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Old August 22, 2008, 03:38 PM   #190
the_pragmaticist
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Join Date: April 29, 2008
Posts: 201
PBP - I think JesseL was being facetious / sarcastic and does not actually feel that way, though I could be wrong. I understood his post to be comparing your suggestion that everyone who carries openly being a chest thumper to some of his more extreme examples of assumption. I could be wrong.

From my point of view, here are some possible (though not inclusive) answers to your questions:

What is the desired result of open carry?

Preclusion of violence by demonstrating that the carrier is a hard target. Not necessarily a badass, not necessarily a braggard, but most definitely not a good target for crime.

What is the benefit of it?

One would hope that one benefit would be the above desired result. In addition to that, it quietly introduces everyone who notices it to the concept of an armed citizen. Let me emphasize that in my case at least, this is not the desired result or the purpose - it's just a benefit.

Why would we even want to live in a community where people would feel the need or desire to open carry regularly?

Why wouldn't you? How many old ladies would get mugged in the street if everyone in the area was armed? How many criminals would hold up stores or banks or <insert place of business> if the half of the customers were clearly armed? The answer probably isn't zero, but it's probably less than the existing number...

I am a big fan of deterrence. All other rationale and facts aside, if you want an honest answer, I'll tell you: I'm concerned that in a conflict, firearm and all, I will fail. I've got training and tools on my side, but there's always a chance that someone beats me to the punch. If that makes me less of a man, so be it. At the end of the day, I'd rather someone see an armed citizen and walk away than force my hand to see who's going to win in armed conflict when they weren't aware of the firearm.
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