OC vs. CC

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  • bonkers1919

    Sharpshooter
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    Apr 3, 2010
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    Columbus
    My wife and I carry concealed 24/7. The wife and a few gun friends know we CC. I live between Columbus and Nashville and now see more people open carrying. I have no problems with that. I don't understand why they outside carry though.

    I saw a man wearing a thigh rig the other day in a department store. Not judging or joking about his decision, just curious and asked why. He told me he doesn't like IWB as his weight prevents that. That made sense to me but I don't really understand or see the other reasons one would open carry.

    I have questions on why outside carry is becoming more common where I live and maybe where you live.

    1. Does OC make you a primary target if there is a bad situation?

    2. Does OC make a statement to bad people that I am armed, I may die but so will you. (a determent for a bad person to stop and think)

    3. I have seen many OC carriers without a retention strap across the holster. Does this present an opportunity for the weapon to be removed from the holster by an individual with bad intentions?

    OC' ers can you school me on why you OC and not CC?

    Not wanting to start @#$% only looking for valid reasons or personal opinions OC.
     
    Last edited:

    chipbennett

    Grandmaster
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    Oct 18, 2014
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    I'm in the "Just Carry" school of thought, and explain why in the linked thread. That said, I'll try to answer your questions:
    1. Does OC make you a primary target if there is a bad situation?

    Not for the common criminal preying on the common public, it doesn't - at least, not according to research into criminal psychology and anecdotal evidence. Either the criminal is tunnel-vision focused on his already chosen target and so doesn't see an armed bystander, or else the criminal cases his target zone and is deterred by the sight of an armed bystander.

    The calculus changes, though, for circumstances other than the common criminal preying on the common public. An armed guard (or Brinks truck driver) may be an intentional target. A clueless person with zero situational awareness presents himself as an easy mark, and an openly carried firearm may be as much of a "shiny object" as a Rolex.

    2. Does OC make a statement to bad people that I am armed, I may die but so will you. (a determent for a bad person to stop and think)

    Empirical (see, e.g. surveys of incarcerated felons) and anecdotal evidence suggest that armed bystanders are indeed a deterrent for the common criminal preying on the common public.

    3. I have seen many OC carriers without a retention strap across the holster. Does this present an opportunity for the weapon to be removed from the holster by an individual with bad intentions?

    My favorite OWB holster (Safariland GLS) has level-two retention that does not involve a strap.

    OC' ers can you school me on why you OC and not CC?

    Personally, I mostly carry concealed, OWB with a concealing garment. I can count on one hand the number of times I have carried openly in public. I ascribe to "just carry" philosophy, and encourage as many law-abiding people as possible to carry, however they choose to carry. At the same time, I believe in liberty, and support each person's freedom to choose their manner of carry, for whatever lawful reason they so choose.
     
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