I received a response to my e-mail today;
Clayton E. Cramer wrote:
> I'm not ashamed. I said that open carry, if you had some alternative available to you, wasn't an effective way to win people in the middle. There is a difference, you know.
>
My reply is as follows;
Really? You could have fooled me. Just to ensure that I did not overreact, I reread your article and I still see a person who thinks that our right to keep and bear arms is something to keep out of sight, a sin to be hidden, like those disgusting faggots should be hiding their perversions from the rest of us.
Yes, I am straight, and over the years I have found a lot of things that have been done by homosexual activists disturbing. I myself believe that many have gone too far in their zeal and desire to get in peoples faces (men dressing up like nun's and simulating sex acts comes to mind) and the idea that ones sexual orientation entitles one to special rights and legal protections is nonsense. I believe this sort of thing did a disservice to those who simply wished to end the discrimination and bigotry that existed in our society and that many people WERE driven to greater levels of fear and hatred of homosexuals and increased the counter-reaction against the homosexual movement. However, without the parades, the 'Kiss ins' and all the rest, would homosexuals be better off? Would staying in the closet and out of sight have changed the minds of millions, weakened or gotten rid of anti-homosexual laws and customs and allowed huge numbers of people to stand on who and what they are instead of hiding from their families, society and even themselves?
I have a CWP from the state of Montana, but I carry openly at every possible opportunity, why? Because hiding my firearm might help protect my person, but does nothing for my rights, it does nothing to show others that they having nothing to fear from my weapons. The hoplophobes will ALWAYS fear and distrust us and our weapons, theirs is not a philosophy but a pathology. Yes, seeing a pistol resting peacefully on the hips of their fellow citizens might drive some into the arms of the anti-self defense movement, but it will cause others to question why they were ever afraid in the first place. In America, for far longer than I have been alive, those who believe in firearms rights, and indeed the right of self-defense in general, have allowed their enemies to set the agenda. We have allowed those who hate and distrust THEMSELVES, much less the rest of society, to determine the laws and customs in this country. We have allowed ourselves to be portrayed as racists, bigots and seething cauldrons of barely suppressed rage awaiting only some tiny provocation to unleash our unquenchable thirst for human blood. All my life I have been told to hide my love of firearms and shooting as some secret sin, "don't let the neighbors know." and "people will think you're some kind of nut", well no more.
The gun-culture in this country has been like a battered spouse, always looking to ourselves for why we keep getting beat up. I cannot count the times I have heard that we have to compromise, we have to go along to get along. Hide your guns, keep your lifestyle a secret, don't let your kids talk about it, just one more law, one more rule, one more restriction and they will leave us alone. Has it worked? Has allowing the Pete Shields and Sarah Brady's to set the agenda made our rights safer? Has living in shame and begging the media for forgiveness of our lifestyle gained us societal acceptance? Have our constant attempts at appeasement gained us anything but more frequent and vocal abuse? If staying in the closet has not worked for 40 years, why should we believe it will work now?
It is time for ALL OF US to come out of the closet. It is time for us to stand up and be counted, for all the MILLIONS of gun owning Americans to tell politicians and the media and the anti-self defense zealots that we will no longer lay down for them. We will no longer hide, no longer cower, no longer allow them to project their fears and insecurities on us with impunity. It is time to say NO! No more compromises, no more deals, we demand to be left alone, free to exercise our rights without hindrance or let. Is hiding your gun going to do any of that?
Patrick K Martin
MBTV
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