Texas Cable TV 11 News report on open carry controversey

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http://www.txcn.com/sharedcontent/dws/txcn/houston/stories/khou080624_tj_gunlaws.368369a1.html

Group wants to carry handguns in plain view

10:46 PM CDT on Tuesday, June 24, 2008

By Kevin Reece / 11 News


Video: Kevin Reece's 11 News report
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HOUSTON -- Inside Jim Pruett’s northwest Houston gun store, you can find a gun with a laser sight, weapons of all styles and Jim’s own .45 caliber pistol secured to his hip. When he leaves the store, however, he has to conceal it and keep it out of sight.

That is the law in Texas.

The law could change, and a petition with more than 7,000 signatures so far, is pushing for the state to adopt an open carry law. It would allow a gun owner to carry a handgun in the open for all the bad guys -- and the good guys -- to see.

Open carry law

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“In certain places it would be a good crime deterrent,” said Pruett, a supporter of the group Open Carry.

Opponents see the push for open carry laws as a way to create gunslingers and promote "hotheads" to open fire.

“I think it’s a terrible idea,” said Richard Leal of Texans for Gun Safety Laws. “We’re going back to the gunslinger days, where basically… Here I am; you think you’re faster than I am? Let’s try it.”

Also online

Open Carry Web site

Texans for Gun Safety Web site
As the concealed handgun law in Texas stands now, you can get in trouble for displaying that weapon – even if it’s inadvertent – because it could be construed that you are using it for intimidation. That’s at the center of the open carry debate – is intimidation a bad thing or good thing?

“The bad guys are not worried about the police. They’re not worried about jail. That’s part of their life,” said Pruett. “They’re worried about citizens who are armed and might shoot them.”

Leal sees the open carry laws as wrought with potential for abuse.

“I don’t need to be intimidated by it. That’s not your purpose to intimidate me. But regardless of what your purpose is, it’s how I react to the situation (that counts),” said Leal.

How the governor and legislature react is what both sides of the debate are waiting for next.

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Just voted and commented:


89 Votes - 79% YES
15 Votes - 16% no
5 Votes - 4% don't know

Stand up and be counted!

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DJB.45ACP wrote:

Just voted and commented:


89 Votes - 79% YES
15 Votes - 16% no
5 Votes - 4% don't know

Stand up and be counted!

Click to expand...

Do you have to register to vote??

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Mike wrote:

DJB.45ACP wrote:

Just voted and commented:


89 Votes - 79% YES
15 Votes - 16% no
5 Votes - 4% don't know

Stand up and be counted!

Click to expand...

Do you have to register to vote??

Click to expand...

Yes, e-mail, password, name and birth year...opt out of the spamail at the bottom of the form.

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Here is the poll count at this time:

126 Votes (79.25%) YES

26 Votes (16.35%) No

7 Votes (4.40%) Undecided



Doc

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The owner is Jim Pruett. He was on the radio as Stevens and Pruett for the most popular radio station for alot of years.He knowsthe press.I took my concealed carry with them. He is a nice guy. I am in Iraq and I bought a gun from an out of state dealer and he stored it for 5 months and I have recently bought a gun through him and he has stored it for 2 months untill I am there in July. He is a great guy and would be a great spokesman for open carry.org if he would do it. Here is a link to his website http://www.jimpruett.net/

I am in no way affiliated with Jim Pruett I just think very highly of him and what he is doing and has done for gun rights.

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I'm sorry but I'm sick of hearing about how other people react to my fights, I would be will in my rights to where a shirt that said "Down with Mexico" down into the barrio, I would never do it and I don't reccommend it but why doesn' t that right get violated because of peoples reaction?

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“I think it’s a terrible idea,” said Richard Leal of Texans for Gun Safety Laws. “We’re going back to the gunslinger days, where basically… Here I am; you think you’re faster than I am? Let’s try it.”

Click to expand...

talk about your fear mongering and BS tactics.

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DKSuddeth wrote:

“I think it’s a terrible idea,” said Richard Leal of Texans for Gun Safety Laws. “We’re going back to the gunslinger days, where basically… Here I am; you think you’re faster than I am? Let’s try it.”

Click to expand...

talk about your fear mongering and BS tactics.

Click to expand...

What you guys don't do this in Texas? I know we have scheduled shoot outs every week up here since we have open carry rights. Seriously you can just check the paper and be like "huh, shoot out at high noon, at the watering hole". What a jack ass.

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The "Returning to the Wild West" Argument was used everytime another state passed concealed carry legislation. Nobody but us (Namely we who support carry.) has yet realized that it HASN'T HAPPENED previously.


The Arguments we'll hear will be the same with every new pro-carry law.
"What if he's drunk."
"It'll be the Wild West again."
"There'll Be so many road Rage shootings."

Yet none will come true.

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So I was reading thisnews report: http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/062708/loc_296146972.shtml#mdw-comments.

A comment below it said: "Washington, D.C. laments the increase in gun crime. It has taken a quantum leap since private ownership of handguns was abolished in 1976. When guns are outlawed, only the outlaws have guns. England is learning the same lesson as is Australia."

The next comment said: "Actually, gun crime has decreased since the ban on handguns."

Tothe second commentI say, you are completely wrong.
Check this out if you don't believe me: http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/dccrime.htm
Note that these numbers are index based.

So, for in 1976, with a population of 702,000 people, DC had a total of 2654 murders. This number climbed higher and higher. Now, DC's population has steadily gone down since 1968. Typically cities' populations only grow, but not in crime-ridden DC. People are getting out!! By 1991, DC's population had decreased by over 100,000, down to 598,000 people,while it's number of murders per yearhit an all time high of 4476 murders. So, the number of murders per year INCREASED by 68% from 1976 to 1991, while the population DECREASED by 14%. Yeah, I'd say that the handgun ban really had an effect.... it made things worse!

Also, to give some perspective on DC's out-of-control crime, please note that Houston, TX had 1.6 MILLION people in 1990, and only had 577 murders.Seriously, wth is going on in DC?

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jarodm20 wrote:

Also, to give some perspective on DC's out-of-control crime, please note that Houston, TX had 1.6 MILLION people in 1990, and only had 577 murders.Seriously, wth is going on in DC?

Click to expand...

Using Houston numbers are not really a good idea for the gun-debate. We have more crime here than in Chicago. Although everyone knows this has nothing to do with guns, it would only hurt us using current numbers.

I'm pretty sure just about ALL Houstonians know exactly why our crime rate is so high. Crime hightened after Katrina, and was high already from illegals.