The Rising Backlash Against ANY Type of Open Carry -- If Not ALL Types

Grapeshot said:

Where has this happened, is happening, or about to happen in the USA?

Excluding the original battle/war for our independence.

Click to expand...

since9 said:

Well said, stealthyeliminator. And you're undoubtedly right in that the vast majority of OCT meets aren't in-your-face events. The problem with media coverage, however, is they don't care. They paint things as if it were, merely because you're OCing long guns instead of handguns. As I've stated twice before, I have no issues with people OCing long guns.

Repeat: I have no issues with people OCing long guns.

I do, however, have issues with the media spinning it as unfavorable and detrimental to all forms of carry, as that does come back to haunt us all. Bloomburg's team of well-funded neanderthals pick up on it as well, and have flooded businesses around the U.S. with information and flyers designed to create enmity in the minds of businesses. They're responding with actions ranging from "politely asking customers to leave their firearms in their vehicles" to putting up "No Firearms" signs.

That does affect me, even though it's in part the result of long-gun OC down in Texas. Thanks, modern media.

The reason I started this thread is because we're not being smart about this. "Work smarter, not harder" is a great motto, provided you don't just pay it lip service. If the lawful actions of one group of individuals adversely impacts another, and is trending towards adversely impacting the originating group as well, is that wise? Is it beneficial to the cause we share? Are the long-term consequences worth the short-term gains.

Whether we ask ourselves these questions or not, each and every time we open carry, we make an impression with the public, and impression which can indeed come back to haunt us. Saying, "I should have known better" five years from now serves no useful purpose if we could have prevented a backlash today by working smarter instead of harder.

Learning the impact of your actions on the public at large is absolutely critical to winning long-term, because like it or not, that's the public who elects the government who makes the laws. As Obama has made abundantly clear, he holds our Constitution and even Congress in the highest disdain, and would attempt to run our nation (into the ground) by executive fiat if the rest of government allowed him to do so. Imagine if Obama had even 10% greater support in the House and Senate. That's all the tipping point he would need to get away with disregarding the Constitution and passing sweeping anti-gun legislation. Is that what you want? To help tip the voting public's mind unfavorably to the point where it comes back to bite not only the rest of us, but yourselves as well?

Certainly we want avoid that, not at all costs, but certainly at reasonable cost, as the cost of stepping into that mess would be all too high. It would involve the erosion of the many advances we've made over the last three decades with respect to gun rights.

Until the Second Amendment's clear provision for Constitutional Carry is recognized by all for precisely what it is, the tide can easily be turned against us. While the local impression with that store owner who invites you in may indeed be favorable, the impression at the national level may be seriously different, and detrimental to the rights of others.

Hopefully, you're not one of those throwbacks who just doesn't give a crap about anyone but themselves, as those are usually the ones who wind up loosing the most rights in the long run. Along with everyone else, of course.

Click to expand...

marshaul said:

I gotta give you credit for saying this better than I had. I've never had a problem with the principle of long gun OC; it's merely the recognition that OC must be done thoughtfully to help with the "normalization" of carry.

This is why I bought a fancy tooled leather holster, and never carry in some tacticool joker's rig. It's also why I don't carry an AR into places like coffee shops.

I still maintain, however, that allowing a slung rifle's muzzle to sweep bystanders is a **** move, and bad form all around.

Click to expand...