NRA Convention - No Spyderco booth. Why not?

[mad german]

I read that Spyderco will not have a booth at the NRA convention. This seems like a miss on Spyderco's part since there is a lot of crossover in the customer base, I'm sure. I'd bet that a high percentage of firearm enthusiasts are also knife enthusiasts to some degree or another. Many other knife companies will be there: Benchmade, Zero Tolerance, Kershaw, Cold Steel, Microtech, Case, Buck Knives, just to name a few.

I really hope that Sal and the gang didn't skip the NRA convention for fear of being associated with the NRA due to political correctness run wild. After gun restrictions are discussed and (possibly) put in place, knife restrictions are next. Just look at Europe.

I'm not saying Sal is deliberately boycotting the NRA, but if they are thinking about it, they might want to see how it works out for Yeti (not too well from what can be seen online). Pelican & Rtic, on the other hand, are embracing the NRA and getting loads of new business; many are now choosing them over Yeti. Yeti is taking lots of heat on various social media platforms.

Thoughts?

[Molle Ninja]

Well, I cant really begrudge Spyderco if skipping was done on purpose. NRA pretty much made a calculated decision to let CA go down the path it has gone, and have created a domino effect for other states. I laugh when they send me sign up letters in the mail purporting to fight for my rights. They turned their back on CA, and they’ll never get a dime from me.

That’s not even to mention their other policy blunders.

[sal]

(Posted on Bladeforums).

We tried to get in this year but the show was filled and nothing became available. We worked the show for years back in the 80's & 90's, but the show schedule became to busy so it had to go. We're planning on trying to get a spot for next year.

sal

[MichaelScott]

It’s a conundrum. The NRA is big enough to swing a lot of political weight, but they don’t seem to be able to operate in the current political and social environment without unnecessarily painting themselves into the Far Right corner. I’m not saying they are, but they are certainly perceived to be by people who could be shown that guns don’t have rights but people do and a sensible discussion could be had about that fact. The NRA generally comes across as reactionary and emotional which is no way to change minds. When I was a member I finally quit because of their political ideologies and their constant badgering for money. They even sent me unasked for a DVD course in something to do with firearms and demanded I pay for it. I said since they sent it to me without my request or permission I considered it a gift.

I support all of the Constitution, legally carry a gun and a couple of Spydercos because that’s my right. I will defend that and discuss that with anyone, but I don’t like or support many of the NRA’s tactics. Which is too bad since they have so many members and a great deal of clout. Perhaps they need new leadership.

[wrdwrght]

I detest what the NRA has become.

I'm a member only because the NRA (which is to say, the gun companies for whom it lobbies) subsidizes my club's range insurance so NRA membership is unavoidable.

The NRA has little to do with my (exercised) right to keep and bear arms, despite all the American flags in which it drapes itself. If it did, it would also have supported individual Black Panthers when they exercised this, their, constitutionally-acknowledged right back in the '60s.

While the NRA has done little to protect the 2A, it has done much to sow deep division in the US. Whether Russian oligarchs have fanned the NRA's flames with big donations, the NRA is effectively one of Putin's useful idiots. And for all his troll-farms, American vs. American is low-hanging fruit.

[curlyhairedboy]

I've had some mail sent my way from the NRA, but as someone who considers himself a 2A supporter, I can't in good conscience join. Far too much other stuff mixed in.

I guess I'd draw the analogy between someone who doesn't eat meat refusing to join PETA. It's definitely understandable.

[Sharp Guy]

(Posted on Bladeforums).

We tried to get in this year but the show was filled and nothing became available. We worked the show for years back in the 80's & 90's, but the show schedule became to busy so it had to go. We're planning on trying to get a spot for next year.

sal

That's too bad Sal! I'd love the opportunity to see Spyderco at a show near where I'm living. You'll be missed!

[EngDevGr3]

(Posted on Bladeforums).

We tried to get in this year but the show was filled and nothing became available. We worked the show for years back in the 80's & 90's, but the show schedule became to busy so it had to go. We're planning on trying to get a spot for next year.

sal

Good deal. Maybe you guys will get another spot. I am glad it isn't for political reasons.