IASRA Meeting tonight - All Welcome

Shiva

First off, Mods, apologies for linking to another forum - I think its important that as many people as possible attend this meeting, but if you'd rather another forum wasnt mentioned here, please feel free to delete this thread.

Anyway....


For those of you who haven't seen this announcement, the Irish Airsoft Sites and Retailers Association (IASRA) will be meeting with the IAA this coming Wednesday.

As a precursor to this, they are holding a meeting in The Warehouse tonight (Monday, February 9th) to discuss the forthcoming meeting, and they say all are welcome to attend.

I'm not sure if the ALL part refers to all retailers and site owners, or all airsofters, but if its open to all airsofters, I'd urge anyone who can make it to try to attend. If you have any interest in the future of Airsoft in Ireland, it would be worth popping along and hearing first hand what IASRA's agenda and intentions are.

Perhaps someone from IASRA can clarify the "all" part ?

AirsoftEire.com

Thanks for the heads up Tony.

Steve

EDIT: Sorry, I misread some of that, is this a meeting about the meeting on Wednesday?

Shiva

AirsoftEire.com wrote: »

EDIT: Sorry, I misread some of that, is this a meeting about the meeting on Wednesday?

Yeah....meetings about meetings

My understanding is it's a meeting to formulate the IASRA approach to the IAA.

TheDoc

Going to mosey on down myself

I think everyone interested in Airsoft should go along. As a group hoping to represent airsoft, I'm interested in hearing what they have to say, their goals and objectives and how they feel they will accomplish them.

Fallschirmjager

this could get very confusing if the IAA turned up....??




so beware anyone sitting at the back looking like this

gerrowadat

To clarify (since people have been asking us), the IAA committee will not be attending. We will be meeting with IASRA on Wednesday, and feel attending today might divert attention from what IASRA have to say to the interested folks turning up tonight. We wish IASRA the best of luck with their meeting.

Dave
IAA Vice-Chair

mafiaboy

as far as i know eveyone to do with airsoft is invited to come along to ths (7.30pm) and here what is going on with our sport...

MAD Ozzie

Thanks for the notice.

gandalf

Unfortunately Mondays evenings for me are taken up. I would be very interested to hear the content of this meeting and would be grateful if someone can post details of same afterwards.

horgan_p

Unfortunately the corkairsoftshop.com transporter room is out of action at the minute - puding robbed our dilithium crystals for some kind of aeg based experiments.
So we wont be able to attend.

AirsoftEire.com

We'll take a trip down.

Dread-Lock

I would be interested in going but I have to get up for work at 3.30am so nuts to that. Will there be minutes or anything of that nature?

Mr B. Wooster

So any word on what happened at the meeting? Couldn't make it to dublin myself (waaaaay too long a drive!)

Rooky1

Hi Guys
Not enough notice for me to attend this.
Would have liked to have gone.
Any chance of a look at the minutes of the meeting???

Many thanks

TheDoc

I'm not sure if minutes were properly taken, didnt look like it.

essentially a sheet of proposals were handed out to everyone there. The sheet contained a list of points as to which IASRA felt the IAA would need to adhere to, should a merger happen. And these points were then discussed.

I'm going to keep my own personal opinions out of this, as I feel that this thread should merely just show facts of what was discussed and what was said.

There were 11 points in all which were debated. Again, I wont post the exact points, however I feel somewhat, by one of the points mentioned and severely debated, IASRA will not be posting anything up here, and since the IAA werent in attendance, it may not show up here. But the IASRA website should have them up soon enough.

Most if not all of the points were debated with some been eradicated completely and some been amended. It was mostly porductive and the IASRA commitee were very willing to accept points and arguements been put there way.

I do not want to post too much detail personally, as one of the major points was in regards to this website itself, but I'm sure all shall be revealed in the coming days.

So in summary. The proposals handed to attendees tonight were a list of points that IASRA felt the IAA had to adhere too should a merger be any way feasible. These points were then debated through the course of the meeting with most been amended , some eradicated and possibly 1-2 left in their original state.

Going by tonights meeting and the general concensus of some people there, boards.ie is not thought of highly in the minds of some people. So I would not expect to see IASRa minutes posted here by a member of the commitee. However I'm sure they will be made available through other means in a short time.

I'd like to thank the lads at the Warehouse for holding the meeting and accomodating everyone, and also the IASRA commitee for welcoming all those interested in coming. I would like to extend my wishes to them upon their meeting with the IAA on Wednesday and hope a positive solution for Airsoft players is reached in the process.

Dread-Lock

[DM]-TheDOC- wrote: »

I'm not sure if minutes were properly taken, didnt look like it.

Didn't think they would be, but thanks for giving us some info Doc.

tonyj_mc

Cheers Doc,

Thanks for giving us some of the info, always nice to know what is going on

OzCam

[DM]-TheDOC- wrote: »

essentially a sheet of proposals were handed out to everyone there. The sheet contained a list of points as to which IASRA felt the IAA would need to adhere to, should a merger happen.

How to Make Friends and Influence People. Not.

A merger? OK, let me think about it... ummm... thanks but no thanks.

TheDoc

I hope information is released. I could, but I do not want too. I'm not the person to start it off. I get the impression alot of people wish I just shut up most of the time, and because I'm like "Doc" I've nothing constructive to say etc.

Also I have a very personal opinion on the matter and the whole subject, so I hope someone more level headed an impartial will inform the rest of you.

GlockMonkey

they were taken ... i have them ...... and beleave it or not i have a life outside meetings and the like when i get them sorted ill post them ..............

Puding

thank you for the information, all well and good putting forward a set of demands but was any important information discussed and released like there proposed egm for the change of committee members that the iasra mentioned themselves in a statement, or even a constitution, without this piece of information i find it hard to take iasra seriously and view them as a viable organization ( and before anyone asks i have brought my concerns up on there own forums and it simply got deleted )

find the comments on boards interesting, i suppose its one of those things if you can't have it yourself destroy it so no one can have it.....

Busta Hyman

GlockMonkey wrote: »

they were taken ... i have them ...... and beleave it or not i have a life outside meetings and the like when i get them sorted ill post them ..............

lol posted at 1:30 am ...........

mafiaboy

Busta Hyman wrote: »

lol posted at 1:30 am ...........

posted at 8.55am

Busta Hyman

touché . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . but in my defence i never claimed to have a life

Shiva

Puding wrote: »

i suppose its one of those things if you can't have it yourself destroy it so no one can have it.....

I'll post a full report here later, but I agree with Puding.

I went there with an open mind, willing to listen and get some answers to questions I had, and I came away with my suspicions confirmed. Nothing I heard last night led me to believe IASRA have anything constructive or original to bring to the table. Some of the demands were laughably transparent.

More later when I have a few minutes spare.

Alzir

Ohhh.....I smell a conspiracy theory.....

Alzir

[DM]-TheDOC- wrote: »

I hope information is released. I could, but I do not want too. I'm not the person to start it off

Youv said enuf! From what I can gather this IASRA is backed by MIA and dosent like people talking bout airsoft on boards. Eh Eh??

Masada

Sorry i missed this meeting, only just back in ireland this minute myself.,

so, is there any minutes posted yet? i cant remember the name of the forum IASRA are using and theres no info here.,

Providing the mods don't object to it, i don't see any reason for not posting details here. If IASRA don't want it posted here then it says a lot about the transperancy of their organization, in my opinion.
Fact is, this is the biggest scorce of information for all airsofters in this country, FACT...
So if they are in it for the preservation of the sport, they should have the common decency to put prejuduce behind them and to put the organisation first, not personal feeling.

Lomarticus

Re Pudding's post: "i have brought my concerns up on there own forums and it simply got deleted"

How can anyone take a group seriously if, when they come across questions that they do not like, they simply delete the posts?

One could infer that a group who does such things have serious failings which they do not want made public.
Was a plausable explanation given for the posts being deleted?
(I find the deleting of inconvenient posts utterly offensive and loathsome.)

For a group to be taken seriously they MUST have integrity.
Few things show that up quicker about a group than how they deal with people who disagree with them.

Unfortunately, sometimes, interacting with groups that behave in such a manner only validates their actions and their existence.
A better course of action can be to watch their mistakes, not make them yourself, address the reasons for their existence within your own organisation and be better than them in every way while sticking to your own principles.

gandalf

Well so far what I have heard does not bode well. How can an organisation of dubious aims which has achieved nothing make demands on another who have achieved and who have been working towards legal protected airsofting in Ireland since its inception. I am holding the rest of my thoughts until more details emerge.

As regards boards it seems to me that when it suited certain individuals to help sell their wares boards was fine now that they are on the outside due to their own inability to behave like adults they have to take a hypocritical approach and attack the site.

horgan_p

Well if a merger is whats wanted i would assume an egm and vote would be in order,
I would at minimum have to see a constitution and an awful lot of assurances.
I've yet to see anything at all from these guys.

Hivemind187

gandalf wrote: »

How can an organisation of dubious aims which has achieved nothing make demands on another who have achieved and who have been working towards legal protected airsofting in Ireland since its inception.

Precisely.

Seems to me that when it suited certain individuals to help sell their wares boards was fine now that they are on the outside due to their own inability to behave like adults they have to take a hypocritical approach and attack the site.

Here here!

Fyr.Fytr

I was there also. The feeling i got (as a n00b to the sport, not knowing a hell of alot about previous incidents, relationships, individuals etc) was IASRA's main concern was retailers and site owners. Granted i know they've invested time, money and effort into their businesses and their livelihoods depend on it, but it seems the players were just an after thought.

Any good businessman knows look after you customers and they'll look after you (ive found this alot with certain retailers and sites who do look after their customers) my feeling is you have to look after the individual players too, without them the sites and stores are redundant anyway.

I am an individual player, not on a team, associated with any retailers but am a member of one site, but thats purely because it is the one i use most often for convenience sake, the owners look after their members and the membership means an all round better deal for a broke student such as
myself.

The fact that im not on a team etc I want an association as a group of people, members and committee included to look out for my best interests and protect MY sport. I dont want for all intents and purposes a cartel of any sort to look after their business interests and make a few extra bob. I feel if a retailer or site owner treats his/her customers fairly, gives them a fair deal and looks after them, in the long run theyll be better off.

As for boards, well its how i found out about airsoft, bought my first aeg off here (cheers tonky), i got talking to established players, i got in contact with retailers and site owners (havnt a breeze how i would have found fingal if it wasnt for directions on here!), i can book a place at a site, check stock status of products, see what events are coming up etc etc. Almost everyone is on here its a mine of information, something goes wrong with one of my guns first thing i do is have a search on here, see an aeg i like have a look here see reviews etc. Granted we have the odd troll or a bit of a slagging match on here, what section of boards doesnt, the mod team do a very good job, but in our own interests when certain posts come up, stuff against the charter or stuff thatll bring the community into a bad light i think the sensible among us, those with the experience and the knowledge should set the record straight and end it before it becomes anything more.

As i said these are just my feelings after attending the meeting. I hope everything can be resolved in a quick and easy matter that benefits everyone involved in airsoft and that the community can continue to grow and we can continue to enjoy our sport.

Tommyboy71

Where do they (IASRA) post their information? Do they have a website/ forum/dead letter box? All I have been able to find out about them is what is in this forum.

I am not doing this as moan, I actually want to see what they are all about. Any help apperciated.

gandalf

Tommy its linked in the 1st post on this thread. TBH you will see very little information on their site.

theburi

gandalf wrote: »

Well so far what I have heard does not bode well. How can an organisation of dubious aims which has achieved nothing make demands on another who have achieved and who have been working towards legal protected airsofting in Ireland since its inception. I am holding the rest of my thoughts until more details emerge.

As regards boards it seems to me that when it suited certain individuals to help sell their wares boards was fine now that they are on the outside due to their own inability to behave like adults they have to take a hypocritical approach and attack the site.

should we read under certian individuals - MIA? You know they can't reply to you. Why do keep doing this? let these "certian individuals" reply to your statements openly or have your peace.

I think it is natural for every member in community to protect themselves. If goup of people think that certian assosiation is incabable of defending their interests. this doesn't say that they are bad, it means that another certian assosiation is not what it is claims to be. You can belive that boards is the world, but it is not. I come across many players who dissagree with "others" and it's natural. By slashing other memebers of the community you break it. By saying I do not trust someone you create confrontation and it is your fault.

Lemming

theburi wrote: »

should we read under certian individuals - MIA? You know they can't reply to you. Why do keep doing this? let these "certian individuals" reply to your statements openly or have your peace.

Other commercial interests also raised concern about boards.ie after having availed of its captive market benefits.

Incidentally, Gandalf's remarks are legitimate and stem from demonstrable prior history of behaviour of a small minority of posters, past & present.

OzCam

Good Friday Agreement = "Sunningdale [Agreement] for slow learners".

IASRA = UKARA for very, very slow learners.

And, yes, I am a slow learner myself sometimes, but at least I can learn from the mistakes of others.

And while I think of it, the whole point of the Jason Bourne story is his strong moral compass. I've yet to see anything from IASRA but spoiling. We live in hope.

G3-Nut

I ave heard so many say that the IASRA are gonna do what the UKARA did im beggining to get nervous...

gandalf

theburi wrote: »

should we read under certian individuals - MIA? You know they can't reply to you. Why do keep doing this? let these "certian individuals" reply to your statements openly or have your peace.

Yes MIA are one of the individuals, however some of the others who brought up issues have accounts here and they are more than welcome to air the issues with this site especially as they have benefited from being allowed to promote their businesses here as well.

MIA and its owner at one stage were welcome to post here and actively encouraged to do so to the point they got special treatment to facilitate this. They burnt their bridges and we are not going to rebuild them. We did once and he burnt it again.

This organisation from my view is being driven by this person and its aim is to control Airsoft in Ireland akin to the UKARA in England. As has been testified by our Northern Irish Airsofting colleagues the UKARA has all but killed airsoft in the UK. It has nothing to do with protecting airsoft with the exception of protecting a market. The players are not the paramount concern of the individuals involved in this organisation.

Lemming

G3-Nut wrote: »

I ave heard so many say that the IASRA are gonna do what the UKARA did im beggining to get nervous...

At the moment, that's just wild speculation G3-Nut. Until it's heard explicitly from the horses mouth or seen in writing in an official manner, it's idle gossip.

Indeed, I would make that same remark to IASRA with regards some of their commentary on meetings with government officials and what said representatives did and did not say (indeed did not say anything I should remark). I will not say what so please don't ask.

gandalf

theburi wrote: »

I think it is natural for every member in community to protect themselves. If goup of people think that certian assosiation is incabable of defending their interests. this doesn't say that they are bad, it means that another certian assosiation is not what it is claims to be. You can belive that boards is the world, but it is not. I come across many players who dissagree with "others" and it's natural. By slashing other memebers of the community you break it. By saying I do not trust someone you create confrontation and it is your fault.

Your sentiments are all well and good but how many chances do you give a person. How many times do you turn your cheek to them. How many times do you allow them to insult you. How many times do you take their assurances on face value to find out they were worth nothing. We did it more times than we should have and I did it contrary to others advice.

I would be very wary of an organisation that in my view was set up because a certain individual did not get their way initially and rather than work within the organisation that was there to change it went off and when alot of the hard work was done set up an opposing organisation.

Nothing bar proclamations of demands, one set of shoddy minutes and a couple of announcements have come from this organisation. No Constitution, the list of founding member was withdrawn from public circulation like they had something to hide. We really know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about their aims, their policies or their agenda.

Mrs MaxForce

Guys I know ye all mean well .Can you all not put your difference to one side and help one another .
As far as I am concerned if ye dont stop ye will have nothing to fight about or disagree on as our sport of airsoft could be a thing of the past .
I for one would like to see everyone getting on for the better of airsoft in Ireland .I think ye all need to see the bigger picture and grow up .If we as players ,site owners,retailers do not there will be nothing to fight about .
WHAT WILL WE ALL DO THEN !!!!!!!!!!!:(
Regards Evelyn
[just my personal opinion on this , and i taught woman were ones to argue:)]

kdouglas

<mod hat on>

I'd like to remind everyone that the usual rules regarding discussing any organisation on this forum applies.

Keep it clean and watch what you say. Those making potentially slander or libellous comments will be come down on heavily and certain comments which may go unnoticed or merely warrant an infraction on other threads may very well see you being banned here.

Lemming

Mrs MaxForce wrote: »

guys I know ye all mean well .Can you all not put your difference to one side and help one another .
As far as I am concerned if ye dont start ye will have nothing to fight about or disagree on as our sport of airsoft could be a thing of the past .
I for one would like to see everyone getting on for the better of airsoft in Ireland .I think ye all need to see the bigger picture and grow up .If we as players ,site owners,retailers do not there will be nothing to fight about .
WHAT WILL WE ALL DO THEN !!!!!!!!!!!:(
Regards Evelyn
[just my personal opinion on this , and i taught woman were ones to argue:)]

Evelyn, I think it would be hard to find anyone who would disagree with the sentiment of a single unified body. I certainly don't disagree with it and can see its merits.

I do however have strong reservations and indeed some exceptionally and brutally up-front questions to ask some of those who would appear leading the charge from IASRA concerning their conduct to date. Those questions I will leave unwritten and they shall only ever exist verbally and in person such is their nature.

Busta Hyman

there was a sheet handed out at the meeting . does anyone have a copy or could you post the text for those of us that didnt manage to attend?

teddy bruckshot

id just like to voice my own opinion on this.

as some of you have probaby already guessed its me, your old friend silver haze.

some of you though that i was Derek or one of his hangers on when i launched my previous attacks.

well im not i just felt the guy got hard done by on here.

but i would like to come out and voice my strongest feelings against this "organisation"

they do not have the best interests of the sport at heart, even though i gave out a lot abou the IAA in the as & the cliquiness that appears here on boards, at least they have done something for the sport & now that they are under somewhat new management, i will actually be joining up.

i know im banned as soon as i post this but i hope the mods will leave this post up so that everyone can see that even i, the silver haze, the biggest trollish hater of the IAA & mods ever, am in no way alligned to this joke of an organisation or MIA, they have only one thing in mind and that is to extract as much money from you the player/airsofter/collecter whilst making you feel privilleged for the oppertuninty.

dont be fooled people & that goes double for the other retalers & sites that think they are doing the right thing.

these are the building blocks for a cartel, pure and simple.


Hi Ho Silver.

Rew

Teddy buckshot banned as a re-reg to get around a ban.

Shiva

Sorry this has taken so long folks - I'm not in work today for personal reasons, and I havent had much time to sit down and put this together.

First off, I dont claim this is a complete and accurate account of the meeting - Its merely my own impression of the meeting, and my thoughts on the various points raised.

When we arrived, we were handed a printed list of proposals that would be or will be be put to the IAA at this coming Wednesday nights meeting. The proposals themselves are in bold, italic lettering, and my thoughts and the outcome ( or my understanding of it) will follow each point.

Please note - these are my personal opinions, and I reiterate - I dont claim this to be an accurate and complete account of the meeting, unless I otherwise state parts of it to be so. In the interest of fairness, I'll also put forward the point of views expressed which opposed mine, where I can remember them. Its human nature though, that my own views will be stronger in my memory.

So...without further ado...

1. IASRA and IAA to hold a public meeting for ALL gamers, retaielrs, site operators, etc

No isssues there. If they meet and agree a merger is viable, then it stands to reason this would happen.

2. Both associations setup a new association - The Airsoft Association of Ireland

A few people had a problem with this, myself included. Why should the name change ? The IAA are recognised by the DOJ and media as a point of contact for airsoft. There has been a lot of groundwork laid already by them, and a name change will mean a new organisation starting from scratch. Derek Talbot put forward the viewpoint that there is bad blood between some airsofters and sites and the IAA, and that a fresh start is required.

3. Everyone at the meeting (point 1) should vote in a new constitution and commitee.

I think this was scratched, as it was agreed that a new commitee would have to draft a new constitution and present it to the new members for ratification, and that could not happen at one meeting.

4. No past or serving comittee members of IASRA or IAA can run for the new association.

There was some oppostion to this, with the result that it was amended to "all committee members should resign and if they wish, re-stand for election".

5. All members of both associations become automatic members of the new association.

I dont think this was challenged, and is still on the agenda. Upon reflection, I dont think its legally possible, because members from each organisation would have to sign articles of agreement for the new organisation, but I'll let the IAA and IASRA thrash that out.

6. A Philipino representative will be present on the new committee and every committee thereafter.

This was scrapped as being....well, I'm sorry, bloody stupid. As I pointed out, and Enrico from FRAG agreed with me, if the Philipino players want a representative on the committee, they number enough that they can join the organisation, and vote one of their number in. If we arbitrarily place a member of one nationality on the committee, we immediately discriminate against all other nationalities. Before common sense prevailed and the motion was scrapped, it was suggested that there be a representative from all nationalities on the committee. Think about that for a minute.

7. More than 100 members needed to vote in a new committee.

No particular thoughts on this other than it will be hard to get that many airsofters into a room at any one time, and there will need to be contingency plans in place in the event less than 100 members show up at a meeting.

8. Once the new association is voted in, both IASRA and IAA will stand down and cease operations.

9. New association will be voted on to represent or govern Airsoft by everyone present regardless if they are a member or not.

So....let me get this straight. Any Jack the Lad can show up to a meeting of this proposed organisation, and vote on changes that dont have anything to do with them ? I wonder if Portmarnock Golf CLub will allow me in to their next AGM to vote on some of their issues ?

10. A country wide committee would be preferred to a Dublin based committee.

Personally, I dont see what this is about, other than a way to nit-pick at the IAA. It makes it seem as if theres some IAA rule than only Dublin based people can be on the committee. At the last IAA AGM, the only people who were willing to put forward their time were Dublin based. Are IASRA suggesting that there be some sort of rule that the committee be made up of a ratio of Dublin vs non-Dublin members ?

11. Reduce the influence of boards.ie on Airsoft and to promote a dedicated Irish airsoft forum.

This was a hot topic. The main argument against this was simply how to achieve it ? Will the new organisation legislate that members can not post on Boards.ie about airsoft ? It was suggested by IASRA that all the sites and retailers agree not to promote their businesses on Boards.ie, and only post on a nominated forum. Yeah. Right. Eirsoft was born on Boards.ie, and we have a very strong presence here. I'm the first to admit I get a GREAT boost to my business from the referrals I receive here, and I plan on continuing to use Boards.ie to interact with my customers as long as the site owners and admins will allow me to.

I suggested to Derek Talbot that it could be interpreted that the only reason he wants to move Airsoft away from Boards.ie is because he cannot post here. He denied this. Personally, I believe this is the real reason, but I guess we have to take his denial at face value. His reasons for wanting to move away are, according to him, that lots of kids post trollish and argumentative crap that shouldnt be brought up in public, and that representatives from the DOJ and media can see it. I can see how he might have a point there, but I dont think 1) any new forum will take users away from Boards, and 2) hiding our disagreements and burying things we dont want people to see will benefit no-one, especially ourselves.



So....thats it. They are the basic points that we were there to discuss.

Now...I have some opinions. At one point early in the proceedings, Derek stated that IASRA want to represent ALL sites, retailers and players. Naturally, I jumped on this and asked if this was ALL the sites, retailers and players, or just the ones that were invited to the initial meeting. I made it clear that I thought the omission of myself, HRTA, Airsofteire.com, Cork Airsoft, SE Airsoft and SAS-C was deliberate. I was shushed by some attendees, and told that this wasnt the time or place for that particular discussion. I was also told privately I should be "the bigger man" and get over it.

I'm sorry. The very credibility of IASRA is suspect until that question is answered. I was told that an apology was issued to all those who werent invited after the meeting. I dont see why I should "get over it", and I received no such apology. Frankly, I dont want one. Its far too easy to do something wrong, and apologise for it later, and I dont see why IASRA should get off the hook that easily. We werent accidentally omitted, we were snubbed. I'm not taking it personally, but I'm also not going to allow IASRA just walk away from an intentional slight on five well known businesses in the community, and not let it affect their credibility.

At one point also, Derek Talbot mentioned that the DOJ would be taking into account "the Doppler Effect" and other conditions when chronoing guns, and that a 10% allownace would be tolerated. This is a direct contradiction of what we were told is the case, and flies in the face of the minutes issued by IASRA and the IAA following the meeting with the DOJ.

Which is correct ?

Again, my personal opinion is that IASRA is being driven by one person who's sole agenda is to gain some measure of control over airsoft in this country. I can't see what they bring to the table. They dont seem to have any new ideas at all, and in fact, seem to want to hijack all the work thats been done by the IAA over the last two years.

I've asked a few people what they think the IAA haven NOT done for them as commercial interests, and that IASRA can do, and not one of them could answer me. Derek maintained that the IAA have "done nothing". Other than legitimising airsoft, and representing the airsoft community as a whole, I dont want them to do anything. I wont tolerate the IAA telling me how to run my business any more than I will IASRA, but at least the IAA get this, and havent tried. The only thing they ask of me is that I obey the law, and I do.

To sum it all up, I'd use this analogy -

Imagine Acrington Stanley knocking on the door of Old Trafford, and telling Manchester United that they'll merge with them if Alex Ferguson resigns, they sell Ronaldo, Rooney, Giggs and Ferdinand, and give back all their trophies. Oh....and change their name to Acrington United.

Manchester United's obvious response will be "What are you bringing to the table ?"

So...IASRA - What are you going to do for Airsoft in ireland that the IAA havent already done ?

gandalf

Mrs MaxForce wrote: »

Guys I know ye all mean well .Can you all not put your difference to one side and help one another .

Evelyn I have every respect for you and Martin and what you have achieved. However I am not going to put my differences aside for an organisation except the sporadic outbursts that have appeared on their forums I know nothing about bar it is intimately associated with one character who has been a thorn in my side as a moderator on boards.ie.

As far as I am concerned if ye dont stop ye will have nothing to fight about or disagree on as our sport of airsoft could be a thing of the past .
I for one would like to see everyone getting on for the better of airsoft in Ireland .I think ye all need to see the bigger picture and grow up .If we as players ,site owners,retailers do not there will be nothing to fight about .
WHAT WILL WE ALL DO THEN !!!!!!!!!!!:(
Regards Evelyn
[just my personal opinion on this , and i taught woman were ones to argue:)]

That's fine sentiments but again I have difficulties with the whole formation of this organisation and the characters behind it.

I also resent the attacks on boards that were uttered there. I believe comments were made about boards reflecting negatively on airsoft in Ireland. This I find quite surprising and given if the source was true I find it ironic considering the support they have gotten from this site in the terms of exposure.

At the moment there are 54 people viewing the airsoft forum. There are 4923 people browsing boards.ie all of whom are potential converts and hence customers for airsofting sites and retailers. The other airsofting forums in ireland have single figure numbers viewing their forums at the moment. The IASRA site has a total of 305 threads this thread has over 1500 views. Like it or not this site is the hub for airsoft in Ireland. Given the amount of posting on here it is logical that outside organisations who have an interest whether healthy or not read this site. Boards.ie does not control what people post here, we do act when we see something that we believe is damaging to the sport and damaging to the site. We also rely on ordinary members reporting anything that is offside. My primary interest is to keep this forum running smoothly and to ensure boards is not exposed to any issues. If I have ruffled a few feathers along the way achieving this so be it.

Shiva

Oh....and in case it isnt obvious from that epic post above....

I am vehemently and vigorously opposed to any IAA and IASRA merger.
I think its insulting that IASRA think they have any right to merge with the IAA, let alone merge with them only if certain conditions are met.

If there is a merger, I wont be joining the new organisation.