Open Carry???

Missouri has had "Open Carry" on the books since 1841, when the state Constitution was ratified...It does pose some problems for causing some unnecessary police response calls at times...

That usually is dictated by the mode of dress of the person carrying...an obvious hunter generally raises no eyebrows, the same is true with one of the car salesmen/dealers that used to wander around town with his tied down single six and all the western garb that went with it...

To put some of the comments into perspective, let's consider a scenario where, if, George Zimmerman (Florida) while pulling duty as a neighborhood watch observer had been carrying open and as he was turning back to his vehicle...Had Trayvon Martin come up behind him (as reported) and snatched his sidearm, prior to knocking him to the ground (as current evidence supports), the outcome of the incident would have probably been much different...
 
My point exactly, OT, you just stated it much better than I.

To further clarify, I'm not against OC, just think there are some things that need to be considered beforehand, as previously stated. I have not figured out the advantages to OC (for me personally in an urban environment, that is). There are advantages to CC.

Regards,
hm
 
Originally Posted By: LUCKYDOGOriginally Posted By: HookedWell, like I said, I benefit from others perspectives, and you never know what the guys situation was..couldn`t lock it in his car and didn`t have a holster..ya never know..shady lookin` character though.I didn`t make that up..not one bit.

I don't doubt your word at all. The fact that he looked shady helps make my point. I have never witnessed anyone shady that was carrying open. Dumb maybe. Shady never.

I stood under a tree once while OC!


But you didn't see me because I was wearing black and in the shade!
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As far as ANTIs liking our OC debates among our own ranks,I suppose that's right. But,we as educated law abiding gun owners have an un-canny knack of sticking together when it counts. At the voting booths. That's where this war will be won or lost. On a similar note. Why flaunt our handguns for no good reason than we can? If we keep calling these people out. These folks that have more money,lawyers,and free time than we do,we're going to loose these rights. They believe they are right. We believe we are right. The last Presidential election proved anything can happen in politics. Carry respectfully and discriminatly. Don't go looking for a reaction. BE IN CONTROL of your weapon at all times! If someones loved ones are gunned down with a weapon taken from some OC Commando,it won't be pretty. LEARN weapon retention,it's your responsibility. The best advantage is a tactical advantage.
 
I wear a gun nearly anytime I am out of my house and a lot inside the house. If it is chilly and I am wearing an outer garment I am concealing. If it is warm and I don't have a cover garment, I OC.

We have an annual Open Carry picnic in Spokane, if you are local, come visit. It is in a very nice park in the most liberal part of town.
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What do we have here? The wife of an OCer, a Asst. District Attorney, a business owner/consultant, and not seen, but under the light hat, an RN. Scattered about were about 50 other OCrs and their wives/etc. Of course, some of the wives were OCing also.

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OMG!!! Someone brought the kids!

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Just normal people, exercising their rights as guaranteed by the US and WA state Constitutions.
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bob
 
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Originally Posted By: OldTurtlethe outcome of the incident would have probably been much different...

Bad guys look for easy prey. Travon would probably have saw the gun and not messed with Zimmerman and he would still be alive.

Open carry deters crime. Who in thier right mind messes with someone toting a gun.
 
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My grandfather said this about carrying-"Think about it like this. It's like having an extra 2" of p**ker, you can carry it your whole life and never need it, but if you do, nothing on this great earth can beat it." That said I don't walk around with my fly open.
 
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Originally Posted By: atdMy grandfather said this about carrying-"Think about it like this. It's like haveing an extra 2" of p**ker, you can carry it your whole life and never need it, but if you do nothing on this great earth can beat it." That said I don't walk around with my fly open.

I like that. Grandpa was pretty sharp.
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I haven't studied this extensively, but my thoughts are the same as LuckyDog, I would think it would deter more crime.

I work in the Loss Prevention field, most crimes are based on the perception of opportunity, the ease of getting away with it. Shoplifters look for corners, away from people, away from camera's etc... If you have a guy with a gun, I would think they would go somewhere else to commit the crime.

I don't OC just cause its not legal here in TX. I can however see the advantages to OC in the hot summer. Also, in some states where printing is considered OC, OC legalization helps with that too.

Cops carry OC, if it was such a tactical disadvantage, then why would they be in uniforms with a gun strapped to their hip advertising it.

If all of the leagal gunowners in our country OC'd, all the time, I bet we would see a LOT less crime.

At the end of the day, the more Pro-Gun laws we have the better.
 
Having looked at the subject from a professional viewpoint as a LEO, if personal ownership of handguns were outlawed for the average citizen and that law was strictly enforced, the most logical source for the criminal to obtain one would be to waylay an inattentive officer and steal his...The hazard pay for officers would go way up...

In the letter of the law, unless specified in the statute, a covered weapon, even printed, is still concealed...Don't think that the average street punk that is thinking about accosting a potential victim doesn't look for that 'unusual' bulge that might indicate a concealed handgun...or the drag of the weight that shows up on the level of the pants when a person is walking..

While street thieves may not be the most academically smart people, don't discount their ability to be "Street Smart"..
 
I'm a Deputy Sheriff, and always carry, but never openly. I have trained in the martial arts, but let very few know. In both cases I would rather surprise people. A little off the mark for this post is a saying I like about gun control, attributed to "Old Noob"

"Gun Control - A theory espoused by some monumentally stupid people; who claim to believe, against all logic and common sense, that a violent predator who ignores the laws prohibiting them from robbing, raping, kidnapping, torturing and killing their fellow human beings will obey a law telling them that they cannot own a gun." OldNoob
 
(quote)Cops carry OC, if it was such a tactical disadvantage, then why would they be in uniforms with a gun strapped to their hip advertising it.(quote)

Uniformed pressence. A very valuable tool in law enforcement. Along with under cover work. One of my associates and instructors works in narcotics. Complete with long stringy hair and stubbly beard. Still a COP and a [beeep] good one. Uniformed pressence IS a tactical advantage. You see a COP sitting back in a side road along the highway you're clipping along on. Is he running radar? Maybe. Might be eating his lunch. I'll bet your carry permit you check up your speed though. His visible pressence accomplished just what it was supposed to. He gets to eat his lunch in peace. Everyone checks up and plays nice,and no paperwork.
 
Originally Posted By: pahntr760I don't know. Like my revolver is only double action. So I couldn't even carry open. It doesn't make sense.

On a double action only revolver 3 mechanical actions.... Let me see.

1. Pull trigger which 2. turns cylinder and 3. cocks hammer before the firearm fires.... Sounds OK to me.
 
Originally Posted By: OldTurtle the most logical source for the criminal to obtain one would be to waylay an inattentive officer and steal his...The hazard pay for officers would go way up...


Attacking an armed police officer would be the most logical way to obtain a firearm? I think most bad guys would look at that as a fast way to jail or to die. I think buying one off the street or stealing one from a partner in crime would be much more logical.
 
Quote:I think buying one off the street or stealing one from a partner in crime would be much more logical....I think you failed to read the part of my comment with the emphasis...
Quote:if personal ownership of handguns were outlawed for the average citizen and that law was strictly enforced...much like Great Britain and Australia, as well as most other European countries,,The easiest source for a handgun would be the LEOs...Keep in mind that under those conditions, there would be no legal ownership, sales or transfers, by anyone...

Missouri, like some other states has a separate law that has an additional penalty of three years confinement for use of a firearm in the commission of a crime... Unfortunately, instead of being applied on a consistent basis, it is used as a plea bargaining chip by the various prosecutors when a case comes up for trial...

Unlike many other countries where most countries are sized like states here in the U.S., and borders are pretty open, it would take a sizable "Black Market" network, once you got away from port cities..And, the cost to purchase one through it would be generally prohibitive to the average 'street punk'...

It's only been in very recent years that Great Britain and Australia have issued/authorized handguns to very specialized LEOs...Officers in other European countries carry with highly secured belt holsters, when compared to the American counterparts..
 
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Divide and conquer....

While I typically do not open carry unless I am involved in some sort of outdoor recreation such as atv riding, I am very glad my state allows it. I will not argue to restrict any law abiding citizen for it is not the law abiding citizens that cause me to be concerned.

If a would be gun thief sees multiple people openly carrying firearms, chances are he will leave them all alone because there is strength in numbers. Telling someone they should not OC because someone may be able to steal the weapon is very close to telling them they should not have any handguns at home because they could be stolen. While I agree 100% that CC is the better option, OC would have been better than no carry in regards to most victims.
 
As an Oklahoma citizen, I look forward to open carry strictly because I wont have to be so worried about appropriate concealment all the time. Most of the time I don't carry on my body now because its a pain in the warm weather to keep it concealed. Now, if my holster is sticking out from under my t-shirt, I wont have to worry about it. However, I do agree that in many cases, the average untrained citizen that is armed is much safer if his weapon is concealed and retains the element of surprise.

On a different note, at my business, we have the day in November that it becomes legal declared as "bring your gun to work day" and my partner and myself and our employees will all be carrying in the open that day!
 
Originally Posted By: OldTurtlethat law was strictly enforced

Are you talking about the way they strictly enforce drug trafficing? They have really shot that down. If they make guns illegal, all the outlaws will be selling guns and you will be able to get them anywhere. It's just the way it is.
 
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