Benefits?
I don't have to dress around my gun.
I don't have to worry about cover garments.
I don't have sweat buildup or sore spots from an IWB holster.
I don't have to figure out how to access my gun if I'm in a car (yes, I have my CHL).
I can actually get conversations started about firearms (good, bad or otherwise).
OC could be a deterrent. Police stopped a group of suspicious-looking bad guys in a Waffle House parking lot in Kennesaw, GA several years ago. The officers found guns in the car and were told that the bad guys were planning to rob the Waffle House, but were waiting for a group of open carriers to leave.
Bad guys are primarily opportunists. They aren't looking to shoot their victims. The OC'er that had his gun stolen at a McDonald's? The bad guy did not shoot him to obtain his gun. The OC'er that had his brand new gun stolen at gunpoint in Gresham, OR? The bad guy did not shoot him to obtain his gun. The OC'er that had his gun stolen in Newport News, VA? The bad guys did not shoot him to obtain his gun.
Why then, do people perpetuate the scenario of the OC'er being the first one to be shot during a robbery?
I have to believe these folks aren't aware of just how UNaware the average person is when it comes to openly carried holstered handguns. There are SO many phone cases hanging from belts today that a holstered handgun doesn't attract that much attention. When it does, it only causes alarm if the person that sees it is an anti-gunner (in my experience).
To think that a robber is going to walk through and look at the belt line of every customer before deciding to rob a store...? Really?
Police and security guards may wind up being shot first, but that's because they are police and security guards. It has nothing to do with the fact that they open carry.
I've made my choice. I've made my choice after some critical, informed thought. If you s=choose to call my choice "stupid" or some other derogatory term, so be it. I celebrate the 1st Amendment almost as much as the 2nd.