Thanks to a gun toting gent in Lafayette

[schafe]

I don’t post often and i wasn’t going to post this but I think it is time to get this off my chest. I was at the Tippecanoe mall the end of last month when I was fortunate enough to witness a great spectacle. A guy carrying what looked like an S&W mp sc on his hip in plain sight. He was with his wife and carrying his little girl when I notice a security guard approach him. Now it was obvious what was going to happen, this mall is a Simon property and most folks know that you will be asked to leave if caught with a gun there. Well the security guard made contact with him in a pleasant way(surprise)but the guy began to shout at the guard and rant and rave, cursing up a storm. I looked around at all of those customers watching this idiot and I thought to myself that this gent is one of the reasons the main stream public views us negatively. You sir, if you read this, are a complete idiot. If you are open carrying, you are, whether you like it or not a representative of us all. If you cannot handle the rejection of a known anti-gun establishment with a little dignity then please carry concealed or not at all.

I'm glad you did decide to post this. I think we all need to know about incidents and situations which can affect our image as gun owners. My guess is that if you saw it that way, others around there saw it the same way....incomplete information notwithstanding.

 

[Titanium_Frost]

I'm glad you did decide to post this. I think we all need to know about incidents and situations which can affect our image as gun owners. My guess is that if you saw it that way, others around there saw it the same way....incomplete information notwithstanding.

So its our fault that ignorant people form stupid opinions when they don't have both sides of the conversation because we OC? Stupid people can think what they want of me, I am judged by myself and by God, that is all.

 

[Rsmith]

I respect everyones rights to open carry but I also respect private property owners rights to ask you to leave no matter what their reason is. Don't make us all look bad by being a jerk just spend your money somewhere else.

 

[bobzilla]

So its our fault that ignorant people form stupid opinions when they don't have both sides of the conversation because we OC? Stupid people can think what they want of me, I am judged by myself and by God, that is all.

No, it's our responsibility to react and act to "ignorant people" with composure, respect and politeness. "Kill 'em with kindness" if you will. Acting like an ass is a bad example in front of everyone, including setting a poor example with your child in hand.

Completely uncalled for.

 

[schafe]

So its our fault that ignorant people form stupid opinions when they don't have both sides of the conversation because we OC? Stupid people can think what they want of me, I am judged by myself and by God, that is all.

So who said "it's our fault"? My post poses the hypothesis that it may be encumbent on us as gun owners to understand how the world perceives us...right or wrong. If we don't understand the problem, it makes it darn hard to solve.

 

[Titanium_Frost]

No, it's our responsibility to react and act to "ignorant people" with composure, respect and politeness. "Kill 'em with kindness" if you will. Acting like an ass is a bad example in front of everyone, including setting a poor example with your child in hand.

Completely uncalled for.

So who said "it's our fault"? My post poses the hypothesis that it may be encumbent on us as gun owners to understand how the world perceives us...right or wrong. If we don't understand the problem, it makes it darn hard to solve.

Ok let me rephrase: is it our RESPONSIBILTY? I can think of several reason why I would yell at someone in public and in front of my kid. I am not a pacifist. I don't dislike confrontation. Some of you guys are reading way too much into a situation that you were not a part of.

Should a guy yell and curse for no reason at another man "just doing his job?" Of course not, whether he is armed or not. Do I pass judgment on someone when I don't have both sides of the story? No way. Do I give a crap about what ignorant people think of my actions? No. Like I said before, I am responsible for mine and no one else's actions.

 

[jeremy]

I have and I was wrong for doing it. I sure felt better after the fact though. Come see me in the shop, I'll show you how it's done.

You would not raise your voice at me.

 

[Titanium_Frost]

When you guys see a bad driver, do you take it out on every other driver as a group and demand that the laws change to correct their behavior? Or do you think... Hmm that guy is a jerk and move on? There are PLENTY of dumbasses with guns. Its a fact of life in a country that respects your right to arms. Let's just show them there are more safe and responsible ones than there of the other kind.

 

[jeremy]

Sigh....

Nancy-Boys....

Deep Sigh...

 

[bobzilla]

Ok let me rephrase: is it our RESPONSIBILTY? I can think of several reason why I would yell at someone in public and in front of my kid. I am not a pacifist. I don't dislike confrontation. Some of you guys are reading way too much into a situation that you were not a part of.

Should a guy yell and curse for no reason at another man "just doing his job?" Of course not, whether he is armed or not. Do I pass judgment on someone when I don't have both sides of the story? No way. Do I give a crap about what ignorant people think of my actions? No. Like I said before, I am responsible for mine and no one else's actions.

Yelling at people is asign of an inability to handle the situation. You should never need to raise your voice. You speak in a conversational tone, say what you want to say and it will carry more weight. Yelling and screaming like a douchebag will get you nothing but disrespect and makes people instantly tune you out.

Learning to handle confrontations without resorting to teenage posturing is a sign of an adult. You don't have to be a pacifist to get your point across in an adult manner. You just have to be an adult. Yelling and cussing at someone is NOT an adult manner.

 

[JBrockman]

bpatter6 you are right, for him to loose his cool and blow up on the security guard who was actually conducting himself in a professional manner was way out of line and is a part of the reason a lot of people look at those of us that do carry in a negative manner.

 

[Kase]

When you guys see a bad driver, do you take it out on every other driver as a group and demand that the laws change to correct their behavior? Or do you think... Hmm that guy is a jerk and move on? There are PLENTY of dumbasses with guns. Its a fact of life in a country that respects your right to arms. Let's just show them there are more safe and responsible ones than there of the other kind.

I think we found the guy OC'ing at the mall!

 

[Titanium_Frost]

Sigh....

Nancy-Boys....

Deep Sigh...

Lol now I know why I spend so little time up here in the General forum.

Yelling at people is asign of an inability to handle the situation. You should never need to raise your voice. You speak in a conversational tone, say what you want to say and it will carry more weight. Yelling and screaming like a douchebag will get you nothing but disrespect and makes people instantly tune you out.

Learning to handle confrontations without resorting to teenage posturing is a sign of an adult. You don't have to be a pacifist to get your point across in an adult manner. You just have to be an adult. Yelling and cussing at someone is NOT an adult manner.

"I'm sorry to inconvenience you sir, but I as an adult would request you refrain from making sexual and derogatory remarks towards my wife" doesn't really have the weight of emotion I would wish to convey in that particular situation.

 

[Titanium_Frost]

I think we found the guy OC'ing at the mall!

Doubt it. If it WAS me, I would have posted it in the Carry issues forum...

 

[Rookie]

I'd gladly raise my voice at you. Just gimme a reason!

Your dog is afraid of the dark.

 

[bobzilla]

Lol now I know why I spend so little time up here in the General forum.



"I'm sorry to inconvenience you sir, but I as an adult would request you refrain from making sexual and derogatory remarks towards my wife" doesn't really have the weight of emotion I would wish to convey in that particular situation.

Being able to control your emotions and conveying your thoughts is not something easy to do. But in a civilized society it's how we do it. When OC'ing on top of that, you are now projecting an image of other OC'ers whther you want to or not.

 

[schafe]

Like it or not, we are how we behave, and yes, we each are responsible for the image we project, and again, like it or not, others will judge us on limited information and project that on whatever group can be associated with us as an individual. Seems to be the way people work. (eg. a biker behaves like a thug so bikers are thugs.)
So I agree with you, TF, in this sense.... We can choose to take advantage of that phenomenon, and build a better atmosphere for our group as gunowners, (as I would rather), or just not give a damn... Our choice.

 

[Rampdog]

When you guys see a bad driver, do you take it out on every other driver as a group and demand that the laws change to correct their behavior? Or do you think... Hmm that guy is a jerk and move on? There are PLENTY of dumbasses with guns. Its a fact of life in a country that respects your right to arms. Let's just show them there are more safe and responsible ones than there of the other kind.

Wow. A bad analogy and irony all in the same post. Most people drive so it would be silly to say that the jerk represented all drivers. But most people don't carry a gun, especially open carry. Yelling and screaming at someone, whether warranted or not, is NOT going to show a mostly non-gun carrying populace that those who carry guns are responsible. No, we don't know both sides of the conversation. Problem is neither did the people who watched the OCer come unglued. All they saw was a guy with a gun screaming out loud for no apparent reason. And I can guarentee that they didn't walk away from the encounter with a favorable impression of gun carriers. Unfortunately many people who don't own a gun are afraid of those who do. I became aware of this after a recent encounter. I was at the store transferring to my wheelchair when the woman in the car behind me accidentally leaned on the horn. The noise startled me, almost making me lose my grip and fall. I recovered and made it into my chair not saying a word or even looking at the woman. The woman passed me on her way into the store and rather than apologise for shocking me said very seriously, "I stayed in my car for a minute because I didn't want to get shot." What I hadn't realized is that my shirt had slid up exposing my concealed handgun. Her reaction to me, because of my gun, was completely different than it would have been if I'd been unarmed. How much more would her negative opinion been had I turned to her screaming and yelling like a lunatic? I'll be honest I didn't know how to react to her so I simply smiled as pleasantly as possible and told her, "No worries." Was she rude? In my opinion she was. But what was to be gained by berating her in public? Not only would her opinion have worsened but those who saw the altercation would have most likely walked away with a negative opinion also. And while I may not care what her or those watching would have thought of me personally, it's the view they would have of all gun carriers that I felt I had to think of. Rightly or wrongly, fair or not, we are all ambassadors for all gun owners.

 

[Hotdoger]

Wow. A bad analogy and irony all in the same post. Most people drive so it would be silly to say that the jerk represented all drivers. But most people don't carry a gun, especially open carry. Yelling and screaming at someone, whether warranted or not, is NOT going to show a mostly non-gun carrying populace that those who carry guns are responsible. No, we don't know both sides of the conversation. Problem is neither did the people who watched the OCer come unglued. All they saw was a guy with a gun screaming out loud for no apparent reason. And I can guarentee that they didn't walk away from the encounter with a favorable impression of gun carriers. Unfortunately many people who don't own a gun are afraid of those who do. I became aware of this after a recent encounter. I was at the store transferring to my wheelchair when the woman in the car behind me accidentally leaned on the horn. The noise startled me, almost making me lose my grip and fall. I recovered and made it into my chair not saying a word or even looking at the woman. The woman passed me on her way into the store and rather than apologise for shocking me said very seriously, "I stayed in my car for a minute because I didn't want to get shot." What I hadn't realized is that my shirt had slid up exposing my concealed handgun. Her reaction to me, because of my gun, was completely different than it would have been if I'd been unarmed. How much more would her negative opinion been had I turned to her screaming and yelling like a lunatic? I'll be honest I didn't know how to react to her so I simply smiled as pleasantly as possible and told her, "No worries." Was she rude? In my opinion she was. But what was to be gained by berating her in public? Not only would her opinion have worsened but those who saw the altercation would have most likely walked away with a negative opinion also. And while I may not care what her or those watching would have thought of me personally, it's the view they would have of all gun carriers that I felt I had to think of. Rightly or wrongly, fair or not, we are all ambassadors for all gun owners.

You are making INGO posters and gun owners look bad by not using paragraphs....

 

[goinggreyfast]

You are making INGO posters and gun owners look bad by not using paragraphs....

Yeah, that'll preach...