Who open carries?

[homeagain]

Wear a shirt that says security. Then most people wouldnt wonder why you have a gun.

 

Or at least a handgun carry permit badge clipped next to the weapon, dark glasses and moustache......

[TGO David]

My point is that many gun owners draw an arbitrary line on which expressions of gun rights they support and which ones they don't. Joe Manchin is still considered by many to be pro-2A (general term for pro-gun rights), but most on this board would say that he is not because he supported universal background checks regardless of how he has voted on other issues in the past. In 1934 we lost rights because all gun owners didn't stand for the group that owned SBR's and SOS's. In 1968, we lost more. In 1986, full auto manufacturing was eliminated because most gun owners didn't see the need for full autos. It happened again in 1994.

These instances of losing rights did not happen because people exercised their rights to own these types of weapons before the bans. We all agree that thinking so would be out of line. We lost those rights because gun owners did not support all gun rights. If OC is lost because most gun owners didn't care, they will come after CC with more vigor and momentum.

 

Let's be clear:  This isn't about the right to carry arms, it's about you essentially wanting permission to carry them openly to enlighten people.  

 

This has nothing to do with a person's legal permission to carry a firearm openly as granted by the state of Tennessee so long as they have a Handgun Carry Permit.  You can buy that permission from TDOS already.  There's no need for me to fight for you to obtain the permission to do something you can already do.  As has been stated, Tennessee does not recognize the Second Amendment as the only legal authority you need to carry a firearm on your person in this state.  If you want to fight something, fight that.

 

That being said, my handgun isn't a political podium.  I don't carry it to make a political statement or to enlighten anyone.  I carry it for my self defense, and I carry it in the means that provides me the most strategic advantage.  If you want to carry yours openly and scare the sheep, just keep in mind that you run the risk of scaring them straight to the closest sign-maker to whip up another "SHALL NOT CARRY" posted location, or to the nearest politician who will promise them to make it all go away if they vote for them.

 

Or you'll end up like this assclown:

 

 

 

Whether you want to believe it, or like it, openly carrying does inspire a reaction and it may not always be the one you want.  You will pass by dozens of people each day who may not say a word, but you've inspired a reaction with them and it likely won't be a positive one.  You have no control over what someone else may think or do as a result of your choice to strap one on and walk around with it visible.  And their reaction may not come in the form of a question or even a terse word to you on the spot.  It may come later in the form of a ballot being cast against visibly displayed firearms for HCP owners (it's illegal to let your concealed weapon be seen in some states) or in the form of yet another retail store or restaurant being posted as anti-gun.

 

I support your right to make dumb decisions.  I just don't support your exercising that right when it harms my ability to exercise the same one a little more discretely.

[turkeydad]

I was thinking the same thing I'm sorry I dont mean to offend anyone. . but everytime I hear about or see someone open carrying I think. . "great another wannabee kwik". .

All it does has ever done is upset the sheeple and get more gunbuster signs posted and provoke the libs to pass more restrictive laws on behalf of the sheeple. . .

 

As I have said before you may be within your rights to stand in front a kindergarten with a bag of candy. . a tube of ky jelly and a copy of the Kamasutra. . just because its your right doesnt mean its the right or smart thing to do. . .

 

This whole notion of "raising awareness" by open carrying is assinine. . and in my opinion is practiced by those who are "compensating" for some other inadequacy or just doing an adult version of "Stewart" from Mad TV. . going around saying "Ive got a gun.  ..look what I can do". . .

[turkeydad]

And another point. . you walk into someones business open carrying. . and if he has other patrons complain. . congratulations you just forced that business owners hands into posting. . not because he or she wants to. . .or even agrees with the concept. .  but because of the need to protect his or her business. Remember folks those who would not do business this a location because it is posted are far out numbered by those who would not go in becasue they were concerned about someone in there open carrying their "hog-leg" trying to get their mall ninja on. .

[Guest nra37922]

I practice a strict 'stay under the radar screen' policy.  The Confidant Shirt Gun Holster by Kramer,  the NRA compression T-Shirt or an IWB tuckable or pocket holster, pant dependent of course,  Isn't anybodies business that I may or may not be carrying and I like it that way.  I have no problems with anyone wanting to OC, Lenny excluded as he is too far out there, its just not my cup of tea and as I stated I don't want the attention.

[gjohnsoniv]

So carry as the situation dictates isn't good enough for some on here?

[TGO David]

So carry as the situation dictates isn't good enough for some on here?

 

Did anyone say that?  It sounds like you're picking an argument.

[RobertNashville]

As I understand the history of the 1996(?) law that began to return our ability to carry a firearm on our person in public, the only reason the law doesn't mandate concealment was to avoid the problems (and possible criminal charges that can come) when your weapon is  accidentally exposed (i.e. you bend over to pick up something off the ground or the wind moves your shirt/cover garment and someone sees your weapon). But as if often the case, people take that allowance to extreme and want to carry openly all the time everywhere and berate anyone who question the wisdom of doing so; especially when the open carry is done with an attitude (how dare the stupid sheep get spooked and react badly).

 

If those who open carry do so for the purpose of "educating" the sheep and/or do so without taking into consideration "where" they are going to be, "when" they are going to be there and "who" is going to see them then they shouldn't be surprised if Tennessee reverts to the standard of most states which is to MANDATE concealed carry.

[Guest nra37922]

As I understand the history of the 1996(?) law that began to return our ability to carry a firearm on our person in public, the only reason the law doesn't mandate concealment was to avoid the problems (and possible criminal charges that can come) when your weapon is  accidentally exposed (i.e. you bend over to pick up something off the ground or the wind moves your shirt/cover garment and someone sees your weapon). But as if often the case, people take that allowance to extreme and want to carry openly all the time everywhere and berate anyone who question the wisdom of doing so; especially when the open carry is done with an attitude (how dare the stupid sheep get spooked and react badly).

 

If those who open carry do so for the purpose of "educating" the sheep and/or do so without taking into consideration "where" they are going to be, "when" they are going to be there and "who" is going to see them then they shouldn't be surprised if Tennessee reverts to the standard of most states which is to MANDATE concealed carry.

With you 100% on this.  Kind of like the clowns who qualify with a .22 and then start packing a .45 with no or little additional training because they CAN.  Just because one can doesn't necessarily mean one SHOULD.  One can still OC and cover with a jacket/coat.  But as I said earlier I prefer not to draw attention to myself, thus not being a priority target should the shtf.

[div]

I open carry now and then, especially during hunting season. I CC when around town on normal daily routine, but when in the woods easy access is what matters to me. And when I go into town I don't stop and swap weapons/holsters - in fact I don't even bother to take the compact with me.
I've never had anyone look at me twice, and I've never had anyone stop me to talk about firearms either.
I see both sides of the argument on cc vs oc. I think there's a time and place where each can be the better choice.
And I agree that all gun owners should support all of our rights, whether we personally choose to take advantage of them or not. If you don't support it now, it may be gone tomorrow when you decide you do want it.

[KahrMan]

So I am shopping at the West Nashville Wal Mart  Sunday.  I have my Kahr pm9 on my hip in a nice iwb holster.  Then I notice a man with his wife and little girl oc'ing a full size P series Ruger.  I just shook my head and thought, must be a Kwik fan.  I can only imagine what some of the other customers thought.  To each his own I guess but oc'ing is just not for me.

[Erik88]

Once you live in a state that doesn't allow open carry you will appreciate the freedom that much more. I OC'd several times while in TN and I can only  recall one negative reaction(Wal-Mart manager while buying ammo). Other than that most people were so clueless they never noticed and I had several people make positive remarks. I didn't do it to make a political statement and I was pretty selective on where I would OC.

 

I don't believe any of the open carry theories have ever been backed up back fact. I remember one dude in Wisconsin who was targeted because he was openly carrying but what we don't know is how many crimes have been deterred by OC.

 

I really miss the option down here in FL. There are some nice state parks near us that we go to and it would be much more comfortable if I could OC while on the trails.

[DaveTN]

I don't believe any of the open carry theories have ever been backed up back fact.

You don’t think people openly carrying guns have been shot when they unknowingly walked into a crime in progress, or have been targeted because they were a perceived threat to someone?

[deerslayer]

 

I don't believe any of the open carry theories have ever been backed up back fact.

 

The fact is that my workplace will get posted because an OCer came in and scared an employee.  No theory involved.  The bad part is that this guy probably tells everybody that he's never had a negative reaction. 

[deerslayer]

Not trying to shame, trying to point out the truth of the matter that we have to support each other. I could care less if somebody prefers CC to OC. In fact, I rarely OC in public. But when we stoop to calling other carriers "nimrods" for carrying in a way that's comfortable to them, we are seriously hurting our cause.

 

Practice what you preach and support Kwik. 

[Erik88]

You don’t think people openly carrying guns have been shot when they unknowingly walked into a crime in progress, or have been targeted because they were a perceived threat to someone?

 

Talk about a knee-jerk reaction. Do you have examples Dave? I'm not saying it's never happened but it's certainly not the norm. This is one of those myths that's been regurgitated so many times people accept it as reality.  

 

Here is an example of open carry possibly preventing a crime.

 

http://forum.pafoa.org/open-carry-144/147404-oc-may-have-prevented-crime-leo-encounter.html

[Q-tip]

Practice what you preach and support Kwik. 

Kwik's intent is to stir up trouble. I thought this was obvious. The guy who carries with a safely holstered pistol while eating/running errands, shopping with his family etc., is probably not trying to stir up trouble. 

[RobertNashville]

...The guy who carries with a safely holstered pistol while eating/running errands, shopping with his family etc., is probably not trying to stir up trouble. 

Maybe not but why do so many of those eventually wind up coming here or to another forum complaining about all the "stupid sheep" who overrated to their carry method without any understanding that the person who openly carried is responsible for the reaction?

 

I suspect that a lot of the people who regularly or always open carry do so for reasons that have nothing to do with "deterrence" or "quicker access to their weapon" or any of the other usual excuses; more likely it's to make an ill advised political statement, to tweak the nose of the "sheep" or for their own ego.

Edited August 14, 2013 by RobertNashville

[LenoirGunner]

He could have easily and just as effectively exercised his second amendment rights without sabotaging yours and mine if he had used a little discretion. We would be wise to remember that the sheep, dumb as they may be, sometimes determine where we can and cannot exercise our second amendment rights.

Everything you post I read in Bert's voice. Makes it so comedical. Sorry.

[Dane]

So I am shopping at the West Nashville Wal Mart Sunday. I have my Kahr pm9 on my hip in a nice iwb holster. Then I notice a man with his wife and little girl oc'ing a full size P series Ruger. I just shook my head and thought, must be a Kwik fan. I can only imagine what some of the other customers thought. To each his own I guess but oc'ing is just not for me.

I can imagine that there must have been wild panic in the store. People running away from this mad man screaming. I'd even bet the swat team showed up to deal with this wild OCer.









Or more than likely you were the only one in the store that noticed.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[Q-tip]

I suspect that a lot of the people who regularly or always open carry do so for reasons that have nothing to do with "deterrence" or "quicker access to their weapon" or any of the other usual excuses; more likely it's to make an ill advised political statement, to tweak the nose of the "sheep" or for their own ego.

How many people do you think are OCing at any given time in the US? 1,000? 2,000? Every single day. Yet an OC baiting video pops up every few weeks. Heck, if only 1,000 people OC in an entire week, and a whopping 10 baiting videos show up during that time, you're looking at 1% of the OC population. That's a pretty low percentage to judge and entire group by.

Personally, I OC (on the few occasions I do) purely for comfort and deterrence. All of the people I have ever personally sen OCing were doing normal things like eating or working. No cameras, no followings, etc. several times I asked friends I was with about it, and they never even noticed the OCers. The normal folks are the ones not causing a scene and tend to get noticed much less.

[TMF]

I've only seen a few people OC and they seemed pretty normal.  They looked like the type of dudes that tuck their shirt in no matter what.  I'm not that guy, so I don't have an issue putting a shirt tail over it.

 

I'll tell ya though, when I see a bait video of an OCer trying to get into an altercation with the police so he can squawk about rights, I want to jump through the screen.

[Fallguy]

I'm going to try and start to more.

[Erik88]

I'm going to try and start to more.

 Man, where have you been?

 

Welcome back!

[Fallguy]

Man, where have you been?

Welcome back!

Long story.

Thanks