Editorial Board
Open Carry Failed in Dallas
Under sniper fire, how were police officers to know who was a good guy with a gun?
Not mind-readers.
Photographer: Ron Jenkins/Getty ImagesThe open-carry movement faced a very public test in Dallas last week. It failed.
While concealed carry can be championed ostensibly as a means of self-defense, open carry prioritizes performance over pragmatism. After all, openly carrying a firearm is an ideological statement more than a self-defense posture: It cedes the crucial element of surprise to an armed assailant. Open carry's true goal is to normalize extreme gun culture by making firearms familiar, visible and ubiquitous.