I figured out why my knee jerked about the condemnation of the Open Carry Texas people.
Bill Ruger.
Bill was pro-gun, just ask him! He owned a company that made guns, how much more pro-gun can you be than that?
Except he didn't think that unwashed civilians had any need for a gun they could hide or for more than ten shots.shots than ten. (Better?)
His mores are why the AWB said ten rounds.
It was "pro-gun" folks like him that made getting concealed carry such a damned slog for so many years. Look at the map and notice how many years pass where nothing changes. Lost years because we kept own-goaling ourselves.
It was when we started speaking with one voice that progress begins to pick up speed and becomes an avalanche.
We're no longer speaking with one voice when it comes to open carry.
There are those who'd use the (proven) LGBT model of "we're here, we're queer"; those who prefer quieter and more subtle open carry demonstrations (like the FL Carry fishing events); those who are happy with the status quo and CCW and those who are actively opposed to open carry.
I checked. Many of the same voices condemning OCT are those same people who disliked open carry all along. To their credit, they're consistent; but this isn't really a reaction to a strategic marketing mistake by OCT but a confirmation of their biases.
Like Bill Ruger they don't see why anyone would need to do what they desire to do and oppose it as a bad idea for everyone.
They feel vindicated because OCT did make a strategic mistake in the way they demonstrated. I personally don't oppose what they are trying to achieve, but I see now that they may have been going about it the wrong way. Pay close attention to those condemning them and see if you don't notice they oppose the goal more than the method. In the long run, those people really aren't on our side; like Mr Ruger.
Bill Ruger.
Bill was pro-gun, just ask him! He owned a company that made guns, how much more pro-gun can you be than that?
Except he didn't think that unwashed civilians had any need for a gun they could hide or for more than ten shots.
His mores are why the AWB said ten rounds.
It was "pro-gun" folks like him that made getting concealed carry such a damned slog for so many years. Look at the map and notice how many years pass where nothing changes. Lost years because we kept own-goaling ourselves.
It was when we started speaking with one voice that progress begins to pick up speed and becomes an avalanche.
We're no longer speaking with one voice when it comes to open carry.
There are those who'd use the (proven) LGBT model of "we're here, we're queer"; those who prefer quieter and more subtle open carry demonstrations (like the FL Carry fishing events); those who are happy with the status quo and CCW and those who are actively opposed to open carry.
I checked. Many of the same voices condemning OCT are those same people who disliked open carry all along. To their credit, they're consistent; but this isn't really a reaction to a strategic marketing mistake by OCT but a confirmation of their biases.
Like Bill Ruger they don't see why anyone would need to do what they desire to do and oppose it as a bad idea for everyone.
They feel vindicated because OCT did make a strategic mistake in the way they demonstrated. I personally don't oppose what they are trying to achieve, but I see now that they may have been going about it the wrong way. Pay close attention to those condemning them and see if you don't notice they oppose the goal more than the method. In the long run, those people really aren't on our side; like Mr Ruger.
