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U.S. Sen. Coburn Runs Poll On Whether "Concealed Carry" Should be Allowed in Parks

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When last we left U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, it was believed that he was going to introduce an amendment to legalize the carrying of loaded weapons in national parks. Now he's taking a poll on that question.

Of course, there's no way this will be a scientific poll, as either side -- proponents or opponents -- could "stuff" the ballot box.

When I checked out the poll, it reported that it had received 2,553 votes, and that 87 percent were in favor of his amendment, and 14 percent opposed. Those are the right numbers, even if they do add up to 101 percent. Must be a rounding error.

Comments

I agree with you Joel that we're probably talking about a very small number of people that would be carrying guns in National Parks if it were made legal, and I do believe that most gun owners are quite responsible. My problem with a change in the law and what I was emphasizing in my letter to Sen. Coburn is the potential increase in accidental shootings or the like that might result from having more guns in the parks. A couple years ago at a mall where I live a guy in JCPenney went to pay for his merchandise and as he was getting his money out, his concealed pistol went off and he shot himself in the foot. Those are the kinds of accidents that I think are avoided under the current law that requires guns to be locked away in National Parks.


II own a handgun and carry it in my RV. I do not have a CCW and I do not carry the weapon on me but I have on my property and legal or not there it will stay. It is protection from an intruder only. I see no need to carry a concealed weapon in a National Park. Let's face it if you are carrying concealed for protection from animals, a handgun is only going to make them mad.


In the old west everybody carried a gun. We all know how safe that made everybody! In old Chicago, everyone carried a gun. We all know how safe THAT was. Even today many victims of violent crime are carrying guns at the time, or have guns in their homes or vehicles. Some people end up shot with their own gun. Others have had their guns taken away from them and used in the commission of other crimes. I don't think anyone has a problem with Nbar having a gun in his RV, as long as that's where it stays. While technically illegal, the Park Service isn't going to shake him down. Heck, I sleep with a canister of bear spray under my pillow in mine. It's not there for bears. I do that because I'm not always camped in a National Park. Sometimes I'm camped in a Wal Mart parking lot on the road. I've never had a problem. This law is more about people openly carrying loaded guns in places where poaching is a real problem (with which rangers already have their hands full), places where violent crime is extremely low (as low as anywhere in the country), places where some of our most valued national treasures are housed, places where we proudly show off the best of the best of our country to foreign visitors, places where we take our children and grandchildren, our parents and grandparents to recreate.
Arguing that criminals are always going to break the law and carry guns makes no sense. That is like saying, "People are always going to speed, so why have speed limits?" or, "Some people will always manufacture and sell dope (and others use it), so why have laws against it?" Heck, for that matter, people are always going to rob banks.....if robbing banks is illegal, then only criminals will rob banks (and get in on all that extra cash!!) How fair is that?
If we only pass (or keep) laws that everyone is going to follow, we won't have ANY laws. Then we truly will be back to the days of the old west.


For those of you who do feel unsafe in National Parks, you can thank in part the willful disobeying of federal law by sanctuary city governments that have encouraged millions of illegal aliens to flock across our borders. The result is mountains of trash on our federal lands and crimes of all types in our parks and elsewhere. Cities are setting the example of pick and choose laws that we should obey or break and there is no punishment from the federal government. Now that the precedent has been set, what other federal laws will cities choose to ignore in the future? How about clean air or ground water pollution? At least Senator Coburn is trying to change a law with legislation and not telling us to ignore it!


Sorry Bill, You must have misread..."There is no such thing for private citizens to obtain a National Concealed Carry Permit" is what I actually said. I would love to get my hands on a National Concealed Carry Permit. Just no such thing.


Frank

A criminal is one who breaks the law. He is different from a person who obeys the law. Guns are tools like knives, hammers, rat poison, etc. It is a set of laws and what a person does with those tools that defines criminal behavior. For instance, if a person puts rat poison in someones meal he is a criminal. It does not mean that the rest of us can not use rat poison in our homes to control rats.

I hope this helps.
Joe


The right to own and carry a firearm is a Constitutionally protected right. While a leftist judiciary has sought to infringe on that right by imposing limitations, which only law abiding citizens respect, the fact remains that the right to own firearms and to use them in self defense is enshrined in the Constitution. The reference to a "well regulated militia" simply acknowledged that citizens could be called up at any moment, and in the 18th century world of the founders, those citizens would be required to furnish their own firearms.

I wonder how Frank would feel if he were required to secure a permit and to have his opinions approved before posting on this forum. How would he respond to restrictions on speech within the National Parks? Since insensitive remarks can lead to violence, and peace is the only legitimate objective, maybe his opinions and vocabulary should undergo a review on entry to the parks. On many college campuses the left is trying to do just that by imposing speech codes and other arbitrary restrictions on 1st amendment rights.

This totalitarian impulse on the part of leftist "do gooders" must be challenged by freedom loving people at every turn, lest we find ourselves with no rights or, pehaps as bad, find that those rights have been so diluted that they become meaningless.

Finally, it seems that like most leftists Frank places his feelings above the facts. It's true that there was violence in the old west. It's also true that the "wild west", where everyone was armed, was considerably less violent than the eastern cities where gun restrictions were in place. While the media does not report it, every state that has enacted a "right to carry" law has seen their crime rate go down. More guns, less crime.


Art, you say: the fact remains that the right to own firearms and to use them in self defense is enshrined in the Constitution.

Where in the Constitution is the right to use firearms for self-defense enshrined? All it says is "the right to keep and bear arms". To bear, of course, means to carry or possess. While the founding fathers have approved your right to own firearms, there is nothing that says they have an "enshrined" right to use them.


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