Concern re: Displaying Decals on Car

[tele_mark]

The only gun related sticker I have on the truck is a "Molon Labe" sticker. I decided to keep it low-key when I thought it out from the POV of my enemy, and what I'd do if I was a left-wing puke wanting to cause grief to someone with gun-related stickers all over their car. My conclusion was that I'd call the SP on the cell and tell them that some nut just flashed a gun at me on the highway. If the SP pulled over the person and they didn't have a gun, hey, I made a mistake. Of course, there'd be a fair chance someone with a gun sticker on their vehicle might have one in their posession, in which case, they very well could get screwed.

 

[badmotorfinger]

I have just one sticker, a MA State Police sticker on the back windshield as that was a gift from years back. Aside from that, I am not one to advertise my beliefs, as I would rather fly under the radar (well as low as possible considering that there is a small MSP sticker back there).

I have seen some cars vandalized due to the owner's belief's being advertised on and around their vehicles, which is really too bad. But as we all know, there are just so many ducking fumbasses out there who have zero respect for other people and their property.

Although it is sort of verging off topic, was anyone in Boston (near Fenway and by the Burger King) back in 2004 on the night that the Red Sox completed the best comeback in sports history? Well I was there with some friends and we were around said area when some morons decided to celebrate the historic defeat by completely destroying someone's car because the owner(s) had New York plates on the vehicle. I remember the thugs smashing the windows and body, lighting the wheels on fire and also trying to tip the car over; the best part was three guys pushing on one side, while there was another on the opposite side pulling to flip the car towards himself!

As I watched this madness unfold, I am thinking that it was the NY driver's fault for this happening because he/she didn't pay to park the car in a garage somewhere (although damage may have still been executed but not as nearly as bad) while having common knowledge that a segment of people would riot one way or the other after a game as big as that deciding contest of the 2004 ALCS (which was a national story).

It is sad that I was thinking that the idiots doing this were not as much to blame, although I do not condone their actions, but because that is what complete cretins do, which continues to reflect upon society's deterioration in general.

Then again, I could be wrong?

 

[Prepper]

Where in the hell do you work?!?!

Sorry can't say, that'd get me in trouble too. Such a decal would make other coworkers feel "uncomfortable" and "threatened". Their "no weapons" policy even includes tiny pocket knives and micro leathermans (but people bring them anyway, usually because they don't know the policy).

I'm counting down the days to when I can finally leave. I can't change jobs right now because I'm hoping to move to NH and then I'd have to change jobs again, but I can't move quite yet (due to family reasons) so I have to stay put for now.

 

[Prepper]

Speaking of police stickers, every so often I'll see some sort of police sticker in a car window, and I wonder if that person is a police officer ,or a family member, or none of the above? Where do people get them? That's the one type of sticker that I think has a pretty good chance of making the bad guy more scared rather than less scared, assuming of course he suspects the person may be a policeman due to the sticker. (But what if the police pull me over? Would it annoy them at all, or make them think positively of me for supporting my local law enforcement?)

 

[Jose]

Sorry can't say, that'd get me in trouble too.

Unf***ingbelievable.

 

[Jose]

Speaking of police stickers, where do people get them?

They are usually provided by police benevolent trype associations to people who donate money to them.

My parents got a "Trooper Booster" official looking sticker from the Florida Highway Patrol Troopers Association.

 

[Saint]

As an auxiliary police officer I am told all the time, at in in-service training and at the MPTC academy, to be wary of people who have NRA, MRA, S&W, etc. stickers on their vehicle.

Just thought I would share, so people could save themselves some aggravation.

 

[EddieCoyle]

As an auxiliary police officer I am told all the time, at in in-service training and at the MPTC academy, to be wary of people who have NRA, MRA, S&W, etc. stickers on their vehicle.

Why?

 

[Len-2A Training]

EC, I read somewhere in LE circles that they are teaching recruits that possession of gun stickers on an automobile may be a clue to "terrorist tendencies". I'm not kidding either!

As for police stickers in MA:

- There are MPA stickers. They are numbered and dated and issued only to police officers who are MPA members (many PDs use it as their union). Many give it to relatives to put on their cars, but they even got a law passed that makes display illegal ($100 or $200 fine) unless actually a member of MPA.

- Boston Patrolman's Assn and MA State Troopers have similar stickers with similar issuance.

- Stickers from benevolent assns are a joke and almost no officers out there will pay any attention to them. Only exception is the "100 Club" for high-roller donors that actually benefits families of officers KIA.

- Other MA LEOs have stated that they have seen MPA stickers for sale on eBay. Wouldn't surprise me at all. No telling if they are real or counterfeit.

So usually officers making a stop will query about the stickers that are union issued and if it doesn't sound legit, you're getting a ticket.

 

[Mikey]

What about those "thin blue line" stickers and plates I know some people who have nothing to do with LE and have them? They think it will keep them out of trouble.

 

[Len-2A Training]

Same deal Mike.

Many dealers won't sell them unless you show a badge and ID. Others may do differently. These definitely have been sold to anyone on eBay.

Cops won't take the stickers or TBL plates on face value. They will ask questions to determine validity. If not valid, the warning you might have received may very well turn to a real ticket.

 

[Saint]

Why?

Because those stickers "usually" indicate gun ownership. And "most" police officers view law abiding citizens who possess a firearm as a "potential" threat.

It is unfortunate, but true.

 

[Jose]

As an auxiliary police officer I am told all the time, at in in-service training and at the MPTC academy, to be wary of people who have NRA, MRA, S&W, etc. stickers on their vehicle.

Just thought I would share, so people could save themselves some aggravation.

Three questions:

1) Why are you being told something so stupid?

2) Do you believe it? (I hope not)

3) And why should we care what some cop thinks of our interest in firearms?

The people who told you this are world class booger-eating morons.

Lots of Mass cops (especially CoPs) would crap their pants if they knew how little power cops have to harrass gun owners in other states just because they are gun owners.

 

[Len-2A Training]

Irony . . .

New thread in ARfcom on this exact topic (LE stickers). Note that the responses are all Down South which might impact what happens to these folks vs. here.

http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=76&t=621139

 

[JonJ]

As an auxiliary police officer I am told all the time, at in in-service training and at the MPTC academy, to be wary of people who have NRA, MRA, S&W, etc. stickers on their vehicle.

Just thought I would share, so people could save themselves some aggravation.

After over 20 years of In-Service training, I have NEVER heard an instructor state this. If I did, I'd be in trouble.

- There are MPA stickers. They are numbered and dated and issued only to police officers who are MPA members (many PDs use it as their union). Many give it to relatives to put on their cars, but they even got a law passed that makes display illegal ($100 or $200 fine) unless actually a member of MPA.

The fine is $20 or imprisonment for not more than one month or both. MGL 266 S69.
It not only covers MPA stickers but many emblems of many organizations or associations.

What about those "thin blue line" stickers and plates I know some people who have nothing to do with LE and have them? They think it will keep them out of trouble.

A TBL sticker or plate will help you as much as a "Concealed Carry" badge and most likely buy you right into a citation.

BTW: I believe AG Scott Harshbarger prohibited all LEO associations from giving away stickers to donors. I don't know if that edict is still in effect but I haven't seen a "donor" sticker in many years.

 

[Saint]

Three questions:

1) Why are you being told something so stupid?
-Police officer saftey

2) Do you believe it? (I hope not)
-I do not believe that means a person is a threat, but it does imply that they could be armed.

3) And why should we care what some cop thinks of our interest in firearms?
-If you are on your way to work and get pulled over by a police officer and before he walks to your door, he sees you reach to get your registration out of the glove box (he does not know what your a reaching for) and also sees that you have a NRA sticker, Glock sticker, or "Keep honking I am reloading" sticker it might give the officer probable cause to remove you from the car (for his safety), pat frisk you, and search your area of control in the vehicle.
-I would rather save myself the possible aggravation.

The people who told you this are world class booger-eating morons.
-Every officer who told be that have been good officers, firearm enthusiasts, and several are members of local clubs.

 

[JonJ]

Three questions:

1) Why are you being told something so stupid?
-Police officer saftey

2) Do you believe it? (I hope not)
-I do not believe that means a person is a threat, but it does imply that they could be armed.

3) And why should we care what some cop thinks of our interest in firearms?
-If you are on your way to work and get pulled over by a police officer and before he walks to your door, he sees you reach to get your registration out of the glove box (he does not know what your a reaching for) and also sees that you have a NRA sticker, Glock sticker, or "Keep honking I am reloading" sticker it might give the officer probable cause to remove you from the car (for his safety), pat frisk you, and search your area of control in the vehicle.
-I would rather save myself the possible aggravation.

The people who told you this are world class booger-eating morons.
-Every officer who told be that have been good officers, firearm enthusiasts, and several are members of local clubs.

You need to ride with me for a week. You need some serious learnin'

 

[bpm990d]

If you are on your way to work and get pulled over by a police officer and before he walks to your door, he sees you reach to get your registration out of the glove box (he does not know what your a reaching for) and also sees that you have a NRA sticker, Glock sticker, or "Keep honking I am reloading" sticker it might give the officer probable cause to remove you from the car (for his safety), pat frisk you, and search your area of control in the vehicle.

Your fresh out of boogers.

 

[Saint]

You need to ride with me for a week. You need some serious learnin'

Teaching me has nothing to do with it.

The issue at hand it seemed was police officer discretion, I gave information from what I have been instructed by several police officers.
I do not see anything that I wrote that is illegal or outside the bounds of possibility.

Police officers discretion can vary from being hostile to people with NRA stickers to supportive of them. Key word is discretion.

The original poster wanted opinions and I am giving mine.

Good court case are Michigan v. Long, 463 US 1983

 

[Executive]

If someone wants me to advertise for them,they will have to pay me.I don't even like that my car has Chevy emblems on it.

+1

I never understood the folks who put "Harley Davidson" stickers on their cars (Polaris, Yamaha, NASCAR, John Deere, etc. as well). Even worse, these folks PAY for the sticker in most cases. No, I apply only my NRA, club membership, American Flag, on the truck. I also have had one of those "Terrorist Hunting Permits" which most people find offensive (which is why I put it on).

 

[JonJ]

Saint, I don't know you so I don't want to get into a protracted argument about police work. You're an auxiliary officer, a part timer and there's nothing wrong with that. I'm sure you've had some training but there is more to the job that what someone tells you. It comes from being on the street.
The statement you made about a sticker possibly giving you PC for a search or a pat frisk is WAY off base. That kind of thinking will get you in serious trouble. That's why I say you need some "learnin'" If you are pursuing law enforcement as a career, you will learn and that learnin' isn't just from a talking head in a MPTC classroom.

There are some on this board who are not LEOs who know more about the "law" than some officers do. I suggest you know what you're talking about when it comes to discussing such things here.

 

[Jose]

Three questions:

1) Why are you being told something so stupid?
-Police officer saftey

2) Do you believe it? (I hope not)
-I do not believe that means a person is a threat, but it does imply that they could be armed.

3) And why should we care what some cop thinks of our interest in firearms?
-If you are on your way to work and get pulled over by a police officer and before he walks to your door, he sees you reach to get your registration out of the glove box (he does not know what your a reaching for) and also sees that you have a NRA sticker, Glock sticker, or "Keep honking I am reloading" sticker it might give the officer probable cause to remove you from the car (for his safety), pat frisk you, and search your area of control in the vehicle.
-I would rather save myself the possible aggravation.

The people who told you this are world class booger-eating morons.
-Every officer who told be that have been good officers, firearm enthusiasts, and several are members of local clubs.

I have been approached by two police officers in the last two months. One a highway patrolman when my truck overheated and one a neighboring town policeman for speeding.

Both saw the variety of gun related stickers on the back of my truck. Both knew I have a concealed handgun license before they approached me because my CHL is tied to my DL and my DL is tied to my vehicle registration, and they obviously run the plate before getting out of the car. Both of them were told I was armed, as I am required to do, and neither of them freaked out/did felony stop/cuff me/drag me by the hair/slam me on the hood of their car.

Maybe more Mass cops think they are superior to the "serfs"? The people who "trained" you apparently have a serious attitude problem towards those of us who exercise our right to be armed.

I do not believe that means a person is a threat, but it does imply that they could be armed.

If gun stickers are your clue that the person you just stopped may be armed, you are already WAY behind the power curve. If a person is not a threat, WTF does it matter if he is armed? If you do not suspect them to be armed, does that make you drop your guard?

Some veteran, full time police officers have given you good advice and you have dismissed it, even though you are a part timer. I can't help you.

 

[Saint]

I know I only have a fraction of the experience that most police officers have. I know the sticker is not PC in itself but it could make the officer more aware of other facts. Which is what I have been taught, to "pay particular attention to them".

I also did not want to go into a legal debate, but it sort of happened.

Some officers do not care, some pay more attention, etc.

I mean no disrespect to anyone, and I have not dismissed anyone's advice. I am passing alone unpopular information and taking flak for it.

Like LenS said:

"EC, I read somewhere in LE circles that they are teaching recruits that possession of gun stickers on an automobile may be a clue to "terrorist tendencies". I'm not kidding either!


I am dropping this subject and probably will not respond again. I have voiced what I have heard from several veteran officers and I believe addressed the original posters question.

 

[Carguy]

Who needs stickers?

This is about the only "identifying" symbol I'd display. Only a shooter would get it.

I saw a pick-up truck this morning with a "Protected by Smith & Wesson" sticker on the back. I had to smile but felt there is no need to advertise. Just like we say why would some people carry exposed even if it is legal...just telling everyone you possess guns. Most of us have permits for concealed carry so "no one knows we carry"...why put a sign on your car? Knowing there are weapons in a home might deter the neighborhood kid from breaking in but if a hard core criminal were to know, it may be the temptation he needs. Again I feel there is no need to advertise.

 

[Twigg]

"Terrorist Hunting Permit"

Hmmm. Methinks I need one.
I really, really enjoy pissing off moonbats !

 

[Len-2A Training]

Saint,

Some wise LEOs will tell you "it's not the ones I KNOW that are armed that worry me . . . it's the ones I do NOT know about that can kill me"!

Almost no gang-bangers/criminals have LTCs and most of them won't put gun stickers on a car to give you a clue. So you have to rely on instinct (spidey sense), some education but mostly "street sense" that you only gain from OJT hopefully with well experienced officers.

Yes, some idiotic anti-2A LEOs are spreading the "if they like guns, they may be a terrorist" BS. There's nothing to this, except that some rookies may go out there making trouble for everyone due to lack of experience and ignorant instructors.

What I've learned in the real world is that gun owners consist of a lot of the following types of people:

- Doctors, dentists, surgeons, bank presidents, bank managers, business owners, lawyers, real estate agents, plumbers, electricians, carpenters, software engineers/managers, tons of high tech workers, tons of engineers.

In my 31 years as a gun owner, member of 4 gun clubs, etc. I haven't met one gun owner yet who would fit any part of the definition of a terrorist.

 

[vellnueve]

When Boston PD pulled me over for speeding, the cop didn't even blink, just explained my traffic violation, wrote the ticket, explained it, and sent me on my way.

I say that too many cops are painted with the anti brush. I'm not a cop and probably never will be, but IIRC cops are supposed to treat every traffic stop as a dangerous situation.

 

[springer]

Gun stickers are one thing, but what's up with the morons that put on the "search my car" stickers. I'll shake my head in amazement when I see these people with greatful dead, legalize it, or my favorite "Bad cop, no donut" bumper stickers on their cars. The last one deserves a tazing.

 

[Rockrivr1]

BTW: I believe AG Scott Harshbarger prohibited all LEO associations from giving away stickers to donors. I don't know if that edict is still in effect but I haven't seen a "donor" sticker in many years.

I'm thinking this is not in effect anymore. The Middlesex County Sheriff gives decals out in the yearly swearing in ceremony for their Deputy Sheriff's Association. Not to mention ID cards and badges. I wouldn't put one of these on my car though.

I don't put any stickers on my car as I don't want anything there to make me stand out. My US Navy licence plate frame is as far as I go.

This is bad, but I've actually stopped wearing firearm related T-Shirts when out riding my mountain bike. I had an incident one time where a car came awefully close to me on RT16 to the point where I had to go up onto someones lawn to not be hit. The driver was staring right at me as he passed so it was no accident. He had several liberal bumper stickers on his car. I was wearing my Four Season's Firearms T-Shirt that has the logo across the back. The down side is that I learned first hand to be anonymous when it comes to my firearm ownership. For good or bad.

 

[ArmedMainer]

If you are afraid to voice your opinions in public and stand up for what you believe in...you've become a victim of the culture war and allowed the other side to win. You've surrendered without a fight!

Display them tastefully, but display them.

Talk about hitting the nail on the head !!! Gun haters and non-gun owners NEED to see gun owners are the same people that work and live in the same community as they do. They need to see first hand that the line of bull that the MSM is feeding them isn't true. Well worded ronbok.