Sunday, February 13, 2011

Breda on Open Carry

Breda sparked a wonderful discussion about open carry.


As a gun owner, there are few better feelings than walking down the street in a freedom-friendly town with a pistol on your hip.
After offering five common-sense suggestions about carrying a gun openly, she said this.

The point here is to act as if carrying a gun is as normal as wearing a wristwatch. Doing anything else will destroy the potential joys of open carry for the rest of us.
My comment which was not accepted was this.
"The point here is to act as if carrying a gun is as normal as wearing a wristwatch."

The reason people practice the "act as if" thing is because the thing they're acting about IS NOT TRUE.
The discussion, even without my help to focus attention on the fact that gun owners themselves know openly carrying a gun is anything but "normal," turned into a fascinating internecine war between two types of gun owners.

The bullying extremists, shunned by the majority as counter-productive to the cause, say it's their right and nobody can tell them not to do it.  The majority side with Breda. These are the "act as if" gun owners. These are the ones who pretend that gun ownership, concealed carry and even open carry are as normal as flying a kite on a summer's day. They know that's not true, but they pretend.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

14 comments:

  1. Normal is as normal does.

    Gee, cops carry guns openly, I'll bet if you asked a lot of them, they would say it felt strange to them at first, too, wearing not only a belt with all the other gear, but a handgun, too. They would have to act as if it were normal, too.

    As it did become "normal" for them, they wouldn't have to act any more.

    Same with tattoos or piercings. I would suggest that a lot of those people, conscious of their new visible body art, would be somewhat self-conscious, and would have to "act as if" it were normal until it did become normal to them.

    It was the same with me and openly carrying. At first I was self-conscious, and as I continued to "act as if" it were normal, eventually it DID become normal to me.

    Normal to a person is simply what they commonly do, and if they're comfortable with it, they don't need to "act as if" it were normal at all, because it IS normal.

    Now if you're judging normal by what a sizable number or even a majority of people in a society do, then no, carrying a gun is not "normal" by THAT definition.

    If that's your criteria for "normal" then flying a kite on a summer's day is LESS normal than carrying a firearm. There's 1 in 27 adults here in Lane County, Oregon that have Concealed Carry Licenses. There's nowhere near 1 in 27 people flying kites.

    ...Orygunner...

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  2. "If that's your criteria for 'normal' then flying a kite on a summer's day is LESS normal than carrying a firearm. There's 1 in 27 adults here in Lane County, Oregon that have Concealed Carry Licenses. There's nowhere near 1 in 27 people flying kites."

    Bravo.

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  3. "Ode to Open Carry" Sung to the tune of the Gene Autry classic, “One Hundred and Sixty Acres”

    I’ve got a hundred and sixty handguns in my gunsafe;
    I’ve got a hundred and sixty thousand rounds of ammo;
    Got an old paint hoss, I’m the guy who’s boss
    On my hundred and sixty acres of freedom.

    Head for town with my open carry;
    I’ve forgotten what a crook or bully is;
    Load my gun in the blink of an eye;
    With a magazine that’s on my holster too!

    I’ve got a hundred and sixty tickets the cops have given;
    I’ve got a hundred and sixty victories in court!
    It’s as normal as a sunny day!
    It’s what I do when I’m feeling groovy!

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  4. The bullying extremists . . .

    You must define "bullying" (let alone "extremists") differently from . . . well, the rest of the English-speaking world. That's because the vast majority of people, of course, don't consider going about one's business, minding one's own business, while wearing an inanimate object that fills some with irrational fear and loathing, to even faintly resemble "bullying."

    Maybe you should provide a glossary or something on this blog, so readers have a better chance of translating what you say into actual English.

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  5. "The reason people practice the "act as if" thing is because the thing they're acting about IS NOT TRUE."

    I feel more uncomfortable wearing a wristwatch than I do open carrying my .45. I just can't wait to buy a .46 (.460 S&W) and wear that as though it were a Rolex!

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  6. "Load my gun in the blink of an eye;
    With a magazine that’s on my holster too!"


    I don't get the reference? If you are open carrying, why would you wait until you need it to load it?

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  7. Hey FWM,

    Apparently it's legal to open carry in public in just about any unrestricted area across California. Only thing is the gun can't be loaded. It can only be loaded on your own property or a campsite or range or something like that. A lot of people are wondering, "What's the point of carrying if the gun can't be loaded?" According to the open carry guys, it's not that big of a deal just to load your gun quickly in case you need to. I first heard about all this watching a video put together at UC San Francisco. One of the open carry guys guided a female undergrad through the streets of San Francisco. They both had pistols strapped to their hips. A couple of people really gave them a hard time. The open carry guy said that's just to be expected. Then they went to an open carry barbecue. Everybody had a gun. But none of them were loaded. CaliforniaCarry.org issued this FAQ to clarify where people stand. Since a magazine is possibly considered part of the weapon itself, they don't recommend that people conceal them on their person. I guess it's okay to have a few bullets in your pocket. But if you don't want to end up downtown, don't hide a magazine. They also recommend not to open carry in California unless you are willing to go through false arrest, court appearances, etc.

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  8. The reason people open carry is to make a statement. There are those who push it in your face and dare you to challenge them on their rights. And there are those who try the Breda-like subtle approach of smiling and being extra polite so as not frighten the uninitiated.

    Both groups are trying to accustom people to something that is not normal, as Orygunner admitted.

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  9. Flying Junior,

    That's California where we already know their gun laws are retarded.

    In free America, you carry your gun loaded, open or concealed.

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  10. @Mikeb,

    That was part of the reason I open carried for awhile, because I believe the whole reason it disturbs people is because it's rarely seen. If more people open carried and the general public became used to seeing it, it wouldn't raise near the issues it does now.

    I tried it a few months, part of that was while waiting to get my Concealed Handgun License, but I continued to carry for a while after that, but I chose to stop because my family asked me to. I am willing to put up with some negative attention and I can handle it politely and tactfully, but my wife is somewhat shy and did NOT like the attention.

    ...Orygunner...

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  11. Orygunner, Your wife sounds like a smart lady.

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  12. Both groups are trying to accustom people to something that is not normal . . .

    Lots of things that were once very far from "normal" now offend only the most backward among us (interracial marriage comes to mind).

    Maybe someday, girls wearing rifles while buying ice cream will be as normal here as it is in Israel.

    One can hope.

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  13. @Mikeb,

    I should add, during my Open Carry period, that I never did get any negative attention. I was asked to remove the magazine in GI Joe's Sporting Goods (which was a little weird), and had a few people ask if I was a police officer. I even had a local cop get behind me in line at a Dari-Mart (convenience store) and never said a word. I did have a few people notice and stare, and that was what my wife noticed and it made her uncomfortable.

    If we're going out into the outdoors for camping, hiking, or fishing, she has no problem with open carry at all. She just feels uncomfortable with it in town - not because she doesn't like seeing it, but she doesn't want the attention, period.

    ...Orygunner...

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  14. Orygunner, I'm sure you're wife would just love Breda (sarcasm).

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