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Gun Owners: Open Carry or Concealed Carry?

6K views 103 replies 22 participants last post by  Byrdman 
#1 ·
What are the laws in your state and if you carry, do you prefer concealed or open carry? Currently, Texas requires a CHL to carry concealed (exception noted below), but as of January 1, 2016 a CHL holder may also open carry.

The exception to the CHL requirement is under the Texas Motorist Protection Act from a few years ago that allows concealed carry in an automobile, walking to & from the automobile, on your own property, or at your workplace (if your employer permits). The act has a bunch of rules to follow.

So my question is, what is it like in your state, and what's your opinion of concealed vs open? My opinion is if others want to open carry, fine, but as for me, I never want anyone to know I'm carrying.
 
#2 · (Edited)
Open or concealed in WI.


My opinion... it doesn't matter. Doesn't help me or hurt me. People do what they want anyway.

Concealed carry changes nothing - makes some law abiders feel all warm and fuzzy, criminals still carry they always have with or without the law. Both groups go about their same business.

Open carry changes nothing. Criminals still carry, and open carrying law abiders are no deterrent. In fact, if anything, now they're potential targets. Both groups still go about their business.

In short, people will always do what they please. If it serves their purpose, they will continue to kill, steal, drive drunk, use illegal drugs, speed, hunt, fish, make an illegal u-turn, blah, blah, blah. No matter how minor or serious, no one cares. And no, laws don't prevent chaos - a society of decent people do.

You can't control anyone. Period.

All of that said, I choose not to carry.
 
#8 ·
Illinois is concealed only (and was the last state to get it........just recently).

I haven't bothered.................yet, but I would say concealed. Open carry just makes others very nervous and while it MAY deter a robbery or assault, it WILL tip the assailant off and you loose the element of surprise. In the event of a mass shooter, you become the first target and thus the reason for carrying gets negated.
 
#14 · (Edited)
Open carry....MAY deter a robbery or assault
I guess anything is possible, but unlikely. For open carry to be a deterrent, you need criminals that value their own lives. Good luck finding them. They're firing guns at each other every day. Cops point guns right at their face - they don't care. Doesn't phase em. Their greatest asset is that they just plain don't give a ****, which means they've got bigger balls than you or I ever will. Thats why they do what they do. Seeing you with a gun on your hip? Pfft. Big deal.

Same applies on a larger scale with our government's silly war on terror... We put a big gun on our hip and strut our stuff overseas lIke it means something. Any terrorists are themselves terrified now, right?! We MUST be at least deterring some of them, no? Lulz... But, that's a whole other topic. Don't want to stray too far.
 
#16 ·
Common sense would apply if it didn't involve the government. 73 employees of DHS are on the no-fly list so it's safe to assume there is an equal number or many more on the list just because their name is similar to someone that belongs there. The list is secret and there is no effective way to get off the list if you don't belong there. For example, Sen. Ted Steven's wife was on the no-fly list because she had the nickname "Cat".

----------

It matters not to me if others carry but as for me, when the bullets start flying I at least want to have a chance to shoot back.
 
#12 ·
I haven't looked into it yet. But when I told my friend about the "no fly, no gun" law, he told me about the last several mass gun shootings... The guns used were not purchased by the gunmen, they were purchased by someone else.

So it would seem that this new "no fly, no gun" law still would've been pointless if it were the law 5 years ago.

KOT
 
#21 ·
Speak to David Clarke.

Even without that statistic, the location of high crime areas says it all. They have well defined borders, and they certainly aren't centered around luxury retirement communities. In fact, they are far, far away from them. The high crime areas are in their own neighborhoods.
 
#24 · (Edited)
Well, I don't understand why you are isolating categories of violent crime to support your claim. But, at least when you average the entire country over 17 years (1993-2010), you are correct that it's not 90%, but it's still a significant portion.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics latest report:

"In 2010, strangers committed about 38% of nonfatal violent crimes, including rape/sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault."

The other 62% had some kind of relationship.

For homicides, up to 79% had a relationship...

And again, localized high crime areas support this.
 
#25 ·
Well, I don't understand why you are isolating specific types of violent crime to support your claim.
Because your claim of 90% was generalized based on what neighborhood a person is in rather than the whole of society, which undoubtedly would bring that percentage down quite a bit.

I don't disagree that bad guys attack other bad guys. I'm fine with that, let them take each other out.

What concerns me is the increasing amount of violence against good upstanding individuals going about their daily lives.

This law won't stop bad guys from getting weapons, but it could stop decent, law abiding Americans from purchasing a firearm because of a stupid bureaucratic error on a no fly list or suspected terrorist list.
 
#38 · (Edited)
A friend and neighbor in Great Falls, Virginia, who was the head of major news organization in D.C., he would tell me that television news would only run a story if the had some sort of tape.

I agree that network news is really about entertainment but then look at their viewing public. Running multiple stories showing the demagogic and ignorant Donald Trump and running stories ad nauseum on the Malaysian Airlines missing flight. Todays American news media is long on entertainment for the ignorant masses and short on providing news that a democracy needs.
 
#41 ·
true. In the classes I went through (some taught by the local police dept), there was a lot of training on "reaction interval". Many LEO's train knowing that inside of 21 feet you won't have time to react before a threat gets to you. We ran drills at various distances to see whether a Taser or handgun could be deployed. If you add in nerves & lack of experience, the reaction interval gets longer. For this reason, I know the dimensions of the rooms in my house and other places on property so when I go to the range or in the NM desert to practice, I do so at those distances. Per your statement: that said, I still carry concealed.
 
#40 ·
I fail to understand why the percentage of criminal on criminal crime would even ever enter into this thread?

Who cars about that.
I don't carry to prevent that.
I don't hang out in those areas, and if I did why would I care if I were a deterrent to it or not?

Since the non criminal on criminal crimes are what this thread concerns, I think it would be safe to assume any statements made would pertain to those.

Let's also not forget that of those random attacks on innocents, there are quite a few that the criminal's gun is a BB or pellet gun. Open carry would certainly be a deterrent to those!:lol:
 
#42 ·
Before concealed carry in Alaska I had a job where I walked to work at 3:00AM. After some unpleasantness with some aggressive drunken Indians I open carried a model 81 Remington .35 Rem Automatic rifle. It was very comforting to see others out and about at the early hours cross to the opposite side of the street when they saw me coming. I just waved to any patrolling LEOs I saw and they waved back.
 
#44 · (Edited by Moderator)
I have observed, up close, for over 35 years, and have several friends who know, first hand, how the guy operates. the true number of his business failures would probably astound his "populist" followers. He may a minor billionaire, but most people don't he was born a multi-millionaire ....would be far richer today if he been a smart investor. Let's face it, from what you have said, your knowledge of the man is based

You are so very knee jerk, Basscat, it is amazing. If you want kn0ow the truth Trump research and read up
on the real Donald Trump. But I don't take you for a history buff. Start with "Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" and see if you any similarities to the bluster, the ignorance the Constitution, or wanton disregard for role of that document in in our governance. I understand the frustration that the "Populist" (that's you Basscat) have the state of affairs in this country.

As for Hillary, I couldn't be more against her occupying the White House. There are so many things wrong with Hilary that I dread her ever becoming president.
 
#46 ·
Trump is playing the political establishment and the drive-by media like a violin. He gets fifteen times the media mentions of all other candidates combined and it doesn't cost him a dime. Every time he makes an outrageous statement the media attacks him, he makes head lines, and his numbers get bigger. Days later the media has to admit that there is something to what he says. At present he is running against other Republicans. If he gets the nomination you can expect him to change message and shift gears to get independent and Democrat votes. So far he's stomping everybody else and he's done it with pocket change. Wouldn't it be great if he could run the government the same way?
 
#47 · (Edited)
Trump won't be our next president. He gets attention for all the wrong reasons. He is a self aggrandizing, mega narcissistic, bloviating carnival barker who tells people what they want to hear. He doesn't have the temperament or knowledge/understanding of our laws or international diplomacy and law. He is an embarrassment to the Republican party. No matter how much some people want Trump to win, the general public sees through all of his idiotic rhetoric and will NEVER elect him.
 
#48 ·
Trump won't be our next president................. He gets attention.......................... carnival barker who tells people what they want to hear.
Wanna bet ?

Carnival barker ........... might be the same reason so many people believe in snake oils and Seafoam ?????

If you can't fill 'em with facts, fill 'em with bullshit ..............

To the man who makes the potions,
Buy some and try,
Here's to the Doctor,
He's a stand-up guy.
 
#50 ·
He's got to be doing something right because the establishment politicians of both major parties are terrified of him and everything the have tried to destroy him with has blown up in their faces. He still may not win but he has supplied one of the most entertaining election seasons on record.
 
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