Update 11:15 PM EST
This post generated more discussion (and more hate) than I thought it would, and one of the guys in the video below contacted me on Facebook to share his side of the story. He assured me that he and his friend do this all the time and that there was no “demonstrating”. When I asked him why they do this, and so near a Boys & Girls Brigade and a school administration building, here’s what he had to say. I copied/pasted his response with permission rather than putting his response in my own words.
well i open carry a long gun to show people that you have options for defending your self. i need to go off topic to explain. one of my friends is jon. he was involved in a open carry stop that hit the news in green bay a week before i carried up there. 15 cops showed up. but they handled it perfect. the police are great up there. jon only owned a shot gun until last week because he had to sell is expensive glock to pay medical bills. if you own a long gun i rather see people carry it and talk to police from time to time then be a victim. i know that is the worse explanation ever but hope it works
I thought it was important to be fair to the story and tell the other side. Those of you who are new to Monderno should know that I live in an open carry state (Montana) and that I open carry all the time. I’ve also long been a proponent of Constitutional Carry (use the site’s search feature), but I do not agree with open carry “demonstrations” because I feel they do more harm than good. I took the same heat (though admittedly to a lesser degree) for my views on the recent Starbucks situation. I think shoving things down people’s throats is the wrong approach, and is not the way to win hearts and minds.
I’ve been meaning to share this one for a while now because I think there are a lot of pro-Second Amendment folks that can learn a lesson from it.Â
Generally speaking, most open carry demonstrations are not only idiotic, but actually hurt the very cause they are supposedly supporting, which is gun rights. I get why people do it – it’s the whole “a right not exercised is a right lost” argument, which I agree with to a certain extent. However, marching around town with a rifle slung over your back just to get a rise out of the police isn’t a great way to show society that gun rights should be supported.
Good on this cop for explaining to these guys how their actions are going to actually hurt gun rights.
What you two are doing…you’re hurting us. You’re hurting the Second Amendment.
These cops were so good and clear about it. I hope more people get the message
I hope they do, too. And as much as I want to shove these two morons’ guns up their asses, I still have a problem with cops making someone stand there listening to their personal opinion. No one in this video did well. Kids, they got attention for public masturbation of their 2nd Amendment rights. But cops… what the hell? Were the kdis breaking the law or not? Were you ever going to do more than force feed them your personal opinions and principles? If not, let them go. Take up your personal crusade against idiot behavior on your own time. Because in this country, like it or not, the law no more protects the opinions of cops than the opinions of fools. That’s just the way it is. So to stand there with another cop ready to “shoot him in the head” if makes a wrong move is a horrible use of your official position as an armed peace officer enforcing the law. How dare you keep your audience captive while you, in turn, do the very thing you are stopping him for, making what amounts to little more than *your* own personal youtube video. Be professional. Leave your blogging to your off-duty time.
I disagree. I think that by arguing the opinion, it conveys the correct message to everyone. It is what sets this officer, and the whole encounter in general, apart from just basic police “harassment” of open carriers. It shows that the officer cares about his community and 2A rights. It’s not every day that someone gets to have a conversation about open carry “demonstrations” with an actual open carry demonstrator, and I personally am glad the officer said something, because I happen to agree with him. Nobody kept anyone captive, they were likely trying to figure out the best way to proceed given that the subject refused to identify himself further. This is a very difficult situation for police. There is the constitutional right to not positively ID yourself, but how do the officers know if the person carrying the gun openly is actually a LEGAL gun owner?
The shooting in the head comment is just an example of setting realistic expectations to the individual in question. Reach for a gun, you’re gonna get shot. That’s the long and short of it.
Bet the cop wouldn’t like to be held at gun point to have the counterpoint preached to him for a while. Take it off duty. On duty, not the place for personal politics.
Sorry but I disagree with the author of this story. When I was a kid in the 60’s I carried my .22LR rifle or double barrel 16 gauge shotgun on the school bus with me during hunting season. Took it into the school and put it in the homeroom closet with all the other guns other kids brought to school. Guess what? NOTHING happened! We never shot anyone, we never pointed our guns at anyone and not one person went screaming down the hallway. Fifty or so years later the people in this country have been turned into docile, government slobbing sheep that do as they are told by cops and other government entities. This has to stop or the U.S. is lost forever. These guys open carrying are exercising their God given 2nd Amendment right and Article 1 Section 25 rights under the Wisconsin State Constitution. No laws were broken and only ONE phone call from a passerby who called the NON EMERGENCY phone number for the police. Even the female caller said there was nothing going on and figured the guys were out for a walk. You can sit in your homes and hide the fact you “exercise” your right to keep and bear arms and keep quiet like a good little government drone or you can get outside and march & fight for your rights in public. If no one sees you exercising your rights then it never happened. Simple as that! Open carry is the only way we are EVER going to get our 2nd Amendment right back in this country. Wake up People!
Thanks for commenting Ben. Unfortunately we live in a very different world than the 60’s (and I do mean unfortunately). The world where kids could carry their hunting rifle on the bus with them is sadly long gone. I’m all for fighting for liberty and you won’t find someone more pro-gun than me, but two kids marching around town trying to bait cops for their YouTube channel is idiotic. There are hundreds of ways these kids could support gun rights that don’t involve this type of nonsense.
I’m all for desensitizing folks to firearms, but two guys slinging rifles and walking around town is a bad approach. Even up here in rural Montana that would be out of place, and the cops would probably at least stop and ask if you were lost.
Exactly. This was all about baiting cops for YouTube, and had nothing to do with exercising a right of self-defense.
call it baiting or what ever you want but until people and law enforcement stop over reacting to people exercising there constitutional rights we are living in a police state. We are slowly letting them take our constitutional rights away. Before you know it there will be no constitution and we will become a socialist state like the soviet union or even worse a communist one like china. Time for people to grow a set and stand up for your rights and not let a guy exercising his rights ruffle your feathers. And the only reason we live in a different world is because we have been conditioned by the liberal media and government to fear guns.
Fair points Darren.
A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.
One has the right to self-defense. One also has the right to bear arms. Two separate rights.
I’m all for the 2nd amendment but. That what I read from this.
The 2nd has nothing to do with hunting as much as it has nothing to do with your opinion on if someone should exercise there rights the way that they chose.
Folks like you that want to limit and criticize the way one should exercise there right are the ones that are FREE TO BE STUPID.
Troy, did I say these guys shouldn’t be allowed to demonstrate this way? No. I’m saying I don’t agree with it.
The law is about the printed word and what presidents are set. So, if the president is that caring a gun is cause for a police stop, then caring a gun becomes banned. The only way to keep such presidents is to actually set them in a way where the least possible excuse for a police stop exists. If a few over active anti-gun cops get a slap on the hand, others will not attempt to force their views rather than the actual law.
I agree, people need to stop being so afraid when they see a person carrying a weapon. People used to do it all of the time and no one got scared and called the police.
Ben, want to explain that viewpoint to the California legislators who’ve now completely outlawed open carry all together here in California because of people walking around with rifles for no reason other than they were hoping to get rousted by the cops and get it on video? I am a ardent 2A proponent and a Libertarian. I believe as long as you’re not hurting anyone, you should be able to do whatever you want. But I’m also a realist. With all the vilification and mis-information being reported about guns of all types in the media, and all the media coverage mass shootings are getting, people are scared. In that environment, in the scared society we live in, there is a time and a place for demonstrations, and just randomly walking around with a gun is only going to cause people to react in an emotional way and not a logical way. Controlled, planned, advertised, open carry gatherings are less likely to illicit negative reactions and show the public it’s possible for a large number of armed citizens to come together with no one getting shot. Some random guy walking down the street with a gun causes anxiety and hurts our cause. Exactly what that officer told them would happen has happened to me and the other gun owners of California.
They were open, indeed. I do not appreciate the “I am going to shoot you in the head”. Being that they “knew” the situation, they knew that that was a little over the top.
I doubt they were taught to take head shots or that it is agency policy to do so. Center mass is what’s been taught for a long, long time. More likely to hit, more likely to make someone break off contact. Getting shot hurts. Not many people want to keep fighting after being shot.
Several reasons for that. Center mass is a larger target, and therefor easier to hit. The likelihood of missing a headshot is much greater than a shot to center mass.
Cops are notoriously bad shots, anyway. Why take the more difficult shots?
what a stupid premise and argument…and article….it does not even deserve debate…both from an obtuse writer and someone who actually is trained to respond to incidents like this…now…take that stupidity and I will guarantee that not only will our rights be enforced but they will also be translated into an non concealed state with in 3 years…care to put some serious money on it?
Brandon, Thanks for posting this. This demonstrates the serious and misguided actions folks will undertake, to cause the enactment of more laws that will infringe on lawful gun owners. Open carry demonstrations such as this will also cause more misinformation to be spread and sabotage any headway 2nd Amendment Rights protection may gain. There are some very strong movements to curtail current protections by doing end-runs around current laws, and these individuals, who are demonstrating their “right to be stupid”, are just providing ammo for these lawmakers to gain support in the eyes of the general public, and the fear based media.
Would the civil rights movement gotten anywhere without individuals doing some things that got noticed? Black people that started not giving up their seats on a bus, was viewed in exactly the same light for awhile, but eventually it changed the minds of the common people. Too often city only see or hear about guns in the hands of “gang members”, so seeing guns in the hands of ordinary people not doing any harm is probably not something we should discourage. CC carry is good, however, it will never show to the common person how many people actually do carry or show that the “good guys” carry and not “gun nuts”. The anti-gun movement is very much more organized and well funded that we are, so we need to get our story across in other ways.
The OTC demonstration caused a lot of press and the MDA anti-gun group pushed the limit of putting these folks in a bad light, however, the person on the street see these guys as mainstream people, with wife and children. So, maybe in New York, this approach may not work, I think that it is working in Texas, especially when they get main stream statewide officials to speak at the demonstrations.
I work and live in a open carry state. We have had that law for as long as I can remember and we still get calls about folks with weapons. Most of them are hunters and have no issues with being checked out real quick. These ass clowns do this just to try and get negative reaction and this time they ended up with the wrong cop showing up and didn’t get the attention they thought they would. Don’t know who this officer is but I would love to find out just to tell him good job!
You’d like to tell him good job for making references to shooting an innocent person in the head? I spent five years as a Military Police Officer in the United States Marine Corps, and did two deployments (one to Iraq, and one to Afghanistan) and I NEVER made references to shooting someone in the head like that. Not even to Iraqis or Afghanis. The cop needs to be reminded that he’s supposed to be a professional, and that he is no different than a normal citizen. You guys don’t seem to understand that, no matter what we in the 2nd Amendment crowd do, we will always be vilified by the left. Open carry demonstrations are about telling the left that we don’t give a shit what they think. The word “appeasement” comes to mind with most of the comments on here, and the writer of the “article”. So gents, by all means, be the Neville Chamberlains of the 2A community. It was appeasement in the past, (the National Firearms Act, Gun Owners Protection Act, Clinton Import Bans, Assault Weapons Ban) that have got us to where we are today, not a bunch of “ass clowns” (what is this, 2001?) doing open carry demonstrations.
Agreed. All I could hear when this LEO spoke was the majority SCOTUS decision for Castle Rock v Gonzales.
Serve and protect died a while ago and ‘shoot them in the head’ LEO’s who are ‘concerned over the damage done to the Second Amendment’ can stick it.
I don’t open carry largely because I am in an urban area of a major city; it’s bad tactics. Missouri also has local override of our OC law so I am not even sure that a block or two from my house in unincorporated county land would be legal if I walked a couple blocks into the next town. THAT is what is wrong with OC, it is not everywhere all the time even though it is supposedly a right…
So the alternative is to let every person who walks down the sidewalk with an AR-15 just “keep on walkin’?” just so we don’t infringe on their 2nd amendment rights??? Do you realize how crazy that sounds? People that walk down the street brandishing deadly weapons have a screw loose. If I saw a dude holding a machete/katana/brass knuckles walking downtown, or with any kind of weapon, gun or otherwise, I’d assume they were up to no good. There’s no place for this kind of behavior in the average city street. I couldn’t agree more that these numbnuts “activists” are doing more harm to the 2nd amendment than good.
I almost am inclined to say, “Let them have what’s coming to them.” I was working in a convenience store some 30 years ago with a martial artist and body builder, split shift to cover the end of liquor sales (2 a.m.) each day. I was not paying attention, but he was. A guy with a 1911 evidently was printing pretty badly. So my friend moved into position. As he reached back (probably just to get his wallet), my partner folded the guy over the counter, having pinned his arms and smacking his head hard into the counter, yelling, “Joe he’s reaching for a gun!”
Still pinning the dazed man on the counter, he withdrew the man’s gun from his belt and told me to call the cops.
Overreaction? I’m in a bad part of town, a bad part of night, in a place that gets robbed several times a year, and my friend has to make a split decision because if the man was going to pull that gun on me, it’s act now or let me get shot.
I think that’s just fine. If you want to walk down the street with an AR-15 in the open, I want you to KNOW DAMN WELL that there are probably 20 CCWs watching that you don’t make a gesture that will get you drilled full of holes.
Fair enough? If there are kids playing on a merry-go-round, and, tired of lugging it as you walk, you start to reposition that long arm — be ready to meet your maker, because a lot of people might mistakenly think the kids are in imminent danger of getting Sandy-Hooked.
I’m good with that if you are.
Joe B.
You didn’t finish your story abit the guy carrying the pistol, was the guy a hood rat,undercover cop, citizen that just got tired of the ghetto goblins?
Well said Joe B.
To all you stupid little children slinging rifles and walking around town to “raise awareness”, it will eventually come back to bite you. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
I’m not an open carry “demonstrator,” but in my state (Tennessee) open carry is legal, for pistols. It is the opinion of the Attorney General is, “As set forth in part 1, above, the holder of a handgun carry permit may lawfully carry his or her handgun both openly and concealed.”
In this situation, I think he is in the wrong, according to the how and where he is doing this. That close to the school, I agree with the police officer, that they are upsetting other people. Now, with that being said there are a lot of people who are overly sensitive on the sight of a gun and even a pop tart shaped like Idaho that is turned sideways. There are more tactful ways of getting this point across, of open carry.
This is why the anti-gunners will win in the end. The quote attributed to Benjamin Franklin at the signing of the declaration of independence applies here, “we must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.”
The gun “community” is so busy infighting it’s a matter of time before we ultimately lose the fight. OC vs. CC. The I don’t care if they ban “assault rifles” I’m a hunter all I need is my bolt action guy. Or the I’m a gun owner and I support expanded background checks. What’s wrong with registration if it keeps guns out of the wrong hands? I support a mandatory waiting period. And so on…
Who is everyone worried about looking bad in front of? The anti-gunners? Guess what. They hate us. The undecided? I suspect, and am probably wrong, that most don’t base their opinion on some jack ass carrying an AK down the street. They come to their decisions from things like Sandy Hook. Columbine. Aurora and so on.
And because someone will imply it, no, I am not an OC’er.
More kids out baiting cops for YouTube, just what the 2A community needs. Some of you jackasses need to understand that whether you like it or not, when you act like an asshole long enough, people tend to take notice, bitch and complain, and give politicians exactly the ammunition needed to strip more of our rights.
I agree Brandon, let the haters hate. These types of demonstrations do nothing but hurt us.
Dead on. No more than public masturbation of 2nd Amendment rights. Damn idiots have to remember that in the recent supreme court cases in our favor, it was not unanimous. This kind of BS will tip the scales against us.
it wasn’t unanimous because of the blobama appointed libtards who will never vote for any gun right
I tell people elections are extremely important when a justice or two are getting ready to retire
every person I explained SCOTUS and elections to said “I never thought of it that way”
Smart & wise police officer. Very polite and talked to those kids/young adults as another 2nd Amendment support. Too bad not all police are like that (for many different reason they’re not). I believe that if we’re not in a state of war internally, then there is really no need to open carry (unless it’s part of your job) or to have an open carry demonstration. Yes, it’s your right to do so, but why instigate problem? People enjoy the 1st Amendment don’t go running around yelling curse words out in public just because they can (I curse a lot, but I don’t do it to instigate other people because it’s my Constitutional right).
There needs to be more police officers like the one in the video. Smart, wise, polite, and wants to educate others.
really? it doesn’t matter what there reason was for carrying it is there right to do so without being harassed by the police. He was not very smart for stopping someone from performing a legal act. We all have the right to open carry any time and for any reason with out worry of being detained by police. It is after all our 2nd amendment right to do so. So no matter the reason, to be stopped for exercising your rights is wrong. Just like it’s illegal to prevent someone from exercising there 1st amendment rights or any other constitutional right.
I told people who kept crying about people having issues with open carry in starbucks that it was hurting the cause. I got told to stfu and mind my own business. Now I’m right and their wrong. Not one apology, not one ‘I was wrong’.
ill say it anthony, you were wrong.
To everyone saying that this type of thing hurts us are, you need a re-examination of logic. The everyday average Joe never blinks an eye when they see a police officer, prison guard, security guard, or game commissioner walking through everyday life with a pistol on their hip. That is solely because they see it every single day. A guy mentioned that if you did this in the 60s that no one would blink an eye. It’s not a different time now because of more mass shootings, its a different time now because people have generally stopped open carrying and others have gotten used to NOT seeing it. It now seems out of the ordinary because we’ve gone so long without seeing it every day. That is a fact. The only way to change this is to force people to get re-used to seeing this type of thing again, day in and day out. Secretively exercising your rights is not the same as openly exorcising your rights. Openly exercising your rights is not an argument for having them stripped from you in the future.
This is an argument of desensitization that I can respect and agree with. However, I don’t think that the above video is the best way to make that happen. Look at how and where these guys were carrying a rifle. They weren’t carrying hunting rifles on their way to go hunting, they weren’t carrying properly holstered handguns, they were walking around town near a school with a slung rifle. Of course it’s going to scare the anti-gun crowd. I wish it didn’t, but we have to live in the real world.
There have to be better ways to desensitize folks to guns than this.
It *is* a different time now because of political focus on it. Because of repeated attempts to legislate this freedom away. And because the courts are not voting unanimously in our favor. A 5-4 vote can easily become a 4-5 vote if your force courts to reconsider carry bans. No one — not even our justices — is completely unbiased. So why the HELL are we trying to bias them?
very well put
Nothing like having a cop tell you he’s disappointed in how your acting. I think that would be the worst thing a cop could tell me.
“free to be stupid”, best line in the whole video.
The cops acted professionaly and spent a lot of time trying to “teach” the dumbasses to be better citizens.
Someone needs to spank these ass clowns.
If you want to have an open carry demonstration then organize one with a plan and a goal to educate people who do jot understand it as a right. You will never get the point across shoving your opinion down someones throat. You will only make them scared, angry, confused etc. If you want to bring attention to your cause then organize. This is cop baiting for YouTube ranking. Why is it always tools that think they know better that do this stuff and end up makig us all look like asses? Dont expect me to side with someone just because they share a common interest with me but express themselves with this in your face attitude. Yeah the hard left hates you and your guns…we arent trying to change their minds. we are trying to sway those that can be educated to our side and this type of vinegar wont win any flies.
Another way we are being divided. Open carry is constitutional and should continue to be that way in all states. I like conceal carry myself, but there is not one ounce of regret in me when on a warm day I decide to open carry instead. The times narrows for those who will willing defend rights and those who say I’m all for gun rights, but….
All law abiding citizens should be allowed to carry what, when and how they wish. Don’t separate us even more by degrading some and calling them out for what you deem “not the correct way” Ben was right above, open carry is the only way to regain what we have lost. If we are forced to go concealed because otherwise we feel insecure that others are looking, or perhaps we are intimidating others, then the anti gunners have partially won. I do not concern myself with the thoughts of others when I carry except what their intentions are toward those I love and myself.
In hindsight, you’re right about the division. That was not my intent…
Having said that, if their goal was to desensitize their community to firearms, I think there are much better ways to go about it, and I agree with the cop that this type of demonstration hurts us.
If they want to desensitize people to open carry, carry a properly holstered sidearm, not a rifle and a video camera.
Open carry, all for it. Wake up and strap your gun on and go about your business. No cameras and no recorders. Go get breakfast and run your errands or work your job. Open carrying to get a rise out of people is open carrying for the wrong reason and will get the wrong results. Youre showboating for your own agenda. PA is open carry and you can do it in a way to not drawl attention…but that won’t get you YouTube results your really looking for
What did these guys do wrong? They don’t have to answer ANY questions, they did NOTHING wrong.
Legally? My understanding is that they didn’t do anything wrong. I just don’t think this type of activism does us any favors.
And I don’t believe complaining about someone exercising there right does us any good.
Well Said, Brandon. Most of the OC Activists mean well and have the best of intentions… Many manage to OC without incident and I believe THISE OCers legitimately believe they are making good choices for their defense and our community. Those who purposefully carry for confrontation or who refuse to cooperate without e officers while OCing are an embarrassment to responsible firearms owners.
I think these guys should BE HUNG for their actions.. We must protect our freedoms be eliminating guys like this..
I don’t agree with them, but hanging is a bit much (I assume you’re being facetious).
Hung for exercising their 2nd amendment, constitutionally protected right????
What “freedoms” are you protecting???
You’re a moron and a parasite!!!
You cant be walking around doing all these victimless crimes!
i hope that was sarcasm, if not the irony in your post is very telling
How in sam hell are you PROTECTING your right by eliminating those who exercise it? That is the most skewed logic I have ever seen! I do not like the cop baiters either but nowadays everybody is a cop baiter that wears a gun. I had the police called on me as I sat in a restaurant with my smith and wesson SHIELD on my hip. We were enjoying a nice quiet meal only to be snatched up by police rushing in and escorting me outside and trying to relieve me of my firearm. I have a concealed permit and they tried to take my gun from me by which I told them I would have to be arrested to relinquish my firearm and then I would promptly be calling my attourney and the local news and if they could give me their badge numbers and the duty seargents name I would appreciate it. The bad part was that it was not the restaurant staff who called the cops it was some jackass sitting at a table from his cellphone. I was not baiting. quite the contrary I was minding my own damn business eating a romantic meal with my WIFE. Needless to say by the time they “let” me go my meal was cold and my night had been ruined but HEY! It’s my own fault and I’m a “jackass” for open carrying right?
So not only does the author not understand what it means to support 2A rights, he also does not understand how to support other rights like 1A rights. Deleting comments that don’t line up with your views is disgusting and shameful.
First of all Ross, I have deleted exactly ZERO comments today on the blog.
Second, it’s you who doesn’t understand the First Amendment. The 1A does NOT protect your right to comment on someone’s blog, it protects you from government. You can read our comment policies here, but I very rarely disallow a comment.
OK Brandon, but I still don’t see Charles comments. Anywhere. But besides that, you did not refute being anti rights specifically the 2A rights. It is a right to OC, a rifle or pistol. How did it become normalized to carry a pistol openly? By carrying openly. So why would it be different for a rifle? Because its big and black? That’s silly isn’t it? And who says it was to get attention? Is anyone who goes for a walk with a camera looking for attention? Silly me, I thought it was to take pictures or to document. Get the point? Don’t judge until you have the real facts and the entire story not just assumptions and bias.
Ross, I don’t know who Charles is.
If you were familiar with Monderno you would know that I support Constitutional Carry, and have been very vocal about that over the years. I open carry daily. What I don’t support are open carry demonstrations like the one above, because I think they give politicians exactly what they need to marginalize gun owners and say “See! See! These guys can’t be trusted! We need to take away their liberties!”
The problem lies with IGNORANT cops, brainwashed/hoplophobic public , and people such as yourself who say…” I support the 2nd amendment BUT…” OPEN CARRY is LEGAL, LAWFUL AND PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE EXERCISE OF OUR RIGHT!!!
Grow a damn brain and some balls…you sound like a libtarded sheepole!!!…or maybe you are one in disguise.
Shruba I’m not debating open carry (I open carry daily), I’m debating open carry demonstrations like the one above.
These guys are seriously idiots, i understand carrying a pistol of any sort but a rifle? In a residential area especially? whats the point?
did NOT like the “you know what i am going to do if you make a furtive movement right, i am going to shoot you right in the head”
And then “It’s the world we live in now” so it sounds like this cop needs a new job if he is that damn afraid
I don’t like the “Look at me, LOOK AT ME” 2A protests but when the cop started his lecture I may have just said screw it and started jawing off
Would I be in the wrong? yes I would be in the wrong, perhaps but any cop that wants to talk to me like a he is talking to a child or give me “His way is right and my way is wrong” lecture would probably end up being so mad at me once I started lipping off that I would be in jail
I don’t care I am retired, run a small business and my wife and sons could run the business until I get out
What is egregious is the libtards that are in fear at the mere mention of a gun, the cops need to tell these nanny staters that it is legal and to stop being such pussies
Both were wrong in a few ways in this video
And towards the end the cop said if a guy walks into a gas station carrying a long gun that his weapon is out and he would probably pop a cap in him” reallyyyyyyy?
I really see these “open-carry demonstrators” as another form of exhibitionist, not unlike the adolescents that pierce this and tattoo that as a way of screaming “LOOK AT ME!!!” Most often, their message is really little about the open carry of firearms, it is about themselves being noticed. Usually, their skills at being productive members of society using hard work and discipline are lacking. They are looking for easy ways to be recognized.
WOW, not sure where to start. So because someone has tattoos they are not productive mebers of society? So people that do not look like you think they should, they should have less rights? Just because someone seeks attention in a way you do not agree with they should not have rights?
Why cant they cops tell the people who call in that it is legal to open carry and calm down?
The kid deserved to be spoken to like a child, he showed the discretion of one. Firearms are not political statements, they are tools. Use and carry appropriately. The officer never threatened him; he warned him that being stupid would be fatal. The same as any reasonable person would do
When dealing with an unknown person who obviously has the ability to harm you. The officer was responding to A call for service, he does not know who or what he is dealing with, and he has every right to look to his safety while determining the situation.
Wow. How sad is this? Really? I’m glad that the division thing was pointed out earlier on in this thread, but it unfortunately didn’t cease there. Or maybe folks didn’t read the entire thread.
This is not the time for dissension within our ranks…
Honestly I don’t get the “division” – I don’t see why people can’t disagree and debate without the hostility.
I think that everyone, and I mean everyone, in an open carry state should do so on a daily basis, regular ole habit and routine. If everyone exercised this right no one would get excited about seeing someone walking down the street with a pistol on their side. Frankly, the world has come to where we need to carry for our personal safety, when I am able to open carry, I plan on doing it on a regular basis, not to exercise my right, nor to rile anyone, but for my personal safety.
Also, I think it is a bit callous to “pat” the responding officers on the back.
They belittled these two guys a number of times. Why remind them about being “shot in the head” repeatedly? It serves no constructive or meaningful purpose, short of asserting authority over them, what-so-ever.
And why, after the two were deemed not a threat, were they continued to be treated the way that they were? The female officer brandished her side arm the entire time that she was present. Furthermore, she continually was adjusting for “position”. Why? Why should law abiding citizens be treated like criminals? Why should they be talked down to and belittled and berated?
Yes, obviously, upon first contact we should all suspect some “gruff” handling, but after the initial contact and purpose was established, I think the police behavior could have changed for the better.
I don’t believe this was good community policing. On the contrary, I think it was quite the opposite. There are far better examples of how other policeman have handled open carry situations out on the internet. Those few police officers that are the “good” cops, that deserve that “pat” on the back. We all know what I’m talking about. We all know the difference.
The argument for carrying a long rifle for self defense makes no sense whatsoever. Unless you are carrying it in a ready position it’s useless to engage close in targets. The only reason the cop had his out was because he was 50 yards away and able to employ it in a timely manner. I agree with this cop that he’s making it worse for the rest of us. Common sense is a lost art for many people these days. I’m willing to bet this guy grew up getting “participation” awards and his mom telling him she was proud of his 10th out of 12 place finish. Grow the “F” up and think or stay home.
Brandon If the police in Montana stopped me under those conditions and, “asked me if I was lost?” My answer would be, “YES, I thought I was still living in the United States of American.” Where men are born free.
“Smart & wise police officer” What? The police officer told these kids he’d shoot them in the head. That’s outragous and he should be fired for saying that. The officer definitly seemed mentally unstable to me.
It is sad that all you 2nd Amendment supporters think what the cops did was ok. I bet you would have a different opinion if it was you concealed carrying and your shirt comes up or someone bumps into it, and they call the police. I doubt a cop telling you multiple times he will shoot you in the head will not sound as good. It is sad that some claim it is ok to outside carry a pistol or if you are hunting, but claim these guys are doing the wrong thing. Guess what the same thing can happen to you doing the things you claim are ok. That cop knew what they were doing the whole time and he was trying to scare them from doing it again. It reminded me of the cop in the movie Rambo, the cop trying to “save” the guy he didnt want in town from trouble, even though he was removing every right that guy had to be there. The cops were wrong and you all are playing into the anti-gun game by condoning it.
I’ve got to go with Brandon on this one. I’ve never really been one for the Al Sharpton school of “Ram it down their throats until it comes out of their ears” social activism. It seems to me that if we, the 2A crowd are seeking a larger appeal (which we need) then we are going to need a bigger tent. That means showing restraint. That means showing how the daily carry of firearms fits into polite society. You can say that you don’t care what others think about it, but at the end of the day it is ultimately majority rule. Try winning a few hearts and minds.
That being said, how many times are those dudes gonna cross her line of fire?
What I glean from articles such as these:
“Why didn’t Rosa Parks just sit at the back and stop making it worse for other bus riders?
She’s just bringing bad attention to the people riding the bus.”
Rights don’t fight for themselves. If they were doing an open carry demo with fingers on triggers pointing them at people, obviously there’s a difference.
But that’s not a rights demo, that’s probably felony menacing. Getting your panties in a wad over rights demo’s is NOT what the Founders did or could ever be conceived of advocating.
Again, Your rights DO NOT defend themselves. Bravo to the two on the video.
Eric this isn’t a discussion about rights – my point is that I think demonstrations do more harm than good. You disagree? Cool. I’m not debating whether or not it should be legal, because it absolutely should.
Somehow Rosa Parks just … just doesn’t work its way down to this level. (Try another analogy.)
Reading all the comments and watching the video leaves me to say that there are a lot of people that are being ignorant to this situation. The officer threatened with deadly force right off the bat which is not how PD protocols are run. Officer said he would shoot him in the head…. Wrong thing to do also. Like stated one phone call was put in on the non-emergency line. It all came down to the officers harrassing them. I know one those guys this is not for a youtube channel. He is being aware of his rights to video tape situations preventing him from getting screwed by a corrupt police system. If i was not a felon for possession of thc I would be carrying also. It is my right to carry its not their right to mess with anyone who is. And whoever runs this site you can stop deleting comments because you don’t agree with them.
Cops have a duty to act. They were responding to a complaint. They were doing their jobs. Someone mentioned being upset that the officer was expressing his personal opinion…what is the issue with this?! Our mouths are sometimes our best weapon in ANY situation.
This wasnt an expression for open carry, this was for personal gain. Everyone seems to want their 15 minutes of fame on youtube. He sits there and passively resists the cops saying “i dont have to give you that information” If you have nothing to hide then answer the simple questions to make your *demonstration* that much easier. I commend the cops for how they handled this situation. A few people wont agree with the wording used, let me explain that people dont change because they see the light, they change when they feel the heat.
Back to the response to the cops. They would be catching more flak if these kids went and shot a building up because they blew the call off saying “its their right to open carry” You do what you need to do in order to preserve peace.
There is a right way, wrong way, legal way, and a smart way to do things. These kids were looking for attention…plain and simple.
Bravo.
Healthy debate going on here. Wonder how many responses are trolls – At least no one has called anyone a Nazi
Perna, you haven’t read ALL the comments of “all you 2nd amendment suopporters.” Because if you had, you’d realize that NOT ALL of us 2nd amendment supporters think what the police officers did was OK.
TJ when you cops express the opinion that the innocent citizen could/should be, “shot in the head.” That’s out of bounds and way out of line. He sounds mentally unstable making comments like that. Just reverse the statement and think of what any police officers responce would be if a citizen told them they should/would be “shot in their heads.” I think you would be singing a different tune. If telling innocent citizens that they should/would be shot in the head isn’t a threat. Then there is no such thing as a threat.