Afghanistan Vet to Open Carry Freaks: ‘Defend Liberty Where it Counts — in a Combat Zone’

Tom Young, an Air National Guard veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, had a few choice words for the Open Carry ammosexuals in a recent Huffington Post opinion piece he wrote Wednesday.

Young begins the piece by explaining the number of gun activist plans to celebrate American freedom by a show of weapons: three events planned in Texas, another in Salida, Colorado, and a Citizens for Liberty gun march in Pennsylvania are all on the menu. This is to say nothing of all the causal displays of arms that Open Carry is noted for. And while Young says that he can think of many ways to celebrate liberty, “intimidating my neighbors with guns isn’t one of them.”

He states that Open Carry makes us look more like a Third World country than “the world’s leading democracy,” and relays his experiences at Bagram Air Base. He explains that because of the threat of a “green-on-blue” attack — Afghan soldiers or police turning their weapons on Americans — nearly every U.S. service member on base was required to have a loaded weapon on their persons at all time.

Then he dives into the main thrust of the piece and promptly rips Open Carry, the NRA, and the hatriot movement a new one:

It felt surreal to see soldiers and airmen off duty, kicking back and watching a movie, with M4 carbines on their shoulders or M9 pistols at their sides. Though they faced far more danger than anyone back home in the U.S., not one of them seemed as angry as some in the armed “patriot” movement. 

Which begs a question for the folks toting assault rifles into the local coffee shop or Home Depot parking lot: Why are you defending liberty in a stateside coffee shop instead of where it counts, in a combat zone? 

Some of these right-wing activists use words like “tyranny” and “oppression.” But ever since 9/11, there’s been plenty of call for people willing to fight true tyranny. During my two decades in the military, I visited countries where people had lived under such tyranny. They knew they’d been oppressed; they didn’t need talk radio blowhards to tell them so. When you see real tyranny, it’s unmistakable, and it looks nothing like the United States, the most free and prosperous nation on the planet.

There are those in the open carry movement who have spent time in the military, and I thank them for their service. But there are others who need to realize that bringing a Glock into Starbucks doesn’t make you a freedom fighter. 

So, if you want to carry a weapon and wear tactical clothing, here’s an idea: Go see a recruiter. The weapons and cool clothes are free. 

Of course, he adds that they might find it a bit challenging, saying that “‘it’ll take more commitment than shooting a few holes in a paper target whenever you feel like it. It’ll take more time than slapping a ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ sticker on your windshield.”

He closes with a powerful finish, smashing their “freedom fighter” delusions: “You’ll take an oath to follow lawful orders and defend the Constitution. All of it, not just the parts you like.”