Open Carry vs. Concealed Carry

That ordinance is for City of San Diego (not county) and only specifies that it must be in a safe or with a trigger guard. Nothing about unloaded.

 

I'm gonna have you talk to the Sheriff on my behalf. Hell on behalf of the DSA.

 

I always carry concealed, it doesn't alarm people and doesn't make you a target.

It's important to train though to safely draw without snagging etc.

I have carried open before in a state that allowed it just to try it out and even though I saw another person carrying open I constantly felt like I was being stared at and was worried about someone trying to sneak up and disarm me.

An acquaintance had the cops called on them for an active shooter in a state where open carry is legal because their shirt rode up and exposed their grip while they were shopping. Fortunately the cop that showed up read the room realized they weren't a threat and casually approached them let them know and everyone went home alive that day but in this day and age where cops are judge jury and executioner...

The last thing I want is a nervous rookie to get an itchy trigger finger at me for exercising my rights and with how jumpy and fearful the general populous is about calling the cops if a gun is even mentioned (like my friend whom was reported as an active shooter) it just ain't worth the risks.

Keep it hidden, but keep it on you.

My ccw has saved my ass at least half a dozen times. Used to live in a bad area and a run in or two with middle of no where 2am gas stop junkies.

Everything's fine until suddenly it isn't but gun beats knife outside of 6 feet, fortunately I have never had to fire a round for defense but I have come awful close.

 

You are correct, upon further reading into it, it states : safe or trigger lock. - Original post corrected for factual accuracy, thank you for the clarification.

 

With kids in the house locking safes are my concern even though both have been taught firearm safety and hunt with me. I feel they are safe but when they have friends come over I can't take that risk.

If we want to talk stupid gun laws here in CA the internet sales ban is at the top of my list. Buying duck hunting ammo locally is stupid expensive.......

 

I don’t even live in California and I’m seeing a lot of misinformation in this post. You’re implying that your state has a hard cap on the number of CC permits it issues. Which isn’t the case. It’s a process controlled at the county sheriff level just like here in NC. Only about 5% of the residents in my state have CC permits and we’re pretty gun friendly here. You’re also quoting CA CC permit data that’s 6 years old. The numbers have since gone up at least 25%. And if you were referring to the San Diego Safe Storage of Firearms Ordinance, another member already pointed out the weapon doesn’t have to be unloaded. Not to mention you can strap it on all day at the house if it belongs to you or you’re an “authorized user”. You don’t need to keep it in a safe or store the ammo separately either. You could just use a trigger lock if you wanted. The intent of the law is to keep it locked up when you’re NOT home so kids or an elderly person with dementia don’t fool with it and cause a negligent discharge.

California has some of the most restrictive gun laws in the country, I get it. But the laws aren’t nearly as draconian as you’re making them out to be.

 

For you guys that say open carry is an instant target, are there any instances of OC'ers actually getting shot first? I don't really care how people carry, as long as they carry. Maybe if enough people did OC, maybe criminals would "think".

BTW, I carry both ways. Just depends on how I feel. OC isn't too uncommon to see in AL.

 

This. It is not my responsibility to be the hero but it is my responsibility to protect my family.

 

Well, that’s a cool story about not being a victim. It is also, however, a single story about a particular situation.

I happen to have a particular story of my own. I have had a shotgun in my face, and the action pumped while in my face. Like in the movies. This happened while I was at work, government, for no good reason. The man I was with, my co worker, was legally concealed carrying a revolver (I think, maybe pistol) on a suspender style holster. I don’t know the terminology. I’ve never owned a firearm. The situation we walked in to was not volatile or expected to be. Not even close. If my co worker drew his weapon, I believe we, or me, would have been shot. If I was carrying and reached for a weapon, I believe I would have been shot.

luckily the guy with the shotgun calmed down after a 30 seconds of us with our hands up, and reasoning with the guy.

This could have gone hundreds of different ways, armed or not.

Point is, anecdotal evidence is generally particular to that specific situation. Not a good argument for blanket reasoning.

If you want to truly be prepared for anything, you must live and act like a full on doomsday prepper. Just my counterpoint.

 

"Point is, anecdotal evidence is generally particular to that specific situation. Not a good argument for blanket reasoning."

Yes................and no. There are thousands if not hundreds of thousands of situations similar to mine. That passes the realm of anectodal evidence. BTW, how did you walk in to a "situation" in a government facility? How does a guy with a shotgun "walk" into a governemnt facility?

BTW, it isn't a "cool" story. It was an eye opening terrifying experience that unfolded in less than 30 seconds.

 

Twice in my life I've had a firearm pointed directly at me. Back in the early 90's. One was a S&W 357 revolver (road rage incident) and the other was a 12G 870. Both times I was carrying concealed and drew back and said something on the lines of "Is this how you want things to go down?". I was younger and probably more fearless back then. I recall feeling enraged versus scared. Both immediately withdrew the weapon and left the scene terrified. In both instances I memorized the plate number and called the authorities. Both individuals were charged with Aggravated Assault with a deadly weapon (or something along those lines). Both weapons were confirmed to be loaded. I testified in court in both instances. No charges/lawsuits were filed against me. In the end, both pleaded to a lesser charge, but are never allowed to posses a firearm again, ever.

As a result, I've always carried concealed per the law and always will.

 

How your government views your 2A rights says everything about how they view you. Trusted citizen or minions to be lorded over.

 

Concealed. I live in PA though, and think it is WAY too easy to get a CCL here. Open carry is legal, but would likely cause disruptions. I used to carry a lot more, but we mostly go to familiar places that I’m comfortable leaving it home.
I personally think there needs to be a lot more training involved with ownership, but being in the military, and also some situations where people were not responsible owners have formed my views on that.
I.E. in-laws that are super pro-2A, but keep unlocked loaded weapons in a house full of young kids…

 

Hey @tacocopter

I’m your neighbor up in Marietta. I have mixed feelings about training requirements. On one hand I don’t need a degree in Divinity Studies to practice the religion of my choice, nor do I need a degree in Journalism to practice free speech. On the other hand....well some folks shouldn’t be armed. Interesting thing about the USC and BORs. It was created to limit governments power over us. Not”grant” us what we already possess.

Trying real hard not to cross in to ban hammer territory. Difficult subject not to intertwine politics or government.

 

As is evident by the informed discussion, I think this is one of those divisive issues where maybe sometimes it’s better not to promote the division. We all know our buddies who carry and those who don’t. So for me showing it to the populace is only a way to invite people who are not aware of the issues or who have opinions for which they have no intention on ever reconciling. I think reasonable people can make reasonable choices in a reasonable way. If I have chosen to live in a state that believes concealed is the way I would follow the rules of my state or peacefully petition for a redress of grievances.

 

This kind of brings up a good point. My level of "prep" prioritizes two things.

Priority one is practicing situational awareness and avoiding the shit. Twice I have seen people suddenly take interest, where they immediately dropped what they were doing to flank behind me as a likely precursor to an ambush mugging. Both times this happened when I was a pedestrian working overseas- no weapons allowed. Both times, I turned around and made eye contact, smiled and gave a polite hello, friendly and unchallenging but also unafraid, and immediately changed direction away from their potential pinch point. Cross the street and start walking up a less narrow road. Maybe it would have been a mugging, or maybe they just liked looking at my ass. I don't know, and won't ever care to find out. Avoid the shit without conflict.

Priority two is escaping the shit if it happens unexpectedly. I dont train to make my blaze-of-glory stand at the OK corral. I train to escape. And if I'm carrying, than that piece is my absolute last tool to enable escape. Running would be my first choice. Talking would be my second, until an opportunity to run presents itself. Fighting is a last resort and should last only long enough to open an avenue for running. This kind of goes back to priority one: wherever I am, I take 15 seconds to note the fire escapes, and whether they are capable of handling the current occupant load. That's for a just-in-case of *any* emergency, not just the crazed madman type. And if it doesn't feel right, no worries, I simply relocate to an area that has better options of escape.

Last, I realize that my chances of getting into a situation where I'm left with no options except to fight, are astronomically low. I don't go looking for that. I'm not really afraid of that either. To be honest, it doesn't occupy a lot of my daily thought, nor does it have a significant influence on my habits. That's just my personal philosophy and opinion. Others certainly have a right to a different opinion if that works for them.

 

I did the CCW class in December and since so many people in my county are getting permits, my background check isn’t until the end of June. I love this thread, because I’m still debating whether or not to carry on a regular basis. I’m 54 and have never needed a gun to protect myself, but I feel with proper training I would be a responsible gun carrier. I plan on taking the advanced CC class once the ammo shortage is over. It requires about 500 rounds! Keep up the thread, it’s been very enlightening.