Would you rather......

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If you do a search on "open carry" you'll find a lot of threads discussing its pros and cons. In many states where it's legal it's still not advisable because the police will still hassle you. Also, some municipalities might not allow it so you'd have to know the law in every town you go to.
 
It depends on my manner of dress at the time. When in suit, white shirt, tie, I don't go open carry. In climbing rig or hunting gear, I open carry. In between, it depends on the company, place and occasion.

Pops
 
I live in a rural gun friendly county in MO. We can do both. It really depends. If I am going to town, I usually open carry because that is the way I carry around the farm. If I am going to a big city, or a social event in town, I will conceal. It works out to what's easiest at the time.
 
I'd sure like the option to do both, like Rickstir has, but Jim Doyle and the Socialist party here in WI (an otherwise very easygoing state gun-wise) don't agree with me. Eventually we'll get CCW passed here. Open carry is technically legal, but I don't have the time,money, or any spare pistols to lose to the cause of making local LEOs aware of this. Out in more rural areas, and particularly during hunting season, no one even bats an eye at open carry. After what happened last fall, it might be prudent to carry a pistol in addition to my shotgun while hunting. ;)
 
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If you read previous threads on this subject, you will see that one of the biggest negatives is - when you open carry you become a target for criminals.

While we all enjoy hearing how a criminal or would be criminal screwed up and badly injured/killed himself only to be caught by making an ignorant mistake, you'll find that is the exception rather than the rule (unfortunately). Someone who is trying to achieve a goal, robbing a gas station, for example, will do everything they can to make sure they are successful. That means when they see a threat (a police officer or an armed citizen), they are going to avoid or eliminate it.

If they were getting ready to commit a crime but had not yet taken course of action, they will probably avoid the threat by waiting for it to leave or choosing a different target (convenience store). During the commission of the crime, or if they are simply determined the criminal will eliminate the threat if they believe there is even a small chance of doing so.


The other side of the coin, actually you could say it is the same side, is that it deters criminals/would be criminals. Most of them do not want to be harmed or take an obvious chance of being harmed if they do not need to. They will wait for an easier target - someone who cannot defend themselves and are not carrying a weapon. Criminals do it all the time.

Personally, I think if one out of every two or three people carried openly and knew how to use their weapons and were willing to - there would be a very small number of forcible felonies. You would have to have huge cajones and a very small brain to walk into McDonald's and start demanding anything, especially at gunpoint. How crunchy would that guy feel! :neener:
 
Not another open vs concealed carry thread. :banghead: (Where's that beating a dead horse smilie?)

Responses will usually vary based on where the person lives. People who live in states that allow open carry (e.g. AZ, VA, CO, AK, VT, and some I'm unaware of - EDIT: these are states that allow permit-less open carry) will say that open carry is peachy, and there's little chance of being hasseled, even in metro areas. They also will say the sheep rarely even notice and if they do they probably won't care. I'm one those.

The other side come from states where open carry will get you thrown in jail before you know what's happened. They'll claim that open carry makes you a target for criminals (take out the opposition first, etc) and that all it'll do is frighten the sheep. They'll go on about how bad it is tactically to open carry, what kind of Rambo wannabe are you to open carry, etc, ad nauseum.

Bottom line is, there's tactical advantages both ways (if open carry was so bad, tactically, why do cops open carry?). There's also tactical disadvantages both ways. What you choose to do should be dictated by the laws of your area, the circumstances you're in, what you are comfortable with, and where in the balance of tactical advantage you want to be.

For me, I have a CCW permit, though I lack a good gun for that - at least during the non-winter months. Open carry is legal and reasonably accepted so if I happen to be open carrying I don't worry about it. When out hiking/hunting/camping I open carry simply becuase it keeps the gun more accesable should a bear/coyote/goblin pose a problem. In town, if I had a CCW piece I would conceal, if not open carry works fine.
 
I'd much prefer to have open carry legal everywhere, and CCW an option. That way, if my CCW piece is exposed through wind, or my jacket riding up, or something like that, I'm still legal!
 
Open carry for me, thanks: it's a lot easier to carry a lot more gun more comfortably, and anyway, I believe America would be a much happier, saner, more polite country if everyone saw law-abiding citizens openly keeping and bearing arms safely, legally, and to good purpose.
 
I currently carry in a paddle holster under an untucked shirt. Since in Georgia, with a license, there's no legal difference between open and concealed carry, I don't worry about it peaking out the bottom. Occasionally my shirt will barely cover it but I haven't yet had anyone say anything if they've seen or noticed.
 
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Another in agreement with for Preacherman and what42.

I don't think that I would open carry but I would like the option.
It would also be nice not to have to worry as much about accidental showing
 
I would like to have the option. It would give me a good reason to get a nice BBQ gun and leather. It's sad to think that good looking guns have to be covered up.
 
In Beirut Lebanon in 1982 everyone open carried. On a personal level, people were very polite and courteous to one another in the midst of anarchy and revolution and sixteen different outside factions fighting for control. It was a sureal experience. I believe the fact that everyone had an automatic weapon equalized status and was a constant reminder of the need for good manners.

I vote for open carry to be legal and accepted.
 
To carry openly OR concealed in GA one must have a 'Georgia Firearms License'.

An exception is one's home/property where you may carry any way you please without the license.

See 'Official Code of Georga, Annotated' (OCGA) Section 16.
 
Maybe, with Fla loosening restrictions lately, we will get a Ga type law here.

I don't see any Vermont influenced laws anytime soon
 
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