imported post
+1 on what SouthernBoy said.
"Best state to own a gun in" is very subjective. While Vermont is great as far as paperwork, how easy is it for someone from Vermont to carry in Wyoming,Oregon, or Connecticut? They may have a permitless system, but how does one carry in other states? One wouldneed a permit anyway, right? How easy is this process for out of state carry in Vermont?
How is OC perceived there? I've OC'ed in Missouri, Kentucky, and Tennessee and have never encountered a problem.
Citizens will often vote for their own state. This is not only out of patriotism, but often because the majority of a person's experience is at that location.Although many of us have practical experience carrying in our own location, few of us have extensive experience carrying in someone else's. How can we"vote" for a place we have no experience with?
Although I'velived in Alaska, I don't have any experiencecarrying there as it was before I started carrying. I would think the general acceptance offirearms there is far greater than here in the lower 48. Coupled with the ease of their permitless system, it would be a gun packer's paradise.
Yet, within my experience, all states I've open carried in have been issue free, so I'd think these would be honorable mentions.
I think the underlying standard of evaluation shouldn't be a comparison of facts about laws and permit processes. These vary between states, and some plusses in one state can be compared against plusses in another. The answer to such a subjective question, as asked in the OP, would be to answer "What is the reaction to an openly carried firearm by a particular state's citizenry and its law enforcement?"
There are absolute differences in perception. I have had no problems or even funny looks in Kentucky or Tennessee. Although I live in Missouri, and the majority of my OC experience is here, we do not have full pre-emption so it is possible to enter a municipality where OC is an arrestable offence. Although I have never had a problem, and would whole heartedly vote "MISSOURI! MISSOURI!" to answer your question, I wouldn't OC through downtown St. Louis as I would probably go to jail. Even though our gun laws are far superior than almost any other state, this one single fact ruins the whole "shebang" and puts us out of the running.