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Florida is trying to pass an open carry law. This is probably contradictory, but I support the law and I do not believe open carry is a good option for most civilian situations.
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I concur. Right now, Florida law requires absolute concealment. If the wind blows back my shirt and my weapon is exposed, I could be in for trouble. The open carry law allows one to be a little less paranoid about that.
In Georgia, I have the luxury of being pretty sloppy about concealment. The average person is unlikely to notice my weapon, but someone who's been around guns might. Here, it's not a problem.
Now, do I want to advertise that I'm armed? No. Nobody needs to know I'm armed. It's a weapon. It's there for one purpose, and that's a pretty grim one. It shouldn't be in play unless I'm trying to stop something truly dreadful from happening.
For me, the whole idea of carrying a weapon revolves around reducing risk. In reality, what are the odds that I'll actually need it? Pretty darn small. Still, I carry it, just in case.
If we take the idea of risk abatement to its conclusion, it makes no sense for me to add an element of risk back into the equation. To me, carrying an exposed weapon does just that. Your mileage may vary.
What I can tell you is that most of the die-hard open carry types I've met carry in substandard rigs, have little or no training in weapons retention, and really don't seem to take the idea of the gun
as a weapon very seriously. Treat it as anything but a weapon, and we're asking for trouble.
Before someone comes along to claim that I don't support their rights (and they will), I would never support a law restricting or banning the practice. I just wish those who do it would do so a bit more responsibly.