Open Carry -

[RicInOR]

I know there is a group Every 2nd Matters - which encourages all of us to legally open carry on the 2nd of each month. To not be a d*ck about it, To just go about our business. It is not a protest, more of a normalization.

These guys are protestors -

http://www.foodbeast.com/2014/05/05/so-a-dozen-armed-gentlemen-walk-into-a-jack-in-the-box/
The photo is clearly staged, I am pretty sure the guy wearing the tie must be the manager for the restaurant.

"According to NBC Dallas Fort Worth, the employees locked themselves in the freezer in fear of getting robbed by the armed men"

http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/Open-Carry-Demonstrators-Scare-Fort-Worth-Employees-257751871.html

"Open carry firearm demonstrators are complaining that police treated them like criminals Thursday night as the group staged a protest with their guns.

An email from Sgt. Ray Bush, with the Fort Worth Police Department, said Jack in the Box employees at the South Freeway location on Sycamore School Road, were scared about the armed men protesting outside of the restaurant."

"The group's presence at a Home Depot parking lot Friday night drew no police attention."

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[John H]

There is no F ' ing need to pack a rifle around , they are going to cause us to lose rights.

 

[gunnoob75]

Need?...

 

[gaijinsamurai]

I fully support the right of citizens to open carry, and have done so myself on a couple of occasion, but for the most part, I think it is detrimental to our cause.

 

[Hrethgir]

Wear a pistol on a hip holster shoulder rig or something, but don't go carrying around an AR, that helps nothing.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

There is no F ' ing need to pack a rifle around , they are going to cause us to lose rights.

Is our unalienable right really that tentative?
No, its not.
Being a secret shame kowtowing firearm owner is what allows unconstitutional laws to be passed is what diminishes our rights. NOT OCers.

WE need to play the same game the gun grabbers do and normalize the sight of firearms in the hands of hard working responsible firearms owners.

The one critique I would extend to fellow OCers is be calm, friendly (even to those who strongly oppose your point of view), rational, as unargumentative as you can be, use clean languege and be very articulate. Perhaps dress well, a tucked in shirt, combed hair a suit and tie.. All those things add up when it comes to the sheeples perception.

Nothing makes a gun grabber look more crazy then when they are yelling at the top of their lungs as a guy/girl whos dressed well, calm and welcoming but sporting a firearm. These are the same tactics the left use all the time, let your enemies look the fool, not you.

Often, one doesnt have to say much at all.

 

[John H]

WE need to play the same game the gun grabbers do and normalize the sight of firearms in the hands of hard working responsible firearms owners.

.

I don't disagree , but this is not going to help at all. When you cause people to hide in the freezer you are not changing anything.

 

[Koda]

What does a "hard working responsible firearms owner" look like?

Im all for open carry but Im skeptical carrying a rifle to Taco Bell, the store, the mall, coffee, etc. is going to normalize the public because those arent traditional places rifles are used.

 

[gaijinsamurai]

IF you're going to OC, definitely do your best to look like a mature, responsible member of the community. Leave the multicam and Tactical Tailor load out at home, and give some thought as to why you're doing it. Yes, the majority of people are sheeple but those sheeple vote.

 

[bnsaibum]

How many times have I seen members here stating that they would wait for more info before making a judgment???

Wear a pistol on a hip holster shoulder rig or something, but don't go carrying around an AR, that helps nothing.

Considering this was in Texas the only legal hip or shoulder rig wearing of a pistol or other handgun would have been concealed, not open. Carrying a rifle openly during a demonstration is one way in which some Texas 2A advocates draw attention to the absurdity of the Texas carry law that prohibits open carry of handguns.

I don't disagree , but this is not going to help at all. When you cause people to hide in the freezer you are not changing anything.

Apparently only one employee went in the freezer, and it seems that this was when the open carriers went back outside.

http://news.yahoo.com/gun-advocates...g-freezer-155518737--abc-news-topstories.html
http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/Open-Carry-Demonstrators-Scare-Fort-Worth-Employees-257751871.html

 

[Doc In UPlace]

Scaring the sheeple is counter-productive, and when they see someone without a badge or uniform carrying guns, it scares them. People placed in fear react emotionally and they remember it for a long time. This does not help anything. It doesn't "educate" anyone.

The very definition of irony: producing the opposite of the intended effect.

The daughter of a friend of mine had lunch with us a few days ago. A recent article in the news about a guy with a rifle waving it at traffic in Bremerton made her recall a person who had OC'd into the bank where she was working as a teller.
"It scared everybody." she recalled.

In this social climate of mass shootings on almost a weekly basis, I can't think of a worse time to go around carrying guns in an urban environment. Carrying openly is also a poor tactical practice, because it says to bad guys, "shoot me first." Worse, it scares people.

I am armed every day, but nobody but colleagues and friends knows it. Gun people don't give a dang about somebody's carry piece and non-gun people are just more polarized in the wrong direction.

This is not complex:
Do. not. scare. people. Just because someone CAN does not mean they SHOULD.

 

[gaijinsamurai]

I am far from being a "sheeple", but a real, justified concern I and my co-workers have at work is a "code silver", in which a person enters the property with a firearm, with the intent of doing harm. So far, we have had one occurance, when a man brought a pistol into my workplace, waived it around, and demanded drugs. He pointed the pistol at my boss, and fortunately, was eventually disarmed and arrested. For me, who has a CCL, is a former Marine, infantryman, and law enforcement officer, and who also strongly believes in the Second Amendment, I cannot help but feel a little apprehensive when I see someone walk down a sidewalk or into a building with an AR, just because I know that five days per week, it is my job to deal with those types of people, and I don't know if I can do it and still come home alive to my wife and kids at the end of the day.....if I feel that way, can you imagine how someone who has not grown up around guns, owns them, and does not fear them feels?

 

[OLDNEWBIE]

Considering this was in Texas the only legal hip or shoulder rig wearing of a pistol or other handgun would have been concealed, not open. Carrying a rifle openly during a demonstration is one way in which some Texas 2A advocates draw attention to the absurdity of the Texas carry law that prohibits open carry of handguns.

That's unfortunate but a young man/men suddenly popping up in a FF place with ARs in hand is alarming and won't garner sympathy for their cause.

Maybe they should protest outside. How about carrying concealed with a T-shirt that says,( I'm still carrying only concealed because the stupid TX law says.............)

 

[U201494]

A band of idiots playing cops and robbers.
Our rights are doomed with twits like this grabbing media attention.

 

[clearconscience]

If i go walking out in public with my ar strapped on my chest and my hand on the grip I fully expect to get shot.

I've open carried a few occasions mostly meet ups or on the way hunting or hiking, but never a rifle. That's just stupid.
Just because you have the right or ability to do something doesn't mean you should.

 

[Dornai]

I think the problem here is that the majority of people are scared of firearms in public. That isn't because the sight of a firearm is inherently terrifying; it's that the media has demonized those that do open carry, whether it be a handgun or long gun.

"Just because you have a right to, doesn't mean you should" is bull-puck reasoning. Yeah, they may be scared the first time it happens. However if the majority of normal citizens were to start open carrying; it would be normalized. People need to realize that just because someone is carrying a firearm, it doesn't make them a criminal or psychopath.

It goes the same for identifying yourself to police or engaging in conversations with police. You have a right not to. "If you have nothing to hide, why wouldn't you appease them and go on your way"... because we have a RIGHT not to and exercising those rights does not make us the bad guys, nor is it grounds for suspicion of a crime.

My brothers and sisters have died defending our rights. Refusal to exercise your rights is practically spitting in their face.

 

[Mac_Fan]

If i go walking out in public with my ar strapped on my chest and my hand on the grip I fully expect to get shot.

I've open carried a few occasions mostly meet ups or on the way hunting or hiking, but never a rifle. That's just stupid.
Just because you have the right or ability to do something doesn't mean you should.

Irony. Your avatar has it.

 

[clearconscience]

Your "bull puck" is bull puck sir.
I do think more people should open carry and carry in general not only to educate society, but also educate the officers that may come talk to you. In my experience a lot of LEOs are not real educated on carry laws.
But carrying an AR across their chest would incite fear and angst against those who only wish to educate, and protect their rights.
By expressing your rights and bringing your love for the 2nd A rights you want to get people on your side and allow the conversation to start in a positive manner.
The more negative publicity you attract the more fear and division you bring to the cause

 

[Dornai]

An AR is not exclusively more dangerous than any semi-automatic handgun on the market today, especially against civilian targets, where you don't have to worry about body armor. Their fear is irrational, as is your argument that OCing a handgun is okay whereas an AR is "asking for trouble".

 

[Hook686]

A question I have that never really gets answered is if a group of guys come in carrying rifles and the staff and customers lock themselves in the cooler out of fear, as pointed out in the article, isn't that considered impacting the business ? If the behavior of children, or my service dog, impacts the business I can be asked to remove the dog. I have right under the ADA to bring my service dog with me. If I refuse and say I have the right to bring my dog, the manager/owner can call the minons of the law to have me arrested for trespass. Why is that not used by managers/owners when armed folks enter the business legally open carrying, but scaring crap out of employees and customers ?