[Ed note: let's all welcome a longtime friend and new contributor to the gang...]
Washingtonian article on women who openly carry their firearms
So here is the conundrum - Do Open Carry regulations irresponsibly open the door in current gun laws to allow the general public to carry a personal weapon? In this article by the Washingtonian, they discuss a handful of women who go to the mall "strapped" - in a bad way.
The reality is that the Open Carry laws enable lawful gun owners to walk the streets with a personal weapon, so long as that weapon is in full view - not hidden by a coat, or in a purse. This means that in many states, you can walk into certain establishments with your personal weapon. Naturally, some places prohibit this either by law or expressly by the owner of the establishment - banks, schools, some retail establishments etc.
However, this raises two core issues for this experienced shooter -
1. Because Open Carry circumvents Concealed Carry requirements, many Open Carry participants may have little or no training in the firearm. This exposes the general public to risks. Naturally anti-concealed carry advocates (and this author) would argue that CC training is also too limited and does not balance the gun owners right to own and carry a gun with a private, law abiding citizen's right not to get shot in the "Spray-and-Pray" mindset of the untrained shooter.
2. Open Carry also applies to larger weapons as well. For instance, during a recent political rally, a member of one side arrived at the protest with a loaded assault rifle. There is no practical reason for an assault rifle to fall into the personal protection domain - especially not for a trained shooter. In fact, this weapon, in this environment is simply intimidation, and its mere presence in this domain borders on an assault.
I won't even address the risks of irresponsible gun ownership around children, which some of these mothers clearly seem to have a passion for. . . .
We have to remember that common sense is anything but - and that lawful gun ownership is responsible gun ownership. While I am not anti-2nd Amendment, the current laws on the books, enable us to own responsibly. Abusing these rules, and antagonizing the public is simply a way for us to all lose these rights to a crazed minority.
By: JDPort
25 February 2011
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
2 comments:
I didn't realize that my fellow GrogNews contributor had written his own article on this topic before I posted mine. Oh well, two perspectives are better than one!
JDPort makes some excellent points:
First, I completely agree that the training requirements for carrying a firearm (either openly or concealed) should be increased. I am not a great pistol shooter, as several of my fellow contributors here could personally attest, yet my shooting was head-and-shoulders above everyone else in my class because I took the time to actually get some professional training with handguns above the bare-minimum required to get my CCW permit.
Second, as Jason said, openly carrying a long gun in a populated place is indeed irresponsible and uncalled for. That said, the idea of walking through the local shopping mall in full 'battle rattle' with my AR-15 slung across my chest and a .45 in a thigh rig when the local street gangs decide to make an appearance does appeal to the "suburban commando" aspect of my personality. Then again, they are engaging in intimidation by their presence and behavior and I'm reluctant to trust my well-being and that of my family to the unarmed "mall cop." In all seriousness, though, even in a SHTF situation, I would be very careful about being seen geared-up lest I become a target for someone, whether it's a bad actor or a stressed-out National Guardsman or LEO.
-- Guardian
"We have to remember that common sense is anything but - and that lawful gun ownership is responsible gun ownership. While I am not anti-2nd Amendment, the current laws on the books, enable us to own responsibly. Abusing these rules, and antagonizing the public is simply a way for us to all lose these rights to a crazed minority."
Finally! A Yank who understands! There is nothing wrong with legal and responsible gun ownership, however unforunately it seems a lot of Americans equate this to "I can run around waving my .202 at children because some guy three-hundred years ago said I should be able to".
If only there were more like you :(
Post a Comment