Jason Demond
New member
Mailman Extols Different Kind of Shooting in NRA Ads
Thursday, November 11, 1999
BY STEVE LUHM
THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE
Karl Malone made his name in the NBA. Now he has loaned it to the NRA.
And the critics already have started firing.
"I just hope he knows what he's talking about, but I doubt that he does," said Steve Gunn, a Salt Lake attorney who heads the group Utahns Against Gun Violence. "I'm not criticizing him for lending his name to a cause. I just question whether he has given much thought to it."
The Jazz forward's latest endorsement -- which he did gratis for the National Rifle Association of America's " I'm The NRA" advertising campaign -- will likely be the most controversial of his 14-year professional basketball career. And he knows it.
"There are certain things I believe in and do," Malone said. "That's my right. Some people might not like this. I know that. But I'm an NRA type of guy."
The Mailman's endorsement couldn't be more high-profile. It appears in this week's issue of Time magazine, two pages in from the cover and facing the table of contents.
"I doubt anybody will take him too seriously," said Gunn. "Karl Malone has credibility as a basketball player, but I don't know if he has credibility in this arena."
The NRA, which pours millions of dollars into its campaign to protect Americans' rights of gun ownership, disagrees.
"Karl is certainly respected for everything he has accomplished," said Wayne LaPierre, the organization's executive vice president. "He is a role model. We are proud to feature him in this campaign.
"One of the points we are trying to make is that the shooting sports are mainstream -- as mainstream as you can get -- and that the NRA represents a cross section of America, probably more than any other organization you'll find."
Gunn makes it clear that Utahns Against Gun Violence does not oppose hunting, or hunters like Malone. It is the NRA's tireless fight against handgun control that Gunn and his group oppose.
"We are not anti-hunting or pro-hunting," he said. "We are neutral on hunting. . . . If Mr. Malone likes hunting, great for him."
In the full-page ad, a gently smiling Malone offers this testimonial: "About the only thing I'd rather do than play basketball is hunt. There's nothing like enjoying the great outdoors with my friends and family. Plus the challenge posed by the superior senses of your game. I grew up hunting in Louisiana and I think it's a tradition we should pass on."
Malone decided to become a spokesman for the NRA after receiving a call from the organization's president, actor Charlton Heston.
"He wanted to know what I thought about the NRA, and allthat," Malone said. "He asked me if I would be interested in doing some stuff for them and I said, 'Yeah,' because that's who I am. . . . You can take away a lot of things from Karl Malone, but his guns, that's not one of them."
Malone called Heston "a great guy. . . . It's like Coach [Jerry] Sloan always says, 'He's got a barbed-wire tail and he doesn't care where he drags it.' "
Referring to his involvement with the NRA as "a natural thing," Malone says he owned his first gun at age 4.
"That's when I got my first B.B. gun," he said. "Then, when I was six or seven, I got my first little shotgun so I could go out hunting squirrels and rabbits with my mom. . . . I don't do this stuff for the attention. I do it because this is who I am. I believe in hunting and fishing and camping, because that's what I did when I was a little boy growing up."
Malone, however, isn't an NRA hard-liner; many members would likely disagree with his belief that "there probably should be some rules" on gun ownership and possession.
". . . Without a doubt," he said. "There needs to be laws and regulations. But don't take away my rights, and don't totally ban guns because if you do, you still won't get them away from the crooks, thieves and robbers. They're going to have them, no matter what."
Gunn finds fault with that logic. "If he is making the general argument that gun control measures are no good and we can't prevent criminals from possessing guns, I disagree with that," he said.
Malone receives his share of good-natured teasing from his Jazz teammates about his gun ownership, his hunting and his recent involvement with the NRA.
"Every now and then a few guys will say something," Malone said. "But you know what? When I come back and bring some jerky, those same guys are the first ones who want a piece."
Malone said his involvement with the NRA has also cost him one TV appearance -- and the chance to plug his new workout video.
"We've talked to a lot of people about going on their show, mostly because of the video," Malone said. "Letterman. Leno. Conan. Regis and Kathy Lee. But Rosie [O'Donnell] said, 'No way. . . . We don't have NRA people on our show.' "
http://www.sltrib.com/11111999/utah/46146.htm
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ACCEPT NOTHING LESS THAN FULL VICTORY!"
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