The Wild Wild West

After a string of church shootings, a friend told me of precautions they were discussing at his congregation.  When the idea of hiring armed security guards was deemed too pricey, they considered doing what churches across the globe do to cut costs, they sought volunteers from the pews.  As a holder of a concealed carry permit, my friend was consulted as a potential member of this committee.  When I asked if he accepted the appointment, he assured me he didn't need to be invited to carry a gun while worshipping.

As a lily-livered liberal, this scared the living crap out of me.  Prior to this story, I had naively assumed that while concealed carry was legal in gun loving Oklahoma, there would still be boundaries that were observed.  Churches are a supposedly a sanctuary, so I would expect people to leave their weapons at home.  Hidden guns, I assumed, were just for people wandering through crime riddled areas at night or legislators heading to the Capitol.

Now, Owasso representative David Derby is trying to expand the rights of Oklahomans who carry a gun.  He thinks that the current law that requires that guns be hidden from view should be changed.  And, despite my severe dislike of all guns, I could not agree more.

In fact, I would prefer that Derby's suggestion go even further.  If someone wants to carry a gun so they can feel like a cowboy prepared for any outlaw who walks into the saloon, they should be required to display their gun the way Wyatt Earp did.

That way, people who, like me, wish to not be around guns can proactively avoid situations where strapped up amateurs are on guard to be a hero.