The Open Carry Argument


The Open Carry Argument

It Will Get Stolen:
Another common criticism of open carry is that the firearm itself will be the target of theft, prompting a criminal to attack simply to get the gun from you.
Same answer as my answer regarding First One To Be Shot.
 

The Open Carry Argument

It Scares People:
One other statement against open carry I hear is that it damages public perception of firearms owners, or that by carrying openly we are not being good ambassadors to the public.
Here I completely disagree with those critical of open carry. The argument is akin to saying that someone should sit at the back of the bus because all the "good people" don't wanna see you and that you should "know your place, boy".
 
The Open Carry Argument

I’m Not Comfortable Carrying Openly:
This is really the only reasonable argument against open carry for an individual.
Washington state is an open carry state, sorta, but I'm not comfortable with it in most circumstances. If Washington were more of a "gold star" open carry state, then I'd carry openly at times, but carry concealed probably most of the time. I see times when open carry makes more sense, but most of the time I think concealed carry makes more sense.
 
I carry a gun not to make a "statement", not to impress someone, not to try and intimidate someone, not because I am on some kind of power trip. I carry for one reason and that is that it levels the playing field. It gives me a better chance of protecting myself and my loved ones. I carry my weapon concealed because it is the law of my state. If open carry is passed in Texas then I for one will carry concealed most of the time anyway. With practice your lose very little time in drawing your weapon but gain great tactical advantage. I doubt very much that most killers intent on doing damage give up just because they see someone with a gun on their hip. Most active shooters just like the Islamic terrorist are not afraid of being killed. They begin their killing spree with the intent on dieing. They have one thing on their mind and that is to kill as many people as they can. Someone with a gun on is not going to change their mind but rather will tell them, "Shoot me first so that I can not stop you". Another thing if you oc rather than cc and fail to chamber a round in your gun then you have completely defeated your whole idea of open carrying to be "faster".
 
Wow I thought I was long winded... Good piece of writing! I live in MA and wish all the time it was the norm here. By the letter of the law it's not illegal, but the way the Class A license description is written here it states carry concealed in a public way. The fact that about 12.5% of the population here are gun owners does not help. Open carry will get attention. Not always good attention so I was told by LEO's that I know, keeping it out of site is the best practice. I don't agree with that, but I do try to be reasonable and decide how and when as it is my choice.

I agree with some parts and have some concerns with others with regards to the post as I'm sure many who have read it do. I agree with the fact that the issue will continue to get attention and the American gun debate will go on.

I exercise my right and speak about it openly when any discussion of politics occurs. I get mixed reactions and I get some positive reactions from people that I didn't expect to agree with me with regard to the right to carry arms. My stance on the subject is one of choice. It should be a choice for all, like the type of weapon, caliber, holster and position of the holster it's an individual choice as is the right itself. It's not for all. For the ones who choose to do it, open carry should not be a reason for harassment by other citizens or LEO. We who read this post and are members of the site “get it” the rest of the people who live here in the US have to come to grips with it and “get it”. Maybe if more people do the open carry thing, the more normal it will become.
Great post… Thanks.
 
They begin their killing spree with the intent on dieing. They have one thing on their mind and that is to kill as many people as they can. Someone with a gun on is not going to change their mind but rather will tell them, "Shoot me first so that I can not stop you".
I long for the Utopia where everyone is OCing. That would make me no more of a target than anyone else. How polite a society we would be. And on the off chance that some psycho would attempt a mass-murder, it would turn out to be not very mass.
 
I long for the Utopia where everyone is OCing. That would make me no more of a target than anyone else. How polite a society we would be. And on the off chance that some psycho would attempt a mass-murder, it would turn out to be not very mass.

That would be great if it could be like that. Unfortunately with all the liberals in office it is not likely to happen anytime soon if ever in this country. At least not until all patriots stand up and run the traitors that have infiltrated our government out of the country.
 
Bear in mind that in the beginning I was harassed, arrested and then 'unarrested', threatened with gun confiscation, belittled, lectured, and detained in handcuffs for open carry. Today, I can walk down the street with no worries about police encounters. If you do nothing, then nothing will change.
 
Bear in mind that in the beginning I was harassed, arrested and then 'unarrested', threatened with gun confiscation, belittled, lectured, and detained in handcuffs for open carry. Today, I can walk down the street with no worries about police encounters. If you do nothing, then nothing will change.

Yep. The exact same is true in Oak Harbor, WA.
 
In my AO open carry is legal with or without a CCW permit. However, you will be hasseled by LEO's.

Most will see you as a nuisence, or possibly even inciting a riot, it's happened once here. Not until LEO"s are well aware of people rights will the tide turn. I open carry to MAKE A STATEMENT just as much as I open carry to have a firearm for self defense measures.

I want police to stop me, to approach me, and to be given the chance to screw up by detaining me, and or arresting me for simply exercising my right to openly carry a firearm. I would welcome the attention that it would bring, but I've not been lucky enough to get one of the LEO's to actually take that chance.

"A RIGHT NOT EXERCISED IS A RIGHT LOST"

Just my .02
 
... However, you will be hasseled by LEO's...
... I would welcome the attention that it would bring, but I've not been lucky enough to get one of the LEO's to actually take that chance...
Is it just me, or do these two statements seem to be contradictory?

Not that I don't believe that it has happened at least once, but I really don't think you have much to worry about in KY.
 
Is it just me, or do these two statements seem to be contradictory?

Not that I don't believe that it has happened at least once, but I really don't think you have much to worry about in KY.

It does happen, but you have to know how to talk to the officers and allow them to make the mistakes of an improper search and siezure. I've not been arrested, but I'm sure some hot shot cop will make it his priority one day.

I'm not afraid to be the poster boy for open carry in this state. If that makes any sense.

Was my two statements contradictory ? I guess so, however the open carry, regardless of this states constitution, still has it's problems, depending on the attitude of the LEO agency.

I'm not attempting to be a smart ass with law enforcement, but I will carry openly from time to time to test the waters and it's generally not good.
 
... Most active shooters just like the Islamic terrorist are not afraid of being killed. They begin their killing spree with the intent on dieing. They have one thing on their mind and that is to kill as many people as they can. Someone with a gun on is not going to change their mind but rather will tell them, "Shoot me first so that I can not stop you".QUOTE]

I don't disagree with the above statement, necessarily. Only the implication that such an event is the main reason any of us carry. Or even in the top 10 for most of us.

If most "active shooters" are not afraid of being killed, why do they typically attack those least likely to defend themselves? I'm talking about Columbine, Virginia Tech, etc. A look at the North Hollywood shootout points to "active shooters" who clearly planned to out-gun any potential adversary. And even at Fort Hood - the shooter clearly knew that military personel are not permitted to be armed while on base. My final example is also the most recent - the scumbag in Washington State that killed 4 cops. What if he'd known (or at least suspected) that a significant percentage of the civilians in that coffee shop were carrying?

There is no magic answer. Open-carry, Concealed-carry and No-carry are the options. Each of us makes our decision based on his or her own priorities and experiences. Now that I have my permit, I find myself CCing more that OCing. However, that often only means an untucked shirt over the exact same rig I use to OC. Other times it means a tuckable IWB rig.

Why do I carry? Pick your cliche. "When seconds count, the police are minutes away". "I carry a gun because a cop would be too heavy." We've all heard them all.

The basic gist for me is pretty simple: if I need it, I have it.
 
I want police to stop me, to approach me, and to be given the chance to screw up by detaining me, and or arresting me for simply exercising my right to openly carry a firearm.

Interesting perspective. The PD where you live must have a lot more money than ours. Considering that our cops are spread very thin already, the last thing I want to do is waste their time acting as bait for one who might make a mistake. God forbid... a human being who makes a mistake!

IMHO, you're energy would be better spent opening a dialogue with your local PD to insure that the officers on the street are aware of the OC and CC laws.

And what would you do if your were detained? File a lawsuit? Yeah... that's productive.

I don't know about Kentucky - but where I live the PD can detain a person for 2 hours without cause. If the same is true where you live, your idea of pitting yourself against LE might only garner you several 1:59 detentions.

It seems to me that working WITH law enforcement makes more sense than setting out to prove them fallible. Just my .02.
 
You make some good points. I usually carry concealed in public, sometimes carry openly in public, and always carry openly in private.

I respect Mr. Ayoob, but I don't agree with "give him a wallet with a few bucks and maybe he'll be satisfied, maybe he won't kill you". If someone threatens me with a lethal weapon, the only logical assumption is that he is going to use it on me. I won't be listening to what he says, I won't be thinking about the value of any of my possessions, I will be thinking about surviving. I will move and shoot. That's the only point of carrying a defensive weapon, openly or concealed. If you're not going to resist, why bother taking any self-defense measures?

Also, whatever surprise value gained by the victim exposing his concealed weapon is offset by the perpetrator having the first move.
Ayoob actually says, toss the dog a bone, then if you have to shoot him any witnesses will say you tried to cooperate and the BG left you no choice. These are my words of what I understood him to say.
 
i think if your a sicko:wacko: that want to shoot someone then all bets are off on this argument i don't want to have to shoot anyone and will take every step that i can so i don't have to but if i do have to shoot someone i am sure that it will not make me happy in anyway:cray: to have to take someones life or defened my self in court for what i have done and why i had to do it so take my wallet but don't make me fear for my life :angry:eek:r i will have to shoot you. to save my owen life and by the way i don't carry cash in my wallet anyway
PS by the way this was to something i read in this argument way early in the topic in the first place mainsail and it was not even you that said it i like what you said and it was a good read so thanks for the read
 
i think if your a sicko:wacko: that want to shoot someone then all bets are off on this argument i don't want to have to shoot anyone and will take every step that i can so i don't have to but if i do have shoot someone i am sure that it will not make me happy in anyway:cray: to have take someones life or defened my self in court for what i have done and why i had to do it so take my wallet but don't make me fear for my life :angry:eek:r i will have to shoot you. to save my owen life and by the way i don't carry cash in my wallet anyway

Uh, can you rewrite that in English?
 
So it like that! you must just like to argue or try and piss people off that fine. just because you can spell good don't make you life smart it just makes you book smart. you have a nice day dude! hope it gets better for you and you find someone that likes argue with you:laugh:
 
So it like that! you must just like to argue or try and piss people off that fine. just because you can spell good don't make you life smart it just makes you book smart. you have a nice day dude! hope it gets better for you and you find someone that likes argue with you:laugh:
Allow me to be a little more diplomatic and first welcome you to USA Carry. I think Mailsail's point is that it's kinda hard to follow your line of thought when you use no capital letters and only one period in the entire paragraph (and it's not even at the end.) Proper sentence structure would certainly help to get your point across, which BTW, didn't really seem to pertain to the topic in the first place. (Another pet peeve of most forum users).

Take your time, use the "preview post" function. Maybe use the spell check on your browser. It will make the conversation flow alot more smoothly.
 

New Threads

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
49,542
Messages
611,255
Members
74,961
Latest member
Shodan
Back
Top