I open carry pretty much whenever I'm not at home. The only times I conceal are when I go to the parties the MC in Fremont have, when I'm in my sweat pants (LCP is great for that), or at the gym because the LCP is just much better than trying, and failing, to have my M&P on me at the time. I used to spend a lot of time at Bucky's off of 204th in Elkhorn at night. Cops would come by all the time. I actually became friends with a few of them due to how often they'd stop by for coffee. Here are my experiences there. One deputy said it was illegal where we were, which it wasn't but he actually did believe it was. He was, very clearly, just looking out for me because he never tried to get me in trouble. In fact, he is one of the cops I consider to be a friend. A female deputy, who I consider a friend, asked why I had a gun and just asked a few questions around that, but in a curious fashion rather than accusative. Never brought up after those questions, and I was told she even asked about me at times to see how I was doing if she hadn't seen me in a while. A cop who looked fresh out of the academy looked a tad nervous, but his TO couldn't have cared less. However, by OCing, it is very probable it prevented a robbery one night shortly after I had received my permit. Cops were called and, when describing the situation, they looked at each other like "Yup, he was here to rob it." While CC gives a tactical advantage in terms of surprise, OC gives the advantage of being a deterrent.
Here are some of my other experiences in Omaha over the past year or so.
Buffalo Wild Wings - No sign, nothing had been said until one assistant manager saw. She raised a huge stink about it, so unprofessional that the table next to us made a comment about how it was ridiculous and they had no issues with OC.
Texas Roadhouse - Asked to not OC (After probably 8 visits while OCing), but CC was fine.
Walmart at 168th & Maple - Manager had 0 problems with it, but one random employee in the middle of the night lied and said they had signs and what not. No other employee had ever said anything negative, and I actually talked to a couple about guns and what not.
Alamo Drafthouse - No issues, but one screening, on an extremely busy day, a manager came up to me, and was very discreet about everything, and asked if he could see my permit. Due to how he asked, I showed him. He said he had no issues with it, but just wanted to look out for the safety of everyone and try to make sure no one was there to do harm. Told me to enjoy the movie after. I really respected that. Looking out for the safety of the attendees, while not infringing.
Marcus Majestic, Village Inn, IHOP, Best Buy, Dairy Queen, Menards, ACE Hardware, and others - No issues.
The issues have been extremely few and far between, most people around here just seem to not care much. You'll always have those few that try to ruin it, but they aren't abundant here. I've also had a few people come up to me to ask about guns, how to get a permit, where to take the class, etc. Those experiences have greatly outweighed the few negative experiences. I also strongly believe that the more people who see normal, everyday people OCing, it'll show them that people carry guns all the time and they don't do anything criminal and so it'll expand their view on the subject and may make them less likely to view gun owners negatively. You definitely should be on your best behavior while OCing, however, as you are, essentially, representing the gun community. You also should have an active retention holster. I use the Safariland 7378 and I absolutely love it. It's very comfortable, holds tight to my body, and gives me peace of mind, especially since I installed the, very minimal, ALS guard.
Now, something I haven't seen mentioned is the restrictions on OC vs CC in the law in Nebraska. NRS 69-2441, which governs places off limits (except federal buildings and schools), only applies to concealed carry. If you are open carrying, legally you can ignore NRS 69-2441. I've only ever done so a handful of times, because it really doesn't come up much at all, but I felt that information should be known so you are able to make the most informed decision.
