Police officers open-carry and many security guards open carry. Why do we citizens have to conceal our weapon when sanctioned by the State to carry it? In the summer months in Houston, it becomes more difficult to conceal my Glock .45 and extra magazines without having to drape extra heavy clothing around it that won’t blow around in the wind exposing my weapon leaving me to sweat profusely in the heat. I found a nice Air Marshal vest that straps around your chest and conceals your weapon under your armpit and slots for extra mags which is nice. All you need is a baggy T-Shirt and it’s perfectly concealed. But, you can’t draw from the hip and have to lift your shirt or reach down through your collar to get access to your weapon and mags. But it spares you from having a heat-stroke in the summer months.
Let’s arrive at some fundamental conclusions. I’ve read this entire thread, and I think all the points are valid and should be considered from a tactical standpoint. In theory, if you’re openly carrying, you could be identified by a point man on a cell phone to take you out first when his buddies come in to perpetrate a robbery. Plausible? Yes. Probable? I think not. You also have to factor in that the robbers might conclude, “Hell no, I’m not going in there” and wait until you leave. With a concealed weapon, you have to consider they don’t see you as a threat and will come marauding in regardless; so it’s a wash in my estimate. Personally, I don’t think criminals are that smart and that tactical to assess situations to that level of detail. This I do know of criminals in that they usually take the path of least resistance. They’re dumb, but they don’t want to get shot.
So this reduces all this down to one simple question. As a criminal, what would be your primary concern when committing a crime? Where are the police? With open-carry, the criminals have to factor in a much more complex situation to deal with. Where are the police and how many citizens in there are openly carrying a weapon, with more rights to use deadly force than the police? Two deterrents therefore loom upon them. Imagine a community where everywhere you looked, citizens were legally and openly armed in clear view of everyone around them. As a criminal, would you go rushing into a store to rob it when you see one to four citizens openly carrying a weapon? My reasoning leads to no you wouldn’t.
My point is, criminals have to illegally conceal their weapons and they target people they visually believe are not armed. I personally believe vast and pervasive open carry by citizens would greatly reduce a lot of crime in our communities.
Let’s arrive at some fundamental conclusions. I’ve read this entire thread, and I think all the points are valid and should be considered from a tactical standpoint. In theory, if you’re openly carrying, you could be identified by a point man on a cell phone to take you out first when his buddies come in to perpetrate a robbery. Plausible? Yes. Probable? I think not. You also have to factor in that the robbers might conclude, “Hell no, I’m not going in there” and wait until you leave. With a concealed weapon, you have to consider they don’t see you as a threat and will come marauding in regardless; so it’s a wash in my estimate. Personally, I don’t think criminals are that smart and that tactical to assess situations to that level of detail. This I do know of criminals in that they usually take the path of least resistance. They’re dumb, but they don’t want to get shot.
So this reduces all this down to one simple question. As a criminal, what would be your primary concern when committing a crime? Where are the police? With open-carry, the criminals have to factor in a much more complex situation to deal with. Where are the police and how many citizens in there are openly carrying a weapon, with more rights to use deadly force than the police? Two deterrents therefore loom upon them. Imagine a community where everywhere you looked, citizens were legally and openly armed in clear view of everyone around them. As a criminal, would you go rushing into a store to rob it when you see one to four citizens openly carrying a weapon? My reasoning leads to no you wouldn’t.
My point is, criminals have to illegally conceal their weapons and they target people they visually believe are not armed. I personally believe vast and pervasive open carry by citizens would greatly reduce a lot of crime in our communities.
