I read boards based in other states, where the users clamor on about open carry, the issues they have and how they feel its their right to brandish their firearms to an unsuspecting public and police apparatus.
Before you get mad, I am a huge supporter of second amendment rights and concealed carry - as evidenced by other posts I have here.
But open carry?
I guess I don't get it and in spite of me calling it retarded, Im willing to listen to any wisdom on the subject. From a practical standpoint, the first thing I do is put myself in the shoes of a determined criminal - if he or she sees a goober carrying openly, he or she is going to remove that goober first and carry on with whatever other crimes that were planned for the day.
You might say that its a deterrent, but again, I don't see it. If anything, I think it creates an atmosphere whereby the determined criminal knows who the enemy is, the police know who they can harass and the non-gun public is just confused and scared.
I know, screw the sheeple, right? No. Gun control might have been muted,but there have been plenty of higher profile shootings that have put them back on edge. At a time where we should either be winning public support or keeping the non gunners quiet, the media is foisting these shootings, alongside heavily armed civilians as if they're one in the same. It sucks that we have to fight for what is essentially a civil and human right, but them's the breaks as my grandfather used to say.
Having been carrying for a year, and shooting for more than 20, I know that the best weapon is the one between one's ears. With the open carry movement, I have to wonder what exactly IS between the ears.