Man with openly carried gun in crowd at Obama townhall

[ricardo900]

Sorry I have to agree to disagree with you on this one...

How do you think he would have been portrayed IF somebody else in the crowd took a shot at Obama and he put the individual down?

Or would it have made the news if he was mugged at gun-point in the parking lot of the President's (cough, choke, spit...) implied gun-free zone and Town hall meeting? or should I say President's Town Hall "Production"...

The Supreme Court and a multitude of other courts before it have ruled that the Police and Military and Government have "No Duty To Protect Any Individual"...

While overlooking, omitting that "Congress informally requested Secret Service Presidential protection following the assassination of President William McKinley. in 1901"
United States Secret Service: History

I am not saying DON'T carry, when you are legally allowed to carry in the area you are in, but just show a little "tact" by wearing an IWB or OWB holster concealing it. Just because you are legally allowed to do something doesn't necessarily make it right. He was there to make a statement, it wasn't organized and he ended up looking like a "nut job" to the liberal media and even gun owners who feel that was a little extreme.

Now we can do a poll on this site or even opencarry.org on how many people even open carry vs. concealed carry? Plus out of that group who do open carry, how many carry their firearm in a tactical "thigh rig"??

[ricardo900]

Nor was he there protesting gun control. Why do people assume that he must be making a statement about gun laws just because he has a gun on his hip?

That is exactly what the media is portraying and the majority of people watching is believing. Even though gun control was not on the agenda, anything negative about guns reported by the media and I mean any and everything from the "gym shooting outside of Pittsburgh" to the "man with gun at Obama townhall" is putting this issue "gun control" front & center.

I am telling you guys, we have a liberal president, liberal congress, liberal senate, liberal media and probably soon a liberal SCOTUS. You guys keep pushing them and see what happens!

[ecocks]

So, to be clear, you feel sneaking around and hiding our guns from the media and our fellow citizens is the proper course of action in the face of these insurmontable odds?

I'll take this under advisement.

[ricardo900]

It's not about sneaking around, it's about using poor judgement, there are numerous "open carry picnics" that are publicly broadcasted over the media and are very organized. What he did was self-serving, unorganized and was unsupported, which showed to the public the wrong message about the right to carry. He was standing there with a thigh rig and holding a sign, which the media constantly refers to the "spilling of blood". There is a right and wrong way of doing things and by going around looking and acting like a "right-wing extremist", WILL NOT help our cause. Doing this scares the public, why do you think there are so many LEO encounters with people who LEGALLY open carry??? Why many of them feel the need to carry a secret voice recorder??

Now, the obama administration has so far and I mean SO FAR been playing nice with gun owners.

1. signed the bill (may '09) allowing guns inside national parks, I believe starting next year. This bill overturns the ban created by Ronald Reagan. Complaints over gun law follow Obama on tour - Travel- msnbc.com

[ecocks]

OK, we'll just have to agree to disagree then.

Hope it comes out okay.

[utimmer43]

That is exactly what the media is portraying and the majority of people watching is believing. Even though gun control was not on the agenda, anything negative about guns reported by the media and I mean any and everything from the "gym shooting outside of Pittsburgh" to the "man with gun at Obama townhall" is putting this issue "gun control" front & center.

Of course the media reacted the way they did, and who was surprised by it? They are who they are. Guns will always be shone in a negative light by the media and I believe the majority of people watching, deep down, are wise to the media agenda.

It's not about sneaking around, it's about using poor judgement, there are numerous "open carry picnics" that are publicly broadcasted over the media and are very organized. What he did was self-serving, unorganized and was unsupported, which showed to the public the wrong message about the right to carry.

Where I believe the poor judgement took place was decades ago when people first decided that carrying wasn't important anymore. That has lead us to this negative attitude toward guns. Yes, the OC picnics are organized, and are a pro-2A protest. Is that the only time anyone should OC?

He was standing there with a thigh rig and holding a sign, which the media constantly refers to the "spilling of blood". There is a right and wrong way of doing things and by going around looking and acting like a "right-wing extremist", WILL NOT help our cause. Doing this scares the public, why do you think there are so many LEO encounters with people who LEGALLY open carry??? Why many of them feel the need to carry a secret voice recorder??

To OC during a protest= acting like a Right-Wing Extremist? He didn't seem to be acting very extreme to me. In fact as best I could tell, he was rather quite calm. There was plenty of public standing by his side, none of which seemed very scared.

I am telling you guys, we have a liberal president, liberal congress, liberal senate, liberal media and probably soon a liberal SCOTUS. You guys keep pushing them and see what happens!

And with all that, there has not been a new AWB. Even some of the most liberal congressmen realize that guns are a right that they ought not infringe upon, or at the very least, that they would get tossed out on their asses if they tried.

Now, the obama administration has so far and I mean SO FAR been playing nice with gun owners.
1. signed the bill (may '09) allowing guns inside national parks, I believe starting next year. This bill overturns the ban created by Ronald Reagan. Complaints over gun law follow Obama on tour - Travel- msnbc.com

Do you honestly believe that Obama is "playing nice"? Do you really think that if he could ban every gun in private hands that he wouldn't? He didn't sign this because he was playing nice, he signed it because it was attached to something that he really, really wanted. He just didn't have the balls to scrap the whole bill over it. Rest assured that Obama would sign any anti-gun legislation in a heartbeat if given a chance. But most of congress knows better than to screw with the issue too much, for fear of their jobs. A guy standing outside with a gun on his hip, who BTW didn't touch it the whole time, isn't going to force anyone's hand.

[ricardo900]

To OC during a protest= acting like a Right-Wing Extremist? He didn't seem to be acting very extreme to me.

When I stated the looking and acting like a "Right-Wing Extremist", I was refering to the label the media was attaching to this guy. The different articles highlighting Mr. Kostic admire for a klansmen leader and other extreme leaders on his myspace page. Have you noticed the desperate attempts of Chris Matthews to link him as a "Birther"??

Also, many people are very scared of guns, especially the ones that are ignorant about firearms. Even in gun-friendly states (PA,VA, NH) that allow open-carry still receives 911 calls about "A man with a gun".

Now saying all of this, people have the right to possess firearms, which is backed by federal and state laws. In many states, even the right to carry open, which I have done from time to time, for what ever reason. So my criticism of Mr. Kostic will go so far, because even though I believed it was poor judgment, it was eventually HIS CHOICE, he didn't break any LAWS! So Be It!

[Bohemian]

I am not saying DON'T carry, when you are legally allowed to carry in the area you are in, but just show a little "tact" by wearing an IWB or OWB holster concealing it. Just because you are legally allowed to do something doesn't necessarily make it right. He was there to make a statement, it wasn't organized and he ended up looking like a "nut job" to the liberal media and even gun owners who feel that was a little extreme.

Now we can do a poll on this site or even opencarry.org on how many people even open carry vs. concealed carry? Plus out of that group who do open carry, how many carry their firearm in a tactical "thigh rig"??

Just what kind of uber-liberal, left-wing, nut-job, Brady-Bunch, MoveOn, DailyKos talking point b.s. is this?

No Compromises, no Concessions...
We have to stop accepting the Brady Bunch's & the media talking points as the accepted Status Quo...

[Boomboy007]

Just what kind of uber-liberal, left-wing, nut-job, Brady-Bunch, MoveOn, DailyKos talking point b.s. is this?

No Compromises, no Concessions...
We have to stop accepting the Brady Bunch's & the media talking points as the accepted Status Quo...

Well said, Bohemian.

[ricardo900]

No Compromises, no Concessions...
We have to stop accepting the Brady Bunch's & the media talking points as the accepted Status Quo...

The MAJORITY of the people of the United States of America listens and follows the MEDIA, period. I am talking about ALL of the major media outlets. And if you want to win and maintain the "RIGHT" to bear arms, then you guys need to start meeting people in the middle. I hear GUN OWNERS calling Mr. Kostic a "nut job", but you will never hear an anti-gun person calling another anti-gun person a "nut job". What we need is for the media to look at gun owners as regular law abiding citizens just going about our daily lives. That's why they have those "open carry picnics" & "open carry litter pick-ups" televised by the news. To show and educate people, who don't know or were too scared to ask, about firearms and related laws. You get the people behind you, and the politicians, judges and media will fall right into line.

There's a very wise saying "Speak softly and carry a big stick and you will go far"- Teddy Roosevelt quoting an African proverb.

We need more of this: kare11.com | Twin Cities, MN | Packing buns and guns: Hundreds expected for pistol picnic
and less of this: Students march against guns on campus | KXAN.com