We first caught wind of this story via freedomoutpost.com. Bryan Hull, a founder of the Oklahoma Open Carry Association, confirms it. Given the media’s fondness for Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, I hardly expect the press to concern itself with an open carry demonstration inside a Chipotle restaurant where the manager kicked-out the anti-open carry demonstrators. Yup, you heard right . . .
Oklahoma Open Carry [OKOCA] had received word that MDA [Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America] was going to go to the local Chipotle’s for lunch, so they decided to meet them there. Chipotle restaurants in Oklahoma have officially taken the position that they would rather see people leave their guns at home, but they won’t ask you to leave if you don’t; after all, in Oklahoma it is legal to openly carry, so they at least respect the law and your rights.
Moms Demand Action on the other hand, seemed to be demanding a little much on this Saturday afternoon as they approached management and asked them to throw OKOCA members out of the restaurant because they were “offended” by the presence of guns.
To be honest, we were expecting this, and we figured that we would be asked to leave; but what happened next was nothing less than awesome. The manager refused to kick out OKOCA and even gave them free drinks. MDA activists then proceeded to take pictures of the gun owners and attempted to portray them as intimidating and threatening. The management wasn’t having any of it; he threw Moms Demand Action out of his store!
I conducted an interview with the manager, and while I asked him if I could quote him directly, he asked that I do not. He said that he wasn’t going to have people treating paying customers rudely in his store. They simply do not allow customers to take pictures of other customers; it’s a “zero tolerance” policy if you will. He also said that he has no position on open carry, and he understands that it is legal to carry in the state. Finally, he acknowledged that people behaving in the manner that MDA had in his store were actually more harmful to people than the act of lawfully carrying a firearm.
Note: in the picture above a member of the Oklahoma chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America (left) is shaking hands with Gary Stiner, VP of Oklahoma Open Carry Association.
As many TTAG commentators have pointed out, these businesses really don’t want to be in the middle of a political firestorm. They just want to make money.
This doesn’t surprise me. Any business that has customers driving away business is likely to ask those customers to leave. It doesn’t take open carrying a rifle to become a pain in the ass. I kind of like the MDA comeuppance since they act like such a bunch of intolerant ninnies. Glad to see you don’t have to be pro-gun to pick up on that.
It is not an act.
That is right.
Moms *Demented* Action for Gun Sense in America has long since embraced and internalized their own rhetoric that demonizes ALL gun owners and advocates total disarmament of the non-government citizenry. That’s why these MDA bozo’s felt completely justified in treating the open carriers as second class citizens by disrespecting and trying to intimidate them as if it was totally normal to do so. Even if it was an orchestrated coincidence, management made the correct call when the MDA extremists acted out and invaded the space of other patrons just because the MDA activists didn’t like the OC’ers presence in the same establishment.
Remember the “whites only” signs and “back of the bus” requirements that was so hard to overcome after the Civil Rights Act?. MDA is trying to resurrect a similar discriminatory concept against law abiding gun owners to have them shunned.
Right and MDA is clearly so afraid and intimidated of people open carrying that they get right up in those peoples’ faces and yell at them, argue with them, and call them names and directly insult their manhood, etc because, as they state, these people are imminent threats and a danger to society. Wait… what? They’re getting right up in the faces of these “dangerous, deadly, intimidating bullies”? Hmmmm…
Finally, a guy who gets it. I salute you, Roscoe! We are in a civil rights struggle, and 65% of the folks here are segregationists!
If you scoff, you better look deeply into your own consciences. Limit your fellow man’s rights, you limit everyone’s rights. And being petrified by the sight of a gun is NOT a excuse to go home sick for the day.
Couldn’t say it better myself. I get the feeling these companies only react when these protest (from either side) begin to interfere with their day to day business. More sympathetic, I could not be.
Agreed. The people doing these open carry “demonstrations” in businesses are starting to annoy me. (Not this specific instance… the other more egregious ones. Just wanted to clarify, haha)
I bet that the manager was carrying concealed. Or is a gunny himself.
Or their hysterics were more likely to drive away customers. Maybe the other patrons were giving this guy sideways looks, like “yeah, guns are normal, the harpies need to go.” Also of interest, and something I maybe missed, but were they carrying rifles or handguns?
Since OC with handguns is legal in Ok, and since the guy in the picture is toting a handgun, I’m gonna guess they were carrying handguns. As I understand it, the pic was taken near the time of the Chipotle encounter.
That they didn’t get video of the actual removal was a big mistake on our part.
The joint has a policy of no photographing of patrons.
Oh. No guns, no photography. We must be talking about CIA headquarters in Langley, VA!
It was in the article, you dingbat!
but no shannon sighting, huh? damn.
She’s busy demonizing gun owners and projecting her groups elitist self importance on twitter.
I’m still waiting for that video of her singing and breastfeeding loudly.
Since her kids are too old, why can’t you volunteer to breastfeed from her? Film at 11, of course.
Kind of smiling over this.
The manager is correct. His patrons have a right to eat and not be bothered or harassed. In this case, one of the groups was being rude. So for now I am saying HA!
This is my seriously amused face.
I’m imagining the conversation went something like this: “You might be offended by the sight of the guns, but you are the ones being offensive. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Congrats. You just literally FLOORED me, Matt!
Slightly off topic: On the Home Depot pages I remember reading one comment where one anti-gunner was saying that they would be calling 911 repeatably about the “angry people with guns”. Something about “swatting” (calling police and claiming someone is killing their family or have a bomb or something, when it isn’t true) came to mind. The more they get pushed to face reality, the crazier they seem to get.
I think there are some kind of laws on the books that provide penalties for false alarms.
These are the people who need to be arrested. While they are swatting and playing silly games with 911 operators, others, who need the service, are hindered. When they abuse 911, arrest, jail and a hefty fine.
Lord have mercy! You get it!!
If the manger allows you to Open Carry in his restaurant, make sure you go in, especially if you are a larger group and order, order, order, treat the servers with the utmost respect and laugh and act naturally. If the Moms come in, just act properly at all times. If you are able to ask questions, do so, but otherwise have a good time and enjoy some good food and fellowship in the eatery!
Heck, really piss them off – send them a pitcher of lemonade!
Yep. And TIP GENEROUSLY!
“the ruester”:
http://www.ok.gov/governor/OpenCarryFAQ.html
Assuming all other laws are being followed, the OC guys would have been limited to handguns.
Oklahoma allows handgun OC with a CC license. I’m not 100% on the loaded OC longgun rules, but I’m pretty sure it’s limited to actual hunting, training, and home-based self defense.
So, basically, we won’t see texas-style OC ralies in Oklahoma, because we can’t generally carry around loaded rifles. On the other hand, since we can OC any handgun up to 16″…. an AR Pistol may be fair game.
man, these laws are weird….
According to Title 21 1290.2 The firearm would have to be holstered on a belt to be carried openly.
Now, I know some folks who have considered putting together a holster for a seven inch AR pistol…
Think Josh Randall…
Love this story. I was in Tulsa in the 1980’s and it seemed like the nicest place in the world. Go Chipotle!
So let me get this straight. There were a few open carrying patrons at this establishment, paying, eating and doing nothing wrong. A bunch of non paying, non eating people show up, and demand the manager to kick the OCing folks out??!? WTF?
It might be the other way around. MDA meeting at the restaurant first– hopefully as paying customers. OC folks decided to meet them there.
Someone tell me if I’m wrong about this because if it’s true then the OC group took a chance with escalating. Glad it went in our favor though.
you are wrong. The moms tried to set a booth up at an event. Event did not want them so they set up nearby. OC people saw them, asked some questions about policy and were rebuffed by the moms. The OC people went to lunch and the moms followed them.
Pretty much. So how does it feel that 65% of the “new” TTAGers think you’re a criminal for carrying openly? They want all such citizens to be imprisoned. It’s really breathtaking to realize most of the people here are fascist running dogs.
It’s all getting a bit too soap opera-ish for me, or maybe elementary school-ish:
“Don’t be their friend!”
“No, be our friend, but don’t be their friend!”
Good grief.
+1
+2
I’m not a big fan of their food, but I’ll definitely go there for lunch next time I’m in town.
Prepare yourselves for some serious Chipotle-bully hysteria!
So dont get me wrong, but I dont see how the guy on the left shaking hands is a member of Moms Demand Action, is he a mother? He might be a member of “Damnit my wife brings me to stupid shit”
Get with the times. You may only THINK it’s a guy. Today it’s Don’t ask, don’t tell, can’t tell, can’t ask. The other mother/or its spouse is a german sherherd or is it a lesbian trany confused moron.
Okay, that was funny. Just don’t do it again!
Yes the are not just moms, think bloomburg money.
still, “Moms Demand Action” is a terrible choice of a name if you want to wage a political battle. Exclude non-moms? That spirit of inclusion/non-inclusion hints at elitism. Way to sabotage your cause.
More power to us, the opponents.
LOOK AT THIS BABY!™
I would like to see a “Gun-owners Demand Action” group…… to demand reparations from groups that harass law-abiding gun owners and attack the Constitution.
If “poor taste” was against the law, WalMarts would be half-empty.
I give thanks every day that there’s no Walmartians where I live. That crap makes me very dark.
Could not listen to exchange between OC guy and MDA woman for long. Can’t stand high , pitched winney voice and that rude stot nose attitude, candy ass women!
NWglocker, I was in the group and the story is true. Our group had gotten word of the mda lunch from.postings on their page, so we decided to beat them to the punch. Most of our group was in the establishment seated as the mda members arrived. I arrived as the last of our group, and was followed closely by the last mda member who promptly confronted the management about how dangerous we were. When they got shut down, they proceeded to cry around a table and then pull out their phones to take pictures of us waiting in line. Management stepped in and shut them down again by asking them to leave. What a day!
Thank you Tom and John. Best wishes for OC success.
Whoa! A natural course of events.
double post
I believe Stephen Fry nails it with that lady saying she’s offended,
“It’s now very common to hear people say, ‘I’m rather offended by that.’ As if that gives them certain rights. It’s actually nothing more… than a whine. ‘I find that offensive.’ It has no meaning; it has no purpose; it has no reason to be respected as a phrase. ‘I am offended by that.’ Well, so f***ing what.”
HUGE Stephen Fry fan here! Thanks.
That’s a little long for a tshirt, but I think I want it anyway.
Any chance that there is a version of that video with subtitles? I had a wee bit of trouble following what was being said.
The ‘mom’ from TX MDA looks like a dude to me.
Get. Owned.
The audio recording shows how futile it is to “discuss” gun control with gun control advocates. If you just can’t help yourself and have to talk, reverse all of their arguments and then tell them how this is just a giant pi$$ing match. Here are two examples:
gun grabber: wearing guns in public makes people uncomfortable.
armed citizen: not having guns in public makes people uncomfortable.
gun grabber: having guns in public is in poor taste.
armed citizen: telling me I cannot have guns in public is in poor taste.
Now go on the offensive …
armed citizen: we can go back and forth all day. Who are you to tell me what I can or cannot possess in public? Answer: you are no one. And yet you stand here and have the gall to insult my human dignity and tell me what I can and cannot do. Do you want to know what is in poor taste and makes people uncomfortable? Your words. So let’s get started on legislation to force YOU to wear a muzzle in public … because your speech is in poor taste and makes people uncomfortable.
Never mud wrestle with a pig. You get covered in mud, and the pig enjoys it.
No matter what a gun grabber says, ask them, “Why do you want to violate the Constitution of the United States?”
Thanks. I just had visions of Dirk, Shannon, mud and a whole lot of squealing (not sure which one was enjoying it more though.)
Excellent question!
I think if someone wants to tell you that the Constitution shouldn’t include a part about the right to bear arms, you should ask them if they would also like to revoke people’s freedom of speech and bring back slavery.
For better or worse, “for the children” will usually beat constitutionality for some folks.
Is general population disarmament good for children? It isn’t, but claiming to try to save lives will always be an ample excuse for all kinds of violent acts.
You can actually hear the ‘Mom’ say “a well-ARMED militia” LOL.
She apparently likes skipping over things when reading – things like: the right of the PEOPLE to keep and bear arms.
Take note Open Carry Texas, this is how an open carry demonstration is done. Go in, be polite, get your food, & keep to yourself. None of your Mall Ninja bullcrap posing for pictures because you’re so damn operator & you want everyone to know it. Let someone else be the bad guy for a change, huh? Or are you doing exactly what you set out to do by trying to tank Americans’ 2nd Amendment rights every chance you get?
Crowing moment of awesome!
I can’t say that I agree with bringing assault rifles to a restaurant, it shows you have NO CLASS, but I’m glad those “MAD Mothers” got told off. They’re so immature and their behavior is a threat to others. I’d love to see one of them get slapped for getting in someone’s personal safety bubble and making threats. The way you keep your kids safe is NOT by running around like a stupid chicken with it’s head cut off and making as much noise as possible! They’re more of a threat than law-abiding gun owners……..
……if anyone from that open carry group (1st encounter at chili’s) really were going to start shooting in a restaurant, who do you think is going to get shot first?? I can bet you it’s not the quiet people in the back minding their own business!
As for what I think about open carry in a restaurant, if anyone were to ask what my stance is:
In my opinion, if you absolutely need to use or assert your right, then carry a pistol. You’ll come off as less of a no-class redneck like the people who showed up to the first open carry demonstration at Chili’s – hate me for saying that if you want. Showing up with a Mossberg 12 gauge, AR, or AK, is not much different than showing up in a gillie suit with camo face paint: you can do it, but you’re still going to look like a jackass.
I was also disgusted when they brought in the baby, used it as a tool for their purpose, then showed obvious fake affection to “prove” that they were family-oriented. It’s not much different as when Obama used kids as his justification for his call to action, I also thought that was disgusting. I think that’s taking it a bit far – don’t use your babies as tools.
I think it should be noted they could have done A LOT more cleaning up the audio, you can barely understand it – and I needed to turn the volume up a lot. If they didn’t know how, they should have asked for help, although Adobe Soundbooth is easy and effective for people who aren’t even audio professionals.
“I don’t care. I think it’s in poor taste! Real men don’t carry guns. Sensible gun laws work.”
She was just full of little one liners that all boil down to “blah blah parrot squawk blah parrot” and “well i think.. i think.. i think..”
No actual facts, just her feels.
We need to stop paying attention to hysterical women like this twit. And I *am* a woman.
Jennifer Decker, if you Swat a LEGAL gun carrier, you will be committing a FELONY and you will face a long PRISON term.