Viper's OC log

[gbrown221]

Short guy, salt and pepper hair - we call him Officer Chestbump in my closer social circle now, since a friend of mine had an issue with him once before as well, and apparently the Napoleon complex is pretty well known. I'm not worried about it, I just thought it was worth mentioning in the thread since his apparent motivation to be a jerk was because I was armed.

I know the officer :-)

[pyld]

So how about a less dramatic and realistic answer. There are no non-sworn firearms carriers that you would question their skills and handling of firearms?

You walked the gotcha question into a gotcha answer already. Do you really want to go for 2?

I'll go you one further: firearms properly secured in holsters don't bother me one iota. I conduct myself accordingly in terms of situational awareness. I'm not telling you that it moots any possible thought I've ever had of some moron shooting someone (including me) by accident, but I can get through life without feeling the need to jack someone up over a holstered firearm--a trait which apparently does not carry over to the constabulary in SEPA.

Cops with guns (and some degree of immunity in their use) cause my situational awareness to ping far more than civilian carriers, who, absent their own property, own every shot.

[ViperGTS19801]

I know the officer :-)

Are you two friends, by any chance?

[theshadow]

I haven't seen the firearms handling/skills of every active Philadelphia Police Officer, so I know you don't have the same knowledge of every NYPD officer.

So how about a less dramatic and realistic answer. There are no non-sworn firearms carriers that you would question their skills and handling of firearms?

While you bring very valid comments, news stories like this one http://gunfreezone.net/wordpress/ind...-hit-him-once/ (84 shots fired, one hit), do not reflect positively on the profession as a whole.

[Carson]

While you bring very valid comments, news stories like this one http://gunfreezone.net/wordpress/ind...-hit-him-once/ (84 shots fired, one hit), do not reflect positively on the profession as a whole.

Its not quite as easy as potrayed on TV or the movies.

I think Uncle Jumbo said it the best :

I've related this in past so some of you will have heard it.

I took a stress shooting course (a few actually) using Simunitions. In the cases where I had a target to shoot at, I mag dumped. When it was over, I thought I fired a few rounds and was amazed to see that I was dry. It's very common under stressful shooting to essentially lay down cover/killing fire. Unless you are exceptionally well trained in stress shooting or you're only an arms length apart, you'll do the same. Most of your shots will miss and you'll underestimate the rounds fired (practice those tactical reloads). Sight alignment doesn't exist, it's all point shooting. You can see this in action in the various shooting at bad guy videos.

More is better. "I wish I had some rounds left" is second only to "I wish I had my gun" in terms of "oh shit" moments

[theshadow]

Its not quite as easy as potrayed on TV or the movies.

I think Uncle Jumbo said it the best :

You haven't read my signature block? I know how hard it is, and the point I was making went totally over your head. When you're standing up defending an organization (in this case the NYPD) saying they are better than you think, then they do something like this, and the poster says how it don't make them look good, a more accurate response would be "Yea, that gives them a good black eye and I hope they learn from it", rather than dig in deeper into trying to defend your position.

[Carson]

You walked the gotcha question into a gotcha answer already. Do you really want to go for 2?

I'll go you one further: firearms properly secured in holsters don't bother me one iota. I conduct myself accordingly in terms of situational awareness. I'm not telling you that it moots any possible thought I've ever had of some moron shooting someone (including me) by accident, but I can get through life without feeling the need to jack someone up over a holstered firearm--a trait which apparently does not carry over to the constabulary in SEPA.

Cops with guns (and some degree of immunity in their use) cause my situational awareness to ping far more than civilian carriers, who, absent their own property, own every shot.

Apparently you are very good at word games. But not at answering questions. It was a simple question. Nothing to do with Open Carry, holstered firearms, etc.

"There are no non-sworn firearms carriers that you would question their skills and handling of firearms?" I know a few and act accordingly around them.

[R L Suehr]

I was just thinking about this thread today. I was just heading into the local harbor freight for some supplies and heard the squeal of tires then the unmistakable sound of cars colliding. Two cars hit head on at the intersection directly across from me. I ran over along with several other people from businesses around to see if everyone was OK. There wasn't any serious injuries, so we kind of stood around discussing what we saw until the police showed up. As the first cruiser pulled in I immediately thought of the incident with viper since I was oc. A couple other cops showed up and asked if anyone saw the accident happen. I was in the just heard it and saw the after math camp, so I went on my way. Nothing mentioned about my firearm at all other than a quick glance by the officer that approached me and the two other people I was talking to. Probably a sign of the area I'm in more than anything, but after reading the viper's similar experience I can say I was actually expecting him to say something.

[ungawa]

I don't whine about how hard my job is and I don't remember my fellow soldiers whining either. A lot of people in the world have hard jobs, even extremely dangerous jobs, and don't have a culture of juvenile insecurity that relies on demanding people worship them to get by. No matter where you go, it seems the highest paid, most entitled, in the least danger, most privileged, whine the loudest for praise.

[ViperGTS19801]

And now my thread gets back on track.

This afternoon, we took the minichump down to Super Sunday. It was a nice day for a stroll, and I was rocking my "What's your safeword" T-shirt like the classy mufuggah I am.

I stopped to tap MAC for a little cash, and the lady in line behind me started a conversation.

"I have to ask...what is that in your holster?"
"A Glock." I smiled.
"So...it's a real gun...?"
Not wanting to have an argument on a crowded street, I replied simply, "Yep."
"And you can do that? Just...have it like that, out in the open?"
"Yes ma'am, all citizens can in Pennsylvania."
"So why do you need that?"
"It's not about need - I am out with my family, and it's a safety thing."
"Right, because it's soooo unsafe in Media!"
"Now now, you don't have to be sarcastic. If you don't like it or disagree with it politically, you're entitled to your opinion the same way I am."
"It's not about politics! There's CHILDREN here!"
Fortunately, she got off on some sort of half-assed rant with the people standing in line behind her, while my turn to use the ATM came up. I got what I needed and bounced, wishing her a great afternoon as I left.

A little while later, I caught up with a few friends from the fire station and we had a quick chat. Before breaking apart and heading in our own directions, one of the ladies at a nearby stall came over.
"Excuse me...I wanted to ask you a couple of questions, if that's okay? I saw you're armed...you can do that?"
"Absolutely. Pennsylvania is an open carry state."
"So, wait a minute - you mean with my LTCF, I can carry my pistol like you are now?"
"You don't even need the license. The only times you need a license to carry are during a state of emergency, in the city of Philadelphia, in a car or when you carry it concealed."
We talked for several minutes, with PiP and minichump standing nearby. The woman was delighted to see me openly carrying - even specifically stated that she felt better seeing someone like me walking around.
"So what if someone sneaks up behind you and tries to take it?" I explained situational awareness and retention training, and she said, "Yes, I noticed you keep your arm over the holster." Very observant, this one. She was a total sweetheart.

Overall, it was a good day.