Dear Jeffrey;
First, if indeed you did ask questions of the club's office or staff and were not granted a response, I
heartily apologize. This is wholly contrary to all club and corporate policies. In fact, if you did not
receive a response to ANY question, then I am comfortable in stating that the question was never
received by the office or any staff member. And it is for that "problem" I am apologetic, though we
have no control over such matters as lost mail or misdirected e-mail. We answer some 300 inquires
per week. No member inquiry is ever left unanswered. Admittedly, the answers are not always in
line with that member's wishes, but we do answer every single inquiry nonetheless.
As for your statement "No response from VHA on my concerns other than an air of indignance, that
one so low as a member of "our" club should voice concerns over very basic issues." I can only say
that either you do not know the meaning of the word "indignant" or you are simply not being
forthright in your expression and/or assessment. In any event, no member of the staff would ever
dare to treat any member, for any reason, with an indignant tone or attitude.
I do not know where the peculiar rumor that the range and reloading room were for the exclusive
use of the staff started, but I will address those specific issues herein:
First, the reloading room. Until the completion of the warehouse, the reloading room was being used
for storage, as well as for the photos taken in-house for use in the magazine. This left the reloading
room all but dysfunctional for its intended purpose. In all of 1999 the room was used four or five
times to clean guns, twice to assemble reloading equipment items sent by manufacturers, four times
to mount rifle scopes and twice for actually reloading ammunition — though only range testing loads
were made up; less than 100 rounds, surely. I personally did not load any ammunition in there at all
in 1998 or 1999. I think you should also know that roughly 95% of all the equipment and 100% of
the supplies in the reloading room belong to me - not the club. This is to say that I bought and paid
for them personally. Still, during the course of 1999 approximately 40 members used the reloading
room for one matter or another. To my knowledge, only three or four members were told they could
not use it — the majority of them during Jamboree. This was due to projects ongoing that consumed
all the available space. Of course, it's risky to let people use the reloading room. We have no
insurance for firearms related accidents occurring in that room.
Now on to the range. I shot at the range twice this year. Once to test target altitudes and alignments
for the Shootout. The other time to help some staff members sight their guns in for the annual staff
shoot. Last year, I used it for the same purposes and the same number of times. John Anderson has
done some testing for articles out there — two articles, I believe, but no other staff member has used
the range at any other time in 1998 or 1999. I have spent many hours out there, however, as have
most other staff members. We planted all the trees ourselves, built the roads, did a lot of the
construction work and painting, and have accomplished all of the gravel (road/parking) and
landscaping tasks to this point.
With the exception of the days of Jamboree, when the entire staff is completely scheduled and tied
up for at LEAST 12-hours every day, members ARE allowed to use the range. We escorted many
of them out there this year — some even on weekends. Of course, we do not allow members who
live close by to access the range so easily. We cannot yet build our final facility out there. So to
accommodate a member who comes through town from Wyoming, or even Sioux Falls, we must
have a staff member accompany the member and stay with them while they use the facility. Even
inasmuch as this is quite difficult (with our very lean staff) we do it. We also have no insurance for the
range at any time other than during the Jamboree. Because we have no staff assigned to the range full
time — and really have no need of that as yet — this type of insurance is cost prohibitive. When
winter is over and the ground dries up so that we may again open the range, we will have to start
having members who use it sign a waiver of liability. This, as per our attorney.
I also notice (by way of your e-mail referencing the money generated by the magazine) that you
"believe" you are informed regarding the financial matters of this organization and its publication.
Your comments make very clear your thorough lack of correct or complete information. I see a lot
of this same propaganda tactic in the mainstream media. Sort of a "who cares about facts, let's make
it read interestingly — or at least in our favor." So let me give you some information that IS accurate:
1) Varmint Hunters Association, Inc. is a corporation. As such, of course, you are not legally entitled
to any information regarding the corporation, its owners, its policies other than consumer-related
ones, or its affairs. This is the same with most other organizations — shooting/hunting or otherwise.
2) I own no part of Varmint Hunters Association, Inc. Nor do I own any stock in the corporation.
3) I put $256,000.00 cash into the start of this organization.
4) I have not gotten the overwhelming majority of the money loaned to Varmint Hunters Association
returned. I do not collect any interest, nor do I charge any. (Let me see. . . If I had put that income
into some low-yield investment back in '91 & '92 — say a laughably low returner averaging only 8%
per annum — how much would the interest alone equate to in my pocket today?)
5) I do not now, nor have I ever received paychecks. I work a minimum of 50-hours per week
exclusively for the club.
6) Marc Minkin has not ever received a paycheck, nor does he own any part of Varmint Hunters
Association, Inc. or any stock in it. Marc works an average of 55-60 hours per week exclusively for
Varmint Hunters Association, Inc.
7) Christi Heller, my wife, also does not get paid. Christi works at least 40-hours per week
exclusively for Varmint Hunters Association, Inc.
8) According to the MPA's (Magazine Publishers of America) most recent statistics, to replace
Marc, Christi and myself on the magazine staff alone would cost the club right around $141,000.00
per year. Frankly, I've never computed what it would cost to replace us in the other areas we
perform tasks in. These areas would include construction, grounds maintenance, systems
maintenance, running the "business" of the club, answering mail, attending events at our own expense,
speaking, doing radio and TV shows, cleaning, etc., etc.
9) Based on what Marc & I charge in our primary business, which is computers, Varmint Hunters
Association, Inc. owes us somewhere in the vicinity of $650,000.00 for custom programming;
network design, setup and maintenance; updating, etc. This would be the total since 1991 when we
started the club. We do not charge or even send invoices to Varmint Hunters Association.
10) Lastly, you are completely incorrect. The Contributing Editors are NOT the only writers who get
paid.
Well, now that you know those FACTS — and there are many others which affect the matters at
hand, but they're not worth mentioning herein. It would be accurate to say that the organization is
currently fiscally healthy. It would be completely inappropriate and horrifically inaccurate to say that
the club or the magazine makes money. If Varmint Hunters Association had to service the debt to
me and pay salaries to replace Marc, my wife and myself, we'd have been out of business a long,
long time ago. As a profit-generating business, it's a dismal failure. But then it wasn't started to
become a cash cow. It was started to bring focus, respect and attention to an ignored segment of the
market. It was started so that Marc and I could "put something back" into the shooting world we'd
enjoyed so much. It was started so that those members who entrusted their funds ($24 per year) to
us could be assured of getting value for their dollar. And so that they would KNOW that their club
actually cared about them, and the shooting community and future as a whole. According to the
copious correspondence we receive, we have been eminently successful in reaching these goals.
You know, Varmint Hunters Association supports hundreds of charitable shooting activities every
year. While expensive to do, it helps get the word out about shooting, hunting and gun safety. It
helps to ensure the future of our sports for our progeny. It has earned varmint hunting, the club —
and its members — a new respect throughout the shooting industry and shooting community. We
can ONLY afford to do this because of the salaries we do NOT have to pay.
Frankly, sir, I do not ordinarily engage in writing such letters as this one. I do not care who pens
dribble about my "big head." Nor do I care when I read about how I am "using" the club so that I
can access the range and reloading room. For one reason or another, someone gets angry and
assaults me personally; about something they have no knowledge of — much the way the
anti-hunters and antigun crowds do. Besides, the staff knows what's really going on, as do all the
members who contribute their efforts to the club. As do many members who just stop in town for a
few days. Or like the members I've met at the clubhouse on Sunday — just so they could watch a
video, or check out the first issue. My home phone number is on the clubhouse door, as is Jackie
Rheborg's, so that no matter when a member comes, he is allowed in. Trying to explain the "realities"
to someone who initiates contact with aggression is a fruitless waste of time. Their minds are already
made up. And, most importantly, I don't care about what those people "think" anyway. After all,
none of them know me at all. Their presentations are, in fact, conjecture and fantasy.
Then too, I might be lying about what I've said. Or, like others, I may be trying to pass off false
information as accurate in order to achieve a result. So I tell you what I'll do — to prove that my
cards are all on the table and that I'm shooting straight. You bring your lawyer, accountant and
checkbook to Pierre. Within 24-hours I'll have transferred all of what I have in Varmint Hunters
Association, Inc. to you. All you'll have to do is: 1) have your lawyer draw up the papers 2) pay me
back the money that company owes me 3) pay off all corporate loans that I am personally signed for
4) Pay Marc Minkin the money Varmint Hunters Association owes him 5) convince me that you will
treat the members with the appropriate care and concern. This means you'll need about
$600,000.00, in exchange for which I will give you my nonpaying job — as I have no other interest
in this club or corporation, save for the fact that I am the elected Chief Executive Officer for the
corporation — but I don't get paid for that either, and I shall resign the moment your check clears.
Now, if you insist on getting on line and besmirching someone with your "old-woman's gossip tenor,"
I would suggest that you focus on me. That will be easier for you as I will not return fire for mindless
assaults on me personally. But for you to get on line and deride the staff, or the club's policies
towards the members, or the members as a whole is unacceptable. Particularly the staff, as you did
with your comments about indignant treatment.
Lastly, so that you know, the tone of this letter is not intended to be friendly. It is not intended to be
an explanation of facts to a member who has posed reasonable questions or has legitimate, relative
concerns. You see, I don't know if you are a member. I only have your first name and — of course
— no member number. You might be one of those people I get release data on. One of those "antis"
who sends false press releases, or visits hunters web sites dispensing viruses and other tidbits of
destructive data. Then too, you could, possibly be a member. In that case, I have broken the first
rule of the club: ALWAYS make the member happy! A rule I wrote myself. And that would be
terrible and unforgivable. And in that case, I would not blame you if you wanted to quit the club. So
just mail me your ID card and patch and I'll refund (personally) your ENTIRE paid membership
dues — irrespective of how many magazines you've received. Then too, you may just be on your
way here with your lawyer and your checkbook to take over this "vast empire." Either way is just
fine with me. My guess is that you'll just keep spitting out the same inaccurate, useless, destructive
lies — doubtless for some "good" and "honorable" cause. At least in your mind.
Signed,
Ned Kalbfleish, PERSONALLY
NOT as a representative of Varmint Hunters Association, Inc.
???
First, if indeed you did ask questions of the club's office or staff and were not granted a response, I
heartily apologize. This is wholly contrary to all club and corporate policies. In fact, if you did not
receive a response to ANY question, then I am comfortable in stating that the question was never
received by the office or any staff member. And it is for that "problem" I am apologetic, though we
have no control over such matters as lost mail or misdirected e-mail. We answer some 300 inquires
per week. No member inquiry is ever left unanswered. Admittedly, the answers are not always in
line with that member's wishes, but we do answer every single inquiry nonetheless.
As for your statement "No response from VHA on my concerns other than an air of indignance, that
one so low as a member of "our" club should voice concerns over very basic issues." I can only say
that either you do not know the meaning of the word "indignant" or you are simply not being
forthright in your expression and/or assessment. In any event, no member of the staff would ever
dare to treat any member, for any reason, with an indignant tone or attitude.
I do not know where the peculiar rumor that the range and reloading room were for the exclusive
use of the staff started, but I will address those specific issues herein:
First, the reloading room. Until the completion of the warehouse, the reloading room was being used
for storage, as well as for the photos taken in-house for use in the magazine. This left the reloading
room all but dysfunctional for its intended purpose. In all of 1999 the room was used four or five
times to clean guns, twice to assemble reloading equipment items sent by manufacturers, four times
to mount rifle scopes and twice for actually reloading ammunition — though only range testing loads
were made up; less than 100 rounds, surely. I personally did not load any ammunition in there at all
in 1998 or 1999. I think you should also know that roughly 95% of all the equipment and 100% of
the supplies in the reloading room belong to me - not the club. This is to say that I bought and paid
for them personally. Still, during the course of 1999 approximately 40 members used the reloading
room for one matter or another. To my knowledge, only three or four members were told they could
not use it — the majority of them during Jamboree. This was due to projects ongoing that consumed
all the available space. Of course, it's risky to let people use the reloading room. We have no
insurance for firearms related accidents occurring in that room.
Now on to the range. I shot at the range twice this year. Once to test target altitudes and alignments
for the Shootout. The other time to help some staff members sight their guns in for the annual staff
shoot. Last year, I used it for the same purposes and the same number of times. John Anderson has
done some testing for articles out there — two articles, I believe, but no other staff member has used
the range at any other time in 1998 or 1999. I have spent many hours out there, however, as have
most other staff members. We planted all the trees ourselves, built the roads, did a lot of the
construction work and painting, and have accomplished all of the gravel (road/parking) and
landscaping tasks to this point.
With the exception of the days of Jamboree, when the entire staff is completely scheduled and tied
up for at LEAST 12-hours every day, members ARE allowed to use the range. We escorted many
of them out there this year — some even on weekends. Of course, we do not allow members who
live close by to access the range so easily. We cannot yet build our final facility out there. So to
accommodate a member who comes through town from Wyoming, or even Sioux Falls, we must
have a staff member accompany the member and stay with them while they use the facility. Even
inasmuch as this is quite difficult (with our very lean staff) we do it. We also have no insurance for the
range at any time other than during the Jamboree. Because we have no staff assigned to the range full
time — and really have no need of that as yet — this type of insurance is cost prohibitive. When
winter is over and the ground dries up so that we may again open the range, we will have to start
having members who use it sign a waiver of liability. This, as per our attorney.
I also notice (by way of your e-mail referencing the money generated by the magazine) that you
"believe" you are informed regarding the financial matters of this organization and its publication.
Your comments make very clear your thorough lack of correct or complete information. I see a lot
of this same propaganda tactic in the mainstream media. Sort of a "who cares about facts, let's make
it read interestingly — or at least in our favor." So let me give you some information that IS accurate:
1) Varmint Hunters Association, Inc. is a corporation. As such, of course, you are not legally entitled
to any information regarding the corporation, its owners, its policies other than consumer-related
ones, or its affairs. This is the same with most other organizations — shooting/hunting or otherwise.
2) I own no part of Varmint Hunters Association, Inc. Nor do I own any stock in the corporation.
3) I put $256,000.00 cash into the start of this organization.
4) I have not gotten the overwhelming majority of the money loaned to Varmint Hunters Association
returned. I do not collect any interest, nor do I charge any. (Let me see. . . If I had put that income
into some low-yield investment back in '91 & '92 — say a laughably low returner averaging only 8%
per annum — how much would the interest alone equate to in my pocket today?)
5) I do not now, nor have I ever received paychecks. I work a minimum of 50-hours per week
exclusively for the club.
6) Marc Minkin has not ever received a paycheck, nor does he own any part of Varmint Hunters
Association, Inc. or any stock in it. Marc works an average of 55-60 hours per week exclusively for
Varmint Hunters Association, Inc.
7) Christi Heller, my wife, also does not get paid. Christi works at least 40-hours per week
exclusively for Varmint Hunters Association, Inc.
8) According to the MPA's (Magazine Publishers of America) most recent statistics, to replace
Marc, Christi and myself on the magazine staff alone would cost the club right around $141,000.00
per year. Frankly, I've never computed what it would cost to replace us in the other areas we
perform tasks in. These areas would include construction, grounds maintenance, systems
maintenance, running the "business" of the club, answering mail, attending events at our own expense,
speaking, doing radio and TV shows, cleaning, etc., etc.
9) Based on what Marc & I charge in our primary business, which is computers, Varmint Hunters
Association, Inc. owes us somewhere in the vicinity of $650,000.00 for custom programming;
network design, setup and maintenance; updating, etc. This would be the total since 1991 when we
started the club. We do not charge or even send invoices to Varmint Hunters Association.
10) Lastly, you are completely incorrect. The Contributing Editors are NOT the only writers who get
paid.
Well, now that you know those FACTS — and there are many others which affect the matters at
hand, but they're not worth mentioning herein. It would be accurate to say that the organization is
currently fiscally healthy. It would be completely inappropriate and horrifically inaccurate to say that
the club or the magazine makes money. If Varmint Hunters Association had to service the debt to
me and pay salaries to replace Marc, my wife and myself, we'd have been out of business a long,
long time ago. As a profit-generating business, it's a dismal failure. But then it wasn't started to
become a cash cow. It was started to bring focus, respect and attention to an ignored segment of the
market. It was started so that Marc and I could "put something back" into the shooting world we'd
enjoyed so much. It was started so that those members who entrusted their funds ($24 per year) to
us could be assured of getting value for their dollar. And so that they would KNOW that their club
actually cared about them, and the shooting community and future as a whole. According to the
copious correspondence we receive, we have been eminently successful in reaching these goals.
You know, Varmint Hunters Association supports hundreds of charitable shooting activities every
year. While expensive to do, it helps get the word out about shooting, hunting and gun safety. It
helps to ensure the future of our sports for our progeny. It has earned varmint hunting, the club —
and its members — a new respect throughout the shooting industry and shooting community. We
can ONLY afford to do this because of the salaries we do NOT have to pay.
Frankly, sir, I do not ordinarily engage in writing such letters as this one. I do not care who pens
dribble about my "big head." Nor do I care when I read about how I am "using" the club so that I
can access the range and reloading room. For one reason or another, someone gets angry and
assaults me personally; about something they have no knowledge of — much the way the
anti-hunters and antigun crowds do. Besides, the staff knows what's really going on, as do all the
members who contribute their efforts to the club. As do many members who just stop in town for a
few days. Or like the members I've met at the clubhouse on Sunday — just so they could watch a
video, or check out the first issue. My home phone number is on the clubhouse door, as is Jackie
Rheborg's, so that no matter when a member comes, he is allowed in. Trying to explain the "realities"
to someone who initiates contact with aggression is a fruitless waste of time. Their minds are already
made up. And, most importantly, I don't care about what those people "think" anyway. After all,
none of them know me at all. Their presentations are, in fact, conjecture and fantasy.
Then too, I might be lying about what I've said. Or, like others, I may be trying to pass off false
information as accurate in order to achieve a result. So I tell you what I'll do — to prove that my
cards are all on the table and that I'm shooting straight. You bring your lawyer, accountant and
checkbook to Pierre. Within 24-hours I'll have transferred all of what I have in Varmint Hunters
Association, Inc. to you. All you'll have to do is: 1) have your lawyer draw up the papers 2) pay me
back the money that company owes me 3) pay off all corporate loans that I am personally signed for
4) Pay Marc Minkin the money Varmint Hunters Association owes him 5) convince me that you will
treat the members with the appropriate care and concern. This means you'll need about
$600,000.00, in exchange for which I will give you my nonpaying job — as I have no other interest
in this club or corporation, save for the fact that I am the elected Chief Executive Officer for the
corporation — but I don't get paid for that either, and I shall resign the moment your check clears.
Now, if you insist on getting on line and besmirching someone with your "old-woman's gossip tenor,"
I would suggest that you focus on me. That will be easier for you as I will not return fire for mindless
assaults on me personally. But for you to get on line and deride the staff, or the club's policies
towards the members, or the members as a whole is unacceptable. Particularly the staff, as you did
with your comments about indignant treatment.
Lastly, so that you know, the tone of this letter is not intended to be friendly. It is not intended to be
an explanation of facts to a member who has posed reasonable questions or has legitimate, relative
concerns. You see, I don't know if you are a member. I only have your first name and — of course
— no member number. You might be one of those people I get release data on. One of those "antis"
who sends false press releases, or visits hunters web sites dispensing viruses and other tidbits of
destructive data. Then too, you could, possibly be a member. In that case, I have broken the first
rule of the club: ALWAYS make the member happy! A rule I wrote myself. And that would be
terrible and unforgivable. And in that case, I would not blame you if you wanted to quit the club. So
just mail me your ID card and patch and I'll refund (personally) your ENTIRE paid membership
dues — irrespective of how many magazines you've received. Then too, you may just be on your
way here with your lawyer and your checkbook to take over this "vast empire." Either way is just
fine with me. My guess is that you'll just keep spitting out the same inaccurate, useless, destructive
lies — doubtless for some "good" and "honorable" cause. At least in your mind.
Signed,
Ned Kalbfleish, PERSONALLY
NOT as a representative of Varmint Hunters Association, Inc.
???