Saw a guy today sitting by the kids play area at the mall

[doc03]

with an open carry pistol. The only way you know he
is a good guy with a gun is whether he starts shooting or not. The mall has a no weapons policy but the minimum wage unarmed security is not going to say shit. If he started shooting security would be first one out the door.

[msongs]

1. toting your weapon of mass destruction is a form of terrorism and gun owners know it nt

[doc03]

4. That is their goal to get someone to say something nt

[ForgedCrank]

5. "toting your weapon"

is an excellent way to ensure you are the first target in the event that something did does happen.

[Thomas Hurt]

2. Businesses without weapons bans are asking to get sued when something does go bad.

Unsurprisingly, I don't carry gun, and wouldn't assume that any business I entered wants me too.

[wnylib]

22. Even my local public library branch

has a guard at the door. This started during the mask mandates when people were being aggressive about refusing it. The mandate is over, but the guard is still there.

I do not know of the guard is armed. I have not seen a gun openly displayed. There are two of them who alternate on the guard duty. Both are young people around mid 30s, in excellent physical condition, muscular, and with a professionally serious demeanor.

[Ananda62]

3. JFC

I would pull my kid and get out of there! Are there any safe places left?

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

6. Depends where you live I guess.

[demigoddess]

61. I walked into Goodwill once and there was a man with a gun there. I just turned and walked out.

haven't really been there since.

[Diamond_Dog]

7. Holy moley

You’re right, these minimum wage security guards aren’t gonna touch this guy. This guy must sure be getting his jollies getting away with this. You’re in Ohio, aren’t you? Like me

[doc03]

8. Yep security can't do anything but call the local

Sheriff if there is any trouble.

[highplainsdem]

9. (1) He's overcompensating. (2) He's a psycho who enjoys frightening others.

(3) He should be locked up in a mental ward, but is more likely to end up locked up in jail after shooting someone.

[inthewind21]

19. Or dead

when someone takes his own gun away from him and kills him with it. Most of the macho gun nuts think they can just flash a gun and it's all the deterrent they need, they are way over confident in their fantasy that they are safer with a gun. Odds aren't in their favor.


https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2759797/

Objectives. We investigated the possible relationship between being shot in an assault and possession of a gun at the time.

Methods. We enrolled 677 case participants that had been shot in an assault and 684 population-based control participants within Philadelphia, PA, from 2003 to 2006. We adjusted odds ratios for confounding variables.

Results. After adjustment, individuals in possession of a gun were 4.46 (P < .05) times more likely to be shot in an assault than those not in possession. Among gun assaults where the victim had at least some chance to resist, this adjusted odds ratio increased to 5.45 (P < .05).

Conclusions. On average, guns did not protect those who possessed them from being shot in an assault. Although successful defensive gun uses occur each year, the probability of success may be low for civilian gun users in urban areas. Such users should reconsider their possession of guns or, at least, understand that regular possession necessitates careful safety countermeasures.

[SunSeeker]

36. Yup.

[jmowreader]

53. They needed a study for that?

The five minutes of infantry training I got at Fort Dix told me to take out the greatest threat first… which means in the context of a mass shooting, “shoot the good guy with a gun before you shoot the kids.”

[Ohio Joe]

10. I'd have called the police...

These stupid fuckers should not be allowed to flout the law this way.

[USALiberal]

17. If it's legal you might have trouble Getting police involved.

[bottomofthehill]

21. If the mall has a no weapons policy it is not legal.

Private businesses and property owners can post signs prohibiting firearms. Even if a sign is not posted, a business or property owner can tell you to leave if you have a gun, and you must comply.

[doc03]

25. The sign about no firearms is kind of vague as I remember

Something like firearms are prohibited unless law enforcement or legally permited to carry a firearm. Since open carry and concealed carry are legal in Ohio would anyone be legally permitted to carry a firearm?

[bottomofthehill]

28. That is a shitty sign, you are right.

[progressoid]

55. He might be the police.

[uponit7771]

57. +1,

[uponit7771]

56. +1,

[moondust]

11. They're all "good guys with guns"

until they start shooting people.

[doc03]

12. That's Ohio open carry and concealed carry for everyone. nt

[Backseat Driver]

46. Live entertainment, DORA (Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area for beer and booze), and guns...

tonight in my little suburban Columbus Short North wannabe - "Celebration at The Station" - Nope, won't be seeing me! Not even for ice cream!

DORA now is everyday noon to 9PM.

https://www.traemyers.com/

[spanone]

13. The mall cop should have called a real cop

[A HERETIC I AM]

14. Walk right towards him, get eye contact and smile broadly....

When you're about 6 feet away, reach behind you and bring your hand forward with your finger out like a gun, point it right between his eyes and say "BANG! You're dead. Asshole." Then walk away.

[Wednesdays]

31. They you FALL away

after he blows out your brains.

[A HERETIC I AM]

49. No dipshit open carrying in a shopping mall or anywhere in public is going to shoot someone...

for making them look stupid. If they would do such a thing, it would have happened already.

I'm just suggesting making the guy look foolish, it's that simple. And if you walked up to him as I suggested, actin harmless and friendly and said "BANG" to him and walked away, do you really think he would draw his weapon and shoot you in the back?


I don't.

[hunter]

54. I've mocked people like that.

That only makes me a crazy son of a bitch.

I've got permission to say that. I've seen my mom go full berserker and take guns from people and break them. (The guns, not the people...)

My great grandmas were all Holy Terrors of the Wild West.

We joke in my family that we are Pacifists by necessity, not by any natural inclination.



The only person I've ever met who kept more potential violence bottled up inside themselves than many in my family was my first serious girlfriend.

She wasn't a pacifist. I broke up with her by jumping out of her moving car shortly after she'd handcuffed her girlfriend's "boyfriend" to a urinal and beat the crap out of him. She'd stationed me outside the bathroom door claiming "rough sex." The patrons of that sordid place respected that and were going out the back door to pee in the alley.

I'm a little PTSD about this sort of thing. PTSD is a literal diagnosis in my panoply of mental health issues.

I've been threatened by people holding guns.

Nevertheless I still mock gun fetishists. I don't recommend it.

I probably shouldn't post these sorts of personal stories here but I do.

[USALiberal]

15. Most open carry idiots I see are just showing off....

It makes him feel tougher.

[Cognitive_Resonance]

16. Yep, attention seekers. nt

[Rebl2]

23. Yep

[Iggo]

30. They are no better than flashers.

Because that’s what they are.

Flashers.

[Hekate]

18. This is terrorism. The message: no place is safe.

[pwb]

20. Walk up to the Guy and say

do you hide under your bed at home?

[Aviation Pro]

24. What was he age wise?

Mid-70s?

[nuxvomica]

26. This needs to be a campaign message:

Vote for Republicans and you can expect to see strangers carrying loaded weapons in your schools, your churches, your stores and businesses, your streets and playgrounds. Strangers! Just picture it!

[japple]

27. My cousin in (near San Antonio) TX posted some pictures around Christmas time

of her husband making Snickerdoodles with the grand kids. Sure enough, he had his pistol strapped to his belt like every good Texan should. Just keeping his grandchildren safe while making cookies in his own home during the holidays like every one else in the world.

[rhiannon55]

41. Since he was in his own home

who was he keeping his grandchildren safe FROM? Has he ever experienced a home invasion by a bad guy with a gun?

[japple]

50. I guess keeping them safe from snakes, rabid dogs...you know, the usual things that

might invade his home. My cousin, who took the picture, probably always carries a gun in her purse, but she never seemed concerned enough to wear it all the time. I don't think they've ever had a home invasion. They live in a small town a little bit larger than Uvalde. I think they just watch too much cable tv.

[Shermann]

29. I've never seen a mall which doesn't prohibit firearms nt

[Lonestarblue]

32. Several years ago here in Texas, three guys robbed a jewelry store.

A “good” guy with a gun saw them running away and fired at them. The robbers turned and pulled their guns out to fire back, hitting and killing an innocent man nearby. They then ran from the mall and escaped. It was the so-called good guy trying to be a hero who caused the innocent bystander’s death. Had he simply not interfered and let the police handle the situation, one man would be alive today.

[renate]

39. Even worse than when a good guy with a gun gets shot

My god. I never thought of this scenario but it seems inevitable now that you describe it. I can’t imagine the pain of losing someone to a fight he or she had no part of.

[FakeNoose]

48. This! The "good guy with a gun" theory needs to be demolished by American voters

Your story is an excellent demonstration of what can go wrong in reality.

A "good guy with a gun" may really be...
1. part of a gang who is protecting territory
2. someone who's basically a coward/bully but doesn't want you to know
3. mentally incapable of using good judgment about how and when to use force
4. a pedophile in disguise
5. a thief looking for victims to rob
6. a wannabe law enforcement officer that's also #3
7. someone who gets his jollies by cosplaying an undercover agent

You get the idea ... there are so many reasons not to trust or feel safe around people who are open-carrying.

[SoCalDavidS]

33. An AR-15 Would Take Him Out Before His Hand Could Touch His Gun nt

[A HERETIC I AM]

51. You could take him out by sneaking up behind him and garroting him

Piano wire. Hell, a good solid hit on the temple with a hammer, for that matter.

No need to fire a shot.

The open carrying of a sidearm by civilians is, as mentioned before, simply a "Hey! Dig me! I'm scary! And I'll shoot the bad guys! (If I can manage to fumble my gun out of my holster as I panic)" kind of bullshit.

Let the air out of that balloon and make him look stupid.

[Demobrat]

34. I would be tempted to smile at him and say

“Small pee-pee huh”? But I would be afraid of getting shot, so I guess his point is made.

[TomSlick]

35. My rule in such circumstances is to find the manager - in this case the mall manager.

I ask if there is a policy against open carry on their private property. If there is such a policy, I inform them of the violation.

If there is no such policy, I tell the manager that I am leaving and will not be back until a policy is posted on the premises.

[PTWB]

37. Open carry is a foolish practice.

Concealed carry is far better.

[Novara]

38. It's pure bullying and intimidation by fucking insecure cowards

They're total cowards and they know it. Even with a weapon they'd likely run from confrontation. But who is gonna confront an asshole with a weapon?

It's terrorism.

[DFW]

40. These days, when I'm back in Texas (which is rare enough)

I have yet to see a civilian carrying a gun.

Of course, I rarely leave Dallas, and am usually either at the airport, the house, or the office. Three gun-free zones, although now, it's probably allowed outside of security at the airport.

We take our vacations in Massachusetts, and usually only visit relatives in northern Virginia, Washington, DC, New Jersey and California. Every now and then, we are in Charleston, South Carolina (never seen one there, either), Orlando, New York City and Chicago. I don't recall seeing any civilians carrying guns there, either.

I guess we've been lucky. Over here, of course, anywhere west of the Ukrainian border (if by land--the Middle East if by sea)), it's extremely difficult (Germany, eastern Europe) to nearly impossible (Netherlands, Scandinavia) to get a permit for a private handgun, and even hunting rifles are only obtainable under a telephone book of rules and regulations. If not followed, the authorities will be there within HOURS, and yes, they WILL take your gun(s) away, permanently.If you fail the psych evaluation, you get denied the permit for at least a decade. Loonies and guns do not mix here, although with the loosening of land borders, guns do tend to stream in from places with porous Russian borders (Baltics, Poland, Romania). That goes for as-good-as-Russian borders, too, such as Belarus and Moldova.

Curiously, near my office in Paris, where I was today, for decades, there has been a gun shop on a corner of the Rue Vivienne, across from the Stock Exchange. There were two French cops there today, talking with someone they obviously knew and were friendly with (another off-duty cop, maybe?). They sell all kinds of guns there, from what I can see through the window, but I never see anyone going in or out. Either the place supplies local cops, or it's owned by John Wick.

[cab67]

44. when my wife lived in Tucson

I'd encounter people with visible sidearms at the local grocery store.

They were all white retirement-age men.

[DFW]

45. Scary enough

We're only 70, so we don't know any retirement age people yet.

[cab67]

42. I know a couple of cops.

They've told me the same things I've heard other cops say in the wake of the latest shootings - if they charge into a building to take down an active shooter, anyone they encounter with a gun in that building is likely to be shot. Even if they got a description of the shooter - the description might have been inaccurate, and there may be more than one shooter.

[DFW]

47. I fully understand their position.

I wouldn't blame them. Unless you live in Honduras or some such place, there should NOT be a reason (or permission!!) to publicly pack a firearm. If they are scared of the Taliban coming to invade Tucson, they need to be disarmed and sequestered away in some institution anyway.

[kimbutgar]

43. I was in a all today that was crowded with a lot of families with children.

For a moment I got scared thinking for a sec where would I hide if a shooter emerged.

I don’t like being paranoid but the shit is getting bad in this country.

[hunter]

52. Not legal where I live.

People who survive those kinds of police encounters don't often get to keep their guns.

In places where open carry is legal and common it seems to apply mostly to white people.

What color was your guy? It seems a pertinent question.

[sir pball]

58. Where's the Mall Ninja when you need him?

This isn't a serious post but rather a moment of levity, to balance out the "ugh" facepalm of your experience.

For those of you who missed it, the Mall Ninja was some neckbeard 20 years ago who claimed to be "Sergeant of a three-man Rapid Tactical Force at one of America’s largest indoor retail shopping areas", and spent the next few years spewing absolutely hilarious/insane Tactical Teddy/Gunner Gary crap about the Delta Force-level equipment and training he needed to protect his mall. Someone has memorialized him here...it's worth a read no matter what your stance on guns, if for nothing besides the utter batshit lunacy.

Anyhoo...the Mall Ninja isn't your average security, he would tell that open carrier to skedaddle for sure!

[AngryOldDem]

59. All the malls I know are gun free zones.

But that means shit, as we all know.

Cops should have been called. Paul Blart wouldn’t have done anything.

[Blue Owl]

60. I love it when they blow their own dicks off

Happens fairly regularly, perhaps not often enough...

[sarisataka]

62. Since I'm one of those people

Who check claims, I Googled man shoots self in penis. It does seem to be fairly regular, about twice a year.

Tip- don't click on images, shoot is a broad term