Open carry (good or bad)

Is open carry a good thing or bad thing

  • Good

    Votes: 55 55.6%

  • Bad

    Votes: 44 44.4%
  • Total voters
    99
  • Poll closed .
""Here in West Virginia if you have a Permit your gun has to be concealed,if you don't have a permit your gun has to be out in the open.I think if you have a permit it should be your choice."" quoted from above.

This is royal BS. Just because you pay and jump thru the hoops dont mean you give away your 2A rights!!

I have head it said here in MI the above, but it is not so here.
 
Thank you NavyLT, sakeneko and Sefner - well said, all.

Everytime this subject comes up, I rush to the fray, only to find NavyLT has stated the case with greater clarity and erudition than I could hope. Excellent points, too, from sakeneko (about prudence in open carrying) and Sefner (about being a good ambassador for gun rights in general).

Open carry almost all the time, in an historically anti-gun jurisdiction. I rarely, if ever, wear shorts, and am waaaay too old for the Goth look. Short hair, trimmed beard, neat dress. I hold doors, say "yes, ma'am," and "no, sir," and do my damnedest to show that your neighbor, fellow parishoner, baseball coach, etc. is also a responsible gun owner.

I am also convinced that if the typical street criminal sees a man walking confidently with an open sidearm, he's going elsewhere. His first reaction would be "Johnny Law." Even if he got as far as "armed citizen," he'd figure why tangle with porcupines with all these nice gentle rabbits walking around?
 
Personally unless I am out hunting, hiking or maybe fishing I would never open carry. It scares the sheeple too much, gets unwanted attraction from the police with or without "man with a gun" calls, and encourages the bad guys to challenge you, either verbally or physically. Three perps can disarm you in a heartbeat, you cannot go around shooting people for crowding your space or insulting you. And if you DO end up shooting somebody, the law would be all over you, claiming that you were looking for trouble, just looking to get into a gunfight. If I had 10 other buddys doing it with me in close company, maybe, but alone, not in this life.:eek:
 
I think ANY carry is a very good thing.

I wish my state had OC; but it doesn't. :(

I think OC is "tactically" the best way to carry.

HOWEVER!

I do not think OC is "always" the most prudent & wise choice.
 
The more I read this thread I think different circumstances call for different methods of carry.
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Me 3. But I personally will not let fear of police affect my decision. I've got no problem with those that do, that's their personal decision, but I won't let LEO's personal opinions affect the lawful behaviors that I choose to engage in. And I did take an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against ALL enemies, both foreign and DOMESTIC.
 
Thats what makes sense to me. I mean I can think of circumstances good/bad for both methods. So I would just say they both methods have their place. Neither is a "bad" thing. My firearm would be all steel too ;). I understand where your coming from NavyLt. Owning and Carrying firearms is our right as Americans (too protect our lives or loved ones) and I embrace that.
 
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I voted yes for open carry. I like it. I think it would deter some crime. But on the other hand you may be asking for problems.
 
Greetings, hagar,

To respond to a few things, if I may:

Personally unless I am out hunting, hiking or maybe fishing I would
never open carry.
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Good to go. That works for you, great.

It scares the sheeple too much, gets unwanted attraction from the police with or without "man with a gun" calls . . .
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This may or may not be true. Since we're discussing legal open carry, I'm not too concerned with scared neighbors. That's part of the point. They see normal citizens behaving peacably and going about their business - while armed - and realize, "hey, maybe this isn't such a dangerous proposition."

As to "man with a gun" calls, that has happened to me exactly once. Outcome? The police used it as an opportunity to educate the complainant, and never once contacted me, even though I was still sitting right there.

This is only possible because better men than me were willing to put up with some grief from ignorant citizens and ignorant police officers who didn't understand the law. Now they do.

. . . and encourages the bad guys to challenge you, either verbally or physically.
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A simple miststatement of fact. Where are your data to support this? I can attest after, oh, seven years of fairly constant open carry in a highly urbanized area (over 1,000,000 in our county), this is simply not true. Heck, 90 percent plus don't even notice an openly-carried sidearm! It's true! :D

Three perps can disarm you in a heartbeat, you cannot go around shooting people for crowding your space or insulting you.
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Well, are you shooting them because they tried to disarm you, or because they "crowded your space and insulted you"? If the latter, I would gently suggest you revisit carrying in any form.

Yes, three determined adversaries have a good chance of disarming you, if they're reckless enough to try. Point being, they will look elsewhere, where they are less likely to end up crippled, maimed or dead. Criminals like to minimize risk, believe it or not. See NavyLT's first post in this thread.

And if you DO end up shooting somebody, the law would be all over you, claiming that you were looking for trouble, just looking to get into a gunfight.
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Another bald assertion made without a scintilla of evidence. Rest assured, my good man, if you DO shoot someone, the law will be all over you no matter what you were doing. If you haven't prepared for that stark reality, I humbly suggest you should reconsider carrying a firearm outside your own domicile.

Sure, the prosecutor will try to make hay with anything and everything, from your demeanor, to your internet postings, to the frequency of your range visits (frequent? blood lust! rare? incompetent!). But we're discussing a practice no more illegal than carrying a Blackberry.

If I had 10 other buddys doing it with me in close company, maybe, but alone, not in this life.
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Ahh, delightful. We come full circle. Again, I say, "good to go. That works for you."

Whatever you choose, please stay well, sir.
 
Mr. James said:
Another bald assertion made without a scintilla of evidence. Rest assured, my good man, if you DO shoot someone, the law will be all over you no matter what you were doing. If you haven't prepared for that stark reality, I humbly suggest you should reconsider carrying a firearm outside your own domicile.
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And, in some states, INSIDE your own domicile as well! :mad:
 
I usually have one within arms reach wherever I am. My S&W1911 sits on my desk right now as I type. I dont want to have to go running for one in my house. I think when most people are home they assume they are safe(most of us here probably realize theres still danger). You know what they say about "assuming" anything. I rather be prepared.
 
I wish my state allowed open carry. One is because concealment enforces many restrictions, and when TX gets as hot as it does like right now, it is very, very hard to conceal a handgun when you're wearing a t-shirt and shorts.

Open carry, makes the bad guys scared, but you're the first to be a target.
I would like my gun to be more "semi-concealed", where my weapon does not have to be concealed, and if exposed, I can't get in trouble for it. But at the same time, I don't want to draw attention to myself. oh what a joy it would be to have free carry laws. Just put your gun on and go, without worrying.

I would rather open carry.
 
Dear stalwart guardian of the gentle oves,

thesheepdog said:
Open carry, makes the bad guys scared, but you're the first to be a target.
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If you could provide some examples where a legal open-carrier was actually selected as a target "first" because he was open carrying, that would do so much to advance the discussion! This open carrier is not personally aware of any such, and he presumes to pay attention to such things. Granted, the possibility alone is sobering enough to give one pause.

Best regards,
Bob James
 
If you could provide some examples where a legal open-carrier was actually selected as a target "first" because he was open carrying, that would do so much to advance the discussion! This open carrier is not personally aware of any such, and he presumes to pay attention to such things. Granted, the possibility alone is sobering enough to give one pause.
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Just logical. If you're a bad guy getting ready to rob a bank and you see a guy open carrying in that bank, you'll do 2 things
1. Have second thoughts about robbing the bank
2. Take out the guy that is open carrying

Being that the odds of you actually getting involved in a scenario like I metioned are slim, just think about it. You are the one who is a threat to bad guys. Either they'll be afraid of you, or they'll get you first.
Every adavantage has a disadvantage. There's not argiung on that.
But if your state allows open carry, then all power to you, because it is much easier to carry a gun un-concealed that to conceal one. And that also means you have quicker access to your sidearm.
Conceal carry offers the advantage of blending in with everyone else around you. So, being targeted is less of an issue.

As always, whether you open carry, or CC, training to perfection is what will save your life if you ever have to use your sidearm in self defense.
 
"I can easily see the same thing happening with open carry - some jackass is eventially going to see if he can make you draw your weapon for kicks and giggles. I see no advantage to this."

The answer is simple, in a case like you describe, leave. I have nothing to prove, and will not even attempt to out bray a jackass.

"When you put on your gun, put away your pride and ego." Wodrow W. Smith from the collected sayings of.
 
Well I know I'm going to get a lot of heat for this but I'm going to say it anyways. I don't really see where a need for open carry makes sense unless you're out in the wilderness or on a farm where very few people are around.

If you're worried about yourself or your family get a CCW, open carry is something that is going to scare or bother most people. Maybe people shouldn't be scared by this but the fact is most people are. Also, you're only going to attract a lot of attention, it may be somewhat of a deterrent but it also makes you the first person a criminal is going to target. At least with a CCW the criminal doesn't know if you're armed or not.

Regarding it being faster from OC that's very minimal and like I said before you also make yourself more of a target. I could say that you'd be even faster than OC if you carried the weapon in your hand all the time but obviously that doesn't make sense.
 
Personally, I don't want to open carry. But I think that open carry laws are a positive thing for gun rights. And it may help to desensitize a gun shy public.
 
Open carry laws go a long way to protect you when your shirt inadvertantly rides up revealing your concealed sidearm. "But it's supposed to be concealed!" "Sorry ma'am, Michigan is an open carry state, anyway."*





*Don't expect that level of understanding in Wayne county.
 
i open carry frequently, and cc even more. even when i oc i still have my cc as a bug.

i get asked the infrequent questions(mostly "are you a cop?"), but most people dont notice.
 
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