How do you know?

In an article about bringing legal open carry to Texas, there is a quote from the North Texas Brady Bunch president:

If you see someone with a holster on, are you just to assume this is a law-abiding person? Are you to assume this person is safe to be around your family?

Now there's a pro-gun rights blogger meme out there where you change a couple of words around and the statement becomes racist, sexist, homophobic, or what have you. I'll do something similar but more milquetoast:

If you see someone, are you just to assume this is a law-abiding person? Are you to assume this person is safe to be around your family?

The short answer is, no.

You shouldn't assume anything, and it applies just as much to people who aren't openly carrying guns as it does to people who are.

The truth is you can't know what anyone is going to do. The best you can do is pay attention to how they act, and have some sort of a defensive tool, like a gun, if they do act to cause harm.

I personally think open carry would be a great thing to have, but not something I would do very much in town.