Don’t Telegraph

The dictionary defines telegraphing as “To convey (an intentional or unconscious message), especially with facial expression or body language. ‘A tiny movement of his arm telegraphed his intention to strike.’”

Being situationally aware also means watching a suspicious person’s actions. A criminal will often “telegraph” his or her intention, changing a foot position, looking around to see who is watching, etc. In boxing or martial arts, you would watch for a “tell,” a drop of a shoulder before a punch is thrown, the movement of a hip before a kick. But what about us? Do we telegraph our weaknesses or strengths? Do we show signs in our clothing, stickers on our cars, or how we carry ourselves that give information to a predator or just someone with a different opinion? So, how did this conversation come about?

I was talking to someone about a recent change in Florida Law, the open carrying of a firearm. It is now legal to open carry in Florida, as of September 25, 2025, following a court decision that overturned a longstanding ban. However, it is still prohibited in many specific locations, including airports, schools, courthouses, polling places, and government buildings.

Now, make no mistake, I am a strong proponent of the Second Amendment, but this is about announcing “I am armed” to possible criminal elements. Several years ago, I was in Savannah, Georgia, visiting friends when we went to a diner for breakfast. When I sat down, I noticed an older gentleman sitting on the aisle side of a booth with what I assumed was his wife and another couple. On his left hip, facing that aisle and in plain view, this gentleman had a revolver on his belt in what I would describe as a crummy snap holster.

Normally, I wouldn’t do it, but I just had to say something. I went over to the booth and politely introduced myself as a law enforcement officer and at the time, a SWAT operator. I told him I respected his Second Amendment rights and just wanted to point out that in my opinion, his sitting with a gun in plain view could cause some negative outcomes.

Some examples, if I were going to rob this diner, seeing his handgun in plain view might cause me to just shoot him first before he could even react. Also, walking down that aisle, could someone grab that revolver in that crummy holster and take possession of it? Now I know that he was most likely carrying that handgun openly because he wanted to announce to the world that he could do just that. But in reality, he was telegraphing to the world his possible strong points without being aware that he would be playing catch-up to someone else’s actions. Like we used to say in SWAT, action is always faster than reaction.

The gentleman agreed with my thoughts on the subject, and we parted friends with his shirttail now untucked. So, regarding the change in the Florida open carry law, my view on that is just don’t do it, especially just to make a point on your views. If you decide after proper training to carry a weapon for protection, remember, it’s called concealed carry for a reason.

Now, since most of us are not going to stop into our local grocery store today for some eggs and milk with a “hog leg” strapped to our leg, let’s look at telegraphing in general. I always cringed during my time as a law enforcement officer in Syracuse when the hat and t-shirt craze started. My buddies started wearing t-shirts printed with sayings like “be safe tonight sleep with a cop,” “I don’t call 911,” and “my best friends are Smith and Wesson.” And hats with a police FBI, ICE, or a political logo, as we have seen, can lead to an unpleasant encounter. Do you really want or need that in your life?

You get the idea - announcing your occupation, political beliefs, or pro Second Amendment views is not always a great idea and might lead to a negative encounter with someone a bit off center regarding your beliefs. Understand, I am NOT saying we should be afraid to express our views or be proud of our occupations or even our political or religious beliefs in the right environment. What I am saying in a conversation on how to be safer in our everyday lives, there are some common sense ideas on how to not telegraph our advantages or opinions. The idea is not to make any statement at all, be vanilla.

That does not mean acting weak or subservient; on the contrary, as I discuss when talking about being situationally aware, carry yourself upright and with self-assurance. Eyes up, even make brief eye contact with people in front of you. Think of yourself like an uncarved piece of granite, project a strength but as there is no actual carving on the granite, that granite appears strong but really has no specific statement or message. It’s just being smart about our safety.

I remember back in the early 80s I had a friend who loved Le Mans-style auto racing. Andy and his wife traveled all over the world to watch the races. I remember him telling me that when they traveled out of the USA, they wore clothing with Canadian markings because of the terrorist activity going on in Europe back in the 80s. Were they ashamed to be Americans? Of course not, they were just being safe; heck, everybody loves Canadians.

We just did a trip to France and Germany last June. I have a bunch of USA flag hats and shirts; I wisely left them at home. We all love to wear our bling but there might be certain times during traveling that the Rolex watch or Prada handbag should stay home. Again, how are we presenting ourselves, what message are we sending out?

On our vehicles, advertising your favorite handgun with a window sticker like GLOCK or SIG lets someone know you probably have a gun in your vehicle. The very colorful Poke County Florida Sheriff Grady Judd just did an interview on open carry; you can find it on YouTube. Part of his statement is “there are some real bad people out there who will take that gun away from you, stick it up your butt and pull the trigger.” Regarding stickers on your car, just don’t.

And if you are going to carry a gun in your car and decide to leave your gun in the car, like when you go into a government building or like I do when I go to the gym, PLEASE go on Amazon and buy a cabled gun safe for about $35. That gun gets stolen out of your glove box and two weeks later, some kid gets shot with your stolen gun; that’s on you. Can a handicapped tag telegraph an issue? I believe that a predator, a road rage driver, might see that handicapped tag and think he or she can perhaps be more aggressive with the driver of that car.

Handicapped tags, I don’t like them. The window tag hanger works just fine and ONLY hang it when you are parking. Once done, pull it and stick it in the side door pocket. Remember, it's sometimes better to go unnoticed in our lives, be that uncarved piece of granite.