OCC#13:
2012/11/28: Stopped by Lowe’s Food just to pick up few items. As I’m deciding between a couple of things, another customer comes around from my left behind me to my right and says, “Excuse me, sir, can I ask you a question.” I should have said, “Um, you just did.” Heh.
Well, until the question came out I will admit to securing my arm against my sidearm firmly, just as a precaution. Anyhow, he asked if I ever get harassed about carrying. I explained pretty much what I’m trying to show here with Open Carry Chronicles, and that is that, no, it’s a non-problem made up by supposed 2nd Amendment supporters who have been duped by the CSGV narrative. (Oh, alright, there are some truly arrogant a$$h0l3s out there as well.)
Okay, I didn’t really get on that podium with him, but I did explain that it hasn’t been a problem in the 2+ years I’ve been doing it and suggested that he join up on meetup.com with Triangle Open Carry. What he told me is that he’s been waiting for his CHL, but it’s taking forever due to some stupid things he did as a kid. He was looking for an alternative both in the meantime and in the event that he can’t get his CHL. Whatever is on his record, it apparently doesn’t affect his ownership rights. So since NC is a no-permit necessary for carrying openly state, this is something he’s considering.
Overall, a beneficial conversation for him that, had I not been carrying openly, would not have happened. So I just did someone a favor, completely separate from self defense or defense of others. It served a perfectly legitimate political purpose. Due to some stupid law, or pain in the butt Sheriff, he may not be able to carry his insurance concealed. So he now has input from someone who does it on a regular basis to make a better informed decision on how he can get around petty politicians. He can be a free man, regardless of what some pencil pusher says.
So put that in a pipe and smoke it, Pincus, Yeager, and other malcontents who, along with the CSGV, et al, keep trying to convince us to not exercise our rights.
OCC#12:
2012/10/06: The clerk at the army surplus store said, “Whatchyu got there, a .45?” I just, “yes,” and he said that he’d like to see more people packing. I told him I carry openly partly to encourage others to do just that.
OCC#11: 2012/09/18: Both Knitebane and I were carrying openly at Golden Corral in Garner and as soon as we paid and started heading to the dining room area, we were addressed by an employee who said (light-heartedly) that there were cameras that would be keeping an eye on us. He wished us a good visit and went on his away.
Note that this is an exemplary way for an employee of an establishment to address someone carrying a gun if addressed about the gun at all. We were approached and addressed in a friendly manner. He was essentially checking us out. Though, once again, criminals don’t typically carry their guns openly in $50 – 100 holsters, but rather in their hands, hoodies or clumsily stuffed in their waistbands, most certainly if you address a criminal about his gun (even indirectly as was done in this case), they are not going to be all that comfortable about it. Might even shoot you. It’s possible he was putting us on notice, but by merely addressing us openly he set his own mind at ease that we weren’t there to cause trouble. He wasn’t rude and he didn’t kick us out. Good on him.
Later that night, we were discussing OC holsters and my slight frustration in not finding that one, silver bullet holster for carrying both openly and concealed. An excellent point that PDB made in the beginning of his OC holster review is this:
…keep in mind that a mechanical lock is no substitute for remaining aware of your surroundings and being mentally and physically prepared to fight for your gun. A locking holster will not on its own defeat a gun takeaway attempt, but rather buy you some time to defeat the person trying to take your gun away.
Like many, I used to carry my gun in a Serpa holster. I no longer use the Serpa, but not due to the sometimes scathing criticism it gets for increasing the risk of an ND. I think it is a training issue that is far overblown, as even Mr. Grebner here acknowledges (language warning):
As he explains in the original video here:
This was due largely to the fact that he had just gotten through training with the 5.11 Thumbdrive holster with his Glock. If the Serpa is all you use and train with, then the risk reduces to the noise level, in my opinion. However, it’s certainly not for everyone. Particularly if you, for example, are reviewing several holsters to write about them as PDB is right now.
All that said, Brigid’s lockup experience a few years back as well as lots of other documented cases have convinced me not to use the holster for carrying any longer. In fact, even if I thought the risk of shooting myself while using the holster was greater, these occurrences of lockup, to me are an even greater risk. As I said in Stay Dangerous, a better way to see off a soldier than “Be Careful” is “Good Hunting.” That’s not to say that we throw safety out the window, and, sure, I know we are not at war. Yet. But it is just an acknowledgement that life is dangerous. Liberty is fraught with risks. It’s all about tradeoffs. I don’t mind a relatively insignificant (in my opinion) and relatively easy to mitigate risk of an ND. But I do mind a well documented risk of my defensive weapon being completely disabled with no way to mitigate it, as was demonstrated in Brigid’s case (i.e.: there was no conclusion as to what actually caused the lockup).
On the OC holster issue, I’ll be reading PDB’s review series, but the bottom line for me is that when you take these three things into account:
PDB’s statement about equipment not being a substitute for situational awareness and mental and physical preparedness,
Brigid’s comment in the post referenced above that “Anything mechanical can fail”,
and the Good Hunting / Survival mentality as opposed to Be Careful mentality
I’m beginning to believe that active retention is not an absolute necessity for carrying openly. I’ll remain open to persuasion, but for now, I just may be switching back to my Blackhawk CQC holster for carrying openly.
In the practical sense, if you conceal with an OWB, then your concealment garment will slow down your draw. With IWB, it can be even more of an impediment because it’s often a tighter gripping holster so the simple act of pulling it out of the holster is slower. Carrying openly in an active retention holster means you have to release the retention before drawing, also slowing down your draw. So it’s hard to argue that any option is less of an impediment to a fast draw than carrying openly with only passive retention, with heightened situational awareness and preparedness.
Besides, I don’t just carry openly for practical defensive reasons. I also carry for political activism reasons. And I really don’t care what Pincus or Yeager think of that. I go by the positive results I’ve had in that area, not by the opinion of some tacticool instructors with big egos or a penchant for putting cameramen literally in the line of fire unnecessarily and then doubling down on stupid and defending it. I am not your ambassador and will not be until you send me a fat honkin’ check every month for my services.
Lemme ‘splain. No. There is too much. Lemme sum up: This likely ‘progressive’ who, as implied by the poster, is an Obama supporter, will not likely ever support gun ownership. If he supports it at all, he’s not likely to support the carrying of them openly, if at all. So why should gun owners try to appease him in any way? This is the type of person who needs it rubbed in his face. The cowering moms shielding their young’ns from the scary sight of a gun simply do not exist in more than negligible numbers. I have yet to even hear a report of one.
Folks, we are not just winning, but as Michael Bane recently wrote (in documenting the slimy behavior of the haters toward Corey Cogdell, as well as Kim Rhode), we have won, pure and simple. Doesn’t mean that we can rest on our laurels, of course, as we are gaining momentum.
In 2027, I hope we can take this tale by Tam and change 1995 to 2011 and change these things:
“AWB had sunset” to “Interstate purchase requiring FFL had been repealed”
“‘Vermont-style’ carry was now ‘Vermont/Alaska/Arizona/Wyoming-style’ and “the House of Representatives had just passed, by a hefty margin, a national CCW reciprocity bill” to “Full faith and credit universal reciprocity for CCW, including Illinois is now law. As a result, all states are now shall-issue or constitutional carry. Residents of constitutional carry states need only their valid state ID to carry in other states. No permit is required to carry openly anywhere in the country.”
“there was a shooting based games show on prime-time national TV” to “having a shooting based game show was like have a salt-and-pepper shaker game show…ugh, well, there is The Iron Chef…whatever”
“you could buy a collapsible-stock AR carbine with a bayonet lug in Wal-Mart to “The idea of a suppressor/silencer on a gun was moot except for older specimens since all new guns were required by federal law to be designed to be below a certain decibel level or have a $200 transfer tax imposed [Ed.Note: Before I get hate mail, I am not advocating this…just trying to think like a politician. Agh! Need. Mind. Bleech.] Cans are given out for free by local police departments for older firearms — a program that replaced the one where they gave out free gun locks. Gunsmiths get a tax credit for every old gun they retrofit. Vintage firearms whose value would be harmed or any firearm whose function, usability, and/or accuracy would be impaired are exempted.”
In addition: George H.W. Bush’s EO was revoked and the licensing process to own a new manufacture, possibly imported full auto firearm now mirrors what most states have for CCW licenses (Oh, and we’re working on getting that repealed so full auto is treated like any other firearm); BATFE is now just the “AT” division of the IRS (again); there are not enough radical “anti-gun” Senators or Congressman left to form a caucus of any kind — it’s now radioactive in almost every jurisdiction.
Far fetched? Sure. But approximately the equivalent has happened since 1995. Let’s aim high.
And don’t b*tch about people carrying openly if you claim to be on our side. It’s a waste of time and energy.
Oh, and I am NOT your ambassador. When I get a big fat check on a regular basis from you, maybe then you can call me an ambassador for gun owners. Until such time, I represent myself. It’s collectivist claptrap to claim otherwise.
In reference to a recent comment by someone who is pro- gun controlpeople control next-Holocaust, who shall remain nameless, discussed at Sean’s place, I present to you…
OCC#9: 2012/07/31: While chatting outside IHOP after it closed, the last customer mosey’s on out to her car with her companion and upon seeing what’s on my hip says, “I feel safe,” and, actually doesn’t run away screaming seeking cover. Go figure.
Yet, you-know-who-who-shall-remain-nameless says, “People don’t like seeing openly carried guns in public places.”
OCC#5: 2012/07/10: Bojangles: an elderly couple engages in small talk with me, but I can’t hear much of what they say over the chatter of the other customers. Something about my job, maybe asking what I do given that I carry a gun. They’re all smiles, so I just nod and smile back. 🙂
OCC#6: 2012/07/10: Food Lion: One employee, who has seen me before and noticed how I stacked my groceries in such an organized way, asks if I have OCD. I say, “Absolutely!” She then makes more small talk and asks if I’m a detective. This is where I overdo it and go on about how I’m glad I moved down here from MA seven years ago and it was a feeling of “finally, freedom!” She says something about “some people” trying to “stop it” meaning people carrying guns I guess. I say, “well, good luck to them.” I really should have kept this conversation a bit more brief. But no harm done. Another employee walks by me and says, “Sir, you have a gun on your hip,” just trying to be funny. I just laugh and say, “Thanks for telling me!”
OCC#7: 2012/07/17: IHOP: One of the waitresses who has waited on us before and asked, “What job do you have that you carry a gun?” a while back. She had made some silly comment about being glad to know where she can get a gun if a bad guy comes in, implying that she would just pull mine out of the holster. Yikes. Reminder to self: check holster retention real good before going into IHOP from now on. Anyhow, that was a while ago. This time she was pretty funny, saying that “that’s a big-ass gun” and asking what it was. I told her it was a 1911 .45, and she when on and on about how she shot a Desert Eagle 50 cal and how it dislocated her shoulder (probably exaggerting a bit there) and that she then went and bought the gun. Anyhow, it was a fun conversation (or funny, at least).
OCC#8 2012/07/22: Bojangles: Some customer asks me if “that’s a 1911.” I respond my usual way with, “it’s all I carry.” He asks if it’s a .45 and I say yes. He says, “that’s kind of big,” I think meaning he thought it was a bit inconvenient to carry. I just say that it’s not a big deal when you’re carrying openly. He says he’s “more of a Glock guy.” I acknowledge it, but purposely trail off so he can’t hear exactly what I say, signaling that I really don’t want to take that conversation any further. I think he got the message. All good, though, there didn’t seem to be any negative feedback.
I also have another general open carry post coming up. More people on the internet are wrong, so I guess I have to address it.
I could probably start with about 20 to prime the pump, but I figure since I carry openly as often as possible, I’m sure I can come with enough in the future to keep the issues coming.
These won’t be just actual encounters and/or comments that people make, but I’m going to be keeping an eye out for things like this as well.
OCC #1: Walked up to the counter at Bojangles this past Sunday morning and the woman standing next to the guy ringing up my order behind the counter says, “He’s got a gun. His meal is free.” I just smiled and said, “Not necessary.” Dang it! Passed up a free meal.
OCC #2: Did my usual shopping at Food Lion on Sunday and another customer says, “I like your sidearm. Is that a 1911?” My response was, “it’s all I carry.”