HAPPY BIRTHDAY TEXAS CHL FORUM

[MoJo]

It was Wed, Dec 22, 2004 at 7:42 pm when Charles Cotton opened this forum. From one who has been around since the second day I wish to say, It's been a great eight years and I hope the forum continues for a long time. It's a great place to hang out thank you Charles.

[carlson1]

All I can say is a Big THANK YOU for a great place not only to hang out, but to learn. I did not show up until December 2005, but it has been wonderful ever since. I am not for sure how many people I have pointed towards the Forum. Everyday I learn something from reading the post on the Forum.

[hpcatx]

Thank you, Charles! We all owe you a debt of gratitude for your vigilance in protecting our 2A rights and furthering the cause of CHL in Texas, through legislative means, the NRA, etc. -- but I cannot qualify my thanks for your creation and continued dedication to the unique community that is Texas CHL Forum. Through the education and discussion that occur on these pages, you empower others to go out and articulate the compelling answers to the antis' arguments. And then, of course, there's the camaraderie based on everyone's passion of shooting and the enjoyment of getting to "virtually" know other forum members.

[PBR]

congrats and thanks for such a great place

[Chris]

I forgot how I even found out about this place. I was directed from somewhere.

[longtooth]

My thanks too. I was a late new guy. Took me til the summer to find it.
Thanks Charles. I know it has been trying sometimes but this is a great resourse for everyone of us. Especially ladies, new shooters, & new to carry.

[Diesel42]

Thanks Chas!

I've learned a lot, but the most important benefit of this forum is the validation of my values.
Thanks,
Nick

[psijac]

[DLBConductor]

A great thank you to Charles and all the moderators on creating one of the best sites on the Internet. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

On a personal note, the information I learned about concealed carry and self-defense here on Texas CHL Forum played a major role two weeks ago in helping me get out of a carjacking attempt and may have well saved my life. Thank you all for your great posts!

[ElGato]

still The Place for CHL'ers and alway's will be!

[Skiprr]

Tom, you need to post more. 'Cause you're the best there is.

Eight years. Wow. Who'd a thunk it.

A big tribute to a seemingly simple concept by Charles Cotton that sprouted wings and exceeded all expectations.

When launched, Charles expected a few hundred members. Today, over 12,000 browse these pages. And over 725,000 posts.

IMHO, this was a niche that needed filling.

Thank you. All of you.

[chasfm11]

This is truly a birthday worth celebrating. And I'll add my big "THANK YOU" to Charles for making it possible. The wealth of information and the insight of many different forum members makes coming here and reading every day worth the time investment.

I suspect that other families are like mine with the impact of the forum going far beyond just the person like me who does the reading and posting. My wife now reads it for herself and her ideas about CC have changed markedly. I often share information that I see with our extended family and with a wide circle of friends. I think it is important to get accurate information about guns and the 2nd Amendment into our society and the practice of expecting links to source material here means that the information is available to be shared.

An additional side benefit for me was seeing how a forum should be run. The combination of the consistent contributors and the moderators seem to keep the discussions lively but civil. Some of the RV forums where I used to spend my time were not that way at all and I very much appreciate the change.

It is a shame that only 12K out of the 600K Texas CHLs have found the value here. Of course, there is no telling how many "lurkers" there are who are not registered.

[C-dub]

Happy Birthday and thank you so much to Charles and all the moderators and everyone else that makes this forum such a wonderful place to visit and gain knowledge. I've only been a member for a little over three years now and this sneaks up on my every time.

[RPBrown]

Thanks to Charles for starting the forum.

I wasnt here as fast as MOJO but shortly after.

Also, a big thanks to all of the modirators for keeping it a great place.

[Charles L. Cotton]

As Skiprr said, thanks to you the Members for making the Forum what it is today. All I did was load the software, push the "Go" button, and followed Ronald Reagan's philosophy of surrounding yourself with talented people, our Moderators, because they will make you look good.

My Moderators are a great bunch of guys and a gal and they work hard to make the Forum a place where our Members feel comfortable. We said from the beginning that we wanted women to feel at ease and we wanted parents to be able to refer their kids to the forum and neither would be possible unless the Forum was different from most Internet discussion groups. That's why we guard against personal attacks and profanity with such zeal. Some say we go a bit overboard and perhaps it would be if our target audience were only adult men, but it's not. Women are more at risk of becoming a crime victim than are we men and our children need to know the truth about responsible firearms ownership and use, and you folks have made that possible.

There is one aspect of the Forum "family" that has been a surprise and a very pleasant one at that. We can be having a spirited discussion and disagreement (within the bounds of the Forum Rules), but when someone posts a prayer request everything is put aside and two or more people who strongly disagree on an issue are praying for the other person's needs. This is how the world should be everywhere, but unfortunately it isn't.

Thanks Members for making our vision of what a discussion forum could be become a reality.

Chas.