# Why are those in favor of greater gun control opposed to concealed carry licenses? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [December 11, 2012, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757 "2012-12-11T22:11:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/21 "2012-12-12T00:32:40Z")
> [@XT](#): > > You are worried about some citizen carrying a gun, while probability wise you should be more worried about some citizen carrying a cell phone…since the citizen carrying the cell phone is orders of magnitude more likely to kill or injure you by smashing their car into you while texting or chatting on the phone than you are to be shot by someone with a carry conceal license either accidentally or on purpose. I’d expect the person with a gun to also be more likely to run me over while talking on a cell phone or while drunk. I would expect them to have little to no concern for anyone else. > [@A\_nice\_guy\_with\_an\_opinion](#): > > So do the criminals. What makes you think they care? In the real world, if you pull a gun on a criminal they’ll simply shoot you first since being criminals they’ll be the attacker and _already_ have their gun out. ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/22 "2012-12-12T00:34:34Z")
Nevermind, didn’t realize I was in GD. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/23 "2012-12-12T00:35:54Z")
[QUOTE=Der Trihs] I’d expect the person with a gun to also be more likely to run me over while talking on a cell phone or while drunk. I would expect them to have little to no concern for anyone else. [/QUOTE] Well yeah…of course you do. Militantly unsurprised. 😛 You also expect, if they are American’s, for them to drag you out of your car, ask you if you are an atheist, and then torture you to almost death whatever your answer is, before drawing and quartering you, while eating your still quivering liver raw… ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/24 "2012-12-12T00:36:08Z")
> [@A\_nice\_guy\_with\_an\_opinion](#): > > It’s not concealed. It’s not a matter of whether it’s concealed because **Alessan** asked his question in response to **Crafter\_Man’s** statement that he carried openly. You can have a holster that is inside the waistband that keeps most of the firearm visible for all to see. ---
**Author:** ![A\_nice\_guy\_with\_an\_opinion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/76d3ee/32.png) [@A\_nice\_guy\_with\_an\_opinion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_nice_guy_with_an_opinion)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/25 "2012-12-12T00:40:00Z")
You’re correct. I wasn’t following along with your conv. I was staying more along the lines of what’s wrong with open carry, and jumped into something ignorantly. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/26 "2012-12-12T01:00:49Z")
> [@sweeteviljesus](#): > > Why? [In response to etv78] > > I think there is a disconnect there. The people carrying (legally) aren’t likely to shoot you. I presume that the reason you want to know is not so you can figure out who you can intimidate. > > Rob I wouldn’t intimidate anybody. 😃 I just want to know who not to piss off! ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/27 "2012-12-12T01:02:23Z")
> [@XT](#): > > You also expect, if they are American’s, for them to drag you out of your car, ask you if you are an atheist, and then torture you to almost death whatever your answer is, before drawing and quartering you, while eating your still quivering liver raw… No, because they can’t do so without serious punishment, and probably aren’t interested in cannibalism even if it was legal. ---
**Author:** ![Atakapa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a8b319/32.png) [@Atakapa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atakapa)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/28 "2012-12-12T01:14:47Z")
> [@XT](#): > > Well yeah…of course you do. Militantly unsurprised. 😛 You also expect, if they are American’s, for them to drag you out of your car, ask you if you are an atheist, and then torture you to almost death whatever your answer is, before drawing and quartering you, while eating your still quivering liver raw… Sick bastards. See, this is why there are so many negative stereotypes about Americans. Europeans, please don’t listen to this twaddle. We aren’t uncivilized barbarians. By god, we \*\*COOK \*\*the liver first. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/29 "2012-12-12T01:21:18Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > How do you wear it - inside or outside your waistband? Inside your waistband is fine; out on you belt (or God forbid, strapped to your thigh) shouts “cowboy”, and can be cause for either concern or mockery. Outside, “cowboy” style. I wear it whenever I’m out-n-about, which is usually on the weekends. Shopping at Lowe’s, Wal-Mart, etc. has never been a problem. I find it interesting that a presumably educated person would actively avoid me simply because I am openly carrying a handgun. I wonder, despite their education, if such a person understands even the rudimentary principles of odds & statistics. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/30 "2012-12-12T01:27:07Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > How do you wear it - inside or outside your waistband? Inside your waistband is fine; out on you belt (or God forbid, strapped to your thigh) shouts “cowboy”, and can be cause for either concern or mockery. Your post shouts ignorance. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/31 "2012-12-12T02:02:02Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Outside, “cowboy” style. I wear it whenever I’m out-n-about, which is usually on the weekends. Shopping at Lowe’s, Wal-Mart, etc. has never been a problem. > > I find it interesting that a presumably educated person would actively avoid me simply because I am openly carrying a handgun. I wonder, despite their education, if such a person understands even the rudimentary principles of odds & statistics. Probably not, but I do know the rudimentary principles of handguns. Absent any other information from the person carrying it, I’m assuming he’s carrying because he thinks he might need to fire it. If I walk past a perfume shop and there’s somebody standing there with a tray full of atomizers, I’m wondering whether or not I’m going to get perfume sprayed on me. If somebody’s watering his yard, I’m wondering whether or not I’m going to get wet. And if he has a gun, I’m wondering whether or not I’m going to get shot. I understand that the chance is very small, but it is larger than my chance of getting shot by somebody who does not have a gun. ---
**Author:** ![Glazer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a88e57/32.png) [@Glazer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glazer)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/32 "2012-12-12T02:11:52Z")
Someone with a concealed carry permit is much more likely to defend you from someone with no permit at all than they are to ever threaten you with it. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/33 "2012-12-12T02:14:12Z")
Again, absent any other knowledge… for all I know, he’ll shoot me when he tries to take down the bad guy behind me. If he doesn’t have a gun, I know he can’t shoot me. If he has a gun, I know he can. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/34 "2012-12-12T02:18:33Z")
This is one of the few times I am in complete agreement with **Der Trihs**. If concealed carry is permitted, naturally I would prefer that the carrier is required to have a license. But ideally I’d prefer everyone be required to open carry, so I can avoid people with guns. Not because I’m intimidated by them (that’s their fantasy) but because I don’t trust the judgement of anyone who thinks they need to walk around with one. And the presence of a gun makes it possible for there to be a shooting, which I also prefer to avoid. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/35 "2012-12-12T02:21:16Z")
I’d assume that someone who is carrying a pistol is more likely to be afraid. Like if I saw a guy with a lifejacket on a cruise ship or a parachute on an airliner. If someone is so afraid for his life that he wants to carry a gun at the Piggly Wiggly, I don’t want to be around him. So open carry is better than concealed, since it flags those guys. ---
**Author:** ![A\_nice\_guy\_with\_an\_opinion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/76d3ee/32.png) [@A\_nice\_guy\_with\_an\_opinion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_nice_guy_with_an_opinion)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/36 "2012-12-12T02:23:10Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > What makes you think they care? In the real world, if you pull a gun on a criminal they’ll simply shoot you first since being criminals they’ll be the attacker and _already_ have their gun out. “In the real world, if you pull a gun on a criminal”??? You must be thinking of a certain situation that you think defines the real world. In the real world, a criminal in a place where there are multiple people would focus on someone in a uniform, or someone with a weapon on display in open carry. Someone with a concealed weapon would be no more of a target than the rest of the people and would have the element of surprise. Here is an exampple of an armed criminal being surprised…by a 71 year old…[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGFZDhCjvj0](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGFZDhCjvj0) ---
**Author:** ![Glazer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a88e57/32.png) [@Glazer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glazer)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/37 "2012-12-12T02:23:20Z")
If it’s their fantasy to intimidate you why would they conceal their weapon to begin with? ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/38 "2012-12-12T02:24:18Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > I find it interesting that a presumably educated person would actively avoid me simply because I am openly carrying a handgun. I wonder, despite their education, if such a person understands even the rudimentary principles of odds & statistics. “Chance of someone with no gun shooting you = 0” doesn’t take a great deal of statistical knowledge to figure out. Nor does the sheer collective sociopathic obnoxiousness of gun lovers make me think they are people I want to associate with. ---
**Author:** ![Mdcastle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/958977/32.png) [@Mdcastle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdcastle)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/39 "2012-12-12T02:24:42Z")
Gun supporters are in favor of CCW because it’s all about chipping away at the gun laws. Unrestricted carry wouldn’t pass so the gun rights advocates are focusing on 1) CCW 2)Overturning handgun bans, and 3) Castle doctrine. Granted they won’t stop unless everyone is allowed to walk down the street with a machine gun (not that I think that would be a bad thing). Kind of like pro-life supporters are trying to chip away at abortion slowly by waiting periods, ultrasounds, etc. because that’s all they can do at the moment. Gun opponents presumably oppose anything that might result in people owning guns, which includes concealed carry, besides being freaked out that the person on the subway next to them might have a gun. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757/40 "2012-12-12T02:26:47Z")
> [@A\_nice\_guy\_with\_an\_opinion](#): > > “In the real world, if you pull a gun on a criminal”??? You must be thinking of a certain situation that you think defines the real world. > > In the real world, a criminal in a place where there are multiple people would focus on someone in a uniform, or someone with a weapon on display in open carry. In the _real world_, a criminal is highly unlikely to do _anything at all_ when there are multiple people around. And if they do, the usual result is that the gun carrying people get shot without even drawing their weapon. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-those-in-favor-of-greater-gun-control-opposed-to-concealed-carry-licenses/643757.md?page=3)