From: Mark B. Bundick ( snipped-for-privacy@idonttakespam.earthlink.net)
Subject: Re: NAR BoD declines Wickman leadership in legislative action
View: Complete Thread (451 articles)
Original Format
Newsgroups: rec.models.rockets
Date: 2003-08-28 17:34:18 PST
House and Senate staffers have questions generally about the sport
rocketry hobby. They're not familiar with what we do for fun. They
don't have a clue from squat about dual deployment or M1319's or
proper throat diameters or PSAN. There's no inherent reason for them
to know about this stuff. We're not America's most popular pastime.
Whether grounded in science or not, those staffers and their bosses
have real objections to creating an exempted class for materials that
the Administration says are dangerous explosives. The people the
staff and members most generally turn to for advice in these matters,
ATFE, says it's an explosive, and, like it or not, to Congress,
they're the experts in these matters.
There's a need for sport rocketry users and leadership to know what
those questions and objections are, both to provide information to our
community, and to counter the fears and objections. Unless we know
about the issues and objections, we can't successfully counter them.
There are multiple ways to get legislation passed through the
Congress. Each one has pluses and minuses. All have been used at
various times to successfully pass into law bills which provide relief
to widely varying constituencies. What's the optimal path to take?
Given this environment, we have choices to make.
How should the education of members and staff be accomplished?
How can the fear, uncertainty and doubt being sown by ATFE be
dispelled?
How can the optimal legislative path be diserned?
How can we engage the members and staff in productive dialog in order
to obtain their votes in our favor?
How will the sport rocketry community know what progress is being made
or not made towards the passage of legislation, and what, if anything,
they should do about it?
Members can certainly argue that we could attempt to do those things
on our own.
I submit we should learn from other trade, professional and
recreational associations who have problems with the Government.
What do they do to affect legislative change?
They use professional advisors to:
- educate members and staff on their issues;
- provide feedback to association members about progress, concerns and
roadblocks;
- assist the leadership in the nature and timing of strategy designed
to get legislation passed.
It's John who's provided that staff and member education, that
progress reporting to members, and that legislative strategy counsel
to NAR and TRA.
If members believe John has not provided value in these three areas,
they should tell me either what I should instruct John to do
differently going forward, or offer realistic alternatives to his
services.
To date, I have received no credible feedback regarding how to get
this job done without John Kyte's help.
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Mark B. Bundick mbundick - at - earthlink - dot - net
NAR President www - dot - nar - dot - org
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Mark B. Bundick mbundick - at - earthlink - dot - net
NAR President www - dot - nar - dot - org
"You keep using that word. I do not think it
means what you think it means." - anon.
- posted 18 years ago