Is There any Benefit to Joining the NRA for Life?

[Fleetwood_Captain]

I'm currently an annual member and I just received an offer to join for life for $500, half the normal price. I've been trying to figure out whether or not this would be a good value.

If I took that same $500 and threw it in a bank account generating 5% interest, I could withdraw annual membership dues at the full rate of $35 dollars for 23 years before the well ran dry. This increases to 32 and 62 years for the discounted rates of $30 and $25.

Now I'm not planning on letting my membership slip, but given that it takes a lifetime for a life membership to pay off and that nobody can predict the long-term future of the NRA and the gun culture, are there any benefits to joining for life other than having bragging rights?

I'm just wondering what other NRA members have to say about all of this.

 

[JesseL]

1. Good luck finding a bank that will give you 5% on $500.
2. I wouldn't count on annual dues staying at $35 for the next 23 years
3. I had heard about Life Memberships going for $350 recently.
4. $500 (or $350) given to the NRA now will probably do more to protect your freedoms than $805 over the next 23 years.

When is the best time to fight to protect your 2A rights? 50 years ago.
When is the second best time to fight to protect your 2A rights? Right now.

 

[Gunnerpalace]

That should be a poster, I am serious too that would make a good one.

 

[gunman42782]

Ditto what JesseL said. The main advantage I see is knowing you did your part to preserve all of our rights. That is why I became a Life Member many moons ago.

 

[zxcvbob]

I'd rather keep paying my dues rather than doing it all at once because I have more bargaining power that way. If the NRA pisses me off enough, I can threaten to leave and they lose a revenue stream. If they have all the money up front, what is their incentive to listen to me?

 

[Harvster]

If you're not a life member than you don't get the decoder ring or learn the handshake......dang...I've said too much already...nevermind.


Seriously, the price will only continue to climb, so if you can afford it I say do it now. I view it as similar to leasing a car vs. owning.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Yes, there is. It means you will never be lonely, flooded with junk mail from the NRA and every gun-related company they sell your name and address to until you die. You will forever be hounded for more donations by the NRA because apparently if you can join for life, they think you have a goodly amount disposable income.

 

[Linda]

Yes, there is. It means you will never be lonely, flooded with junk mail from the NRA and every gun-related company they sell your name and address to until you die. You will forever be hounded for more donations by the NRA because apparently if you can join for life, they think you have a goodly amount disposable income.

None of which is true. I *maybe* get 2-3 pieces of "junk mail" from the NRA per year. They don't send that stuff to Life Members, plus I have never once received a phone call from them, as a Life Member.

The advantage of becoming a Life Member is, you pay $25 quarterly. You will be paid up in 5 years at a very cheap price of $500. That's half of what a Life Membership is going for right now. Plus, if you let your "yearly" dues lapse, and get a gun stolen, you will not have your automatic $1000 in gun insurance.

 

[Titus]

Q: How can I reduce the amount of mail I receive from the NRA?

A: Simply email us at [email protected] or dial 800-NRA-3888 and request to be placed on the "Do Not Promote" list. This will significantly reduce the amount of mail you receive without affecting important mailings, magazine service, or your membership renewal.

 

[Titus]

Also, you won't lose your vote for 5 years as you would if your annual membership lapses for any reason.

 

[lee n. field]

Is There any Benefit to Joining the NRA for Life?

You don't get dunned to re-up every year.

 

[KMBRTAC45]

Original quote by:Linda
None of which is true. I *maybe* get 2-3 pieces of "junk mail" from the NRA per year. They don't send that stuff to Life Members, plus I have never once received a phone call from them, as a Life Member.

I'm with Linda on this. Since I upgraded to Life Member I have gotten NO junk mail.

 

[Border]

PRIDE! Even the stickers etc. say I am pro Second A-All the Way!!!

I wanted to help increase their war chest NOW!

Plus, all the pro reasons above!

 

[MaterDei]

DNS, you're wrong!

While not perfect, the NRA is the best thing going for the RKBA community.

 

[Sistema1927]

The way that I look at it, I am not going to change my mind about the importance of guns, the Second Amendment, and self-defense anytime soon.

Being a Life Member allows me to demonstrate my commitment to the cause.

Junk mail? I haven't seen any, but wouldn't it be refreshing to get some that reflects your interests instead of the stuff that normally give my mailman a hernia?

 

[Robert Hairless]

When is the best time to fight to protect your 2A rights? 50 years ago.

When is the second best time to fight to protect your 2A rights? Right now.

Well said.

But let's not forget that DoubleNaughtSpy has spotted both a potential problem and a potential cure for it. He has identified the potential problem: the NRA/ILA does solicit donations, usually for such frivolous things as defending your Second Amendment rights. Why pay your way when you can be like DoubleNaughtSpy?

DoubleNaughtSpy's cure for the potential problem is twofold: don't support the NRA and discourage others from supporting the NRA. That is an effective cure. When the NRA is sufficiently weak, it will stop attempting to solicit money.

DoubleNaughtSpy has shown you how to cure the potential problem: when there is no NRA, there will be no individual gun ownership in the U.S., and no one will need be concerned about NRA requests for donations. Then DoubleNaughtSpy will spread his wisdom to other special interest forums and help them.

My wife and I both are NRA Life Members. There's little chance that I'll live long enough to balance that cost against the cost of annual memberships for the rest of my life.

But we didn't become Life Members to save money. If we wanted to save money we would have become like DoubleNaughtSpy and 95% of the other gun owners in America. Instead we chose to be one of the 5% of gun owners who carry the other 95%.

What's fascinating about that other 95% is that they show neither gratitude nor guilt. They insult the 5% who carry them. No surprise there.

We get no more NRA solicitations after we became Life Members than before. But DoubleNaughtSpy, like other non members of the NRA, is an expert on the NRA and absolutely everything else. We have much to learn from such people. I'm serious: it pays to read what they say because there's always much to learn from their opinions. Read them carefully and think about them. It's an education.

Anyone who is terrorized by receiving requests for donations from an organization such as the NRA has my sympathy. I envision gun owners cowering in fear at the approach of the mailman, piteously whimpering in a corner, cradling a telephone so they can speed dial 911 for assistance. I wonder sometimes how they can bear up under the stress and my heart goes out to them. Will their invasion of unwanted mail never cease? Many of those gun owners crumble. Their nerves shattered at last, they are institutionalized and spend the rest of their lives trying to recover, but to no avail.

Once a proud people, proclaiming their firmness in the face of all enemies, shouting cries of defiance such as Molon Labe, they were done in by solicitations from the NRA. Fortunate it is that Iran and North Korea have not yet discovered the power that could be theirs. Instead they focus on acquiring nuclear weapons.

 

[average_shooter]

Temporary jack - Rob, you might want to be careful who you jump on and for what. You deride Double Naught Spy here for apparently doing the same thing you are doing over in another thread concerning three very good pro-gun bills.

[Robert Hairless]'s cure for the potential problem is twofold: don't support [Ron Paul] and discourage others from supporting [Ron Paul]. That is an effective cure.

Fixed it for you.

 

[Robert Hairless]

Temporary jack - Rob, you might want to be careful who you jump on and for what. You deride Double Naught Spy here for apparently doing the same thing you are doing over in another thread concerning three very good pro-gun bills.

Darn, would you believe that I thought Ron Paul and the NRA were entirely different. How much did you pay to be a member of Ron Paul?

It's not that I don't value your observations but are you planning to stalk me from thread to thread or is this only a brief fling in which you'll lose interest after your passion is spent?

By the way, my name isn't "Rob." Just thought I'd mention it in case you decide to continue this relationship.

If you're through with your "temporary jack" ....

 

[Nobody's_Hero]

I don't think this is helping the O.P.

 

[Buttermilk]

I guess it all depends on what you look at, so here goes. The money derived from an annual membership is a very small amount. The magazine you will get will take a large chunk of it. Then, the payment on your FREE $1,000.00 policy on yours guns will take some money. I don't have any way of knowing how the money is dispersed after that but I'm sure it goes to pay a person to enter your name in the membership list and send you the decals. Gee, we are running short of money here. Some amount has to go to services. Do you have the time, ability, desire to travel all over the country and speak on behalf of all of us gun owners? I don't!!! BUT,,,, Wayne LaPierre and Chris Cox and others do. And they do a great job of it!! They are so much better at it than I that I will send them my money to keep putting the message out there.
Now, on the life membership, you get a term life policy of $10,000.00 and all of the above. And that extra money, goes to pay for a lot more things and people. And to get a lot more message out to a lot more people. There is an easy payment plan if you choose. And, you won't have to worry every year for the rest of your life whether you have paid up and kept people speaking for you.
Now, here's two other things that you get and/or support. You get to vote and you support all the hunter safety programs. The reason so many people don't get hurt when out in the field, is hunter safety, the Eddie Eagle program, or one of the state wildlife programs that are required by many states and are patterned after the program developed by the NRA.
Just go on and do it, And "Thanks" to you when you do. If at all possible, please join a state association of gun enthusiasts and help your association and the NRA become an unbeatable TEAM in your state.

 

[Cesiumsponge]

I did the NRA life membership promo. I still plan to donate when I've got a surplus.

I'm already a member of the Second Amendment Foundation
I'm already a member of the Washington Arms Collectors.
I also have an application for the Gun Owners of America.

I do what I can, within reason. As much as I try to make a difference on a personal level, these fine organizations are force multipliers for my hard earned dollar. None of them are perfect, but I'd take a flawed hero over no hero.

 

[thegriz]

Being a Life Member allows me to demonstrate my commitment to the cause.

I'm with systema on this one. I wanted to make a point and stand up for something important.

I am proud of my life membership and proud that I was able make that kind of financial commitment to the NRA. I look forward to the day I'm able to make every single family member a life member of the NRA.

I also want to show my boys that 2A is a real priority in this family.

I love to give money to causes I'm passionate about whenever I can afford it. I believe that kind of encouragement, along with personal service, yields ongoing and long-term benefits because it sometimes motivates others to put their hearts into the cause too.

 

[hobgob]

I am not a life member, i just joined the NRA two weeks ago thanks to the group buy discount here at THR, I'm a college student right now so cant afford the life membershiP. however, i believe very strongly in our second amendment rights and will continue to support the NRA as long as i can still carry a gun at the end of the day!

 

[Mr. James]

But we didn't become Life Members to save money. If we wanted to save money we would have become like . . . 95% of the other gun owners in America. Instead we chose to be one of the 5% of gun owners who carry the other 95%.

Yeppers.

What's fascinating about that other 95% is that they show neither gratitude nor guilt. They insult the 5% who carry them.

The insults are the manifestation of that guilt.

When is the best time to fight to protect your 2A rights? 50 years ago.
When is the second best time to fight to protect your 2A rights? Right now.

Simply brilliant. Pithy, to the point, true.

 

[FLA2760]

I am a Life Member of NRA and it was worth it. They offer EPL option (extended payment life) which many utilize.