TexasCHLforum.com

I keep reading how people are worried about being "made" by a bad guy. I don't see why this is a problem. If anything, I want a potential mugger/assailant to wonder if I indeed have a pistol in that fanny pack/bulge.

It seems logical to me that if a criminal is going to follow the path of least resistance, why would he target a guy he has reason to believe is packing?

I do not want to flaunt the fact that I am carrying, don't get me wrong. I just am not clear on why it's a bad thing to be identified by a criminal as one who is packing. I don;t want the average joe or jane to know, and I do not want a leo to know unless it's by way of a formal request for ID.

IMO, being "made" by a BG is so unlikely as to merit no particular concern. If you watch any number of the videos on YouTube, or CourtTV depicting armed robberies, and watch them with a tactically critical eye, you'll see that the situational awareness of the average BG is so abysmally poor that they'd be hard pressed to notice alien invasion, much less a decently concealed handgun.

I don't worry about being made, ever.

I realise I'm the minority, but I'd probably open carry quite a bit if it was legal here. Since it's not, I'm going to conceal per the law, but not worry if someone "makes" me.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to telegraph the fact that I have a gun by doing something dumb like constantly patting it or something, I'm just not going to stress over it any more than making sure i'm concealed.

Some on this Site believe that if you Open Carry or are otherwise "made" in a CC mode buy a bad guy, that you will be the first to be shot by him.

This may or may not be the case, but each has their own opinions on it.

I personally believe that Open Carry is a deterrent to bag guys just as CC is, but in a different regard.

I think that although some may believe that bag guys just run into restaurants and start robbing/shooting people, I think that they actually case the place before any action is taken. They probably send in a lone accomplice to report back what he sees.

If he sees people Open Carrying or if he can determine that there are those that may be CHL and carrying, he will of course report that. The bad guys next move would be to pick another place (softer target) than to knowingly go into a gunfight.

All this is nonwithstanding for a bad guy that is high on crack or other types of mind altering additives. In this case I don't think he would know if you were armed even after you pulled it out!

Another example of this is Home Security Alarm Signs on your yard.
Some people get these signs and window stickers and really don't even have the alarm systems.
They are just visual deterrents to warn bad guys that they are considering a harder target. This works rather well BTW.

Then there is the Bank Robber who attempted to rob the Bank across the street from the FBI HQ in Chicago at lunchtime on a Friday afternoon! Some are just stupid and the difference between OC or CC will never make any difference to them.

Thanks everyone. And Nitrogen, shana tova v'gmar chatima tova!

I guess the answer to your question depends on the BG's intentions.

I would prefer that instead of the BG noticing (or suspecting) I'm carrying a gun that he or she notice that I am alert and observant with just the right amount of confidence.

Back to your question, if the BG has the intentions to capture another gun and is willing to take a life to do it--it would be bad. If the BG's intentions is to commit his or her crime regardless of the loss of life (as in crimes of passion, etc.), then it would be bad. In the majority of cases it probably would not be bad.