I don't feel like my CHL makes me part of some kind of elite group - other than the fact that it makes me even more aware of my social responsibilities than before. And what is $200? It's not even the price of a decent pistol. I want to make clear that I am not, in principle, against the concept of open carry, even if I were to choose to continue to CCW for myself.jlangton wrote:I think the biggest mentality here is that of some CHL holders feeling like they're part of some "elite" group of people,and that allowing OC by everybody would somehow invalidate the value of their CHL. Maybe it's a feeling of loss of the $200+ for the class and licensing when everybody else wouldn't have to pay.
IMO, CHL holders would be minimally affected by an OC law if the Texas legislature were to allow the simplistic "ghostbuster" or other "no guns allowed" signs to be the stopping point for OC like a 30.06 is the stopping point for a CHL holder. It'd be really simple to enforce that since people would be OPENLY carrying their firearms.
JL
But, as far as I know, those states that currently have OC have always had OC; or they passed OC back in the days before gun rights became a really hotbutton topic. Given the current political climate (and I signed the petition for OC, by the way), I do fear that the political fight over it might turn out to be more damaging to our rights than they already are. Every few years, the country experiences a resurgence of conservatism, in the same way that it is currently experiencing a resurgence of liberalism. In terms of pure political practicality, it is usually more effective to pursue specific high profile agendas when the political climate most favors those agendas, and the risk of damage to those high profile agendas is highest when activism in favor of those agendas occurs when the political climate least favors it. In other words, you make your gains when things are in your favor, and you hold your ground when they aren't. Things have been generally in our favor for a little while now, and we have consequently made some progress. But, I sense that they are about to swing against us soon, and it will be time to hold our ground and wait for the next window of opportunity.
So, even though I would favor an open carry law, and I signed the online petition in favor of it, I worry that certain aspects of activism in that direction may turn out to be rash in the long haul, and I counsel caution and the seeking after wisdom in its pursuit.