U.S.A. –-(AmmoLand.com)- Recently while I was at Petco, a man walked in, and he was quite a sight to see. This man was in his late 50’s to early 60’s, in decent shape. He wore green Condor BDU pants bloused on his black 511 Tactical boots, a black 2A moto tee was tucked into his BDU pants. On his hip was an openly carried Springfield XDS, with extended magazine, jammed into a Serpa holster. He was buying some dog food.
Immediately after paying, his head dives into his smartphone like his neck is a wet noodle. I watch him as he exits, and he remains like this all the way until he gets into his new Chevy Colorado. The man is almost is struck by two vehicles on his way through the parking lot, with him completely oblivious to the world around him. Bad gun, bad holster, bad outfit, bad mindset. Classic. I’ve seen guys like him dozens of times and it’s always something painfully similar to this.
Open Carry
Open carry is legal in my city. Open carry is your right in much of the country. For places where it isn’t, I think it should be. That being said, open carry is often a sign of incompetence, and I almost exclusively advise people against the practice. I’ve never seen anyone publicly open carry with good equipment, nor with any serious amount of awareness or training.
Time and time again it’s been proven that open carry does not deter threats, does not make you a good ambassador for our rights, and doesn’t give you an edge in a fight.
Open Carry As a Deterrent Against Crime
Open carry doesn’t deter people from attacking cops, and they actually have some level of training to defend against that on top of holsters designed to defeat a gun grab. In addition to training and quality retention holsters, police can call for backup in a jam. I doubt many of you, if any, can say the same thing.
Most people struggle to make effective hits on a stationary target or simply operate their gun under no stress. Trying to incorporate weapons retention, in-fight weapons access, and other skills without training doesn’t go well for the average shooter. Your conceal carry class, “been shooting all my life”, or an enlistment as an 11B/0311/3P0 doesn’t guarantee your effectiveness. Do you have the skills and equipment necessary to fight back against someone trying to take your openly carried firearm?
Fighting on Whose Terms?
Open carry also presents issues outside of the gunfight. Now you’re alerting everyone to the presence of your firearm, threat or not. This means it is automatically in play in any defensive encounter, not something you can choose to reveal or continue hiding based on the situation at hand. With the gun openly displayed, you are now someone who can be dealt with quickly, instead of you waiting for your moment to counterattack.
Before someone says it, I know you’re talking out your ass when you say nobody would ever get the drop on you, or you never let anyone within XYZ distance of yourself. You and your Meal Team 6 ninja friends can go back to the land of Make-Believe to scare the children and soccer moms.
Man with a Gun
Don’t forget the potential for Karens or legitimately concerned citizens calling 911 with reports of “a man with a gun” at the sight of your openly carried pistol or long gun. That’s certainly not a situation I want to put myself in, and I live in a fairly gun-friendly area. Especially in light of recent mass casualty events, from movie theaters to grocery stores, schools, and more, concern for those armed in public continues to grow. Do you know what to do if someone were to call you in for a crime you didn’t commit?
Open Carry Exceptions
This piece is regarding open carry in public, occupied areas. Time spent hunting or on your private land is another matter, and not entirely relevant here. There are pros and cons to situations such as those, which is outside the scope of what we’re talking about today. I know someone would bring this up, which is why I’m addressing it here.
Parting Thoughts on Open Carry
Go get good training, read quality resources, and buy good equipment. If you don’t take my word for it, trust people like Greg Ellifritz, who has an awesome piece compiling over 60 recent examples of open carriers losing their guns or being killed due to carrying openly. He then goes on to link dozens of other articles where various experts like Massad Ayoob, Jeff Gonzales, and others give their opinions on the subject. You can read that >>HERE<<.
If you decide to open carry, do it in a Level 2 or 3 retention holster like those from Safariland, with a service grade pistol, and have significant training under your belt. Go take Jiu Jitsu, jump into an ECQC class, and find ways to enhance your situational awareness. Better yet, continue to study and train, but carry concealed in a quality holster like those from JM Custom Kydex, Tenicor, Raven Concealment, and others.
About Dan Reedy
Dan is an Air Force veteran, avid shooter, and dog dad. With a passion for teaching, he holds instructor certifications from Rangemaster, Agile Training & Consulting, and the NRA. He has trained with Darryl Bolke, Mike Pannone, Craig Douglas, among several other instructors, amassing over 400 hours of professional instruction thus far. In his spare time you’ll find him teaching handgun, shotgun, and less lethal classes.
Dan’s work has been published by Primer Peak, and The Kommando Blog, and he has been featured as a guest on Primary & Secondary.
WOW, Hard to come up with a reply for some much negatively. A lot it if depends on what state one lives in. As a 33 year Law Enforcement veteran. A certified instructor with instructor certifications form 3 certifying entities. In rifle, pistol, shotgun, patrol rifle, police shotgun, Police handgun. Having certified hundreds of police to meet my state requirements. Running my own firearms training business. I don’t have enough space here to even come close to contradict the BS put out in this article. Carry as you like. I carry either way as it suits me. I recommend others… Read more »
Ill go with that, I like constitutional carry for the,if you accidentally expose it does not matter protection it gives and going hunting I open carry my backup weapon
Being law enforcement doesn’t automatically mean you have experience as an armed civilian, much like how your unnamed certifications don’t automatically make you knowledgeable on the subjects you speak to here. Vague comments do nothing but reduce credibility, especially when paired with the anonymity of the internet. When there is significant data that shows one method of carry is detrimental to your health and the acceptance of the 2A community at large, I’d say “carry as you like” probably isn’t the most intelligent solution.
What I’d say is that Mr. Reedy seems very determined to ridicule anyone with an opinion different to his own. Even one from a qualified instructor of many more years experience.
Yet another bright red flag showing narcissism. Such people should be ignored, and most certainly never hired as an instructor. Mr. Reddy’s newbie students will likely fall victim to his personal bias, and then go on to spread his misinformation. At least some of them. What a shame.
“Carry as you like. I carry either way as it suits me. I recommend others do the same.”
Easy for you to say, as an ex-cop.
Im not much better was federal still a leo, dont think of myself that way but in places (not new york) they accept the badge as god still do not like it
Thanks. Understood. But you don’t hide it, and you don’t tell folks to act as if they can get away with everything ex-cops do with no risk of having their lives wrecked by current cops. BTW, my reply was not Duane, but to OPE (TEX) who deleted his post. I don’t know why Ammoland won’t fix that glitch that makes it look like you replied to someone else when some tiger talker deletes his post.
and their down votes dont go with them
You lost me at “meal team 6”. Using the worst examples of open carry that you can find to make your point is rather straw-man-ish. Associating open carry with outliers like “mall ninjas” and suggesting that people who open carry are overweight people (who ALSO have the right to keep and bear arms, just like everyone else) isn’t the way to make your point.
I agree with most of the sentiment – clearly, dressing like you’re on a Spec Ops mission is a Bozo No-No. And it is better to carry concealed because then you have the choice of whether / when to produce your firearm. BUT (everyone knew a BUT was coming) When I’m on a road trip, I am carrying in a crossdraw. When it’s hot, and I stop for gas, or to get a soda / red bull / water,I often don’t bother to put on an untucked overshirt just to cover the firearm. I just go about my business pumping… Read more »
And 2 more
“Time and time again it’s been proven that open carry does not deter threats, does not make you a good ambassador for our rights, and doesn’t give you an edge in a fight.” Bullshit. You can’t prove a negative. If an attack doesn’t happen you will likely never know about it. All we have in that regard is interviews with convicted criminals where they state that they won’t attack known armed persons. As for the list of open carriers being attacked specifically for their guns, I did not go through it right now due to lack of time, but generally… Read more »
“Dan is an Air Force veteran, avid shooter, and dog dad. With a passion for teaching, he holds instructor certifications from Rangemaster, Agile Training & Consulting, and the NRA. He has trained with Darryl Bolke, Mike Pannone, Craig Douglas, among several other instructors, amassing over 400 hours of professional instruction thus far. In his spare time you’ll find him teaching handgun, shotgun, and less lethal classes”
‘I are an expert cause I took lots of training’. Go join Pincus in the grifters room.
Christ, Pincus is one of the last people I’d associate with. Training, reading, and first hand experience are how people build knowledge. Any other tips from the legendary Hazcat?
“I’ve never seen anyone publicly open carry with good equipment, nor with any serious amount of awareness or training.” Well, maybe it’s because where you live is just chock full of citidiots, both with guns AND without. Or perhaps you just don’t look very hard, because your biases have a good firm hold on your perceptions, making them flawed. Where I live, in Montana, I’ve seen hundreds of open carriers, and never had a problem with a single one. Nor with concealed carriers either. Now with unarmed fools, yeah, I’ve had problems with too many of those! I think this… Read more »
He has no real world experience ,and air force is not on the ground marine or army ranger , some here are/were , many ex leos prefer open carry because that is what they did on the job. working out doors open carry protection from bobcats bears rabid dogs snakes fast draw ……in town cc two or three locations defense from large predators …I like constitutional carry as it protects you from a brandishing charge from accidental exposure
when i teach i tell the students all the pros and cons and let them make there own decision. the only time i open carry is when in my vehicle and maybe pumping gas. in the beginning i open carried while going to the store and got to many negative looks, i stopped open carry pretty quick and all my equipment is top notch. i think its not a good idea to advertise you are carrying and situational awareness is best. if you open carry the bad guy will take you out first. we can talk about this all day.… Read more »
oh and i forgot to mention when i sometimes do open carry i would get smiles from people. there is a pistol packin momma
The whole “bad guy takes out the open carrier first” has been way overstated, is statistically vrty rare, and gives way too much credit to bad actors. Very few bad guys are like DeNiro and Kilmer in Heat.
What happens more often, as in Ayoob’s example in Idaho, is that the baddie sees armed victims and beats feet. And with luck, the armed NOT victims notice the baddie fleeing at warp speed, thinks it odd, and calls the LEOs, who sometimes get lucky, as they did in Idaho.
OFC, I would assume that Reedy will call Ayoob not an authoritative source, even though he recommended him as an expert in his article. But that was before he knew that Ayoob disagrees with him. Sneaky inconsistencies, another hallmark of the narcissist.
What a d-bag take. Crap on and gate keep a guy going about his day, pretending he doesn’t have the same right to walk around with a cell phone as everyone else. Not every firearms carrying individual has to turn themselves into John f****** Rambo. Lecturing telling them to go take jujitsu why the f*** go take jujitsu they have a gun on their hip. You know what bothers me, the people that open carry that bother me? it’s the ones who whenever you get near them they get into this like tense defensive ready for action demeanor. I very… Read more »
When I see an open carrier it means I can relax since that means there is more than likely no realistic expectation of violence occurring in that area. If you live in an area where violence happens, then you don’t advertise that you have 300-5000 worth of precious metals on your hip, to a person that would kill you over a look or for twenty bucks. The open carrier needs to have some situational awareness though or they shouldn’t do it. I saw an old guy in Western Montana loading his groceries and he was going to get rolled for… Read more »
If you read the article you’d see the link to a piece which details dozens of open carriers being assaulted (and many killed) for their firearms. Being so dense that you nearly allow yourself to get struck by multiple vehicles makes that gun on your hip less than useless, essentially turning you into a loot drop for a motivated bad guy. I am also not advocating for being a paranoid mall ninja, which is equally bad for 2A rights.
He mentions ju jitsu & guns taken. My friend is Brazilian police special force & ju jitsu fighter. One of his gigs: training cops to resist that, what to do-not do wrestling over guns. Usually females. Tidbits: Don’t take a hand off to block a blow since he’ll get it; if he takes a hand off she gets it. Drop mag before shooting him, as it won’t cycle with hands all over it. The one in the pipe’s her only shot but if he gets it it’s loaded. Drop mag 1st, he gets hole & empty gun, and so on
Removing all of the context, and just leaving the “… why the f*** take jujitsu …” part, well Judo and Juditsu are a lot of fun!
This is perhaps one of the most ignorant and self-righteous posts I’ve ever read on Ammoland. So much so, I’ll be doing a video one my channel just to counter all the nonsense here because I don’t have the time to type it all. – CJ Grisham, President/Lead Attorney, Open Carry Texas
Looking forward to what you have to say and that sources cited in said video.
I’ll provide just as many sources as you did. Deal? By the way, I noticed you changed the main photos for your story. Too much heat?
Here is my response:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXPt-Bpa2R4
And Reedy did NOT respond. OFC not. He knows the first rule of holes. When you’ve dug yourself into a hole you can’t get out of.. STOP DIGGING! 🙂
Although I don’t open carry, for reasons mentioned in the article and some comments, I like for it to be legal since I would rather not be arrested if I were to have a wardrobe malfunction or otherwise get “made.”
Air Force, NRA, and a bunch of instructors nobody is familiar with. Obviously YMMV.
Man, not being familiar with Tom Givens, Darryl Bolke, Massad Ayoob, and the host of other folks just goes to show your ignorance. It might serve you well to get some training from people who are internationally recognized as subject matter experts in use of force, conceal carry, and a variety of other gun-centric topics.
So let’s talk about Ayoob’s opinions some more. Not just drop his name, but actually hear what he has to say on this subject. Feel free to ignore them the same as you’ve done before: QUOTING: “Where this writer is coming from is the lonely middle ground. I’m not against open carry, but I don’t carry that way exclusively except when wearing a police department-issue uniform. Years of doing just that have left me acutely conscious of the fact some folks are scared of guns, and a few of them would just love to take the gun from you for… Read more »
“Bummer of a birthmark, Hal.” Gary Larson Far Side
I’ve often wondered why the Brits painted targets on their aircraft .
Bummer of aircraft art, Neville
I’ll gladly allow someone else volunteer to be the biggest target.
You must be this one guy on the HRCC discord.
He said this almost exactly as you wrote it.
He also is arrogant, condescending, ignorant, and makes wild generalizations and assumptions.
“I support open carry, but…” is too similar to “I support the second ammendment, but…”
I’ve never heard of HRCC. Trying to convince people to avoid tactics that are proven to be dangerous is different than being an anti-gunner, good try though
I’ve carried openly and concealed for over 40 years … well over. After reading your so-called “wisdom”, you are the one I’ll ignore here on out. You could have shortened the article a bit. Just say, “Leave your guns at home. The crooks always win.” and ended it right there. No… you ran on and on and ONNN. Do I need to tell you where to put your advice, bubba? Nah… you think you’re smarter than the rest of us. A word to the wise … YOU AREN’T.
Unless you have a .50, pearl handle hog leg in a rhinestone studded holster, it has been my experience that most people are oblivious to the little.380 tucked discreetly on your hip. If someone does notice it , they are more curious than afraid, and usually ask what brand and caliber.
Gosh – I saw someone walking through a crowded store in full CASS regalia including a pair of hog legs which I’d guess were 45LC.
I stared curiously – but it seemed as though none of the hundred or so other people there even noticed.
I love living in a gun friendly part of a gun friendly state!
XDS is a “Bad Gun”? Why???
Because the author is a self-righteous douchebag who thinks his taste is superior to others.
There’s a link in the text to explain why. Essentially they malfunction at a higher rate than other pistols such as those from SIG Sauer, Glock, CZ, etc. While they’re certainly better than something from Hi Point or SCCY, they’re not to the level of what are typically considered “duty grade” pistols. Aaron Cowan and Greg Ellifritz, who have seen thousands of students each, both report substantial issues with XD series of guns that is notably higher than brands mentioned above.
I have
threefour different XD series handguns, one (my XD40) I’ve had for about 15 years, and never had a single problem with it. It’s my EDC when I’m not carrying my 1911. There is nothing wrong with the XD series pistols.The open vs concealed debate has been raging on for quite some time, almost as long as the “which is better the 9mm or any other caliber”. I recently came across an excellent article advocating for open carry but in the end the author believed it was up to each person to make their own decision. This is a long read but certainly worth the time:
https://www.usacarry.com/forums/open-carry-discussion/7230-open-carry-argument.html
> Time and time again it’s been proven …doesn’t give you an edge in a fight.”
Cite your references, please.
https://dailycaller.com/2015/04/22/the-pro-liberty-choice-dispelling-the-myths-of-open-carry/
The Daily Caller is a tabloid, not a legitimate source. If you read the entire article you’d see where I do reference material previously compiled by Greg Ellifritz, a nationally recognized subject matter expert in the firearms world, which also includes material collected by other SMEs like Massad Ayoob, Jeff Gonzalez, and others.
And just WHO gets to decide what is a “legitimate source”? Why Mr. Reedy and his friends OFC! The biggest of the “red flags” that the speaker is showing his bias. As just one example, let’s follow the article’s advice and hear from some others that get their name dropped, but not quoted. I will use quotes instead of just drop the names of famous people. “Open carry advocates believe the practice deters criminals, who generally seek easy marks and don’t want to get shot. Open carry opponents say, “Show me one case.” OK! In 2013, a 40-ish psycho named… Read more »
“Air Force veteran” . . . All you need to know.
Eat my shorts, grunt !
I second that!
I wouldn’t blow off his article for that reason (there are enough other reasons to trash this article even if the basic premise is correct), but anyone who cites having been in the Air Farce as part of his shooting experience then has to attack the skill level of trained infantrymen by lumping them together with mall ninjas, clearly this is a clown on a par with Harold as one to read only for laughs.
There was a time earlier in our nation’s history when open carry was the norm. Only bad guys carried concealed it was thought… Society has, over time, become more accepting of concealed carry and open carry has become a show of force. Making others uncomfortable or even fearful. While I do prefer to keep mine concealed, I’m glad to have the option of open carry if I felt it was needed.
Carry on!
I guess that makes me old, ’cause Open Carry was normal and common in the part of Florida where I grew up. Nobody knew or cared is it was legal or permitted. Anyone that wanted to carry just did it. Pickup truckscame from the dealers with gun racks installed. When people started moving in from “Up North”, things changed because as everyone knows, “Things Are Better Where I Come From.” Yeah, I guess that’s why they moved from their homes with bars on the windows to a place where locking the door meant hooking the latch on the screen door… Read more »
I do hope this is the last article printed by Ammoland, from this character. For a supposed gun owner, he sounds very negative. His responses are nothing but negative. I appreciate seeing opposing views and a decent conversation, but after reading and downvoting ( while getting blocked for downvoting the author too many times, I guess ) too many people, suddenly I’m not allowed to downvote some folks. I may have to reconsider coming here and getting information, should this type article become common. And, I do hope it doesn’t.
“Time and time again it’s been proven that open carry does not deter threats” This statement above by author is flawed & incorrect. There is no known actual tangible data to how many times Open Carry, brandishing covert or overt, “printing” has actually prevented/deterred/thwarted/mitigated/diverted a potentially violent act/event/incident from occurring. I can think of several instances where people/criminals/perps or possible criminal intent was directly thwarted who knew I was carrying or thought I was carrying definitely impacted the events that transpired. Never had that data entered anywhere & been carrying professionally legally for over 40+ years. Fact, period end of… Read more »
Two reasons for open carry. One, it is constitutionally protected. Two, even in a shall issue state or constitutional carry state there is always the possibility of inadvertently revealing or printing or displaying the firearm. In such cases, a paranoid onlooker, or a gun grabber may meltdown and call the police. In an open carry state, one would not have to justify their carrying a gun. But as we have seen there has been multiple incidents of reckless open carrying of firearms and downright bravado when open carry is used. Sometimes to the point of purposely alarming people. Commonsense is… Read more »
Lulz. Found the Butter. This site is going the way of Truth About Guns.
Man, I think you accidentally found the dude at Petco down below
Naw I don’t dress like him. Swim shorts, Crocs, Hawaiian shirt, Maxim 9, no underwear.
“Too much information, Vincent…”.
Go Commando! LOL
Ooooh lookie, a moron sock puppet downvoter doesn’t know what go commando means.
So waaaaay too young to know what a “birthday suit” is too. 🙂
use the sock to keep it warm
The lukewarm chili peppers?
😀
Awaiting approval Why????
There is a reason for “stealth “ aircraft. The element of surprise is a YUGE advantage! As Gomer Pyle would say “ Surprise, surprise, surprise “. My surprise pistol is ALWAYS in stealth mode.
Mine too, but I still strongly support the right of citizens to open carry, as well as the benefits that legal open carry provides us. Inadvertent exposure by reaching for an item on a store’s top shelf, bending to get an item from the bottom shelf, or wind blowing away cover garments, are protected because of legal open carry.
Personally, I support both. Not everyone can afford some State’s high exorbitant CC permit.
I’m not bothered/triggered by the sight of a bolstered gun. Now if you’re waving it around shouting “Allah’s at the bar,:they”re going to get shot.
those fee schedule may come crashing down as jim crow real soon
If you cannot afford a permit you cannot afford ammo to shoot your gun. I know states have different fees. Here in NC it’s $90 for the first five years. Then it’s $75 every five years. You do realize that if you are sitting in a car with an arm rest all buckled up your gun is concealed. All it would take is an encounter with an officer who didn’t get his sprinkles on his doughnuts and you are headed to jail. I would retain a good attorney.
if you sit in a car seat with your weapon in a concealed carry or an open carry, unless you sport a cross draw or a shoulder holster (another cross draw), you are probably going to have a hard time accessing that weapon anyway. In NC prior to the CHP laws, I always laid my sidearm on the passenger seat or console, so as to NOT have it concealed. Now I have a holster for my EDC in each vehicle (except my motorcycles) so I can holster it where I can access it. It’s pretty easy to unholster, sit, holster… Read more »
To the Author
You claim you photoshopped all the photos why waste our time on give the shooting community another blemish. There are real people out there that act in this manner you just gave the credibility.
The fellow in the picture at Applebees has surpassed open carry “On a fool’s errand”
The guy pretending with his face covered for good reason and the swords
“Laughable” Left handed he would never get that cheap katna out of the saya without dying.
He is a disgrace to those who live by the code of bushido
That was just a stupid Internet pic that the author of this clap-trap comedy/satire used in a pathetic attempt to prove his bs. His opinion is so full of holes, it is not worth rebutting every line of his non-sense.
Yes ridiculous
It’s good to know that photoshop skills are to the level that the average reader can’t differentiate between an edited picture and reality. Seems like everyone here thinks that I was really there in person.
Shame on you
This article and some comments seem to indicate there is some secret dress code known and understood by only the cool kids. Isn’t the Greyman thinking the opposite extreme ? In today’s world it is Halloween every day of the year.
With dayglow hair, tats to the max, and cross dressing becoming more common, does wearing camo or pro-gun apparel really harm the gun rights movement ? I’m thankful we have a choice. We can remain secret and unknown or we can dare to stand and be counted.
I like a combo…I believe that someone will intend to hold up an establishment and change their mind if they see an open carrier because they don’t want to get in a gunfight…they want to rob and run. I also like concealed carry because of the element of surprise.
“Time and time again it’s been proven that open carry does not deter threats, does not make you a good ambassador for our rights, and doesn’t give you an edge in a fight.” I would love to see this proof. Shouldn’t be difficult if it’s happened “time and time again”. If your issue was really with poor equipment and poor situational awareness then you could just address that. Especially since it applies to those who open, conceal, or choose not to carry. A good quality holster is a must no matter how one chooses to carry and situational awareness will… Read more »
So, I don’t open carry. But I seem to remember it starting as a sorta protest in Northern Virginia because you could open carry in a bar or restaurant that serves alcohol, but not concealed carry. I remember guys who were concealing under a jacket simply remove their jacket to eat in the restaurant, then put the jacket back on after leaving. Their argument was “I would prefer to conceal, but the rules you support make it legally impossible.”
Looking at the photos used in this article it would give be cause for concern if I was taken my wife out to Applebees and someone was standing there looking like the man in the photo. I would use common sense & caution and drive on to someplace else. To be truthful I might call the police thinking a active robbery was underway or something worse. I am all for firearm ownership and constitutional carry. The question is why would someone go out like that and not think trouble would not find him or her. Hell a armed citizen might… Read more »
Because FreeDumb
Your response shows lack of intellect and the ability to respond politely.
That imbecile isn’t even self aware, He likes to either drop a loaded grenade to rile people up and never return to the thread or his other common tactic is to “sealion” prople into exasperation. . You’re best off to just not engage and move on.
Agreed. A useless waste of oxygen. All he’s go for is name calling and misspelling profanity. This is the extent of his skillset. And I’m not worried about him reading this, because there are multisyllabic words in here that will go miles over his head. 🙂
You are not using common sense being afraid of an open carrier, that is called cowardice. Why would you call the socialist cops and possibly get a fellow armed Citizen hurt, over going up and asking him how his day is going? He wasn’t shooting at you is a good clue not to be a coward and run away. I would have went up and talked with him to make sure I didn’t have to shoot him, and then thanked him for protecting my family while we eat. The only thing that would have my attention is if he was… Read more »
You ask, “ Why would you call the socialist cops …?” Well, the fellow is dressed for a combat roll in a non-combat area, so one could be suspicious.
we get people dressed like that at the cracker barrel during hunting season the locals laugh them off
In my little area of central Texas, that kind of dress and arms has become fairly common. SOME Local law enforcement actively works with the citizenry to provide security for crisis pregnancy centers, churches, public buildings during protests, and other moderately incident prone situations.
There are idiots in all walks of life, but the scenario got me to thinking about how many times I was on my way home from a flight, with my flightsuit reeking of JP8 and hydraulic fluid, and I needed to stop in to the grocery store for something. A lot of times, I’d have my survival vest still on if I absent-mindedly left the squadron or in a hurry. Most of my identifying patches would be covered by the vest and equipment. I’d be the odder and odder duck the further I was away from base. I also use… Read more »
I bet that was a sight to behold!
about like stopping at a dunkin donuts shop at 3am after a drug house raid stink of pot and gunpowder sweat not even coffee covers it
Concealed Carry would be the way to go. Less people know, the better when in public & the better edge you have in an emergency! One question, Did this guy just get back from hunting? A friend of mine wants to know
your reasons are sufficient and not really anyone else’s concern
US ARMY special forces. I don’t open carry at anytime. Only time I did was when I was in Nam. I recently took my granddaughters to see a children’s movie and saw an idiot open carry in that theater. It wasn’t a good holster to prevent someone from grabbing it. As I often say, “YOU CAN’T FIX STUPID”. Enough said.
“I’ve open carried in ‘occupied public areas’ for many years with no problems at all…You make it sound like law-abiding citizens are inviting trouble by OC. Ridiculous.”
Crickets Chirping on the disclosure, TEX. As an ex-cop, of course you have no problems at all. And you’ve said you’d love to be a cop again to ‘light up’ someone you don’t like.
Telling others to act as if they have your special privileges is what’s ridiculous, bad advice.
CHIRP…CHIRP…CHIRP…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lru1Qxc1l8
Yes you are inviting trouble. If I saw you I would assume you are a nutcase ultra right dude with self image issues. All you do is scare old ladies and tick off the left and make them more determined to fight gun rights. And you make yourself the ‘shoot me first’ person.
Ahh, the old sHoOt Me FiRsT crap. Out of all the states with open carry and the millions of people around the country who have at some point open carried you would think this BS would have gone away by now. I would love to see a bunch of news articles about all these people who were shot first. I mean there must be hundreds of articles out there, right?
How about a little disclosure? i.e., you’re a retired cop.
I see this guy has upset a lot of Rambo types….
Go put your squirt gun away & hide in the closet. If you truly are a gun owner, you’re who the article is written about.
They are inviting trouble. Read the link I included from Greg where he details a significant number of people who have been attacked (successfully) for their guns specifically because they were open carrying. Not to mention the general public having an aversion to firearms, which typically ends up hurting 2A efforts, as also noted in linked articles.
There are a lot of constitutional rights that are illegal and you and members of your tribe would arrest people for exercising those rights if it suited your ego at the moment.
https://www.wcvb.com/article/mississippi-man-arrested-loading-firearm-curbside-boston-logan-airport/40478701
this should not have happened ,I hope the judge sees this and takes scotus opinion at its word and sends him home with his gun
The guy is screwed. If it had happened to a senior executive, his career would be over no matter what the legal outcome.
Cops come on Ammoland and state that people should always carry – ignoring the fact that they are the reason people with good risk management skills don’t always carry.
They also go quiet when it is pointed out that many employers are intolerant of people carrying (except for a very small percent of employees who have special persmission):
https://home.army.mil/hood/index.php/my-fort/visitor-information/firearms-registration
I had some experience with carry on bases, and there are cities that do not follow federal law pertaining to leos ny to name one can tell you that was not fun. mass may be made an example of and that would be good but all depends on deep pockets and scotus , with the latest ruling and the remands likely outcome plead to creating public nascence fines time served gun not returned
I’m thinking more about some private turning out for PT in his shorts. He exercises good risk management by not carrying his personal Glock. A CFO traveling to Manhattan exercises good risk management by not checking a firearm and strapping it on when he is waiting for a hired car with the CEO. A surgeon exercises good risk management by not carrying in surgery when he knows hospital management and many of the staff are anti firearm rights. A witness exercises good risk management by not carrying into court. I know I exercise good risk management the times I don’t… Read more »
that is exercising your rights , and is what everyone should do………….should….not what they will do…. I have a good bit of paranoia from the job I did so ..I carry and never back to door or window near an exit or defendable pocket
Oh, yes, the Navy Yard shooter specifically shot the guard because he was OC, not because he was the guard. Ellifritz’s non-sense compounded by your arrogance. Every year dozens of cops (who have weapon retention training, backup, and retention holsters) get their guns taken by criminals. Again, the officers are typically attacked in those situations where they are in CBQ trying to attest a perp. The retention fight is part of that. The officer is not being attacked because he/she is OC. I did some internet searching for incidents where an open carrier was disarmed by a criminal, purposely attacked… Read more »