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I was serious in my last 2009 post about amnsesty from any new federal gun laws.

I'd personally tilt at THAT windmill than open carry.
And this coming from someone that actually WANTS open carry.

I don't really care one whit or another about whether Texas allows open carry.

The Legislature will have to allow open carry or do away with the requirement for concealed carry permits. If you can't open carry because it's the law and you can't carry concealed because you don't have a permit, you can't carry at all, and that's one thing that got'em in Heller.

Me, I'll welcome Texas open carry so I will no longer have to concern myself with is my exposed handgun something normally used in fishing on the Sabine River.

The Sabine River:

As long as they continue to have some sort of training/education/certification/test in order to carry legally, and then grandfather current CHLers, I guess that I would be OK with OC....I probably wouldn't do it very often, but then again, I haven't carried in the warm months yet...I would also like the convenience of not having to hold my shirt down to my side in windy weather...makes me look like I'm hiding something My guess is that all of the cop-wanna-be types would make up 97.4% of the open carry populous anyways....

nils wrote:As long as they continue to have some sort of training/education/certification/test in order to carry legally, and then grandfather current CHLers, I guess that I would be OK with OC....I probably wouldn't do it very often, but then again, I haven't carried in the warm months yet...I would also like the convenience of not having to hold my shirt down to my side in windy weather...makes me look like I'm hiding something My guess is that all of the cop-wanna-be types would make up 97.4% of the open carry populous anyways....

Should we have a test for voting then?

Bunkins wrote:The whole idea of open carry doesnt settle to well with me.. Mostly because of causing panic in the general public, I think I'd be uneasy about it as well if I'm in a room with people who are open carrying handguns. I'd be on alert the whole time, which isnt a bad thing per say, but alertness can turn into panic easily. I've dated women in the past that were so scared of gun's they flipped out as soon as they saw one. Took a lot of time for them to get over that, even then they were still uneasy about them, even after I got them used to firing and handling them..

I wouldn't be against it, but I doubt I'd fight for it..

How did they react when they see handguns strapped to an LEO. I also know people that have unreasonable fears of dogs, Clowns, and stuffed animals. I would like to see the folks with unreasonable fears locked up so they could be held nice and safe.

nils wrote:As long as they continue to have some sort of training/education/certification/test in order to carry legally, and then grandfather current CHLers, I guess that I would be OK with OC....

Sir, it looks like your internet registration is out of date. May I see your political commentary license, please?

KBCraig wrote:

nils wrote:As long as they continue to have some sort of training/education/certification/test in order to carry legally, and then grandfather current CHLers, I guess that I would be OK with OC....

Sir, it looks like your internet registration is out of date. May I see your political commentary license, please?

Exactly. Licensing Open-Carry would be a disaster. Every time somebody openly carried a handgun,they would be stopped,disarmed,and "checked' for license.
No thanks-I'll take mine without a licensing requirement or not at all.
JL

Charles L. Cotton wrote: That's not nit-picking, it's accurate reporting, unlike the article. It really burns me up when open-carry supporters from other states make statements that inadvertent exposure of your handgun in Texas is illegal. At least learn our laws rather than pointing out a non-existent problem. There is a very good reason why the statute only reads "intentionally" fails to conceal, rather than the traditional "intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly."

Chas.

Charles, I know you realize it's not just the wording of the statute but also the interpretation by law enforcement and the courts. Can you offer CHL members here an explanation of how "intentional exposure" is being enforced by all police officers, district attorneys, and judges across the state?

If unintentional showing of a weapon is such a problem, how about just decriminalize it?

Make it a class C misdemeanor or infraction, with a fine?

Charles L. Cotton wrote: I've made my feelings about open-carry known, but I will not oppose their efforts either openly or behind the scenes. However, if they try to amend one of our bills and tack on their stuff, I promise you it will fail! Our bills are very carefully drafted and I'm not going to let anyone screw one up and harm our chances of getting something passed. I hope this is just interview talk and not part of their battle plan. If it really is, they will be making a very big mistake and making an enemy they don't want or need. I'll stay neutral as long as they don't mess with our legislation.

Chas.

As it stands now Charles, some of the most populace counties in the state are instituting what amounts to a complete ban on the possession of handguns in public for a countless number of citizens in good standing. They've interpreted the CHL laws as allowing indefinite delays in processing background checks, and that's what they are doing. They are delaying indefinitely. The open carry law would eliminate this ban. If you oppose the open carry law, will you be proposing legislation that will ensure that Texas "shall issue" CHL's without exception in a timely fashion?

nitrogen wrote:If unintentional showing of a weapon is such a problem, how about just decriminalize it?

Make it a class C misdemeanor or infraction, with a fine?

If it's decriminalized, it's not a misdemeanor. It's not an offense at all.

Skiprr wrote: Who knows how the political landscape in Texas will look in two more years? We need to accomplish this session those issues that are most pressing to Texas. We don't need the important, focused, legislative agenda interrupted, confused, or diluted by Pierce and Stollenwerk deciding to "mess with Texas" from their Virginia homes in order to foster their own agenda and belief sets.

Skipr, can you fill me in on any other legislation that will be proposed in the next session that will eliminate onerous and unnecessary administrative burdens, excessive cost, and most importantly, excessive and indefinite delays in issuing CHL's?

nitrogen wrote:If unintentional showing of a weapon is such a problem, how about just decriminalize it?

Make it a class C misdemeanor or infraction, with a fine?

Is it a problem? I'm not out and about as much as some people, but I can tell you that I've never seen anyone's gun(but I don't look for them either). Maybe if Austin gets their you know what together and I get my CHL I might be a little more tuned in to that, don't know yet.

-Cain

CainA wrote:

nitrogen wrote:If unintentional showing of a weapon is such a problem, how about just decriminalize it?

Make it a class C misdemeanor or infraction, with a fine?

Is it a problem? I'm not out and about as much as some people, but I can tell you that I've never seen anyone's gun(but I don't look for them either). Maybe if Austin gets their you know what together and I get my CHL I might be a little more tuned in to that, don't know yet.

-Cain

I guess I used the wrong termonology. Basically make it "not a big deal"

I've had my cover garment fly up in high winds, and nobody's said nothing. Maybe it's luck.

HGWC wrote:

Charles L. Cotton wrote: I've made my feelings about open-carry known, but I will not oppose their efforts either openly or behind the scenes. However, if they try to amend one of our bills and tack on their stuff, I promise you it will fail! Our bills are very carefully drafted and I'm not going to let anyone screw one up and harm our chances of getting something passed. I hope this is just interview talk and not part of their battle plan. If it really is, they will be making a very big mistake and making an enemy they don't want or need. I'll stay neutral as long as they don't mess with our legislation.

Chas.

As it stands now Charles, some of the most populace counties in the state are instituting what amounts to a complete ban on the possession of handguns in public for a countless number of citizens in good standing.

I'm sorry, but I have no idea what you are talking about. I live in Galveston County and my law office is in Harris County. Could you tell me how and where this is being done?

HGWC wrote:They've interpreted the CHL laws as allowing indefinite delays in processing background checks, and that's what they are doing. They are delaying indefinitely. The open carry law would eliminate this ban.

There are delays to be sure and this has been discussed in detail in several different threads. However, DPS hasn't interpreted the current CHL laws as allowing indefinite delays. In fact, DPS has admitted in meetings with Chairman Driver and a representative of Governor Perry that they are "out of statute" (meaning they are late) by as much as 100 days, due to a shortage of personnel. DPS has acknowledged they are not complying with the law, they are not interpreting current law as allowing indefinite delays.

HGWC wrote:If you oppose the open carry law, will you be proposing legislation that will ensure that Texas "shall issue" CHL's without exception in a timely fashion?

I do oppose open-carry for the reasons I've stated, but I don't trade my positions on issues. I have already drafted two bills to streamline the processing of CHL applications and that should help everyone including DPS, CHL instructors and CHL applicants. If it passes, it should help DPS issue licenses much faster. I drafted those bills because changes are needed, not because I oppose open-carry. As I have said, my opposition is my personal belief, not an official position of NRA or TSRA and we do not intend to oppose an open-carry bill. However, if any attempt is made to amend an open-carry provision to one of our bills, you can bet we will kill it. We will not risk losing campus-carry, employee parking lots, or other important bills, because someone decided to tack on open-carry.

Chas.