Man with assault rifle joins crowds outside president's Phoenix venue

Kudos to the anonymous rifleman. Good soundbite too - quick, to the point, and completely non-loony.

Good job on the part of Det. Oliver as well, for affirming that the man was within his rights and not playing into the usual reactionary nonsense.

I like it!

Good job on the part of Det. Oliver as well, for affirming that the man was within his rights and not playing into the usual reactionary nonsense.

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+1...

When asked why he was armed, Faherty reports, the man chose to remain anonymous, saying only, "Because I can do it. In Arizona, I still have some freedoms."

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He isn't being totally honest with that statement.

If he was only just doing it because he can, then why did he chose the venue he did? I wonder if he carries his AR to the grocery store or Wal Mart. I seriously doubt it.

The reason he did this was as a publicity stunt. He got his fifteen minutes of fame.

The police did a good job. The guy broke no laws, and did not deserve any harassment.

I don't know,he may very well carry it to the grocery store. If taking it to a place where the president of The United States was speaking didn't send up red flags then I doubt if it would be noticed at the grocery store. Who knows maybe everybody carries ARs when shopping in Arizona.

Hmmm..... When Obama went to our jurisdiction, we were told to leave our issued long guns at home. Actually, we were told that showing up in uniform with a rifle had the potential to be instantly fatal via a Secret Service sniper. I do have some thoughts on Obama's utalization of the Secret Service, and let me just say it seems "different" from past presidents.

That guy had some big ones, and I image he spent a good deal of his day in someone's crosshairs.

"Is that a red dot on your forehead, or did you become a Hindu?"

Because I can do it

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made my day !

This guys behavior comes under the heading of "Just because you CAN do something, doesn't mean you SHOULD do it!"

He isn't being totally honest with that statement.

If he was only just doing it because he can, then why did he chose the venue he did? I wonder if he carries his AR to the grocery store or Wal Mart. I seriously doubt it.

The reason he did this was as a publicity stunt. He got his fifteen minutes of fame.

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Was he trying to make a scene? Probably.
Did he do it just for attention? Probably.
Did it work? Yes.

By exercising his right to carry his rifle, within legal limitations, by getting on the news today he probably reminded several million people that they have a right to bear arms and no nearby kittens/young minorities were instantly vaporized in a hail of hollowpoint gunfire. I applaud him for doing what he did safely, responsibly, and without looking like a loon.

If enough guys do this,I am sure that right will be taken away.Just because you can do something,it might not be that good an idea at that time and place.Everyone has a right to pick his own nose,but do you want to see someone doing it at the buffett table.Just a thought.

Sooo.... let's not do this guys or they might not let us do it anymore? Makes sense to me!

FFMedic

I'm sure he put the secret service a bit on edge

I'm sure more than a few snipers had him in their scopes the entire time he was there. It's always been my understanding that the secret service doesn't smile upon people who carry guns in the presence of the president

I'm sure he put the secret service a bit on edge

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It would be interesting to know exactly how close he got to the president. My guess is he did not get very close at all, or else he would have been arrested or more likely shot.

Remember that guy who made the news two weeks ago for open carrying at a presidential event? It turns out he was no where near the president.

These guys are just getting their 15 minutes of fame at the expense of the 2nd Amendment.

I don't think it was a publicity stunt in the sense that you mean it. I believe he was making a political statement by exercising his both his First and Second A. rights in a high-profile way. To condemn him the way I'm reading here then we may as well all give up and just go along with the program. If using our First and Second Amendment rights is as bad in this case as some of you are making it out to be, well, we may as well not have them anymore.

not sure what the laws specifically in AZ are but the laws here (in TX) state that you're not supposed to show up to a political rally strapped. That's one of the restrictions on concealed carry. (I'll have to look up the statutes again to make sure) Obviously the man with the "assault rifle" rolleyes wasn't carrying concealed at all but I would have imagined the same spirit of the law would apply..

any comments?

If indeed it's legal to show up to a politcal rally in AZ open carrying a pistol and with an AR strapped to your shoulder, good on him!

More Americans should have a firmer understanding of their rights and should be proactive in not only excercising them but in protecting and defending them as well!!

THE DARK KNIGHT said:

I applaud him for doing what he did safely, responsibly, and without looking like a loon.

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Not so sure about the last part of your sentence. In my lifetime, three presidents have been the target of assassination attempts--one died, one almost died, and the other escaped unharmed. The assassination of a president is a cataclysmic event that strikes at the very heart of democracy, and we should be very careful about evoking memories of those horrible acts.

I don't particularly like our current Prez, but the fact remains that the carrying of a semi-automatic rifle at a presidential event conjures up a lot of bad images and memories, even for a right-leaning gun aficianado like me.

You may not think so and many others here may agree with you, but I guarantee you, most people thinks this guy looks like a threat to the President. I'd respectfully suggest that, while we may all cherish our rights to keep and bear arms, common sense suggests that there are circumstances where openly carrying a semiautomatic rifle makes us all look like loons. This is one of them. The guy's an idiot.

Maybe different types of people respond to different threads. Whenever a thread about open carry comes up, it seems that over half the people here have a list of reasons not to open carry. However, in threads about open carrying pistols and rifles at a Presidential event, the threads are filled with one-liners about being all for it. I don't understand the inconsistency.

I consider myself extremely pro-gun. However, at the same time, let's not forget history. In the 60's, the Black Panthers pulled stunts like this guy in this case. What followed were some fairly strict gun laws that spread throughout the states. Was there a large-scale revolt against the gun laws? No, there wasn't. I'll bet the same NON-revolt would happen today after additional gun control laws are passed as a result of people showing up with rifles at Presidential venues.

A recognition of history would be nice. There's nothing new under the sun. I'm just not understanding the benefit that this stunt serves for the pro-gun cause. By the way, it is a stunt. I'm not buying for one second that this guy goes grocery shopping with an assault rifle strapped around his neck. Further, if he did, I believe he would be stopped, questioned and probably arrested, even if legal in Arizona. That's a definite if he "looked the part" so to speak. By the way, I agree with the poster above who said this guy would have gotten shot if he had gotten too close to the President.

"assault rifle"?

Was it selective fire?

Please stop feeding the anti's agenda.

hmmm... if a person is going to do this whether to exercise freedom, make a political statement, or merely inappropriately get attention what do you guys think about doing such with no magazine inserted, and the bolt open?


To most I know this wouldn't matter but it might be noticed by some of the more 'important' observers (S.S., LEO ect.,) Helpful or pointless? I'm with those who say the little demonstration was not wise. I'd rather see someone do it unquestionably far away such that there is no question at to the proximity to the POTUS and preferably something like open carry rather than display of multiple firearms.

This guys behavior comes under the heading of "Just because you CAN do something, doesn't mean you SHOULD do it!"

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I don't know... I think sometimes it should be done. To say that, just because we CAN exercise our freedoms publicly, doesn't mean we SHOULD do it, doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I know it is way out of the mainstream now, totally non-PC, but that perspective is the shame of it, rather than the act.

So we must all ask ourselves" What have I done to promote my second amendment rights?" I don't think expressing opinions about what someone else has done on a gun rights specific internet forum counts as being politically active.

Does anyone have a pic of this guy standing with his rifle?

The reason he did this was as a publicity stunt.

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What's wrong with that?

The objective of the anti-gun movement for several decades has been to drive guns underground. If we keep them locked up, then they (and we) can be demonized. Nobody knows that most of his neighbors have guns. People begin to consider the mere presence of a firearm to be "scary".

Guns in the hands of regular citizens need publicity. I'm all for it.

The only other option: only the guns used to murder people ever get publicity, and the mere image of a gun is easier for the anti-gunners to equate with the image of a mass shooting.

It takes some big "stones" to walk around with an AK-47(?) slung on your shoulder. Saw it on TV.