Hickok45 Drops NRA Sponsorship

[ja308]

Does anyone who's been around for a while remember that before Wayne La Pierre the NRA was sort of a toothless social club?

I do and I honestly believe the attacks on Wayne are a coup by anti gunners to replace him with a cocktail DC swamp rat who will do nothing!

Wayne's under attack because he is effective, bringing the NRA to nearly 6 million members. It was under his leadership that Soros, UN gun bans and dozens of other political,antigun, sensitive agendas were exposed and beat back!

Hey I get it, if you are the type who feels cheated when someone makes more or has a better life, then continue to try and replace Wayne.

On the other hand if you do not endorse class warfare and are pleased with your life, you should wait until investigations are complete and please DISMISS EVERY STORY by those who hate you enough to want you and your posterity DISARMED FOREVER !

Some examples of where the swamp media has deliberately lied, made up storys fanned the flames of racial and ethnic division.
#1 Rodney King --A thug driving 100 MPH resisted arrest and media kept showing the video of where he was subdued. 100% lies and fabrication swamp media.
#2 Waco Texas -- swamp lied and lied made up storys until finally 70 people were killed included 17 kids by fire which the media claimed and sold was started by them.
#3 the McMartin trial where media convicted everyone who worked at that school for molesting toddlers. watch the movie.
#4 Mike Brown -- who tried to disarm a cop and was rightfully shot in the process- media has him gentle giant who was killed for being black
#5 Trayvon Martiin who was a thug bashing a neighborhood watch captains head into the concrete. media altered 911 and video photo evidence.
EVERY STORY BY THE FAKE SWAMP MEDIA IS THE OPPOSITE of WHATS REPORTED !
BELIEVE NOTHING FROM THESE PEOPLE !

Keep in mind the NRA is audited NEARLY EVERY SINGLE YEAR and NOITHING. EVER !

[Python6357]

Exactly who is the enemy many of us are supporting ?

Already been answered. Learn to read.

Does anyone who's been around for a while remember that before Wayne La Pierre the NRA was sort of a toothless social club?

I do and I honestly believe the attacks on Wayne are a coup by anti gunners to replace him with a cocktail DC swamp rat who will do nothing!

Wayne's under attack because he is effective, bringing the NRA to nearly 6 million members. It was under his leadership that Soros, UN gun bans and dozens of other political,antigun, sensitive agendas were exposed and beat back!

Hey I get it, if you are the type who feels cheated when someone makes more or has a better life, then continue to try and replace Wayne.

On the other hand if you do not endorse class warfare and are pleased with your life, you should wait until investigations are complete and please DISMISS EVERY STORY by those who hate you enough to want you and your posterity DISARMED FOREVER !

Some examples of where the swamp media has deliberately lied, made up storys fanned the flames of racial and ethnic division.
#1 Rodney King --A thug driving 100 MPH resisted arrest and media kept showing the video of where he was subdued. 100% lies and fabrication swamp media.
#2 Waco Texas -- swamp lied and lied made up storys until finally 70 people were killed included 17 kids by fire which the media claimed and sold was started by them.
#3 the McMartin trial where media convicted everyone who worked at that school for molesting toddlers. watch the movie.
#4 Mike Brown -- who tried to disarm a cop and was rightfully shot in the process- media has him gentle giant who was killed for being black
#5 Trayvon Martiin who was a thug bashing a neighborhood watch captains head into the concrete. media altered 911 and video photo evidence.
EVERY STORY BY THE FAKE SWAMP MEDIA IS THE OPPOSITE of WHATS REPORTED !
BELIEVE NOTHING FROM THESE PEOPLE !

Keep in mind the NRA is audited NEARLY EVERY SINGLE YEAR and NOITHING. EVER !

More of your "opinion". You are giving the man credit for things that have absolutely nothing to do with him. It seems the only argument you can come up with is that people are jealous of Wayne. Why would anyone be jealous of a traitorous, self serving, cheating piece of crap like him? Wayne is not under attack because he is effective. The NRA is always being attacked by the left, it has nothing to do with Wayne. And if Wayne wasn't doing all his shady stuff, this wouldn't be happening. He brought this on the NRA. Wayne is the swamp, he is what is wrong with the NRA, and he is not the great supporter of our rights that you claim.

[The Gleam]

Hickok45 finally terminated his NRA sponsorship due to all that has been going on recently. I'm surprised he did. People got pretty upset when he stuck with them after the bump stock thing.

Dumb.

[Python6357]

Dumb.

Care to elaborate?

[The Gleam]

Care to elaborate?

My comment says it all. It's a dumb choice, a dumb move.

You on the other hand have breached reporting on his choice and leaving it open to observation, and have devolved into promotion of the choice, as if you are hoping others leave the NRA behind due to some nominal political grumbling that happens from time to time in any organization or corporation of such size. This does not change nor deplete the overall true goal of the NRA. There are "fairweather" fans that will bellyache over just about anything to save their $25 annual fee... and then there are shills that will seize and jump on the situation for a bizarre perverted benefit in their mind.

And that's dumb too.

[Python6357]

My comment says it all. It's a dumb choice, a dumb move.

You on the other hand have breached reporting on his choice and leaving it open to observation, and have devolved into promotion of the choice, as if you are hoping others leave the NRA behind due to some nominal political grumbling that happens from time to time in any organization or corporation of such size. This does not change nor deplete the overall true goal of the NRA. There are "fairweather" fans that will bellyache over just about anything to save their $25 annual fee... and then there are shills that will seize and jump on the situation for a bizarre perverted benefit in their mind.

And that's dumb too.

You're reading a lot into what I've said that isn't there. I am not hoping people leave the NRA, I am hoping more members will start speaking out in hopes of fixing the NRA. I think it is a smart move for him to end his sponsorship with them. He is the largest voice on social media when it comes to guns and a huge influence on the 2A community. Maybe with this move, the NRA will start sweating a little and get it's act together. This isn't just "grumbling", Wayne is stealing millions from the organization, and the NRA is becoming a cash cow for the board. Not to mention, they are still selling us out often. The true goal of the leadership in the NRA is not preservation of the 2A, it's to make money. They NRA has become corrupted, and if it's going to survive, it needs to change. The only way it will change is if members start taking action and demand it.

[fishnbeer]

YouTube has been demonetizing pretty much all 2a related channels. Even an air rifle channel got clipped. You think this might be him stroking the ego of YouTube, trying to keep his own sponsors/money?

[Python6357]

YouTube has been demonetizing pretty much all 2a related channels. Even an air rifle channel got clipped. You think this might be him stroking the ego of YouTube, trying to keep his own sponsors/money?

I don't think so. Youtube is going to target him whether he's backed by the NRA or not. They have deleted/punished channels like MAC, James Yeager, and several others who aren't backed by the NRA. Not only that, but I'm pretty sure Youtube isn't paying any of the gun channels anymore, even though they still run ads on their videos.

[walterSOBCHAK]

Glad to hear, I'll be resubcribing to his channel.

[TrappedinCalifornia]

If you watch the Hickok45 video, there is a key presented that most seem to be missing.



You can negatively 'spin' it the way TheYankeeMarshal does...



But, it's something we see in the Iraqveteran8888 video with the MAC guy...



Hickock45 has 4.2 million subscribers; nearly as large as the NRA's membership. Iraqveteran8888 has 2.18 million subscribers. Military Arms Channel has 954,838. (Uh... TheYankeeMarshal has 318,373.)

The NRA has 4 - 6 million members and it's a near certainty than many of those members are subscribers to one or more of these YouTube channels. What Hickok45, Iraqveteran8888, and MAC are doing is 'walking a tight rope' in that the NRA membership itself is 'divided' on whether there's a problem, the extent of the problem, what to do about the problem, et al. Just like the Calguns membership, there are STRONG divisions and each has begun viewing, not to mention accusing, other factions of being 'the enemy.'

Hickok45 notes they don't feel comfortable using their BRAND to encourage people to join the NRA at the moment. Yet, Hickok45, Iraqveteran8888, and MAC all go loquaciously out of their way to declare their hope that the NRA gets this figured out and settles it, becoming a stronger, more adept organization in terms of fighting for our rights. That's the tightrope.

Each of these channels is a commercial entity - a business. Like any other business, the primary loyalty is to the business. If an organization they are associated with directly or indirectly 'threatens' their 'customer base,' that business will take the steps it deems necessary to protect itself. That's what we're seeing here.

Again, you can negatively 'spin' it the way TheYankeeMarshal does, declaring that you'd like to see Hickok45 'take a stand,' but that's 'easy' to say when you have less than 1/10th the subscribers (customer base) that Hickok45 has. Iraqveteran8888 and MAC appear to be a bit more on the 'taking sides' train. However, if you ferret through what is being said, it's the same thing we've heard on this site; i.e., whatever the 'truth' of these issues, the current NRA leadership is perceived as a 'liability' by many and, thus, in the interest of the organization (NRA), should be replaced before that perception gets worse or is proven to be true.

In short, it's all about PR and damage control for these guys. They are neither for or against the NRA so much as not wanting the fallout, whatever it becomes, to negatively impact their businesses by association. That's not 'treason' or 'disloyalty.' ANY business would do the same and, in fact, it is one of the roots of the NRA and AckMac fiasco.

Such a 'distancing' comes with risks and all these guys acknowledge that in their videos. In the case of TheYankeeMarshal, he strikes me as a little akin to the Cory Booker approach of going after Biden; i.e., I'm the 'little guy' and I might generate more attention by picking a fight with the 'big guy.' But, he is correct to the extent that this is a business decision. Where he is wrong is that Hickok45 isn't an 'activist' where 'taking a stand' is the primary product he produces.

If one were to take anything away from this, it should be the idea that the NRA needs to get this figured out in an hurry. The problem(s) is/are spreading to where they are impacting not only the membership, but other people and groups promoting positive images of firearms ownership/use. Whether those people/groups are activists or simply someone who is primarily just sharing their positive interests in firearms is irrelevant.

[Jwalt]

Hickock45 has been demonetized for a while now.

Watch his video. He's VERY clear that he's still a benefactor member and he's not encouraging anyone to drop their membership. His channel is just no longer officially affiliated with promoting the NRA.

He doesn't want to "talk trash" about anyone he works for, and he doesn't want to work for anyone he's not fully comfortable promoting.

I can respect that. I can see where he's coming from.

He's not attacking the NRA, he's not trying to hurt it, he just wants to be free as an independent person to speak his mind in the future about what's going on without feeling like he's betraying an organization that's paying him.

Edited to add clarity:

Yes, this is partly about his business reputation, but I don't think it's actually about not wanting to be "dirtied" by the NRA as much as it is Hickock wanting sponsors and advertisers to know he won't backstab them while taking their money.

[radicalray]

I was under the impression a FUD was someone who only supported ownership of traditional guns like hunting rifles and not modern sporting and defensive arms, so how does that apply to him?

That’s a FUDD as in Elmer Fudd

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.thetruthaboutguns.com/the-untold-history-of-the-nra-part-1/amp/

[Python6357]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.the...ra-part-1/amp/

Ah.

[71MUSTY]

OMG another "The sky is falling. NRA is the enemy. Support GOA" thread

Bought and paid for by our favorite Anti's.

[TrappedinCalifornia]

Hickock45 has been demonetized for a while now.

Watch his video. He's VERY clear that he's still a benefactor member and he's not encouraging anyone to drop their membership. His channel is just no longer officially affiliated with promoting the NRA...

He's not attacking the NRA, he's not trying to hurt it, he just wants to be free as an independent person to speak his mind in the future about what's going on without feeling like he's betraying an organization that's paying him.

Edited to add clarity:

Yes, this is partly about his business reputation, but I don't think it's actually about not wanting to be "dirtied" by the NRA as much as it is Hickock wanting sponsors and advertisers to know he won't backstab them while taking their money.

Which is the business decision.

YouTube is the big dog in the room and, as Hickok45 explained it himself, it's about keeping his presence on the 'big billboard,' hoping that viewers will then be drawn to where he does get paid (patreon and GunStreamer).



I doubt you're going to see Hickok45 producing a bunch of videos 'speaking his mind' about how the NRA should change; at least not more than one or two which says what the current one does in terms of 'get this figured out' so you can get back to the business of protecting our rights.

Again, there's a reason why Hickok45 has twice the subscribers as someone like Iraqveteran8888, 4 times the subscribers of MAC, and more than 10 times the subscribers of TheYankeeMarshal. He produces content which is deliberately intended for 'all audiences,' not a faction or set of factions within the gun community. As he says...



This is the 'distancing' you're seeing. He got in 'trouble' with some for not backing away from the NRA when they were seen as 'supporting' the bump stock ban. Now he's getting in trouble with some for seeming to be backing away from the NRA and/or not 'taking a stand.' In short, as he alluded to, you can't please everyone.

What you can do is what he's done; i.e., produce videos which appeal to a broad audience. If he throws a video out there periodically which is or can be taken as 'political,' then it will be 'accepted' so long as it's not the primary content he's providing. As an example...



And... There it is. He's doing something productive for the firearms community. He's not aligning himself with this or that faction. He's trying to keep the 'business' neutral in a very divisive time.