Why conceal?

[xdoctor]

I walked into an all night diner last night. It was the kind you find attached to a truck stop, nearly empty except for the smoking section. The service is bad and the food ain't pretty either. I started talking to a gentleman sitting near me when I saw the .45 he had under his vest. He was a really nice guy, we talked guns for about an hour. I asked him why he didn't conceal it better. He told me that he doesn't care if people see it. He has a perit to carry, he's not breaking the law and it might help prevent crime if a BG sees that the civilians are armed.

What do you all think of that, is it okay to carry your piece in a semi-concealed way? Mine is always hidden a bit better than that but he said he never has any problem having it not totally concealed. Said that the cops have been called on more than one occasion and after they checked his permit everything was okay.

 

[alamo]

In some states like Texas, you can get in trouble for NOT concealing it so as not to alarm some folks.

I think your friend is wasting the time of police officers who could be doing more important things.

 

[Citadel99]

is it okay to carry your piece in a semi-concealed way?

It's okay as long as you don't mind getting prosecuted for brandishing.

Mark

 

[magsnubby]

The guy is either a jackass or just plain stupid. Why bring all the hassel down on your self? Just because he has a permit dosen't mean the responding cop knows he does. In some jurisdictions you can loose your permit for that type of attitude.

Help prevent crime? Maybe. It might also get his stupid self shot. Johnny junkie sees the gun,shots his dumb but and now he not only has drug money, he also has a nice gun to sell.

 

[Standing Wolf]

I carry openly. I live in Colorado, where it's legal. I believe there'd be an awful lot less fear of firearms if more law-abiding American citizens carried openly, legally, and peaceably.

 

[Okiecruffler]

I believe if everyone was carrying openly it would reduce crime. But if your the only poor shmuck in the bank with a pistol in sight guess who's target #1 for the BG's?

 

[JoeHatley]

In a "may issue" state like Iowa, you will loose your CCW permit if you get caught "flashing".

Joe

 

[stans]

In many states, if you have a permit to carry concealed and elect to conceal, the firearm must remain concealed from view, otherwise it may be construed as brandishing, a misdemeanor which will revoke your permit. Carrying concealed gives you the advantage over the bad guy, he doesn't know if you have a weapon or not. If he knows you have a weapon, he may leave you alone or liberate you of your weapon as his first priority.

 

[JNewell]

Forget what the law of your state does or doesn't say for a moment...why would you want to give up a significant tactical advantage?

 

[GigaBuist]

If I could, I would, or at least I wouldn't frustrate myself with making 100% sure that nobody could ever see the pistol, or ever have a clue it's there.

No, the person carrying it is NOT wasting police time. It's the people that call in unsure of the law that are freaked out that are wasting the police's time. If someobdy who doesn't drink calls the police because they see a guy a have a beer at a restaurant with dinner (and get into his car) is the fellow that's entirely legal "wasting" police time? No! People that have never consumed alcohol often think that the above person is "drunk" though. Same thing goes with people that don't own firearms.

Frankly I've seen enough people NOT notice me carrying a firearm openly (in private circumstances) in the past few months to make me really wonder what kind of people report such things when seen in public. I have seen highly inteligent indivuals NOT notice such things even after somebody made a "joke" about me carrying a firearm!

People (sheeple) do not notice such things. I'm serious here. Very very few seem to notice a firearm.

 

[buy guns]

I think your friend is wasting the time of police officers who could be doing more important things.

like serving no-knock warrants to grandmas?

 

[mrapathy2000]

do a search on open carry. its been discussed alot.

one reason element of suprise though in states where citizens privacy is invaded state law or no state law element of suprise does not mean much if the attacker shoots first and robs later. though open carry probably wont help much their either.

some newspapers in some states have gained access either state law providing or not and published the names and address of CHL owners.

not sure if it was proven was a incident discussed recently in legal and political section. happened in Indiana or Ohio.

 

[Standing Wolf]

People (sheeple) do not notice such things. I'm serious here. Very very few seem to notice a firearm.

I think you're right. To the best of my knowledge, no one's ever noticed that I sometimes carry openly.

 

[HardCOR]

As a California Correctional Peace Officer, I have Peace Officer status and may carry a concealed weapon without the usual hassle of obtaining a CCW permit. But, I could be arrested and lose that right if I "brandish". I am only a cop while on Department time. OTOH, when I see someone carring openly, I assume he/she is a cop. Usually a badge is on the belt as well. They will be well dressed and using a nice holster. A slob with a gun stuffed in his belt might alarm me.

 

[Majic]

We can carry openly in my state. If you are concealing with a license the handgun must be totally concealed though. I think a lot of the misconception people have about open carry comes from those who are never exposed to it. It's just not a problem around me.

BTW...the tactics work both ways. Open carry can be seen as a show of force to someone wanting to do harm. You could have changed an attacker's mind if he sees you are armed. If you are concealing and attacked you really don't have an advantage untill you can draw the weapon unnoticed. Life is full of risks no matter how you look at it.

 

[Billy Sparks]

I personelly prefer to carry concealed for a couple of reasons. First off I prefer that IF (big if here) anything was to occur while I was out that the BG's do not consider me to be a LEO. Second I really don't think that the BG's see someone armed and just leave I think they make sure they take care of that person first. Years ago we had a robbery at a local seafood eatery. This place for years had hired off duty uniformed LEO's to make it "safer". End result when the BG's hit the place they shot the officer first.

 

[Majic]

The open carry that prevented attack numbers will never be known (and not even considered by some) simply because nothing has happened to be brought to anyone's attention. That's the same reason why the total number of times a firearm was present to defeat an attack is unknown. A lot of attacks have gone unreported.
There are also reports of people shot while their handgun is still in their holster. The world is full of surprises and things tend to balance themselves out.

 

[JNewell]

I think the comment about people not noticing open carry is correct (or maybe was, before 9/11? not sure if it's changed). I saw a guy in khakis and a polo shirt walk through the middle of a crowded downtown area in a major northeastern city a couple of years ago with no badge or other LE-type accoutrements visible and a pistol in an IWB holster -- not a head turned to take a second look. Not sure that would still be true, though.

One way to think about concealment is: do I want to be worrying about a grab every moment? This guy, whoever he was, appeared to be white. His gun was far around, almost SOB. A grab appeared to be a real risk.

 

[Billy Sparks]

I don't know how many people don't notice it or it they do they assume the person is a LEO. TV and Hollywood have convinced everyone that all guns are registered and anyone that has a gun is either a crimnal or LEO.