Would You Advise Someone To Open Carry In Detroit?


I come from Detroit. I would not open carry there because I would become an immediate target. Thing is, I won't even go to Detroit...it's too dangerous now, yet I was raised there...makes me sick to see what it has become!
 
Go to:

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And read cmdr_iceman71 postings. The gentleman openly carries two sidearms and rides his bicycle around Detroit. I must warn you though... that link will take you to a thread with more than 5000 postings. Those postings are not just from cmdr_iceman71 but are from many folks who routinely open carry uneventfully in various places all around Michigan.

Now I realize that 5000+ postings is a bit of a project to go through... but anyone with any intellectual honesty about how open carry ISN'T such a big deal would at least check it out and read a few.
 
I don't spend my money in any anti gun state or city. Looks like nobody else spends money in that trash pile either. I carry everywhere, you see folks we have a constitution.
 
I don't understand why anyone voluntarily would stay in Detroit and surrounding areas.

If I had to live in Detroit, I'd have an armored car and be armed to the teeth everywhere I went which wouldn't be out and about much.

It's a war zone and the war is being fought against animals.
 
Just cruising the new posts and I saw this one. My first gut reaction to the question was everyone knows how bad things are. Like Chicago shootings are a way of life there it seems.
Why would you set yourself up to be shot from a window or other hidden location so the urchins can just run up and take your open carried from you. It would never make it to your cold dead hands!:no:
 
My druthers IF I had to open carry would be a Hand Held M134 Minigun. If I can't carry that, I ain't going...................
 
Guys, I grew up there and lived there for a long time. I agree with Docmath, suggest concealed instead.
 
I open carry for the tactical advantage.

It seems many people open carry in Detroit without a problem over at opencarry.org. so yes I would advise it.
 
Don't see why not. No more chance of being a target there due to the weapon in plain sight than anywhere else in the country.
 
If I were to go to Detroit (like NEVER) I would not open carry unless I had my wingman. And he had a wingman, and .....

It doesn't take a village - it would take an army.
 
Don't see why not. No more chance of being a target there due to the weapon in plain sight than anywhere else in the country.

This subject is not worth arguing over, but........I did throw Chicago in with Detroit, right or wrong. So by your statement it is safe to assume that Chitown and Detroit aren't any more dangerous or have higher gun crime then any other large city! These cities and their crime stats are not somewhat unique?
I am not against "open carry". I just think that "situational awareness" would be something to consider. That said I am not going there even if I can by a house for a dollar!
docmath>>>>> Makes sense to me!
 
This subject is not worth arguing over, but........I did throw Chicago in with Detroit, right or wrong. So by your statement it is safe to assume that Chitown and Detroit aren't any more dangerous or have higher gun crime then any other large city! These cities and their crime stats are not somewhat unique?
I am not against "open carry". I just think that "situational awareness" would be something to consider. That said I am not going there even if I can by a house for a dollar!
docmath>>>>> Makes sense to me!

No, I didn't say that. I replied to the comment that by open carrying you would be more at risk, which is not the case. Docmath stated he wouldn't open carry because he felt he would become an instant target, disagree with that was what my comment was directed at. Your statement was that there are people that would shoot you for the mere fact you are carrying, just so they can run up and take your weapon. Again, think that is quite a stretch and I must respectfully disagree.

My statement was meant to point out that even in Detroit, as anywhere else, people who open carry are NOT any more of a target due to the gun than anyone else.

As to your comment about situational awareness, no matter how you carry, you should have that at all times.
 
There is no tactical advantage to open carry, if anything you guarantee someone is going to shoot first if their intention is to rob you after seeing your openly carried firearm.
 
There is no tactical advantage to open carry, if anything you guarantee someone is going to shoot first if their intention is to rob you after seeing your openly carried firearm.

I open carry for the tactical advantage.

There is no tactical advantage to conceal carry, if anything you guarantee someone is going to choose you first if their intention is to rob you and shooting you after seeing your behind the curve surprise firearm.
 
It would be interesting to see, beyond conjecture on both sides of this open v. concealed argument, some data on it. Is open carry a deterrent? Under what circumstances (e.g., Detroit v. somewhere else)? Same for concealed carry? I do not recall if John Lott's work on the "More Guns, Less Crime" idea ever looked at the relationship among crime rates and open/concealed carry. Need to reread it. Are there "armed citizen" case reports that support one idea or the other or can tell us when one might be preferable?

Certainly with regard to presentation there is going to be a difference, although I would also suggest that with adequate situational awareness, the difference in presentation time - at least for me - is on average a matter of a tenth of a second. Significant? Perhaps. But if an assault is in close quarters (suggesting a failure in SA) would an assailant be more prepared to preempt or foul the draw of someone they knew to be carrying or would they move on to another target? How does the situation change this?

We do not have open carry here, so for me for now it is a moot point, more an academic exercise. If we did, I am not sure whether I would do so or not and have yet to have to make the decision.
 
It would be interesting to see, beyond conjecture on both sides of this open v. concealed argument, some data on it. Is open carry a deterrent? Under what circumstances (e.g., Detroit v. somewhere else)? Same for concealed carry? I do not recall if John Lott's work on the "More Guns, Less Crime" idea ever looked at the relationship among crime rates and open/concealed carry. Need to reread it. Are there "armed citizen" case reports that support one idea or the other or can tell us when one might be preferable?

Certainly with regard to presentation there is going to be a difference, although I would also suggest that with adequate situational awareness, the difference in presentation time - at least for me - is on average a matter of a tenth of a second. Significant? Perhaps. But if an assault is in close quarters (suggesting a failure in SA) would an assailant be more prepared to preempt or foul the draw of someone they knew to be carrying or would they move on to another target? How does the situation change this?

We do not have open carry here, so for me for now it is a moot point, more an academic exercise. If we did, I am not sure whether I would do so or not and have yet to have to make the decision.
Perhaps the most convincing argument for open carry isn't the amount of incidents reported/researchable where open carry has been reported to deter a criminal.... but actually is the absence of incidents reported where open carry has NOT been reported to deter a criminal.

I know that seems backwards yet please consider. Open carry has been practiced by many people for many years, actually decades, in just Arizona (I'll just use one State as an example) yet the amount of incidents where open carriers where "shot first"... or "targeted for their gun"... are amazingly rare. One could draw the conclusion that the reason those incidents are so rare is because..

open carry deters the criminal from targeting open carriers for their gun and open carriers are NOT "shot first".

I mean... if that old myth that open carriers will be "shot first" or "targeted for their gun" were true it stands to reason after decades of open carry in just one State (Arizona) there would be hundreds, if not thousands, of reported incidents where that has actually happened.

And let us remember that if there were any incidents where open carriers were targeted or shot first the media would jump on it and make it a focus for even more gun control. Yet... after decades of open carry that has not happened.

So... perhaps... sometimes in order to prove a positive it is necessary to show that there isn't a negative?

So........... I constantly challenge folks.... where are all the cites and/or links to the multitude of incidents where open carriers where "shot first" or "targeted for their guns". Remember.... there are freaking DECADES of open carry to draw from in just Arizona.
 
Full disclosure, so take my opinion FWIW: I'm a new gun owner and CPL holder. I don't see the point of open carrying in Detroit or anywhere else for that matter. In my opinion, you're making yourself a target in one of the most dangerous cities (if not the most dangerous) in America. If I see someone open carrying in Detroit, I won't go and lecture them, but I'll ask myself why would he/she do that. So...why would they? The only answer is that they can because of the 2nd Amendment and because it's legal to OC in Michigan. In my opinion, there's no other answer. But I also equate the "I open carry because I can" mindset to the bad ass in high school who dances with your woman because he can (kick your ass). If I was such a bad ass, I'd wouldn't look for trouble but if it came looking for me I'd kick some ass. I'm not saying people who OC are looking for trouble, so don't put those words into my mouth. I might be over-simplifying things but that's just my belief. I don't want to offend anyone who OCs all the time and I would never look down upon a person who responsibly OCs either. A responsible gun owner is a good thing. My preference is to conceal.

Here's where many of you might think I'm contradicting myself. Some of you may have heard of Nick Somberg who does "For Liberty Fridays" (every Friday) in which he, his girlfriend and other open carry advocates stand on a street corner in Lake Orion, MI with their pistols, AR-15s, and shot guns. Their sole purpose is to wake up the sheep and bring attention to open carry laws and the 4th Amendment, specifically searches and Seizures pertaining to firearms. I think this is a very good thing. The more sheep he wakes up the better. See below for more details if you've never heard of Nick. He's going to law school. The link shows a few videos. One video shows how really bad police officers handled the situation, and the other shows how a single police officer handled the "For Liberty Friday" exhibition properly. I wish there were more cops like him.

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This subject is not worth arguing over, but........I did throw Chicago in with Detroit, right or wrong. So by your statement it is safe to assume that Chitown and Detroit aren't any more dangerous or have higher gun crime then any other large city! These cities and their crime stats are not somewhat unique?
I am not against "open carry". I just think that "situational awareness" would be something to consider. That said I am not going there even if I can by a house for a dollar! docmath>>>>> Makes sense to me!

If you could buy a house for a dollar, you'd lose that dollar when some baboon decides to burn it down. I live near Detroit and choose to stay out of the city, since I attach a little bit of value to my life (unlike current Detroit residents).
 

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