NavyLCDR, I know you are vehemently against informing police officers that you are armed, but you and I both know that grouping police officers with garbage collectors, farmers, and lumberjacks is not a fair comparison. As I said, I know other's opinions differ, but I personally will follow the law and what it tells me to do.
The best way to lose a right, is to abuse it. Carrying a gun is not abusing our right to carry it, but blatantly disregarding a law because there is no consequence for doing so is.
I am not advocating or meaning to imply that anyone should break the law. If the law requires a person to inform, then they should inform when the law requires it. Even though it is a stupid law that does not cause anyone to be safer in reality.
I am stating that people like to preach "concealed is concealed!" Yet some of those same people will say in the same breath, "Unless that stranger that you are interacting with is wearing a badge and a uniform, then it is 'polite' to inform them because they have a dangerous job and want to go home safe at night to their families."
If it is 'polite' to tell a police officer about your gun, when the law does not require it, because they have a dangerous job and want to go home safe to their families, then I would say that it would be equally as 'polite' if not more 'polite' to inform people whose jobs are more dangerous than police officers, who I am sure want to go home just a safe to their families at night, and who make equal contributions, if not more, to our health and safety every day on the job as police officers do.
I just don't see it as a requirement to tell a police officer about my permit or my gun to be polite and respectful to them. Also, my telling the officer about my gun does absolutely nothing to increase their chances of going home safe at night. In fact, if they choose to handle my gun BECAUSE I tell them about it, and it discharges while they handling it, then I have contributed to them or someone else possibly NOT going home safe at night. The risk may be small, but a completely unnecessary to cause to happen.
When a police officer stops me for speeding, his job is to write me a ticket for speeding if he so desires, and to do everything required to make the ticket stick in court, if needed. My gun and/or his knowledge of my gun is as completely irrelevant to him doing his job and completing the stop uninjured as my cell phone or what CD is in my stereo are, as long as my gun stays in it's holster, which I will make every effort to ensure that it stays in it's holster.
