word except my own efforts and the good will of regulars here who would like to help me make these columns a success.

So I use resources within my means, including social networking sites like Facebook, Digg, Twitter, Reddit, etc. I wish more here were involved in these sites to help bring these columns to the front page to really start generating major traffic, but do what I can regardless.

It's one of the reasons, after my operation, you saw less posting here. I expended the energy trying to promote they paying gig, and exhausted myself from doing any more.

It is slow and often tedious. So if it seems I beg for help to spread the word ad nauseum, please keep in mind I am doing much behind the scenes to keep the momentum going. I ask everyone's indulgence on this, but more importantly, seriously, help doing this from people who perceive regular value from this site and my Examiner column.

I'm sure not going to get it from any major media source, and since a part of my income is dependent on traffic I can generate from GRE, I hope long-time readers will see the benefit and do me the kindness of helping me attain the goal of becoming more widely read.

Anonymous said...

Please think about this bill's effects as economic protectionism to benefit the Montana legislature. They're going to attract gun economic activity until it has enough brick and mortar presence that it's uneconomic to move, then tax, regulate, and micromanage them. That's what happened in Nevada with gambling and other vice. It doesn't matter if current Montana legislators are pure of heart; all future legislators will not be.

Please think about this bill's effects as infringements on civil liberties. There's no interstate commerce connotations of weapons larger than one man can carry or use, 1.5+ inch bore diameter, exploding projectiles, or full auto, yet the bill continues to ban them. These limits make no sense under the "2nd amendment deal breaking" argument that the bill is using. They make perfect sense if the Montana legislature is trying to figure out the minimum amount of freedom they must suffer to exist, to keep residents from getting really, really unhappy.

Under the "deal-breaking" argument, Montana could claim that "federal regulation of commerce between states" means only "enforcing honest weights and measures and prohibiting interstate tariffs", not "dictating the price and limiting the content". But they don't do this.

So, yes, if it passes take advantage of it where it makes sense to, but don't think any government anywhere is doing you any favors. Install your factory equipment inside shipping containers under a circus tent roof. If the terms change, lower the big top and move the circus to the next jurisdiction.

David Codrea said...

Anon, it goes without saying that every benefit has a cost. The fact remains it is easier to extract retribution on a representative at the local level than it is at the federal level.