marshaul
Campaign Veteran
imported post
One thing I have found interesting since I started OCing and reading these forums are the reasons people give when asked "Why do you carry?"
Here on the site, much talk is made about open carry as a form of activism, "A right not exercised is a right lost" and all that.
Yet, it seems that many people bring up self-defense as their primary reason for carrying when asked in public by a stranger.
In my own case, I don't really carry for self-defense. That's not to say I wouldn't use my weapon for self-defense in the unlikely event that it were necessary, and it certainly isn't to say that I don't maintain a higher level of situational awareness when carrying (because I do), but my reasons for carrying have a lot more to do with the point we're all trying to make than they do with self-defense.
If everybody (or nearly everybody) openly carried, I would likely leave my gun at home more often, just for the convenience of not having it. However, as it stands I never take it off.
As a result, when people question me on my motivations for carrying, I always tell them the same thing: although self-defense is a valid reason and it's the reason most people have for carrying, my primary reason for carrying is to exercise a right which is in danger of being lost forever.
What really impresses me is the kind of reactions I've had. One girl gave me a hug and told me "that is the best reason I've ever heard anybody give for why they carry a gun!" and another guy (an employee at a certain burger chain we all love ) used his employee discount to pay for several burgers I had ordered to go after I outlined Virginia's laws to him and explained why I carry.
The first, obvious conclusion I have come to is that most people (Americans at least) are unafraid when they see a gun being openly carried by a person who is behaving
in a responsible, peaceful manner, despite whatever preconceived notions they may have about guns and carrying, and their own fear thereof. To put it another way, I have had friends tell me "guns intimidate/scare me" who later confess that they no longer have any notion that they fear seeing a gun after seeing me regularly open carry. One of my ladyfriends went from telling me she was intimidated by my gun to telling me (after a few drinks I suspect :lol that she felt like I was her bodyguard. I have since taught her how to shoot my 1911 - this a girl who had never even fired a .22. (I have to say I was really impressed by her handling of the .45 on her first time at any range - so much for all that nonsense about a .45 being hard to control!)
At any rate, the second conclusion I have come to was a little less obvious. Although there are doubtless many people who don't carry because of the perceived legal hassle of doing so, the ultimate reason most people don't carry is because they don't feel they really need to carry a gun for self-defense. If they did, they would have likely gone through the minor hassle of obtaining a concealed carry permit, and if they had done that they would be unlikely to stop and ask about open carry. So, you could say that most people who will stop and ask you about open carry are likely to be people who feel that they, themselves don't really need to carry a gun for self-defense. This is evidenced by how often people will ask you what your job is, or if you work in something related to law enforcement, etc - they are assuming that since they don't feel the need to carry, your job must be dangerous enough that you do.
Of course, when you explain that you're an ordinary citizen with a perfectly safe job, some of these people will be unable to, shall we say, resonate with your reasoning - if they don't need to carry, and you have a job just as safe as theirs, why should you?
On the other hand, whatever "side" of the political "fence" people find themselves on, many Americans are, one way or another, afraid for the future of our country and, more specifically, afraid of an overreaching Federal government stepping on their toes.
So, whether they are a Democrat who fears the executive branch seizing too much power, or a Republican who fears the loss of second amendment rights, most Americans will understand an action when placed in their terms. The idea that we live in times where all of our rights are slowly being ratcheted away, and that to preserve a right you must exercise it, and that therefore in these times it is especially important to exercise those rights most in danger, is an idea that resonates with many Americans, even those who might not think of themselves as especially pro-gun.
This is the reason I always take the time to explain my reasoning in full when someone asks me why I'm carrying. Although I don't expect to "convert" any radical anti-gun nuts, I am sure that this approach is effective in those cases where the person is not opposed to gun ownership per se, but may not understand why the average citizen needs to carry for self-defense, when we live in such a "safe" country.
What do you guys think?
One thing I have found interesting since I started OCing and reading these forums are the reasons people give when asked "Why do you carry?"
Here on the site, much talk is made about open carry as a form of activism, "A right not exercised is a right lost" and all that.
Yet, it seems that many people bring up self-defense as their primary reason for carrying when asked in public by a stranger.
In my own case, I don't really carry for self-defense. That's not to say I wouldn't use my weapon for self-defense in the unlikely event that it were necessary, and it certainly isn't to say that I don't maintain a higher level of situational awareness when carrying (because I do), but my reasons for carrying have a lot more to do with the point we're all trying to make than they do with self-defense.
If everybody (or nearly everybody) openly carried, I would likely leave my gun at home more often, just for the convenience of not having it. However, as it stands I never take it off.
As a result, when people question me on my motivations for carrying, I always tell them the same thing: although self-defense is a valid reason and it's the reason most people have for carrying, my primary reason for carrying is to exercise a right which is in danger of being lost forever.
What really impresses me is the kind of reactions I've had. One girl gave me a hug and told me "that is the best reason I've ever heard anybody give for why they carry a gun!" and another guy (an employee at a certain burger chain we all love ) used his employee discount to pay for several burgers I had ordered to go after I outlined Virginia's laws to him and explained why I carry.
The first, obvious conclusion I have come to is that most people (Americans at least) are unafraid when they see a gun being openly carried by a person who is behaving
in a responsible, peaceful manner, despite whatever preconceived notions they may have about guns and carrying, and their own fear thereof. To put it another way, I have had friends tell me "guns intimidate/scare me" who later confess that they no longer have any notion that they fear seeing a gun after seeing me regularly open carry. One of my ladyfriends went from telling me she was intimidated by my gun to telling me (after a few drinks I suspect :lol that she felt like I was her bodyguard. I have since taught her how to shoot my 1911 - this a girl who had never even fired a .22. (I have to say I was really impressed by her handling of the .45 on her first time at any range - so much for all that nonsense about a .45 being hard to control!)
At any rate, the second conclusion I have come to was a little less obvious. Although there are doubtless many people who don't carry because of the perceived legal hassle of doing so, the ultimate reason most people don't carry is because they don't feel they really need to carry a gun for self-defense. If they did, they would have likely gone through the minor hassle of obtaining a concealed carry permit, and if they had done that they would be unlikely to stop and ask about open carry. So, you could say that most people who will stop and ask you about open carry are likely to be people who feel that they, themselves don't really need to carry a gun for self-defense. This is evidenced by how often people will ask you what your job is, or if you work in something related to law enforcement, etc - they are assuming that since they don't feel the need to carry, your job must be dangerous enough that you do.
Of course, when you explain that you're an ordinary citizen with a perfectly safe job, some of these people will be unable to, shall we say, resonate with your reasoning - if they don't need to carry, and you have a job just as safe as theirs, why should you?
On the other hand, whatever "side" of the political "fence" people find themselves on, many Americans are, one way or another, afraid for the future of our country and, more specifically, afraid of an overreaching Federal government stepping on their toes.
So, whether they are a Democrat who fears the executive branch seizing too much power, or a Republican who fears the loss of second amendment rights, most Americans will understand an action when placed in their terms. The idea that we live in times where all of our rights are slowly being ratcheted away, and that to preserve a right you must exercise it, and that therefore in these times it is especially important to exercise those rights most in danger, is an idea that resonates with many Americans, even those who might not think of themselves as especially pro-gun.
This is the reason I always take the time to explain my reasoning in full when someone asks me why I'm carrying. Although I don't expect to "convert" any radical anti-gun nuts, I am sure that this approach is effective in those cases where the person is not opposed to gun ownership per se, but may not understand why the average citizen needs to carry for self-defense, when we live in such a "safe" country.
What do you guys think?