Packing Heat...who does it?

[grahamfitter]

At the risk of bringing a beer to a gunfight, the worst thing I can imagine stumbling across in the boonies is a well armed meth lab and the last thing I would want to do is point anything in the direction of somebody who is motivated to shoot first.

Carrying guns for hunting would be a different thing. I don't do it myself but I do like venison and I know where it comes from. :elkgrin:

Cheers,
Graham

 

[Christophe Noel]

Oh, yeah I should have noticed the location.......

Oh, and Flounder, do you carry a fire extinguisher?

Again, I'm not judging anyone. I understand why people enjoy owning guns and like all gadgets, if you own it you often feel inclined to bring it along on outings. I get it, but for me I've never ever found it necessary. I'm actually a little weirded out by some people with guns. Like any tool, it's only as good as the user, and I'm not so sure all gun owners need to be gun owners. At best some might shoot THEMSELVES in the foot. At worst???

 

[Schattenjager]

...
I find it more risky that people put up pictures of their $40k+ modded rigs with their license plates showing. Especially since those can actually be tracked down, and parts removed/sold with much less risk of being caught than whatever you would do to someone who carries a gun.

I know what you are saying, but I really don't get the worry of this. We drive our rigs to theaters, malls, on the highway for hours - everyone LOCALLY can see our rigs and plates. How is the net different?

 

[7wt]

I find it more risky that people put up pictures of their $40k+ modded rigs with their license plates showing. Especially since those can actually be tracked down.

I have always wondered about this. I don't see the difference between posting a pic of your truck with the plate showing and some guy taking a picture or writing down your license plate as you are rolling down the highway. As far as the gun thing goes, who cares? It's your business, so keep it that way.

 

[Bill Beers]

Good smarts and savvy traveling trumps fire power any day.

Well, I'll give you that it trumps fire power most days, hell even almost every day, but any day? Sometimes good smarts and savvy compel the use of firepower.

That being said, do I carry? Only when I hear of a horde of soda cans that need plinking!

-Bill

 

[teotwaki]

I know what you are saying, but I really don't get the worry of this. We drive our rigs to theaters, malls, on the highway for hours - everyone LOCALLY can see our rigs and plates. How is the net different?

You only need to experience a net stalker just once. :Wow1: I went through it once and was really caught unawares.

They figure out where you work, complain to higher ups about some perceived misuse of company (computer) assets. Spin tales of woe about how you are harassing poor ol' innocent them etc. etc. etc.. Basically you are judged guilty by your management without a chance to prove your innocence.

It is hard to control photos on the forum so your plate will eventually show up. You can minimize how much other information you share that might make it easier for some loony to start sending you threatening emails or looking up your home address.

 

[Schattenjager]

Again, I'm not judging anyone. I understand why people enjoy owning guns and like all gadgets, if you own it you often feel inclined to bring it along on outings. I get it, but for me I've never ever found it necessary. I'm actually a little weirded out by some people with guns. Like any tool, it's only as good as the user, and I'm not so sure all gun owners need to be gun owners. At best some might shoot THEMSELVES in the foot. At worst???

In the same line of thought, I am weirded out by some drivers. At worst they ding their cars - at worst??? All things are relative - except there are many times as many cars licensed as there are guns owned. Wonder how those statistics might be played out?

Like 7wt so aptly put it. Who cares? These things are a personal choice. I personally would never dream of owning a firearm for fear of shooting someone in the foot.
:sombrero:

 

[Schattenjager]

You only need to experience a net stalker just once. :Wow1: I went through it once and was really caught unawares.

They figure out where you work, complain to higher ups about some perceived misuse of company (computer) assets. Spin tales of woe about how you are harassing poor ol' innocent them etc. etc. etc.. Basically you are judged guilty by your management without a chance to prove your innocence.

It is hard to control photos on the forum so your plate will eventually show up. You can minimize how much other information you share that might make it easier for some loony to start sending you threatening emails or looking up your home address.

So how is this different from driving around? Seriously, I do not want to expose myself unnecessarily, nor do I want to take useless precautions.

 

[GTKrockeTT]

Seriously, if you open carry in Cali and a LEO sees you, he will draw his weapon, instruct you in no uncertain terms to get on your face, then he will disarm you, cuff you, take you into custody, run your infomation, possibly process you at a local jail, then inform you that you shouldn't be doing that, EVEN THOUGH IT'S LEGAL, and most likely be charged with "Brandishing", "Disturbing the Peace", or possibly "Assault".

this is incorrect, and could land the LEO into a heap of trouble.

internal training alert memo of Oceanside PD:
http://www.hoffmang.com/firearms/carry/Oceanside-OpenCarry_training_memo-2009-03-12.pdf

article regarding a singular OC incident (one of many now):
http://www.sbsun.com/ci_11913496?source=rss

perspective from the 2 individuals who were OCing:
http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=161066

 

[TeriAnn]

Why I don't carry

First Let me say I was raised in a hunting household with a closet full of rifles and was taught gun safety from the time I was old enough to reach the closet door knob. I learned to shoot by jr high school and own a couple of fire arms.

But I don't carry a firearm in my vehicle unless it is for the specific purpose of firing it when I arrive at a destination.

I have several reasons for this, two of which stand out.

1. Having a firearm in the vehicle strongly complicates border crossings. You get looked at a lot more closely. You will likely get turned back. You might have the firearm confiscated and be turned back. You might get detained. If you try to conceal it and it is found you can find yourself in a world of hurt. It can be a real dumb thing to do.

I tend to like to wonder across boarders so carrying a firearm is not a good idea for me.

2. After a couple decades of travel without a firearm, I tried it once. I brought along a pistol and the trip became entirely different. Usually I focus on scenery and meeting new people and learning about cultures. This time I viewed everything in terms of threat assessment. Every place, every stranger became a potential lethal threat that had to be carefully assessed and not as a potential lovely area or new friend. I was always hyper aware of the gun's presence and where it was located.

At some level, people tend to evaluate strangers in terms of threat assessment. For me, having a firearm along elevates awareness of that assessment considerably, adding a life and death quick escalation component that otherwise wasn't there.

Showing a firearm quickly elevates the stakes of any interpersonal contact. I find that without one along I have decent judgment and tend not to get myself into confrontational situations. I'm more apt to defuse a potential problem or just avoid it.

I enjoy my trips a lot more when I don't bring a firearm along. So I don't.


Dogs who don't go out much see the same house and yard all the time, the same people all the time and have the same daily routine. They are comfortable in their daily routine. Take them into a different location and expose them to new people and they look at everything that is new and different as a probable threat. A dog that goes out for walks in different locations, meets different people and animals on a frequent basis tends be comfortable and unthreatened by changes that make the stay at home dog feel threatened.

I wonder if people are like dogs in that way. Those who live comfortably in a weekly set routine might feel more threatened when out somewhere that is very different from normal. And maybe those people who feel uncomfortable in the daily routine and need to see different places & meet new people tend to feel less threatened???

 

[7wt]

I do not want to expose myself unnecessarily

Anyone else get this picture in their heads???

 

[BKCowGod]

TeriAnn - you hit the nail on the head for why I never carry a weapon unless some cans need killing.

If I am in a desolate wilderness and I see someone who is armed, my response will be the same as if I see a dog with hackles up and tail down - I will assume it is unfriendly and give them a wide berth, thereby defeating the purpose of going out and meeting interesting people.

That said, I have found that I can present a very intimidating "that guy is unbalanced, best stay away" persona if the need arises...

 

[teotwaki]

ON TOPIC:

To me, offroading includes the consideration of all risks due to terrain, distance or other dangers. Bringing along a firearm is just covering a possible problem in much the same way I would carry some spare parts for possible drivetrain problems. I rank a tire plug kit as much more important and likely to be used so ultimately you only have so much room to "carry". There are some areas of the California deserts that the importance of a firearm moves up a few notches.

As has been pointed out earlier, common sense should be your first weapon of choice. Crossing national borders or into various parks raises important issues to be considered. However, actually bringing along a firearm doesn't make me more suspicious of people or less cautious. A hunk of metal won't have any psychic powers over me be it a firearm or a Hi Lift.

OFF TOPIC:

So how is this different from driving around? Seriously, I do not want to expose myself unnecessarily, nor do I want to take useless precautions.

California has some really crazy drivers but I've yet to have some unhappy driver do more than flip me off or shake a fist. (On a positive note I have had some really nice folks walk up and ask all sorts of questions about the mods to my 4Runner.)

The net makes it easier to stalk someone from the comfort of an office or home while accomplishing other tasks (or at least pretend to work). Cyber stalking can be accomplished at any hour of the day or night, whenever time allows. To actually follow a car, spy on someone's house or follow them to school can take a lot of time and effort.

I recently showed a friend in the Navy how I could piece together their career from a California postgrad school to a Pacific command to a name change in marriage, all without much effort, expertise or any expense. That was maybe 20 minutes of casual effort.

Anyhow, this thread is really about packing heat and I don't want to hijack it much further.

 

[Antichrist]

I checked with the BLM and they said as long as the gun is unloaded

I guess you could always throw it at an assailant, or use it as a club.

and not concealed you can carry it with you.

Very useful. It helps let the loonies in the boonies know they should go ahead and drop you before you know they are there.

 

[buddha]

I carry a fully loaded weimeraner at all times out in the boonies

street legal, multi tasking weapon

double as a foot warmer when put in sleep mode

+1

Except I carry 2. Remember, two is one and one is none. :victory: