Gun stickers on cars

CDW4ME said:

Location has nothing to do with it.
Don't think it best to be wearing a shirt stating "Gun control is hitting your target" if I had to defend myself.
Putting a sticker on my vehicle that says "Body piercing by Glock", doesn't seem like a good idea either.

Exercising my 1st amendment right with discretion.

Click to expand...

I believe location has a lot to do with it.

Especially since we are talking about an awful lot that is entirely different from the two specific examples you just gave.

Just my 2 cents...

I don't put any firearm related decals on my vehicle. As mentioned many times in this thread, I believe it is essentially painting a target on your vehicle, not only for criminals, unfortunately.
Some of the employers in the area will specifically target those vehicles for "random" searches. I know of at least one instance where one round of ammunition found led to dismissal. Technically against company policy, but a bit heavy handed, IMO.

Red October said:

Just my 2 cents...

I don't put any firearm related decals on my vehicle. As mentioned many times in this thread, I believe it is essentially painting a target on your vehicle, not only for criminals, unfortunately.
Some of the employers in the area will specifically target those vehicles for "random" searches. I know of at least one instance where one round of ammunition found led to dismissal. Technically against company policy, but a bit heavy handed, IMO.

Click to expand...

I wager that most of us are not subject to having our vehicles randomly searched by our employers and then fired for having a round of ammo in the car. In fact, for a lot of us, in some states, that is not something the employer could do even if they wanted.

If that is the case it could certainly factor into your personal decision making on this topic.

There are also those stickers we have for each other - obscure stuff like a simple block image of iron sights with a red dot (no text). I have one on the corner of my lift gate. The only people that even notice are the ones who know exactly what it is, and acknowledge with a simple nod or smile.

I've never had bumper stickers (of any kind) on my cars, but I used to wear pro-gun clothing or clothing from gun minded companies. But consider this:

Shortly after I started CC'ing I was in line at Jimmy Johns and noticed the guy right in front of me was decked out in 5.11 "civilian" clothing and after seeing that it took me all of half a second to spot the bulge from the grip of his gun on his right hip. I would have never noticed it had it not been the clothing he was wearing.

Now, many would say the anti-gun community would never recognize that clothing brand for what it is, and that may be true, but ever since that day I simply don't wear or display any kind of pro-gun images that would draw any kind of attention to myself, my vehicles, or my home. It's just not worth the probably small risk it invites. Criminals are going to spot that stuff and use it to their advantage whether it be breaking into your vehicle, or worse, marking you and following you home which then brings my wife and kids into it. Again, not worth the risk.

On top of that you have the belligerent anti-gun crowd, BLM, and the leftist PC crowd in general that is growing braver and more outspoken / physical by the day. Look at the protests these groups are holding where they are becoming physically violent and destroying property. I don't need one of these idiots walking by my car and keying it (or worse) because an NRA sticker hurt their feelings.

So many people in Colorado Springs shop for clothes at REI or Bass Pro that the "Tactical" stuff just kind of blends in unless the person is really over doing it.

There’s one guy at my church that always comes in wearing “tactical” pants, a 5.11 shirt, a photography vest, combat boots, a rigger belt and an NRA certified instructor hat, all in desert tan. It’s like he wants everyone to know he’s carrying with out actually telling anyone.

The El Paso County Sheriff's Office has some of their guys wearing a black polo and those 5.11 pants with the strappy thing on the back pocket. I'd be willing to bet that even if criminals in Colorado Springs can't specifically identify them as 5.11s they know cops wear them. I'm sure other cops (Besides the Sheriff's Office) know cops wear them and they probably pay a little more attention if you're wearing them.

I Used to work for a company that issued the same pants and I kept a couple of pair when I found out they were throwing them away when we turned them.(They are nice pants but they're not 60 bucks apiece worth of nice)I don't wear them often but they're convenient if I'm wearing a shirt with small pockets. Other than that I try to avoid the "perator" look.

gk3 said:

In general, I think gun stickers on vehicles are a bad idea. Maybe an NRA sticker or Gadsden Flag is okay. I don't do it, but I don't judge unless it's one of those ridiculous macho man type stickers. Examples:

45, because they don't make a 46
45 ACP, because shooting twice is silly
Armed citizen inside, nothing inside is worth dying for.
etc, etc.

At the range this past weekend, I saw a bumper sticker that said, "Keep Honking, I'm Reloading..."

I'll say that I understand the message that sticker is trying to convey, but what does that even mean?

1. I'll shoot you if you honk at me, but only after I gather up the loose rounds in my vehicle and load them into a magazine?
2. If someone is still honking, and you have to reload, does this mean that your entire first magazine missed, and despite all the gunfire, the other guy is still honking at you? Or maybe he's dead and his head is laying on the horn?
3. Wouldn't it be easier to say what you really mean: I'm mentally unstable with a Napoleon complex, and I'll shoot you in even a non-self defense situation. Or perhaps a sticker that reads: I like guns. I have guns in the car.

I'm all for free speech, but how come it's not obvious that it's wiser to just be armed, prepared, responsible, humble, subtle and non-aggressive?

Obviously this behavior represents a small percentage of gun owners, but I'm always amazed at the stupid stuff people do.

Click to expand...

Instead of taking the bumper stickers as humor, some of which pokes fun at ourselves, you choose to take them as expressions of mental instability? Yes, some of it is black humor, such as the sticker that says "Keep Honking. I'm Reloading". That sticker expressed the frustration many felt at the rash of road rage fueled freeway shootings we were having st the time. The stickers about the 45 caliber are inside jokes about the 45 vs 9mm Wars. If this was a hippie forum, would you tell folks their "COEXIST" stickers were signs of mental instability?

I emphatically reject your attempt at censorship through political correctness. The Right To Keep And Bear Stickers Shall Not Be Infringed

ajandrs said:

I've never had bumper stickers (of any kind) on my cars, but I used to wear pro-gun clothing or clothing from gun minded companies. But consider this:

Shortly after I started CC'ing I was in line at Jimmy Johns and noticed the guy right in front of me was decked out in 5.11 "civilian" clothing and after seeing that it took me all of half a second to spot the bulge from the grip of his gun on his right hip. I would have never noticed it had it not been the clothing he was wearing.

Now, many would say the anti-gun community would never recognize that clothing brand for what it is, and that may be true, but ever since that day I simply don't wear or display any kind of pro-gun images that would draw any kind of attention to myself, my vehicles, or my home. It's just not worth the probably small risk it invites. Criminals are going to spot that stuff and use it to their advantage whether it be breaking into your vehicle, or worse, marking you and following you home which then brings my wife and kids into it. Again, not worth the risk.

On top of that you have the belligerent anti-gun crowd, BLM, and the leftist PC crowd in general that is growing braver and more outspoken / physical by the day. Look at the protests these groups are holding where they are becoming physically violent and destroying property. I don't need one of these idiots walking by my car and keying it (or worse) because an NRA sticker hurt their feelings.

Click to expand...

Is there no room for deterrence in this?

Do you believe criminals are, more often than not, more likely to attacked those they believe to be armed, rather than unarmed?

Or, if they think a vehicle has a firearm in it, do you believe most criminals are going to attack the vehicle owner, or break into the vehicle when nobody is there?

I live in a very blue state, but you would be surprised how many Noveske, Browning, Colt, NRA, AR-15, and pro-hunting stickers I see on pick up trucks. I don' t know what their intentions are, but they tend to be young, healthy males of above average size. Definitely a deterrence compared to SUV driving paper pushers like me.

I live in a state where the most common bumper stickers are "Hillary" and "Bernie" and "Obama" and "My Kid is a whatever at wherever."

So yes, I'm proud to display an NRA, Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP), and a US Army Vietnam decal on the rear window of my Sierra. If anyone doesn't like them (and I know lots of people don't) they can pound sand.

My trucks have never been broken into.

And I make a point of always driving courteously and safely.

Tinpig

I have only one sticker on my jeep. It says: As jy my geware wil, kom neem hulle.

Warp said:

Is there no room for deterrence in this?



Do you believe criminals are, more often than not, more likely to attacked those they believe to be armed, rather than unarmed?



Or, if they think a vehicle has a firearm in it, do you believe most criminals are going to attack the vehicle owner, or break into the vehicle when nobody is there?

Click to expand...

Of course there's room for deterrence, I'm just not sure how much. I would guess not much. Firearms are a hot commodity on the streets and if they spot an easy mark they're likely to go for it when an opportunity presents itself.

I doubt anyone thinks criminals are more likely to attack an armed person over an unarmed person, but then again I never mentioned attacks, rather I was coming at it from a "smash and grab" burglary perspective. If they think a gun is in a car I can't imagine anyone would try to fight their way to that gun when they could simply wait for the owner to leave the area. The reason I don't do it, as I said above, is because I don't want to make myself, my vehicles, or my family a target. I believe any criminal smart enough to spot pro 2A stuff for their gain is probably smart enough not to attack that person, but that doesn't mean they won't strike your property or family when you're not present. Again, they're out for an easy mark, a soft target. I said above that displaying that stuff is probably a very small risk to take and it's something we all have to decide for ourselves. For me it's just not a risk I'm personally willing to take ... but to each his own.

To be honest, the criminal side of it isn't really that big of a concern for me given where I live, though anything is possible and that's why I still don't take the risk. My bigger motivation is personal privacy and not advertising to the world what I have, there other other avenues for me to support the cause without getting an AR-15 car wrap! I'm not going to knock anyone who does it, it's just not for me.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

ajandrs said:

I doubt anyone thinks criminals are more likely to attack an armed person over an unarmed person, but then again I never mentioned attacks, rather I was coming at it from a "smash and grab" burglary perspective.

Click to expand...

This right here is what I am referring to.

Nobody seems to think of it this way, but it seems to me that if they really thought it through a lot of people choose the option that makes violent personal attack more likely but nobody-present property crime less likely.

I'd rather deter the violent attack even if it means increased chance of property crime when we aren't there.

As jy my geware wil, kom neem hulle

Click to expand...

I had to use Google translate, but I love it.

Warp said:

This right here is what I am referring to.



Nobody seems to think of it this way, but it seems to me that if they really thought it through a lot of people choose the option that makes violent personal attack more likely but nobody-present property crime less likely.



I'd rather deter the violent attack even if it means increased chance of property crime when we aren't there.

Click to expand...

This makes sense, and I totally get where you're coming from. It's more or less the same argument for open carry vs concealed carry. I would never open carry so I guess it makes sense I prefer my cars sticker free!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

gk3 said:

In general, I think gun stickers on vehicles are a bad idea. . . I'm all for free speech, but how come it's not obvious that it's wiser to just be armed, prepared, responsible, humble, subtle and non-aggressive?

Click to expand...

Yep. Many shooting sports enthusiasts are still not fully clued in that our situation can now be perhaps best described as "Behind enemy lines."

Keep invisible, intelligent, and prepared on firearms matters as you said. Silliness in this era can lead to unintended consequences with other citizens and officials. They are often either clueless or agendized. Both are dangerous to you liberty.

Happy Trails said:

Keep invisible, intelligent, and prepared on firearms matters as you said. Silliness in this era can lead to unintended consequences with other citizens and officials. They are often either clueless or agendized. Both are dangerous to you liberty.

Click to expand...

This is actually an excellent point that I overlooked. If you're ever involved in a legal defense, especially if it's firearm use related, an anti gun prosecutor would likely use those stickers against you to argue that you're an over zealous gun nut just looking for an excuse to use your guns. "Keep honking, I'm reloading" could not look so good for you when argued in front of a jury especially if they're not gun friendly to begin with.

You may think this sounds unreasonable but there was a police officer very recently that faced this very scenario due to a stupid inscription on the inside of the dust cover on his AR-15. The prosecutor seriously argued in court that the office was a gun nut out looking to kill people based on nothing more than that inscription.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

warp said:

In fact, for a lot of us, in some states, that is not something the employer could do even if they wanted.

Click to expand...

I'm not aware of ANY state where state law supersedes federal law.

I work on a government installation subject to random search where possession of a firearm is a felony. If caught with a firearm, I have a hard time imagining that my employer will be forced to maintain my employment while I serve my prison term.

Ours is not a cookie cutter society.

Some people with certain points of view on particular political subjects tend to be a lot more prone to express their opposition with vandalism and even violence. A significant percentage of anti-gun people tend to fall into that category.

45_auto said:

I'm not aware of ANY state where state law supersedes federal law.

I work on a government installation subject to random search where possession of a firearm is a felony. If caught with a firearm, I have a hard time imagining that my employer will be forced to maintain my employment while I serve my prison term.

Click to expand...

Read what you quoted again please.

"In fact, for a lot of us, in some states, that is not something the employer could do even if they wanted."

Most of us don't work at government installations with random vehicle searches and prison terms for having ammo (or even a gun) in our car.

I drive a company truck with my logo and phone number on the side. I own this business with my dad and uncle. We actually prohibit pretty much anything on the trucks that can be viewed as political.

Basically, I try not to offend anyone who wants to give me money, so none of our trucks are outfitted with political messages of either party, no NRA, no gun stickers, no PETA, no nothin' My dad and uncle have small Harley shields on their back windows. I have a bumper magnet on my tailgate sporting my daughter's elementary school. One of our employees was in the Marines, obviously we have no problem with him sticking a small decal on his side window indicating as such.

As for gun stickers, I just don't see the need. I try to be as invisible with my carry habits as possible, so no advertising. I figure giving my money directly to the manufactures to purchase their guns is enough

Red October said:

Just my 2 cents...

I don't put any firearm related decals on my vehicle. As mentioned many times in this thread, I believe it is essentially painting a target on your vehicle, not only for criminals, unfortunately.
Some of the employers in the area will specifically target those vehicles for "random" searches. I know of at least one instance where one round of ammunition found led to dismissal. Technically against company policy, but a bit heavy handed, IMO.

Click to expand...

Your employers randomly search the privately-owned vehicles of their employees???

Well, the thugs have figured out what all the stickers mean: http://www.alloutdoor.com/2016/08/24/hunting-vehicles-targeted-thieves/

They are ransacking vehicles in parking lots at gun shows, etc. Maybe what tips them off is the Yeti sticker that someone has more money than common sense.

Anyway, stickers do communicate a message to others, do you accept the consequences or just blow it off? A truck covered with adverts from high end suppliers is saying something to somebody.

I see it as largely oneupmanship, which can be taken as a taunt to some. It appears they are noticing. Regardless, it's your choice, sticker up as you see fit. If you make a mistake and life ransacks your vehicle over it, OK, reassess and make a new decision. There are lots of stickers out there.

YMMV.

I keep my car as nondescript as possible. At best there might be a college team vanity plate or window sticker, other wise nothing. As posted no need to advertise for criminals or to the JBT's.