Rep. Dan Crenshaw, who loves him some prior restraint of rights when it comes to “law & order,” does have some good advice. Stopped clock, twice a day, and all that.

Dan Crenshaw Right About What 2A Community Needs
Rep. Crenshaw cut to the chase about how the Second Amendment movement can continue the momentum and the importance for the industry and existing gun owners to change the way they recruit and welcome new firearm owners into the community.

“We need a lot less guys dressing up in their Call of Duty outfits, marching through the streets and we need a lot more women who are talking about how they need the right to defend themselves against a larger man.”

Tom Knighton elaborated in his own words.

“They don’t see those folks as ordinary people. They seem them as a violent militia that might start shooting at any given moment. They’re terrified of what that means.”

The Gun Feed referred to that as “pro-gun LARPing.” I agree; and I’ve addressed it before. Optics — viewpoint type, not firearm — matter. The people we want to persuade need to be persuaded precisely because they don’t view these things as do we.

If you want to sway these people to the Constitutionally correct view of the Second Amendment, do it right.

Tactical gear, ARs and AKs, and scary militant slogans aren’t going to suddenly persuade the Democrat delegates, Democrat senators, and Democrat governor that, “Well, gosh. We were wrong; these are just peaceable, reasonable, nonviolent people who make an excellent point.” Militant appearance and behavior at a lobbying event reinforces their belief that mere citizens are too dangerous to be trusted with arms.

If I’d been planning this, I’d have set up the rally as a silent protest outside, with everyone dressed as neatly as possible in their everyday work attire, to drive home the real point that we are just ordinary citizens, not nutjobs.

That’s one reason to avoid the tacticool look. But consider another. Police and federal agents are also watching.

Do you remember Duncan Socrates Lemp, killed in his bed by police? They targeted him because, due to his display of weaponry and gear, they decided he was an evil boogaloo/militia type. Lemp died for his optics. He won’t be supporting 2A rights much anymore.

Then there’s the “Hey, let’s form a militia, kidnap Gov. Witless, and put her on trial” morons. Sure, the feds had them heavily infiltrated with CIs and agents, and most likely talked them into the ridiculous “conspiracy,” but why target them?

Yep, militia, running around in public with ARs, and the like. They had the right-for-the-feds-purposes look.

They won’t be very active in the 2A community for a while, what with being in jail, awaiting expensive trials.

You absolutely have the right to rig up, and demonstrate with a rifle over your shoulder. But is it worth arrest or death? Does it “normalize” firearms ownership to do something that I’m quite willing to bet isn’t particularly normal even for the tacticool demonstrators? How many of them really dress and carry like that to doctor appointments, or grocery shopping? Outside of training sessions, do they rig up for anything but protests?

There are times and places for the the tactical look, if you want to drop the occasional hint to would-be tyrants. Consider getting a group of fellow veterans together to march in a Veterans Day parade, for example. In completely appropriate setting, you’re saying, “Our regular service may be done, but we’re still willing and equipped to respond as needed.” I’m sure you can think of other appropriate settings.

Otherwise, the setting is probably inappropriate for that sort of thing. If you want to normalize gun ownership through open carry, do it normally. Dress in your normal every day attire, possibly with a little extra attention to neatness. And open carry the pistol you normally carry. Do normal things while open carrying, like checking mail, or mowing the grass (yes, I do).

That’s a lot more likely to convince neighbors you’re a normal person who just happens to own a gun and “Huh, that must be common after all, and no big deal.”

That’s a lot less likely to convince the authorities that you’re another dangerous Lemp who needs to be eliminated, or low-hanging fruit ripe for harvest in a militia terrorism sting. Think of it as “OPSEC.”

[Permission to republish this article is granted so long as it is not edited, and the author and The Zelman Partisans are credited.]

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