How do I join the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Ownership?
Seriously. I was perusing their site and can’t find a join button. I see a big donate button. But I can’t seem to join. Mind you, I can join the NRA pretty quickly from their site. Even a quick Google for join brady campaign turns up no info on how to join.
They don’t disclose membership numbers, that I know of. Since they’re likely quite small. I wonder if it’s because people can’t join?
October 30th, 2007 at 10:57 am
10+ years ago HCI/Brady used to list their supposed number of members on their letterhead and website. The number increased steadily over time 100K, 250K, 500K, then 1M. I recall something about them considering anyone who contacted their organization for information to be a member. Sometime after that they stopped listing “members” and started saying “supporters.” It appears to have gotten to the point where membership is less a formal thing then it is a state of mind. In terms of people who donate $$$ to them, I’m guessing it is in the 5 figure range.
October 30th, 2007 at 11:01 am
They key is saying something along the lines of “members and supporters.” I’m in PR, believe me, there are ways of being honest about what you’re saying while not taking responsibility if a reporter chooses to cut your words down to something that may not be as accurate.
I doubt it goes so far as anyone who has asked them a question. However, I’m sure it does include all of the pro-gun people on their email lists. Plus, you have to remember they absorbed all of the MMM’s records.
October 30th, 2007 at 11:02 am
If they let you join, you’d probably want to vote on their officers and policies. Modern “liberal” paternalism would much prefer that you just send money and let “your betters” make the decisions.
October 30th, 2007 at 11:32 am
They used to have actual members. I remember when you had to fill out a form and send in dues. That’s long gone.
October 30th, 2007 at 11:41 am
“I recall something about them considering anyone who contacted their organization for information to be a member.”
If you sign up for their e-mail alerts (like I did to keep track of their evil doings) they refer to you as, and address you as, a ‘member’. I unsubscribed when I realized this, but unsubscribing was a adventure in and of itself. The unsubscribe process was broken, and I eventually had to contact the webmaster directly to get off the list.
October 30th, 2007 at 12:08 pm
in fairness, different non-profits raise money differently and the concept of “membership” is more a means of getting you to give money every year than anything else. Think about it…what does it really mean to be a member of the Brady Campaign, ACLU, NRA, or Club for Growth? Its all a means of extracting you from your money.
October 30th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
You haven’t been able to “join” for many years now. I looked into it during the late 90’s and thought it odd. But think about it. What are the member benefits? Compare what the Brady Campaign could offer versus what the NRA offers for member benefits. In some ways we have a tremendous advantage because we assemble, network, and organize around our gun activities. The anti-gun people can’t put up signs at the local anti-gun range, to inform people of the latest threat to their victim-hood.
October 30th, 2007 at 12:13 pm
The period to which I’m referring is ’92-’95.
October 30th, 2007 at 12:16 pm
Lots of lefty type groups will have a sliding scale for donations/membership fees. (League of women voters, Nat. org for Women, etc) They have discounts for students/minors/”disabled”/retired, etc. If they just get some kind of funds from you then it opens the door for future solicitation and also they have a way to target their propaganda. They try to get ’em young, and while the first one isn’t free, it’s usually pretty cheap. I’m gonna guess here that when you donate, the Brady’s will size you up and send you the appropriate amount requested for membership.
AFAIK being a member confers no voting rights, (unlike say, the NRA, where one could actually vote for the board and influence policy), so it really doesn’t matter. Some of these membership/fund drives they will actually send you a cheesy membership card included in the donation solicitation.
October 30th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
Joining is simple. Just remove your spine, limp your wrist, and lose any common sense and voila, you are an immediate life time member.
October 30th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
Byron wins the thread
October 30th, 2007 at 10:41 pm
I “belong” to the MMM by virtue of being on their list at meetup.org, or .com or something. Whenever the natives get restless, I get notified, and am happy to attend their meetings, take notes, etc.
The Greater Metro Denver MMM: all 9 of us.