Greg Abbott and OC

[Salty1]

My concerns can be summed up in 2 words:

Joe Straus...................

[ghostrider]

OC would be nice as an option (and as a matter of principle) but frankly I have other changes I'd like to see:

# elimination of the 51% rule
# campus carry

[mr1337]

OC would be nice as an option (and as a matter of principle) but frankly I have other changes I'd like to see:

# elimination of the 51% rule
# campus carry

I agree. I'd rather have 51% repeal and campus carry than open carry, if it came down to the brass like that. Being able to carry in 51% establishments and especially on campus could do more good. Open carry is more of a convenience and freedom. Concealed Carry in more places could (read: WILL) save lives.

[Bladed]

Yup, but here is what I don't get. Constitutional Carry is part of the Texas Republican platform:

http://www.texasgop.org/wp-content/uplo ... -Final.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; (Page 40)

and somehow we can't get anyone to even present a bill for any type of OC?????

It would have to get on to the calendar. That's not going to happen unless we can get one up first requiring the death penalty for legislators who introduce "fluff bills" recognizing people's birthdays and such that run the clock out on actual legislation.

I've done more than my share of complaining about how much time the legislature wastes, and I agree that it's frustrating as hell to be waiting for a floor vote on an important bill and have to sit through ninety minutes of the chamber recognizing wedding anniversaries and little league victories, but it's worth noting that those "fluff" bills are placed on a different calendar than most serious legislation and are typically heard at times when the legislators either don't have much else to work on (i.e., early in the session) or need the delay to work on other things (while one legislator is droning on and on about the local spelling bee champion, his colleagues are actually using that time to get stuff done).

EDITED TO ADD: One of the arguments for switching to annual legislative sessions is that there would be less of a buildup of these types of procedural/formality issues, leaving more time for legislators to address serious legislation. I'm not sure how much validity there is to that claim, but it seems like a relevant footnote to your comment. Also, it should be noted that I've been told legislators use the time during the Local and Consent Calendar to get work done, but having never been a member of or staffer for the Texas Legislature, I'm just reporting secondhand information--for all I know, they're playing solitaire.

[victory]

I would like to see TPC 46.035 repealed. There is no legitimate reason to impose those restrictions on handguns carried by licensed people, when unlicensed people can carry an AR, AK, or riot shotgun without those restrictions.

No reason at all for TPC 46.035 to stay on the books except to pander to Bloomberg and his ilk.

[LabRat]

OC would be nice as an option (and as a matter of principle) but frankly I have other changes I'd like to see:

# elimination of the 51% rule
# campus carry

I agree. I'd rather have 51% repeal and campus carry than open carry, if it came down to the brass like that. Being able to carry in 51% establishments and especially on campus could do more good. Open carry is more of a convenience and freedom. Concealed Carry in more places could (read: WILL) save lives.

I prefer CC. But OC would be nice just as a matter of convenience and the freedom would be good to have back.

But other problems arise with OC......I hate to be superficial, but I'd "need" a better lookin' pistol for OC.
A Wilson Combat or Colt Commander....

Man, OC is gonna may cost me some $$$$$ if it passes.

LabRat

[Beiruty]

LabRat,
For Open Carry think of
1) SVI Infinity
2) Ed Brown
3) STI
4) Factory engraved Colt
Something like this:
Ed Brown:

Colts Factory Engraved:

Or this Full size:

[patterson]

Beiruty, those are some sweet 1911s

[cb1000rider]

My biggest concern is what OC may do to impact CHL. Could OC somehow lead to the end of 30.06 and make it easier for places to ban guns? Could it spell out more restrictions?
I'd be interested to see what the bill would look like.

Compare to other states like MI, where open carry is allowed (not legislatively allowed, nor legislatively prohibited) and they have a CHL program. In the MI circumstance, you get both. You get to OC where appropriate (subject to certain restrictions, like TX CHL has), but if you have a CHL many of those restrictions don't apply.....

I for one, think it would likely extend where we are today... But I'm not under the illusion that we could suddenly carry a black rifle into a public area without risking a confrontation.

However, the Abbot key of "when it lands on my desk" to me means that he's not going to spend political capital to make it happen... So saying that doesn't get me excited at all.

[steveincowtown]

. . . we can't get anyone to even present a bill for any type of OC?????

On what do you base this statement?

Chas.

History at this point, but hey I am all for next session. Probably would have been worded better as "we haven't been able to" rather than "we can't."

[mr1337]

I won't be looking forward to MDA members and the like SWATing here in Texas if/when OC passes.

[mojo84]

I won't be looking forward to MDA members and the like SWATing here in Texas if/when OC passes.

The answer to that is to file charges against those that make a false report.

[mr1337]

I won't be looking forward to MDA members and the like SWATing here in Texas if/when OC passes.

The answer to that is to file charges against those that make a false report.

Still doesn't fix if anyone is killed in the process, as we've seen in the past.

I really can't wait to see if the SWATer that called 911 on the guy at the gas station gets canned. Or the SWATer from Walmart. Hopefully that will show people that this stuff isn't a game. People can die, and you WILL go to jail.

[mojo84]

There is no perfect magic solution to any problem. Got to start somewhere.