Open Carrier Acts A Fool; Police Chief & Mayor Drop Wisdom

On Friday, August 16, 2019, a 22 year old open carried a handgun into a Petal, Mississippi Wal-Mart to buy more ammunition. Ok, not my choice, but not a problem per se. What put this in the news was his “aggressive stance” which put employees on edge, only compounded by a "smirk" when his pistol was spotted. Recent shootings at Wal-Mart are of course in the backdrop of all of this. Later the open carrier was picked up for a mental health evaluation when stopped driving around with a pistol and 500 rounds for his AR. Read the whole article here.

What is noteworthy is that the mayor and police chief did not impugn all gun owners as troublemakers or call for restricting gun rights (I’m looking at you Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney). No, sensibly and wisely, they asked gun owners to exercise good judgement and consideration for others.

“I support peoples’ right to bear arms. … However, with that right to carry a weapon also comes responsibility on how you comport yourself, how you carry yourself in public. … If you are going to open carry, please do it in a way that people understand you are not a threat.”

I could not have said it better.