See Alan Gura Speak in Springfield on Feb. 21st

A couple of days ago, I got a piece of mail from the Illinois State Rifle Association. I was sure it was probably junk, but I opened it up anyway. It was my reminder to send in my cash and get tickets to the annual ISRA meeting.

But what's this--the meeting is being held in Springfield this year? How could that make sense? Springfield is the capital of the state and located almost directly in the center. Shouldn't the meeting always be in the extreme north or south of the state?

And what's this? The keynote speaker is . . . Alan Gura? I don't say this very often, but OMIGOD HE IS DREAMY. I don't mean that in an inappropriate way; I just want to express how impressed I was with the way he handled D.C. v. Heller and suggest that it would be great if we could hang out sometime in rugged and platonic ways. We could fish, for instance, or ride awesome dirt bikes and then exchange high-fives. Or whatever; I don't have to explain myself to you people.

Anyway, if you're done derailing my post, yeah, this year I'm shelling out to go to the ISRA meeting. My wife wants to stay home with the kids, which is OK with me. Anybody else making the drive? Thirdpower, 45Superman, I'm looking in your direction?

UPDATE:
I guess I should give some information, since it's not on the ISRA website yet:
For $40 per person, you get into the reception on Friday evening and the full day Saturday. Saturday's events include workshops on the Personal Protection program and a Legislative Update session, the annual Members Meeting, Board of Directors meeting, and the banquet, at which Alan Gura will be the keynote speaker.

The event will be held at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Springfield. If you're coming south on I55, take the Stevenson Drive exit. You'll actually see the hotel on your right before you see the exit; it's bigger than anything near it. If you pass the big power plant, you've gone too far. Once you take the exit, turn right onto Stevenson Drive, and then almost immediately right again on Dirksen. From there you have less than a mile to go before you see the hotel right there on your right. You've basically made a big u-turn to come back to it by making two right turns, if that makes sense.

If you're coming from the South, the directions are the same, the exit is the same, but you will see the the power plant before you get there. When I55 splits and you have the choice of taking 6th Street or 55/72, go to the right and make sure you're in the right-hand lane. People are going to merge with you from the left and then the left lane is going to end; it's a good place to get whacked.