Please sign the Texas Open Carry Petition

[HerbM]

Signature added, also got my dad, mom, wife, brother, sister in law, and 4 co-workers to sign :D

Excellent -- if everyone would just find 2 (or more) people to educate on the subject that would be a big deal, even better if you can get those 2 to educate 2 more etc.

[agbullet2k1]

Wow, it's over 5000 now. Just added mine. I agree with the sentiments that while I personally wouldn't be interested in open carry, I am interested in being given the choice.

[Right2Carry]

Added my signature as well. Over 5800 when I signed. It should be my choice to OC not someone else's.

[davencentexas]

Just signed it!

[DoubleJ]

2. The Constitution of the United States guarantees the right of individuals to keep and bear arms.

I like how the second reason for OC, is the Second Amendment. HAR!

it's up to 6,767 sigs, i believe.

[Pinkycatcher]

Kind of a big jump from the 3000 that started when you posted, to the news reports now up to nearly 7000

[Charles L. Cotton]

There was a short spot on KHOU Ch. 11 News last night about the petition. They said "the Texas concealed handgun law may be repealed next session. There is a petition to allow people to carry handguns openly and it has over 5,000 signatures."

Obviously, Ch. 11 got it wrong, but it sure reminds me of 1993 & 1995 when opponents of the CHL bills were arguing for allowing only open-carry. Be very careful what you wish for folks. If the media really takes off with this spin, i.e. open-carry only, then this issue could take on a life of its own. I can promise you that the Brady Campaign/Million Mom March will support it, as they will view it as a first step toward turning the clock back to 1994. Combine their support with support by a significant percentage of gun owners and it could become an easy vote for some elected officials.

Chas.

[HerbM]

Kind of a big jump from the 3000 that started when you posted, to the news reports now up to nearly 7000

Maybe it will help -- we can all (who care a lot) write and call our congress people too.

The publicity it is generating is worth this simple effort.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to sign and continues to find others to do so.

[MBGuy]

There was a short spot on KHOU Ch. 11 News last night about the petition. They said "the Texas concealed handgun law may be repealed next session. There is a petition to allow people to carry handguns openly and it has over 5,000 signatures."

Obviously, Ch. 11 got it wrong, but it sure reminds me of 1993 & 1995 when opponents of the CHL bills were arguing for allowing only open-carry. Be very careful what you wish for folks. If the media really takes off with this spin, i.e. open-carry only, then this issue could take on a life of its own. I can promise you that the Brady Campaign/Million Mom March will support it, as they will view it as a first step toward turning the clock back to 1994. Combine their support with support by a significant percentage of gun owners and it could become an easy vote for some elected officials.

Chas.

Charles,

By open-carry only, are you saying that some view it as either you open-carry, or you don't carry at all? Why can't the license be amended that you can do either, with the license? Obviously the name change is required, somewhat like Tennesse, but I can't understand the logic that the anti's are using (there's a first....not!) that by allowing open carry, the whole CHL operation ceases to exist. Trying to see it from their point of view, it seems to me that'd be wishful thinking. Louisiana among others have a license requirement to conceal, no license at all to open-carry, probably knowing not many people would have the guts to open carry, which is true since I've yet to see one during my visits.

I think one difference between now and then is that it's a whole lot harder to get rid of this huge mechanism right now than it was to prevent it from being born back then. But, that's just my opinion, and you're obviously in the loop a lot more then we are. I just find it incredible that this is what they're thinking knowing how other states treat the difference.

[Charles L. Cotton]

Charles,

By open-carry only, are you saying that some view it as either you open-carry, or you don't carry at all? Why can't the license be amended that you can do either, with the license? Obviously the name change is required, somewhat like Tennesse, but I can't understand the logic that the anti's are using (there's a first....not!) that by allowing open carry, the whole CHL operation ceases to exist. Trying to see it from their point of view, it seems to me that'd be wishful thinking. Louisiana among others have a license requirement to conceal, no license at all to open-carry, probably knowing not many people would have the guts to open carry, which is true since I've yet to see one during my visits.

I think one difference between now and then is that it's a whole lot harder to get rid of this huge mechanism right now than it was to prevent it from being born back then. But, that's just my opinion, and you're obviously in the loop a lot more then we are. I just find it incredible that this is what they're thinking knowing how other states treat the difference.

Yes, the 1993 and 1995 proponents of open-carry wanted the law to be open-carry only. Ch. 11 may simply have made a mistake about concealed carry being "repealed," but it could also have been a calculated misstatement. Below is a copy of a portion of a post I made in 2006 dealing with my concern about the political and business response to open-carry.

Chas.

. . . Yes, many states allow open carry, but I am not aware of any that only recently changed their law to allow it. I may be mistaken, but if so I suspect such states are very few in number. I also suspect that no other state has gone from a 125+ year ban on open carry to allowing it. That is why I feel that other states' experience is not necessarily a good indicator of what we can expect in Texas.

I also have serious doubts as to how many states that technically don’t prohibit open carry actually see a great deal of open carry occurring. Texas doesn’t prohibit the carrying of long guns, so in theory I could walk into my downtown Houston office every day with an AR-15 slung over my shoulder. Buy in my 25+ years of having an office in downtown Houston I have never seen anyone carrying a long gun; not once! For that matter, I can’t recall the last time I’ve seen anyone openly carrying a rifle or shotgun anywhere in Houston. Rural areas are different, but our major cities have huge voting blocks and that’s a fact we simply can’t ignore.

Those who argue that there was no "blood-in-the-streets" after CHL passed are absolutely correct. That was a ludicrous argument that has proven to be false. But that has nothing to do with a store owner or manager watching his/her sales revenue going down because the soccer moms won't shop there because he won't post a 30.06 sign and stop "those people" from carrying guns. Also, the tremendous success of the CHL statute, and even the passage of SB501, hasn't stopped governmental entities and agencies from posting unenforceable 30.06 signs. It hasn't stopped some Texas cities from posting a 30.06 sign and declaring entire buildings (ex. city hall) off-limits to CHL's simply because the municipal court clerk has a small office somewhere in the building. The open carrying of handguns captured on videotape by anti-gun activists, especially those in the news media, will once again thrust the carrying of handguns by citizens into the public eye. Can you imagine the bad press we'd see if Houston's rabid anti-gun Ch. 2 TV followed people into stores, malls, school parking lots and daycare centers?

Our carrying of handguns is not being seriously attacked now because people don't give it a second thought. They don't give it a second thought because 1) the predicted genocide did not occur and our opponents lost face; and 2) people don't see our guns.

I realize I'm in the minority with this opinion and I respect those who disagree with me on this issue. This is one time when I'd like very much to be wrong and I may be just that. Those who believe open carry will not have any ill effects on our ability to carry handguns could also be wrong. Perhaps we should all consider this; where does the greater risk lie? Be careful what you ask for, . . .

I also want to say this. If the decision is made to push for open carry, I will put aside my concerns and fight for its passage just a diligently as I work for passage of the CHL bill. I just hope people will stake a step back and fully consider the risks this path may present. Do we really want open carry at any cost?

Chas.

[DoubleJ]

Sr Cotton, a question. Sure, you can, state-law-wise, OC with a long arm, but can a local municpality (in your case, Houston), further restrict it? I thinking similar to how SanAntonio has attempted to bar ALL knives within city limits.

[agbullet2k1]

Charles,

Would you support open carry if some effort were also made to make the 30.06 provision apply to OC only, or to make it more restrictive on the business? I can see where most business owners would be a bit worried about some of their business being scared off, but they'd also risk alienating a large portion of C/OHLers by posting. It seems like allowing OC with a similar 30.06 provision, along with removing 30.06 for concealed, would be a good interim comprimise and allow business owners to satisfy a larger group of people.

....of course I may just be dreaming.

[Charles L. Cotton]

Sr Cotton, a question. Sure, you can, state-law-wise, OC with a long arm, but can a local municpality (in your case, Houston), further restrict it? I thinking similar to how SanAntonio has attempted to bar ALL knives within city limits.

No, with one exception. A municipality can prohibit a non-CHL from carrying a firearm at a political rally. This change in the Texas preemption statute was enacted in response to Quanell X's ill-advised parade at the Republican Convention in Houston several years back.

Chas.

[Charles L. Cotton]

Charles,

Would you support open carry if some effort were also made to make the 30.06 provision apply to OC only, or to make it more restrictive on the business? I can see where most business owners would be a bit worried about some of their business being scared off, but they'd also risk alienating a large portion of C/OHLers by posting. It seems like allowing OC with a similar 30.06 provision, along with removing 30.06 for concealed, would be a good interim comprimise and allow business owners to satisfy a larger group of people.

....of course I may just be dreaming.

I would support open carry, but only under impossible circumstances. The suggestion you make would be one of them; i.e. changing our trespass law such that businesses could prohibit people from open-carrying, but not prevent them from carrying concealed. That simply will never happen; not ever. The private property argument is still the hot button issue with our employer parking lot bills, so you can imagine how the legislature would react to an attempt to take away a business owner's right to use TPC §30.06 to exclude armed CHLs.

I probably wouldn't open carry much, if any. However, I agree that it sure would be convenient during some of Texas' hot summer days to just put on a belt holster and go about my business. (After all, Texas has two seasons -- February and Summer.) I won't get into the tactical discussion as I think it's purely a personal decision. I carry either a Colt Commander or my Thunder Ranch Special in .45 ACP, along with one or two extra mags. Some people carry a 2" 38 Special, or a Keltec in .32ACP with no extra ammo. We could have one whale of a tactical discussion over those differences! But at the end of the day, it's a personal decision based upon our own risk analysis.

As I've said before, I oppose open carry for one reason only; the strong probability that we will see a huge increase in businesses posting 30.06 signs. Also, you could count on some people flaunting their ability to open carry by going onto school property and other governmental property and that could well lead to the legislature increasing the number of statutorily off-limits locations. This isn't just a theoretical concern, it's a very real probability that I believe many people underestimate.

All this said, if we at TSRA or NRA made the decision to push for open-carry, then I will put aside my personal concerns and work hard for its passage. Then I will pray I've been wrong on t his issue.

Chas.

[anygunanywhere]

If you have been around here at all then you know my opinion of OC.

I think the recent publicity is a good thing.

The more people are exposed to second amendment issues then the more the opportunity to teach.

The more the upcoming legislature has to deal with returning our rights the better the odds of us getting our way.

Anyginanywhere