# Don't Ask Any Questions In Kalamazoo! \[off-duty cop wishes he could carry a gun in Calgary\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 9, 2012, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996 "2012-08-09T19:57:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/1 "2012-08-09T19:57:43Z")
A member pf the local law enforcement community seems to think asking someone if they’ve seen a local attraction justifies… well, shooting them. > **[U.S. tourist’s desire for gun in Calgary park sparks Twitter storm](https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2012/08/09/us_tourists_desire_for_gun_in_calgary_park_sparks_twitter_storm.html)** > > Michigan police officer vacationing in Calgary during Stampede sets off online social media storm after saying he wished he had handgun to protect himself. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/2 "2012-08-09T20:18:21Z")
this guy barely escaped with his life. luckily he had snowballs and icicles that he could defend himself with. your country is nothing but wild cowboys and polar bears. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/3 "2012-08-09T20:21:24Z")
It’s very hard to believe this is for real, but if it is, this guy is one of history’s great Ugly Americans. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/4 "2012-08-09T20:27:08Z")
Don’t Ask Any Questions in Kalamazoo…wasn’t that a Dr. Seuss book? ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/5 "2012-08-09T20:27:57Z")
Holy cow. Next time I go to the Air Zoo, I’ll keep my mouth very shut. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/6 "2012-08-09T20:31:08Z")
WTF is “the stampede”, ay? ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/7 "2012-08-09T20:36:28Z")
My days would be so much poorer without people doing stupid things in public. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/8 "2012-08-09T20:37:55Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > WTF is “the stampede”, ay? Huge rodeo, and Calgary’s biggest annual party. ---
**Author:** ![Capt\_Kirk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@Capt\_Kirk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt_Kirk)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/9 "2012-08-09T20:38:17Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > WTF is “the stampede”, ay? IIRC the worlds largest rodeo ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/10 "2012-08-09T20:44:04Z")
> [@Capt\_Kirk](#): > > IIRC the worlds largest rodeo Good Lord, no wonder the guy wanted nothing to do with it. They have cowboys in Canada? Yippie Kie Yae, Ay? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/11 "2012-08-09T21:15:32Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > They have cowboys in Canada? Yippie Kie Yae, Ay? Yippie Kie Yay, _eh_ ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/12 "2012-08-09T21:23:03Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Yippie Kie Yay, _eh_ Eh, er, Ah, thank you. Ignorance fought! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/13 "2012-08-09T21:38:13Z")
Who would want to shoot a Canadian? What kind of challenge is that? It would be like hunting in a petting zoo. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/14 "2012-08-09T21:43:48Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Good Lord, no wonder the guy wanted nothing to do with it. > > They have cowboys in Canada? Yippie Kie Yae, Ay? It’s not terribly likely that they were touristing in Calgary during Stampede week without being there for the Stampede to begin with. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/15 "2012-08-09T22:01:43Z")
I hope Canadians realize that we’re not all like this man. Depressingly many are, but not all of us. How paranoid do you have to be to want to carry a gun with you everywhere? ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/16 "2012-08-09T22:22:00Z")
Good thing they didn’t ask the fellow if he had a gal. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/17 "2012-08-09T22:26:59Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > I hope Canadians realize that we’re not all like this man. Depressingly many are, but not all of us. > > How paranoid do you have to be to want to carry a gun with you everywhere? Serious answer: a friend who is a Canada Customs Border Services Agency officer has told me that a lot of American police officers try to bing their service handguns into Canada. Good thing that the fellow from Kalamazoo didn’t. ---
**Author:** ![EmAnJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@EmAnJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmAnJ)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/18 "2012-08-09T22:40:56Z")
Yeah, this is sort of news here in Calgary. Apparently a few folks ran in to those two guys in Nose Hill and they were handing out free tickets as some sort of promotion. That’s why they were asking him if he’d been to the Stampede yet. ---
**Author:** ![EmAnJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@EmAnJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmAnJ)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/19 "2012-08-09T22:42:13Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#): > > Huge rodeo, and Calgary’s biggest annual party. Yeah, it pretty much doubles our population for ten days every year. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2012, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996/20 "2012-08-09T22:42:36Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > Serious answer: a friend who is a Canada Customs Border Services Agency officer has told me that a lot of American police officers try to bing their service handguns into Canada. Good thing that the fellow from Kalamazoo didn’t. Some cities require off duty cops to carry a firearm. I suppose it becomes a habit. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dont-ask-any-questions-in-kalamazoo-off-duty-cop-wishes-he-could-carry-a-gun-in-calgary/630996.md?page=2)