CONCEALED CARRY VS OPEN CARRY

March 28, 2016

Open-Carry

If you are a concealed carrier, it is important that you know how concealed carrying and open carrying differ from each other.

Carrying a firearm for self-defense purposes is now becoming more popular among people who already have their guns and those who had previously been victimized by criminals. In today’s world, safety cannot be guaranteed in all places anymore. If you watch the news from the television or read the different news websites, you’ll find different stories of shootings and other violent crimes that are happening everywhere. 

It is therefore a right for everyone to equip and defend themselves and other innocent people in their environment when a threat occurs. Unfortunately, many misinformed and uninformed people are not aware of the advantages of carrying a weapon for self-defense purposes. But regardless of what these anti-gun individuals say about concealed or open carriers, the laws legally allow law-abiding individuals to carry their firearms and defend themselves. However, these carriers must know how open carrying and concealed carrying differ from each other so that they would pick the best carrying method suitable for them.

Every American has the constitutional right to carry his firearm openly in his possession while in public. This is actually one of the most common reasons why gun owners are carrying their guns openly. Some states prohibit open carrying of firearms and there are others that require a special permit to be able to carry openly. Whether you can carry openly or not depends on your current location. However, there is another problem that carriers are facing.

There are lots of businesses that prohibit carrying of guns on their properties. Another is that open carrying makes the people around uncomfortable about you.

Comfort is another factor that you will need to deal with when you are deciding whether you carry concealed or openly. The weather can also affect your choice. During  warm weather, it would be difficult for you to carry concealed because of the additional cover garments that you will need to wear. 

But then, concealed carrying has a lot of benefits compared to open carrying. In all 50 states, individuals are required to have a permit to be able to carry concealed. And to have a carry permit, you will be required to attend a training course for you to learn how use your firearm safely. If you undergo  training before using a handgun, it means that it will be safer for you and the people around you.

When you are carrying concealed in public, you would not catch the attention of the people unlike in open carrying. With open carrying, you’ll put yourself in a greater chance of having an encounter with the law enforcement. Even though your state legally allows you to carry, there will still be surprised citizens that may report you to the police once they see that you are carrying a handgun. This kind of hassle is what every carrier would like to avoid. When a police are called by a citizen, they will be obliged to respond, and when they find out you actually are not breaking the law, it would cause disturbance for both you and the police officer.

 

The bottom line here is that, when you compare concealed carrying with open carrying, concealed carrying is way better. Open carrying doesn’t have many advantages to offer. Of course, many states do not require licenses for you to carry openly and it is more comfortable for most carriers, but there is something that most open carriers want to prove that is really not needed to be proved.

Well, it is still your constitutional right to carry openly, but you must first ask yourself if it is really necessary for you to open carry. When you own a firearm, your main goal should always be to avoid any kind of conflict. This goal can easily be achieved if you carry concealed.