❝ The National Rifle Association — America’s oldest civil rights organization — is in an existential crisis today brought on by mismanagement, cronyism, and self-dealing by its leadership. Every week brings forth a new allegation, a new bit of evidence that the the NRA’s leaders are more interested in lining their own pockets and enjoying the perquisites of power than promoting marksmanship, gun safety, and defending the right to keep and bear arms.

Every day this circus continues is a day that the NRA’s credibility as an organization takes another hit. This is a dangerous situation for the organization and for American gun owners because — whatever the reality — the identity of gun owners in this country is tightly linked to that of the NRA.

❝ We’d like to say that the NRA’s leadership has stepped up to the plate in response. We’d like to say they’ve at least mouthed the correct words, made promises of transparency going forward, committed to an independent audit of the books, expressed interest in correcting what were inarguably missteps (even if you believe the leadership is innocent of any actual wrongdoing, missteps in communications and public relations have certainly been made,) and of welcoming fresh blood and new voices to its ranks.

We can’t say any of that, though, because they haven’t.

I have a fondness for sporting firearms that goes back to my youth. I grew up in Connecticut, the arsenal of America in my day. My generation was the first in my family NOT to work sometime or other for a gun manufacturer. The two generations preceding, just about every man and a number of the women did work for one or another gun manufacturer – including a gunsmith who worked on the designs of many of today’s modern military rifles.

None of which diminishes my strong feeling about the need for strict regulatory standards. Above and beyond that, the hustlers and con artists who infest the so-called leadership of the NRA need to go. Time to clean house is overdue.