Would the S.W.A.T. Team show up?

[RFWAVELENGTH]

Jesus..is it really that bad???

I would tend to concur. I live in a condo. Eight buildings, four units per building, two story buildings. One day, I was on my way to the range to get in some pre-deer-season practice with my shotgun. I had the Remington 870 unloaded and cased as I exited my building and headed to the parking lot. A young couple stopped me and asked me why I was carrying a gun. These people were visitors, not owners or tenants, and were headed towards the next building. I smiled, said "good morning", and put the firearm behind the seat of my truck. By the time I returned from the range, they had left.

 

[MassMark]

Just make sure your dog is safe....

 

[Bob P]

You do realize that there is no such charge...... right?

Actually, no I didn't. So what charge IS being levied in all of these news reports about people getting arressted for 'brandishing a firearm'?

 

[MassMark]

Here's the scenario:

I was in a grocery store in new Hampshire open carrying, while picking up beer, beef jerky, cigarettes, chips and salsa, (in that order - beer is the top food group). No one batted an eye. In fact, someone commented to me in line about the Sig I was carrying, saying he always wanted one and asked if it was a 226. "Nope 220" I said. The cashier added: "My husband has a bunch of Sigs - he loves them". The man went on to ask how long I had it, to which I replied: "It's not mine, a good friend let me borrow it." "Wish I had friends like that", he said. With that, both the cashier and the customer wished me a good day...

15-miles away in Massachusetts, I would have been on the deck at gunpoint....The 911 system in Ashby would have been flooded with phone calls about: " Jesus, there's a man with a gun at Market Basket! - send help now for God's sake!!!" .... It's mindset people - mindset...baaaaaaaah.....

 

[Bill Nance]

It really depends on where you live. The call is going out as brandishing, not cleaning your gun. So you can rest assured that the cops will show up. From that point it really depends on where you live and which cops show up to take the call.

 

[maee]

I doubt that sitting outside with a firearm in parts would cause a reasonable person any fear of immediate harm.

Do you know any reasonable people from Mass, because I don't.

 

[Kid Presentable]

Jesus..is it really that bad???

no i have nosey/talkative neighbors, that's part of the reason the other part is just me

 

[Mark from MA]

This is all gonna depend on where you live in MA Everybody paints MA with a broad brush to be wacko, really not the case. Out by Boston..absofrickinlutey....true. In my neighborhood, I could clean a gun all day every day on my front porch, deck, open garage, whatever...and I do. I come home from shooting put my guns on the kitchen table to be cleaned and my kids friends parents come over to visit or drop one of the kids off and think nothing of it. In fact my son's friend's mother was by the other day, saw my piece on the table, and said "that reminds me, I gotta go get my pistol course sometime, we had a break in and town and I want to be able to carry". The neighbor and I shoot from the back deck of his house by just making a few friendly phone calls to the neighbors just to let them know so they don't bother the PD for no reason.

So the answer to the above question. YES...I know a lot of reasonable people in MA......I think that's the key...they know me, I know them....and it's good to get to know your neighbors. If your neighbors first experience with you is that your cleaning the AR-15 on the front porch.....they might just deem you a psycho. However, if they have met you, know you, gone to dinner with you, and see you cleaning the AR on the porch, they will likely just wave and smile. Give people the benefit of the doubt....there are moonbats out there for sure, but there are a lot of reasonable people in MA.....

A lot of this paranoia only takes place in the crowded or yuppified towns..... and I can see it being and issue in a high traffic spot or condo...etc. If your in a place like that....is it legal...sure....but I'm sure your toying with being called unsuitable, silly or having the PD called on you. Common sense says that when your in a crowd, you keep the gun concealed. I would think even on a busy street in any city...in any state you might get a called on that situation. Move out to the country in MA if you want to clean your gun on your front porch.....no one will care.

 

[Mark from MA]

Here's the scenario:

I was in a grocery store in new Hampshire open carrying, while picking up beer, beef jerky, cigarettes, chips and salsa, (in that order - beer is the top food group). No one batted an eye. In fact, someone commented to me in line about the Sig I was carrying, saying he always wanted one and asked if it was a 226. "Nope 220" I said. The cashier added: "My husband has a bunch of Sigs - he loves them". The man went on to ask how long I had it, to which I replied: "It's not mine, a good friend let me borrow it." "Wish I had friends like that", he said. With that, both the cashier and the customer wished me a good day...

15-miles away in Massachusetts, I would have been on the deck at gunpoint....The 911 system in Ashby would have been flooded with phone calls about: " Jesus, there's a man with a gun at Market Basket! - send help now for God's sake!!!" .... It's mindset people - mindset...baaaaaaaah.....

People from MA shop in NH for Beer and Ciggies??? I thought they just went up there to OC.....LOL!

 

[drgrant]

Brandishing.

The all purpose catch-all firearms charge.

There is no such charge of brandishing in MA.

A gun charge is either AWDW or it's not. The not could also be some other catch all charge, but nowhere near AWDW.

Course, even if there is no law to catch you, there's the suitability clause
funhouse. With that they can write down "did not wear clown suit as requested on the day required" if they wanted to justify revoking an LTC lol.


-Mike

 

[Bob P]

There is no such charge of brandishing in MA.

A gun charge is either AWDW or it's not. The not could also be some other catch all charge, but nowhere near AWDW.

Course, even if there is no law to catch you, there's the suitability clause
funhouse. With that they can write down "did not wear clown suit as requested on the day required" if they wanted to justify revoking an LTC lol.


-Mike

At the risk of sounding like an idiot, this is blowing my mind. So all the news reports etc that mention 'he was arrested for brandishing a gun..' is just sloppy reportage (not that it should surprse me)? It's AWADW or Disturbing the Peace basically.

 

[Hikes]

This morning on fox news there was a story about a guy in Va arrested because he stolled into his kitchen in the morning naked to make coffee. A lady walking by looked into his house and saw him nude, and he was arrested for indecent exposure in his own home even though it was unintentional.

Not exactly the same thing, although he was "brandishing" something!

 

[M1911]

At the risk of sounding like an idiot, this is blowing my mind. So all the news reports etc that mention 'he was arrested for brandishing a gun..' is just sloppy reportage (not that it should surprse me)?

Well, you never can tell with reporters (or police spokescritters). I was once interviewed by phone for several hours by a high level reporter at a small, unimportant newspaper that you probably haven't heard of -- the New York Times. When I read the resulting story, I was rather naively surprised that the supposed quotations did not resemble what I had said. In fact, some of them were made up out of whole cloth. It wasn't that he paraphrased what I said. No, he made up quotations that implying things contrary to what I'd said. He had decided what story he was going to write before he interviewed me, and the mere fact that what I said didn't support his story wasn't going to stop him.

Even if you aren't dealing with reporter malfeasance, as I experienced, there is simply reporter stupidity. It seems like once a year the Globe publishes an article about a local police department and uses the phrase "service revolver," even though they switched to semi-autos 20 years ago.

And then finally there are police themselves. I think it was last year that a fellow was arrested on the Cape for drunk driving. They revoked his LTC, and seized his guns, one of which the police said was illegally equipped with a silencer. I posted here that I suspected it was a bull-barrel Ruger Mark 2, but IIRC, Half Cocked corrected me -- it was a mere muzzle brake attached to a Ruger .22. The police involved in the case had apparently misidentified the gun and then faithfully reported that misidentification to the press.

I've come to the conclusion that if the press spells your name correctly, they are having a good day. If anything in the article beyond that actually resembles reality, it is likely due to chance alone.

 

[Half Cocked]

When I read the resulting story, I was rather naively surprised that the supposed quotations did not resemble what I had said. In fact, some of them were made up out of whole cloth. It wasn't that he paraphrased what I said. No, he made up quotations that implying things contrary to what I'd said. He had decided what story he was going to write before he interviewed me, and the mere fact that what I said didn't support his story wasn't going to stop him.

Correct..... it is amazing how many times I am misquoted by the press. You tend to learn which reporters to avoid.

 

[M1911]

Correct..... it is amazing how many times I am misquoted by the press. You tend to learn which reporters to avoid.

What surprised me was the sheer arrogance involved. He shamelessly made up quotes that were quite contrary to what I was saying. I, naively, assumed that he would try to quote what I actually said, or to spin what I said. Instead, he just made it up.

So now, if a reporter says the sky is blue, I try to remember to look up and carefully examine the sky.

 

[buketduder]

I think it would depend where you are in Mass...I left Vermont and was in Colrain, Mass (sorry if i spelled it wrong) and stopped on a side road by a river..Out of the woods walked 2 guys...one had a shotgun on his shoulder and the other was openly carrying a pistol and carrying a pistol case....

PS- I did not call the police..haha.

To be honest actually I am not sure..it might have been Rowe, Mass...somewhere up there..beautiful area

 

[Half Cocked]

What surprised me was the sheer arrogance involved. He shamelessly made up quotes that were quite contrary to what I was saying. I, naively, assumed that he would try to quote what I actually said, or to spin what I said. Instead, he just made it up.

Yup.... which is why now we mostly type up press releases and e-mail them to the press. There is then a memorialized copy of what was released. Then when they call for further comment we tell them that it is all in the press release. It seems to make things more acccurate.

 

[M1911]

Yup.... which is why now we mostly type up press releases and e-mail them to the press. There is then a memorialized copy of what was released. Then when they call for further comment we tell them that it is all in the press release. It seems to make things more acccurate.

I can certainly see why -- it is all in black-and-white and even the most shameless reporter would be hard-pressed to make up a quote since you could easily call him on it.

 

[amb]

I think one of the biggest problems we've got right now in Mass. is that all the gun owners (and many of the gun shops, too) are in hiding.

The problem with being invisible is that people who aren't familiar with guns stay that way, and Hollywood teaches them that the presence of a gun will almost always be followed immediately by violent mayhem. People freak out more, then the gun owners hide a bit more. It's a vicious circle; repeat until outlawed.

I'm not ready to try open carry in Boston, but I have been trying to do my part to not hide, either. I had a rather decent bullseye target hanging in my office for a while (in what I would have thought was a really hostile environment), and the only comments I ever got were positive. Three coworkers that I know of have gotten LTCs in the last few years. I may or may not have had anything to do with that, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't even know about it otherwise. Even if I'm "the office gun nut" or whatever, I'm still setting some kind of example for (mostly) sane gun ownership somewhere other than the big (and violent) screen.

I don't necessarily want to cross the line where people flip out, but I'd really, really like to push that line in the other direction.

I'll just go clean my shotgun on the porch now. (I used to think my neurotic neighbor would flip out, but then I ran into him at the trap range.)

 

[Mark from MA]

I think one of the biggest problems we've got right now in Mass. is that all the gun owners (and many of the gun shops, too) are in hiding.

The problem with being invisible is that people who aren't familiar with guns stay that way, and Hollywood teaches them that the presence of a gun will almost always be followed immediately by violent mayhem. People freak out more, then the gun owners hide a bit more. It's a vicious circle; repeat until outlawed.

I'm not ready to try open carry in Boston, but I have been trying to do my part to not hide, either. I had a rather decent bullseye target hanging in my office for a while (in what I would have thought was a really hostile environment), and the only comments I ever got were positive. Three coworkers that I know of have gotten LTCs in the last few years. I may or may not have had anything to do with that, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't even know about it otherwise. Even if I'm "the office gun nut" or whatever, I'm still setting some kind of example for (mostly) sane gun ownership somewhere other than the big (and violent) screen.

I don't necessarily want to cross the line where people flip out, but I'd really, really like to push that line in the other direction.

I'll just go clean my shotgun on the porch now. (I used to think my neurotic neighbor would flip out, but then I ran into him at the trap range.)

+1.....I think if more people saw guns, and the people that had them are responsible citizens they've known for years....there would be more acceptance and having a gun in this state wouldn't be so "criminal" in the public eye.

But it would take a long time to undo what hollywood and the liberal moonies in this state have done. I figure all I can do is educate everyone I know....if every gun owner went out and did the same and were a little more open to the fact that they are gun owners I think it would make a dent. Obviously most of the people on this website probably do that....I'm talking the gun owners that "feel shame" or hide the fact that they own guns for fear of what people might say. Grow some frickin' balls....you might just see that most people are OK with it, and the ones that are on the fence are open for you to educate, or you can let the moonbat liberals educate them...

 

[News Shooter]

I was in NH last summer and a guy passed me on the sidewalk wearing a shoulder holster. I have to admit that being retarded from living in MA for so long, my first reaction was shock.

But I quickly realized where I was and a warm feeling came over me.

 

[Will Brink]

What do you think?

You live in MA. You really have to ask?

 

[George D]

The machine gun wouldn't bother me but I would call the cops on that shirt.


I clean my rifles in my backyard on the picnic table all the time, fairly private back yard. Never had any issues.