Executive Director's Message
The Illinois General Assembly officially started the Spring Session yesterday, January 8th. We will not see much activity until the last week of January. That does not mean there will not be a lot going on behind the scenes. We can expect the introduction of many bills but nothing will actually happen until early February. Over the last 20 years, there have been many changes in the lobbying world. The ISRA Lobby Team has been preparing for this Spring Legislative Session.
One of the most important tasks is preparing for IGOLD which will be held on Wednesday, April 1st. Everyone needs to make plans to attend if they can possibly make it. I know many gun owners and clubs have not attended IGOLD before. This is the year to change all of that. If you are a member of a shooting or hunting club you need to discuss getting a bus or carpooling with other club members. If you do sponsor a bus, please let the ISRA know as soon as possible so we can make arrangements for bus parking with the City of Springfield.
We will be mailing out the IGOLD information to everyone around the first of February. If you have been to previous IGOLDs, please talk to your friends and acquaintances about coming. We will need everyone this year.
Gun owners in Virginia have the fight of their life on their hands. The Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) will have a Lobby Day Rally on Monday, January 20th, in Richmond. I joined the VCDL a few weeks ago and you should also if you have a few spare bucks in your pocket. The VCDLs president is the very able Philip Van Cleave and I am confident he will have a great rally. If any ISRA members can make it to Richmond, you should try to go. I have long envisioned a mutual aid pack situation made up of state and local firearm organizations that help their neighboring states when times like these happen.
File this under why you should never give up your guns: I am in Virginia as I write this Thursday Bulletin. I flew in to Washington D.C. on Tuesday. At that time, there was a light snow with about an inch of accumulation expected. There was also an International Terrorism Alert out because of the situation in Iran. The ever-vigilant Department of Homeland Security let everyone go home early because of the snow. How comfy does that make you feel?
The Illinois General Assembly officially started the Spring Session yesterday, January 8th. We will not see much activity until the last week of January. That does not mean there will not be a lot going on behind the scenes. We can expect the introduction of many bills but nothing will actually happen until early February. Over the last 20 years, there have been many changes in the lobbying world. The ISRA Lobby Team has been preparing for this Spring Legislative Session.
One of the most important tasks is preparing for IGOLD which will be held on Wednesday, April 1st. Everyone needs to make plans to attend if they can possibly make it. I know many gun owners and clubs have not attended IGOLD before. This is the year to change all of that. If you are a member of a shooting or hunting club you need to discuss getting a bus or carpooling with other club members. If you do sponsor a bus, please let the ISRA know as soon as possible so we can make arrangements for bus parking with the City of Springfield.
We will be mailing out the IGOLD information to everyone around the first of February. If you have been to previous IGOLDs, please talk to your friends and acquaintances about coming. We will need everyone this year.
Gun owners in Virginia have the fight of their life on their hands. The Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) will have a Lobby Day Rally on Monday, January 20th, in Richmond. I joined the VCDL a few weeks ago and you should also if you have a few spare bucks in your pocket. The VCDLs president is the very able Philip Van Cleave and I am confident he will have a great rally. If any ISRA members can make it to Richmond, you should try to go. I have long envisioned a mutual aid pack situation made up of state and local firearm organizations that help their neighboring states when times like these happen.
File this under why you should never give up your guns: I am in Virginia as I write this Thursday Bulletin. I flew in to Washington D.C. on Tuesday. At that time, there was a light snow with about an inch of accumulation expected. There was also an International Terrorism Alert out because of the situation in Iran. The ever-vigilant Department of Homeland Security let everyone go home early because of the snow. How comfy does that make you feel?
