Carry and Tell Poll

Do you carry and tell?

  • No. I never tell anyone that I carry concealed.

    Votes: 94 42.2%
  • Yes. I tell my close friends know.

    Votes: 120 53.8%
  • Always. Eventually everyone gets told.

    Votes: 9 4.0%

  • Total voters
    223
  • Poll closed .
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I made the mistake of telling a friend in church once the next week in the middle of a conversation out of no where he says " Toms got a gun"

Exact same thing with my wife carrying but he decided to blurt it out while she was standing in line at a bank. She was not amused.
 
I voted no but because I am in Wisconsin I can only OC. When I had to carry, it was in Illinois, I told nobody for obvious reasons. The last 2 posts outlined the problem perfectly.
 
I tell ONLY my close friends, and by "close friends" I mean my girlfriend, my family, my best friend (who also CCs) and my dog. Acquaintances and casual friends, even if I've known them for years, have no reason to be told.
 
I don't publicize it, but I don't try to hide the fact from close friends. Most people who know me know that I hunt and shoot regularly. Many know that I carry wherever legal. I'm always looking for an opportunity to win someone, and if telling will help do that, I will.

Years ago, I got my colleagues at a large university used to the idea that I carried a folding knife by using it to cut bagels at staff meetings. First time it came out, some of them gasped. Later on, though, they just accepted it as part of my standard equipment. I like being matter-of-fact about such things, and winning others' confidence in the process.
 
Well I have been carrying for about a month now. Originally I wanted to keep a lid on this info. I mentioned it to my wife one day, because she asked directly. She hadn't noticed (I guess I concealed pretty well!). Well she told her friend, and I am sure that word is going to get out whether I like it or not.

So now the question becomes: do I try and head this off and control the flow of this information?

For example, there are a number of people who may find out, and be surprised when they find out. So do I carefully tell these people in a controlled environment or risk that they are going to catch a glimpse and suddenly, in a crowd, say "Oh my gosh! are you carrying a gun?!?!"

Should I try and anticipate who is going to find out by rumor and head it off by telling them in my own terms?

I am on the fence about this.
 
I don't tell but, many friends and family know because they took the classes with me or we often discuss guns and choices.
 
I always keep it to myself when in mixed company. My closest friends and relatives are the only ones who would be aware of my CCW. A few times I have mistakenly admitted to carrying but it always seems to be interpreted differently by different people. It is a fine line betwween braggart and confident, and seems to go hand in hand with the type of person who is made aware of the fact.

I always start out with hunting as an icebreaker and go from there.
 
My closest friends know because they carry also. Generally I only know of one person I told who I was not sure was pro ccw and she acepted it and stated that she just didn't think it was for her. I invited her to shoot but she hasn't accepted. Yet.
 
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So now the question becomes: do I try and head this off and control the flow of this information?
My wife, kids, and close friends all know (through conversations with me) that if I choose to tell others that I carry, that is my choice. They are not at liberty to tell others that I carry. That's the way I'd handle it with your inner circle.
 
As stated by others - don't ask, don't tell. I don't feel it is anyone's business but myself and my wife, if I am packing (and I always am!). And where does this term "ashamed" come into the conversation? I have no idea why anyone packing should be "ashamed" of it, it's just no one else's business.
sailortoo
 
If anyone I know hasn't figured it out by now, they're blind AND stupid. Since I open carry more than half the time, I guess a lot of people I don't know, know it too.

Big deal. I've got a gun. I've got a cell phone and a laptop computer too.
 
I open carry on my property, nothing like advertising to the local bg's, that they don't belong here. Nay sayers say ,"they will take it and use it on you" good luck with that. Or break in when I am gone and steal them, again, good luck with that.
 
It depends on your environment and your set of friends. Here, in northern California, it would be better to keep my CCW on a need-to-know basis. The concept of civilians carrying a handgun is a rather bizarre concept in most of California. The unnecessary attention would not be positive for me.

I live in a county where getting a CCW permit is basically impossible. Even I would be shocked (and jealous) if I came across another citizen in my county who is legally carrying concealed. By the way, I do carry concealed at home and don't tell anyone.

Regarding open carry, I'm not comfortable with the concept yet, but I'm getting there. Keep in mind where I am.
 
twoclones said:
The Gay community went from being persecuted to having hit television shows by saying "We're here and we're queer." Why shouldn't the CCW community be saying "We're here and we have proof we are not criminals."

That's a good point actually.

However, a huge difference with the gun owner community is that there are a large portion of gun owners who don't have empathy for the cause. Their contribution to gun rights is waking up, having a beer, saying their obligatory profanity to their neighbors and then knocking bottles off their fence with their .45. Others come onto forums like this to bad mouth organizations like the NRA, while they offer no viable alternatives. There are a whole bunch of free rider gun owners who would be first in line to criticize a movement of gun owners who decide to open carry.

In the gay community, I imagine that every single gay person felt the burden of their gayness since birth. It should be easy to unify gays on the issue of acceptance. Even the mellow gays do not openly criticize the flamboyant gays.
 
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I have one friend at work who knows I carry and that is because we took our CCW class together. Another friend from work also knows I carry because we have talked about it for several years and he had his Florida permit several years before I got my Missouri and Utah permits. Besides these two there are just a few others outside my family who know I carry and none are the type who are going to spout off about me having a gun.
 
I don't make it a point to just outright tell anyone but, most of the people I know know that I carry and this includes my Pastor and Assistant Pastor who by the way is a LEO and they do not have any problems with it.
 
My closest freinds know. As I have had a heart attask some years ago, if we are out and I need to go to the hospital, I want my piece taken care of by someone that I know and trust, not a stranger. AS these close freinds are LEO, I am not worried about it, and should a worst case scenario raise it's ugly head, they know there is one more gun they can count on if needed.
 
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