Oklahoma Open Carry Law

I was reading the Cherokee Oklahoma Messenger & Republican and in the Opinions section they had reprinted a article from the the Muskogee Phoenix entitled “Gun-toters!  Will our Okies be packin’?”.  Being a Oklahoman most all my life I would not really of expected this type of Anti-Gun propaganda but I guess with the liberal press being what it is these types of lies shouldn’t surprise me.   I would reprint it here but I’m guessing that their lawyers would be knocking on my door shortly with a take down letter because I violated their copyright rights so you will have to follow the link to the Muskogee Phoenix to read the entire article for your self.  I will however take some time to comment on some of their points they tried to make.
 

•  “Imagine tourists walking in downtown Tulsa or Oklahoma City seeing someone with a holstered weapon.”
  • First of all the key point of this statement is “holstered weapon”.  To start with a holstered weapon is a whole lot less “scarier” than a drawn weapon so I think that most people won’t even notice it and if they do a little education can go a long way.  Cope Reynolds of The Shooting Bench and Southwest Shooting Authority has commented several times that people of known and seen him regularly for years and never noticed that he was carrying openly.
• “Can you tell just by looking wether this person has passed a background check and completed a firearms training course?”
  • At first thought, of course not, but maybe you can with a little knowledge.  A well trained firearm owner who has passed his/her background check should carry their firearm in a safe and professional manor.  If they don’t, then we enter into another realm called “Probable Cause” which we will discuss next.
• “Can police?”
  • The point above applies here and so as long as they are carrying their firearm in a safe and professional manor they would have no reason or “Probable Cause” to stop and question us.  If our firearm is about to fall out or we are handling it in a unsafe manor then they would have a indication that a few questions might be warranted.
• “Law enforcement officers will have to stop to check the permits of everyone they see carrying a weapon.”
  • See above.
• “If you see one in every 38 people carrying a weapon, would you feel safer or think you need a weapon, too?”
  • Long story short, YES!  I would think that a higher percentage of the people carrying a gun will be responsible than the the same group driving a car.  Anyone who has driven on the highway’s of this country should know this.
• “What happens if an unarmed mugger comes across someone they feel they can overwhelm physically? 
Will they wrestle the weapon away from the citizen?”
  • Maybe, a gun is not the cure-all answer to all violent crime but it sure does help level the playing field.
  • There have been documented cases where a person carrying a gun openly has prevented a crime.  http://www.shootthebull.tv/journal/2010/3/12/open-carry-works.html
  • I guess in this case it sucks to be a “unarmed” citizen doesn’t it.  There is a fix to this.
• “The concealed weapon has more deterrent value. At least the criminal has no idea you are carrying a weapon.”
  • Can’t argue to much about this, when the criminal doesn’t know who is or isn’t carrying a firearm they may pick there victim a bit more carefully and they have a reasonable chance of being correct either way.  On the other hand, if they are openly carrying a firearm they know for sure and that person doesn’t look so attractive anymore.
• “The idea is wrong and full of possibilities that could end in a life-threatening situation.”
  • Obviously I disagree but like I said having a gun is not a sure thing to fixing all our violent crime problems, it’s only a tool.
  • Just having a gun is only the start, kinda like owning a car.  You still have to learn to use it and have the mindset to use it.  Doesn’t hurt to practice and once you have some training don’t stop there train and practice continuously.
• “We encourage Gov. Henry to veto the bill and the Legislature to come to its senses and not attempt an override.”
  • Obviously the Liberal Democrat that he is, he vetoed the bill.  Fortunately, he’s not going to be governor much longer.

Comments

[Greg Graham]

So many people want to live in a fairy tale where violent crimes are not on the rise; however, statistics show this to be false, and the faster the American people realize that violent crimes can and do happen to people we know and love and come to understand that we not only have a right to protect ourselves but an obligation to protect our friends and family. This article a man defends his home in Tulsa Oklahoma with a firearm he took from his attacker I bet he wished he had his own gun. http://www.ktul.com/Global/story.asp?S=13259597 this happened on the third of October.