Texas open-carry poll

[AndyC]

Front page of krld.com

Do you think Texas should be an open-carry gun state?
Yes - 72%
No - 28%

[308bolt]

Put in my 2 pesos worth.

[John Culver]

Do you think Texas should be an open-carry gun state?
Yes
74%
No
26%

[Kyrottimus]

I thought it already was...

[Mebsuta]

I don't think I would carry a gun walking around even if it was. Wish it was like NM where you could have one in the car without a CCL or any of that stuff.

Wish they would end the anchor baby thing or the deal where you come over from China and get to bring your in-laws with you so they can hang around the swimming pool all day instead.

[dirtyrice]

I'd open carry in a heart beat.

http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/715977.html
There is also a petition in the news getting some attention be sure to sign it.

http://www.petitiononline.com/texasoc/petition.html

[AndyC]

Originally posted by Mebsuta
Wish it was like NM where you could have one in the car without a CCL or any of that stuff.
It is, Mebs - you can have a handgun in a car without having a CHL in TX as long as the firearm is concealed.

[Stranger]

Originally posted by AndyC

It is, Mebs - you can have a handgun in a car without having a CHL in TX as long as the firearm is concealed.

I wish there was some standardization among the states on these laws. Here in OK you have to have all firearms unloaded and stored in a seperate comparment of the car. (They don't consider a locked glove box to be a seperate compartment.)

If you have a concealed carry permit you are golden, and can store them anywhere as long as they are concealed.

[AndyC]

Update:

Thousands sign petition to make Texas an open-carry state

By ANNA M. TINSLEY

If Duane Suddeth had his way, he could strap on a handgun and wear it — anytime, anywhere — without concealing it.

That day has not come in Texas, but the 42-year-old Bedford man is among thousands hoping it is on its way.

"This is the public’s right," Suddeth said. "Whether they choose to exercise that or not is up to them."

Texas, despite its independence and frontier reputation, is one of only six states where handguns cannot — in some form — legally be worn in plain view.

Suddeth is among a group of residents wanting to change that who have joined a growing nationwide "open-carry" movement.

More at Star Telegram (http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/715977.html)

Sign the petition here (http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?texasoc)

[dirtyrice]

And longarms in texas can be loaded and in plain view.

[Heat]

How many people screw around with a dude carrying a 1911 (or any pistol) in an open carry holster? The vast majority of folks would not--either out of fear or respect..I am all for it..I saw open carry in Arizona and no problems--I believe the only reasons people stopped carrying was government intervention in ALL things starting after the civil war and women bitching and moaning like they normally do about things they dont understand..and convincing their husbands to go along with it or the man gets 'cut off'

[Mebsuta]

Openly displaying weapons makes U a target.

[dirtyrice]

be aware of your surroundings and you won't be a fuggin target. Plus if ten guys in a store are open carrying you really think he's gonna go through all of em?

I just don't buy that me wearing my gun openly makes me more likely to get shot by someone. Alot of criminals wanna just wave a weapon around and get what they want. When they know someone has the ability to send some lead their way i'd imagine if changes their mind some. And if it does well thats my right whats it to you.

[Mebsuta]

Just don't get into trouble trying to prove something. If U want to know what's it to me, topic got posted on the board and everyone gets their say on the Files. Find a nice girl and go to church, or U will end up in Bible Camp.

[AndyC]

I don't necessarily want to carry open - but I do want the option to carry that way if I want.

[azdave12]

I've lived in AZ about 25 years now.
I open carry several times a week...but only when I'm out in the hills, and thats where I live and spend most of my time now.
Back in 94', I was in the first 100 CCW's to be issued, and thats the way I choose to carry in town.
Before CCW, I OC'ed in Tucson regularly, as did alot of people, but the concealed laws changed that for many, and by the time we left Tucson last year, it was fairly rare to see.
Since moving to N. AZ, though, OC is very regular to see.

Whether you "use it" or not is irrelevant....as was said, its the OPTION that you should have.

[vellcrow]

10990 on the petition! Let's keep this going, Texans!

I have been pushing this petition on every board I am on. I also sent a letter to the Governor:

Governor Perry,

I just left the Air Force after 12 years of service, and my family and I decided to leave Arizona and come back home to Texas. Open carry of handguns is allowed and accepted in Arizona and I have been a witness to this policy for the past eight years. I ask you to please review the online petition at this site: http://www.petitiononline.com/texasoc/petition.html and help support Texas gun owners. Too many opponents of an open carry law have never lived in a state like Arizona, so they have no real concept of how it can benefit law-abiding citizens. Currently, an average Texas citizen, with a properly issued CHL, can be arrested and charged for failure to conceal their handgun. Arizona residents do not have to live in fear of breaking such a simple law, since open carry helps to protect them. From my experience, most CHL holders will continue to carry their handguns concealed, but an open carry law will help them breathe a little easier knowing they are not committing a crime. Texas is one of six states that do not allow open carry; the other 44 allow it in some form or another.

Please, help reform Texas gun laws and pass an open carry law.

Thank you,

-Vell Smith

[Heat]

Originally posted by Mebsuta
Openly displaying weapons makes U a target.
Targeted by whom? Crooks by nature dont want confrontation with armed people and dont want ANY type of resistance..cops on the other hand get a real hard-on when they see open carry because they consider that a threat to what they perceive as THEIR domain..is that what you meant?

[Heat]

Teens Open Carry in Idaho Town

I always find it amusing that it takes a couple kids to educate adults about their rights. From Oregon Live:

POST FALLS, Idaho — Two home-schooled teenagers in this northern Idaho town say they are carrying loaded guns to the library, grocery store and other public areas for self-defense. Other reasons, they say, are to deter crime and to educate others about their rights.

Zach Doty, 18, carries a loaded Glock handgun on his hip. His 15-year-old brother, Steven, carries a .22-caliber rifle in a sling on his back.

Police have been called on several occasions to question the teens but have not found the teens to be in violation of the law.
Police have been called because some of the townspeople don’t realize that what they are doing is completely legal in Idaho and they just assume that a kid with a gun is up to no good.

What’s sad is that when I was growing up, kids often had their hunting rifles with them — even bringing them to school for rifle club or so they could go plinking in the woods after school. Needless to say, that’s a bygone era.

The article even quotes a gun store owner as saying that while they can do it, maybe they shouldn’t. *Sigh*

Fortunately, these kids have the right idea. Says one of them:

“I certainly don’t anticipate that I’ll need to use it, but I’d rather have it and not need it than to not have it and need it,” Zach Doty said. “There’s no reason for me to hide a weapon.”

[…]

“There have been good opportunities to speak to people,” he said. “I make sure they know that open carrying is legal, why I carry and I encourage them to consider doing so themselves.”

[…]

Zach Doty said he’s not paranoid or a radical.

“If I was an extremist, our Founding Fathers would all be extremists,” he said. “Without them, we wouldn’t have our independence. We’d be a disarmed British system of feudal subjectivity.”
Damn! If I had kids, I would hope they were like Zach. The students become the teachers in this town.





http://www.alphecca.com/?p=192

[vellcrow]

13099 signatures on the online petition!

[Para Driver]

open carry would require a major revision to the law.. CCW has finally settled down enough to be 'no big deal' in most places.. they do however, need to modify to allow lawful CCW on schools and hospitals.. don't really disagree with the prohibition in courthouse or jails.

[brunop]

Originally posted by Heat
Teens Open Carry in Idaho Town


“If I was an extremist, our Founding Fathers would all be extremists,” he said. “Without them, we wouldn’t have our independence. We’d be a disarmed British system of feudal subjectivity.”
Damn! If I had kids, I would hope they were like Zach. The students become the teachers in this town.

http://www.alphecca.com/?p=192

It takes a lot of work to educate kids to this kid's level. Either it is a full-time job at home, or you have to spend every waking hour after work reading, talking, and thinking with your kids - so you can 'un-do' the stuff they hear at school.

Most people won't put in the work.