I think I’m slowly starting to change my opinion on open carry. Previously I tended to view it as damaging to our cause, because it tended to just scare people, without really educating them. But I am impressed with what’s been done in Virginia. Open Carry has always been lawful in Virginia, but there were always places you risks getting hassled by the police. Now it’s not uncommon, it’s accepted, and the police know the law and won’t generally bother you.
I’m also very impressed by how much the issue has motivated activism, particularly from the kind of person who otherwise might choose just to sit around and be angry. I’m also reminded of Countertop’s example of open carry in Virginia, where he opined that part of it’s utility was showing the folks traveling through Virginia that “the rest of the country isn’t like New Jersey and New York.”
I will still choose to carry concealed, but I’m being converted on the utility of open carry in regards to pro-gun activism. What do you folks think?