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I Don't Want To Open Carry

Zed Snardbody

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I Don't Want To Open Carry

By: M.R. Myers

I don't want to open carry. I don't want to concealed carry. I'd like to leave my house without my Springfield and not give it any thought. I want to be able to walk down the street and nod the police officer on the beat and know that hes there no more than a yell for help away should I need it. But I can't.

I'm a liberal Atheist that believes in public health care so that no one need struggle to be well. I believe that criminals that can be helped should be helped. I do my best to give the benefit of the doubt and look for the better nature and the good in everyone. I believe that every life is scared and should be protected. I help when I can and I'm not afraid to ask for help.

I'm also a realist. I know at the end of the day, It's my ass and no one Else's. I know that there are people like me, but too many that aren't. People that don't care how I voted, that don't care that I'd like to give them a helping hand if they asked for it. I know that there are times I'll go for an entire month without seeing police cruiser, let alone an officer out and about.

I want to make the world a better place, the help the less fortunate, to end war, the end hunger, and make sure that even in the darkest night, with every street light out, the only thing anyone needs to be afraid of is stubbing their toe and tripping in the park. I also realize that right now, this second, the world is an ugly place and so many things can inflict themselves upon me and the ones I love. So I drive safe, I keep my home up, I do the best I can at my job, and I leave the house with my pistol on my hip.

I carry my pistol because people wiser than me, people who thought like me, people who wanted to create a better world then the one they lived in realized that nothing worth doing is ever easy nor fast. Certainly not creating a better world. And those people in their great struggle to make the world a better place, saw fit to give their countrymen and their descendants one of the most basic rights, a right that has been acknowledged through out history, the right of a single person to defend himself against an aggressor, and they saw fit to ensure this right to defend myself with a relatively basic tool.

I carry because I have no desire to take a life, only to defend it. I carry because I know there are no second chances. I carry because I know my fox hole conversion is doing me as much good as the diligent, helpful police officer, who joined the force to protect law abiding citizens is 10 minutes away in the middle of the traffic stop. I carry because I know someday I'll be able to leave my pistol in the safe, and only take it out to kill paper and clay. I carry , because I want to see that day when I don't have to carry anymore.

The inspiration for this struck me earlier tonight reading a right wing message board earlier this evening. I'm an unabashed liberal. I make no apologies or explanations for it. The far right bothers me on may levels. So does the far left. As they say "You go to far to one side, you start meeting the same crazy people from the other side coming around the bend". One thing that unites us though is a love for life. I think to often that gets lost in the how. No one want anyone to suffer, no one wants anyone to needlessly die, we just disagree on how to fix things. Fear to often though gets in the way. Fear, the very heart of the anti's. Most aren't bad people, just scared. Being scared isn't a sin, not if you're willing to learn, and face that fear, I'm glad I was able to face mine and learn my pistol is just a thing like my car. Its fun, its an investment, its a tool, and it helps impress women :). So I thought a bit from the other side might be a bit interesting.

Thank you for your time.
 

Task Force 16

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I'm an Atheist andborderline conservative/libertarian. The OP makes since to me. I have a feeling that the author of this is a Classic Liberal and not what we call a "liberal" today, which is totally opposite of the Classic version.

I don't think marine and cracker read much past the title of the article.
 

FogRider

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Cracker wrote:
You lost me at "I don't want to open carry". My response: I will open carry until I can longer do so. You don't have to.
If you read the article, you'll see that the point is less "I don't want to carry" and more "I don't want to need to carry".
 

okboomer

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I agree, this is a lament that he feels he has to carry for his own protection.

We have already tried the, "you don't need a gun, just call the police" method of citizen safety. It didn't work!
 

GoldCoaster

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Stratford, Connecticut, USA
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In a perfect world none of us would "need" to carry, we could carry because we wanted to. We live in a very imperfect world though.

My wife told me tonight about filling her car up with gas today, a car full of hoodlums was in the next bay and were yelling at someone behind my wife. Not sure if that person pulled into "their" spot or whatever but there were a pack of them and talking a lot of crap. I think my wife was a bit scared. I'm hoping sooner rather than later the light bulb will go on that "I should learn to shoot, get my permit and carry" with her, I try and nudge her along but she's Italian and can be very stubborn.

So, until the world is not plagued with psycho's, hoodlums, murderers, rapists and other assorted thugs. We (and liberals) carry.
 

Task Force 16

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FogRider wrote:
Cracker wrote:
You lost me at "I don't want to open carry". My response: I will open carry until I can longer do so. You don't have to.
If you read the article, you'll see that the point is less "I don't want to carry" and more "I don't want to need to carry".
Given the variable natures of the human species, it is sad to say that the need to carry will always be with us. All throughout mans history there have been human predators, and there always will be.
 

JKTex

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Some of the replies are funny. Obviously some of you didn't read past the title. :lol:

I still kinda say, "ooook". :D What does being an atheist have to.......oh never mind. Maybe that's just misspelled too.

I like puppy's in the sun. :celebrate
 

Wangmuf

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Alexandria, Fairfax County VA, ,
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SFCRetired wrote:
I think a couple of you gentlemen may have missed the OP's point. Like him, I carry because I am responsible for my and my family's safety. Also like him, I would love to see a world in which it would not be necessary for me, or anyone else, to carry.

I doubt that either I or the OP will see that day in our lifetimes. I wish it were otherwise but it isn't.

For what it is worth, I am his exact opposite politically and in religion; he is a liberal atheist and I am a conservative Christian.
That said, I would like to meet him IRL as I think he sees some things pretty clearly.

Zed, if you ever get to Alabama, let me know beforehand and I'll buy lunch.

+10000000, let me know if you ever come to northern Va. We'll go have some banging crabs at Joe's. Of course, I'll be carrying. But I'll treat you as a loved one, and protect you if you choose not to.


Edit: I had to QFT paragraph 6 of the OP:

I carry because I have no desire to take a life, only to defend it. I carry because I know there are no second chances. I carry because I know my fox hole conversion is doing me as much good as the diligent, helpful police officer, who joined the force to protect law abiding citizens is 10 minutes away in the middle of the traffic stop. I carry because I know someday I'll be able to leave my pistol in the safe, and only take it out to kill paper and clay. I carry , because I want to see that day when I don't have to carry anymore.

Bold is my emphasis; This is what most municipalities want from their "beat" police force.
 

Zed Snardbody

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Thanks for the responses, especially the offers for lunch.

I posted this mostly because as a converted anti, I feel like a lot of the time reading posts on here I have a different perspective and I wanted to share it.

As for making the point that I'm a liberal and an atheist, its acknowledging that I am a minority on this site. Again without debating the politics behind my my dirty leftedness, it just means I may look at open carry differently, but decided to like many of you, its my right, and I'm choosing to exercise it.

Its probably a bit of a desire to do my little bit to reach out from the other side as well.
 

Grapeshot

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Zed Snardbody wrote:
Thanks for the responses, especially the offers for lunch.

I posted this mostly because as a converted anti, I feel like a lot of the time reading posts on here I have a different perspective and I wanted to share it.

As for making the point that I'm a liberal and an atheist, its acknowledging that I am a minority on this site. Again without debating the politics behind my my dirty leftedness, it just means I may look at open carry differently, but decided to like many of you, its my right, and I'm choosing to exercise it.

Its probably a bit of a desire to do my little bit to reach out from the other side as well.
The better part of this community will little care how (OC or CC) nor why you carry, but will applaud you for accepting that personal responsibility.

The world is not a perfect place. It never has been, it never will be. We accept that and do the best we can with what we have and with the help of like minded people such as yourself, we shall strive to make it a better place to live.

Yata hey
 

The Wolfhound

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Henrico, Virginia, USA
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It is oft said that a liberal is just a consevative that has not been mugged - yet. If more "foxhole conversions" can be achieved without the mugging, then things may truely improve. Welcome! The more we from various political perspectives can agree on, yes, truely agree on, the better for our society. The antis who see all guns as evil are just as likely to have one for themselves but not want us, their "Great Unwashed" to have that privilege. Our forefathers recognised that Right trumps an issued privilege. Would it not be wonderful, not to ever feel the need for that firearm. We are nowhere close to that day and those who wish guns to go away will never get us to that day.
 

SlackwareRobert

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Jun 10, 2008
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Alabama, ,
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He lost me on the health care, why not get the government out of it.
How much cheaper would drugs be if you didn't have to pay a third party
for permission to buy them in the first place? It is the government
that has caused the mess, and they don't want to fix it.

I guess he could move to antarctica. Haven't heard of many crimes in that
neighborhood.
I would bet you can't OC either, the trigger would freeze solid and not work.
Brandishing would be easily proven when your hand is still frozen to the grip
from when you were waiving it around. CC what a laugh.... I know it is under
one of these layers, hold on a minute I'll rob you shortly.
Lastly..... OMG!, think of the penguins!:banghead:
 
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