On October 12, 2014, the state of Missouri will be Open Carry. That determination by the state legislature overrides any local statutes, including KC and St. Louis.
It's been going on this metro for years, no big deal. What a lot of people are keying on is that someone in public with a firearm is being given a blanket assessment of either positive or negative outlook.
Cops get an automatic pass. But a citizen with that same pistol on a belt holster gets suspicious stares as they shop? What's happening? The observer isn't watching their behavior or assessing them for the cues in how they are dressed. An immediate and negative impression is taken because the person doesn't seem to have dispensation by the government for carrying.
It's the misperception of what the Constitution says. WE are the government, WE can carry firearms as we see fit, and WE tell our hired servants how to police that situation. WE had to do that ourselves before there were police, and in the early years, the "coppers" only carried whistles to summon backup - and that was US. WE went in pursuit, caught the individual, and delivered them to the officer so we could get on with our daily lives.
Now the political/sociological trend is to dumb down the citizen to just make a phone call, and what is happening? The opponents of carry are violating the law for their political interest and endangering others.
It's a learning exercise for them and the police, it's going to be particularly steep, and the innocent victims will be citizens just exercising their rights. Unfortunate, yes, but the law does allow for relief. Lawsuits will fly, and I suspect false reporters will get jail time. Officers and dispatchers will get an idea (as if they don't already know,) that the first report is usually WRONG, and they have to sort that out at the scene to see for themselves.
Gunning down a guy handling a pellet rifle before discovering all the facts sounds like a huge liability to that city - I don't see that officer enjoying a long and successful career in law enforcement. That type of reaction will get talked about in a lot of offices, locker rooms, and over quite a few beers off duty to examine not only the mistakes made but also the career ending thought process.
It all starts next week in Missouri - and just like the laws changed in GA and NJ, there probably won't be all that much different. Give it a year and on the anniversary people will ask what was the big deal?
Rivers of blood won't run down the streets, and the lawyers get the money. Carry as you see fit and accept what happens for YOUR decision.
