>>669110
Because I live in the middle of nowhere in a small town with a small range and I shoot high power rifle off my front porch instead. I shoot on my own land every day without paying dues and having to put up with people. My father and grandfather actually helped to build and found the local range, but eventually quit when things and people got too competitive and egotistical. I keep considering joining and maybe trying competition at a lower level, but I just like isolation and running my own range that much not to.
Also, the NRA's primary goal always was training and marksmanship, not lobbying. A lot of ranges, and a lot of the competition, are connected directly to the NRA. The rimfire local competitions and other sports in my state are probably 100% NRA regulated matches, so when you pay your dues and support the NRA it isn't just defending gun rights its also about the governing body and the fact they help to regulate and promote matches and competition. In reality, when I paid my lifetime membership I was indirectly supporting my local range and competitions.
>>669118
I agree its had a shitty history, but I think a lot of the early NFA rollover was the idea that "compromise on this and they'll leave us alone forever", as well as the usual "boys club" mentality of playing ball with the law makers. Like how Keyenes argued that government intervention and spending could save capitalism in the 30's, so did many a gun rights guy say "if we give up on X they will spare everything else". They were absolutely wrong, especially in hindsight, we compromised and only got fucked over. There was more of a surge against this attitude later in its history that steered it more hardline gun rights, which it should have always been. Again we are fearing the organziation being corrupted from the top and just laying down, but what I mean is regain that soul we took in the late 70's. The NRA is still winnable, we can change its path in the future if enough people fight.
>>669136
The big PR firm they hired decades ago and has been a large part of the NRA and its campaigns and tactics since the more pro gunnish revolution back in the late 70's eventually got into a bad relationship with the NRA as time went on, the usual corruption and increased ties has mean that the NRA has been being ripped off for years with higher bills than it should be paying and questionable practices between the two entities. The advertising firm in question has been running too many strategies and too much of the fund raising, just so the funds can be paid back to the company. Top level members of the NRA and the ad company trade places, favors, they are a bit too "in bed" and the shit that's been pulled is close to outright graft.
In general, the big problem is the current corrupt tops are raking in huge salaries and have sweetheart deals on retirement and "consultant" jobs that pay out for little actual work, turning the non profit into a big money maker for those at the top anyway, like so many modern non profit organizations do nowadays, especially the ad agency basically using the NRA as a cash machine, then giving NRA uppers cushy connections, jobs, "consulting" gigs, ect.
It isn't a spat, its a deal where the for profit company is going to run the NRA into the ground using it as a cash cow.