Packing Heat in State Parks

[ElCid03]

I just wanted to share with my fellow Virginians and board members that you may now once again open carry in all state parks. Our intrepid governor decided that resolving this key issue trumped all others, such as raiding the VRS to balance the budget, and made resolution of this problem a key victory in 2011 for his administration.

Don't forget your three point slings.....does anyone else out there feel is necessary to bring their SKS with them to the park? I'm honestly curious what EB thinks on this one. Perhaps I'm just not Palinized enough. (Could it be for the lack of moose in the Old Dominion?)

 

[Dleg]

Yee Haw!

 

[frazil]

F-ya!

FYI-did you know it's illegal to throw a moose out of an airplane in Palin-state?!

 

[Dleg]

^No! Dammit! [crossing "skydive with Moose" off bucket list]

 

[wilheldp_PE]

^No! Dammit! [crossing "skydive with Moose" off bucket list]

You can still do it...just not in the land of Palin and rppearso.

 

[Master slacker]

And it said "throw". "Push" is not the same as "throw". Maybe the land of rppearso doesn't want people to get big and strong to the point that they CAN "THROW" a moose to begin with.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

^No! Dammit! [crossing "skydive with Moose" off bucket list]

You can still do it...just not in the land of Palin and rppearso.

Oh, you can do it...just don't get caught.

And FWIW, I wouldn't drop a dime on someone who was bada$$ enough to throw a moose out of a plane.

 

[ALBin517]

.....does anyone else out there feel is necessary to bring their SKS with them to the park? I'm honestly curious what EB thinks on this one. Perhaps I'm just not Palinized enough. (Could it be for the lack of moose in the Old Dominion?)

I carry my Glock with me, concealed, pretty much everywhere. It's better to have it and not need it. And thankfully, I am exempt from pistol-free zones so I can carry almost everywhere except federal buildings.

 

[cableguy]

Well, I recently got my concealed handgun license, and just recently purchased my second handgun (a S&W Bodyguard 380... first was a Glock 27).

As of yet, I have not carried either of them (concealed, of course) out in public. I need more trigger time with both (I've not even fired the S&W yet). I have been carrying around the house, just to get more comfortable with it. The Glock rides in a tuckable holster, the S&W can go in a pocket. Even though the Glock is a subcompact, I'm not a big guy, so the Glock on my waist still prints and give me a weird hump. The S&W is very discreet.

Would I carry in a state park? You betcha. Why? Snakes and weirdos. Lotta meth heads in them thar hills.

Would I open carry? Nope. Honestly, I don't like open carry. It scares a lot of people (the non-gun people). It intimidates a lot of people. No matter what the OC crowd says, those are the facts. Keep it concealed. Don't ask / don't tell.

Why do I want to carry? Because I can. And to protect me and my family. I'm not the cops. I'm not going after criminals. But if they come after me, at least I have something to fall back on.

 

[ALBin517]

Well, personally, I don't own / carry any firearms unless I am in combat. I am not against gun owners, but I don't think that people need to carry weapons with them everywhere they go. To me it is a matter of statistics. Most people who tend to carry guns never have and never will need to use them. In the extremely rare instance that it would have been good to have a gun, a resourceful person can usually find another method of self defense.

I think it is a matter of personal responsibility. Folks will complain about law enforcement response time. Folks will complain about cutbacks to police departments. Why not do something about it instead?

To me, if you want anything - including personal protection - the best way is to do it yourself.

Well, I recently got my concealed handgun license, and just recently purchased my second handgun (a S&W Bodyguard 380... first was a Glock 27).
As of yet, I have not carried either of them (concealed, of course) out in public. I need more trigger time with both (I've not even fired the S&W yet). I have been carrying around the house, just to get more comfortable with it. The Glock rides in a tuckable holster, the S&W can go in a pocket. Even though the Glock is a subcompact, I'm not a big guy, so the Glock on my waist still prints and give me a weird hump. The S&W is very discreet.

Would I carry in a state park? You betcha. Why? Snakes and weirdos. Lotta meth heads in them thar hills.

Would I open carry? Nope. Honestly, I don't like open carry. It scares a lot of people (the non-gun people). It intimidates a lot of people. No matter what the OC crowd says, those are the facts. Keep it concealed. Don't ask / don't tell.

Why do I want to carry? Because I can. And to protect me and my family. I'm not the cops. I'm not going after criminals. But if they come after me, at least I have something to fall back on.

Secluded areas like parks are great for criminal activity. State parks in Michigan also have wolves, bears, boars, etc.

I regularly carry a Glock 23 in a CompTac MTAC in-waistband holster. If I tuck my shirt, it barely prints. Usually I don't tuck my shirt and it's invisible. It's only a half inch bigger than the G27, each way.

Be careful with pocket carry. I pocket carry my G23 in a coat sometimes but always in a holster that covers the trigger.

I think open carry is a poor choice. It's a good way to get charged with disorderly conduct in a lot of areas. Most the guys who open carry in Michigan are out to prove a point, but I'm not sure what point that is.

 

[goodal]

I have concealed carry and do so alot of the time. Not to prove a point, but just in case. I carry a Ruger LCP 380 at the ankle and it is very comfortable. I make it a point to carry to church. With all the wackos out there i can just see one of them wanting to become immortal by shooting a bunch of baptist.

as cableguy said "Why do I want to carry? Because I can. And to protect me and my family. I'm not the cops. I'm not going after criminals. But if they come after me, at least I have something to fall back on. " i dont want to rely on my taekwondo skills to fend some nut off my family. If someone had carried in tuscon a couple weeks ago, we would be listening to a different story entirely.

I dont open carry though. i think the average joe is asking for trouble to do that.

 

[Road Guy]

we started doing hikes on the AT with the boy scout troop, some state parks, some national forest, I dont like the idea of taking 30 young boys out into the woods overnight, especially in this area that has had several women recently abducted and found beheaded, so I take a small revolver with me, worn on my ankle with special care to make sure none of the boys know anything about it, in some places theres not safety even in numbers...and you may be more likely to need something way out of the way in a state park than you will driving through "the bad part of town"

there are real stories every day of people using firearms for self defense, there not on the news because the media is anti-gun, so you only hear about the bad instances, but read through your local police blotter in the paper and you will see it, buried on page 72

There also seem to be many more news stories in atlanta recently of home invasions, people tied up, horrible things done to their daughters and wives, so I totally beleive in safe gun ownership and practice it at my household, and its something I hope never gets used for anything but target practice and shooting coyote's at my relatives farm...

 

[roadwreck]

...especially in this area that has had several women recently abducted and found beheaded...

I know that was a big reason that the issue of carrying weapons in state parks was recently resurrected here, but to my knowledge that only happened once didn't it?

 

[Road Guy]

we got a warning sent out by the National Park Service to all Boy Scouts that use the AT that there were three incidents they didnt state the exact issue but the finding the womans head sort of creeped me out to be honest..

 

[roadwreck]

we got a warning sent out by the National Park Service to all Boy Scouts that use the AT that there were three incidents they didnt state the exact issue but the finding the womans head sort of creeped me out to be honest..

if it makes you feel any better the girl was abducted from a state park, but they didn't find the head in a state park. They found it just a few miles down the road from where my parents live...

 

[cableguy]

There WAS a concealed hangun owner at the Arizona shooting.

See http://forums.1911forum.com/showthread.php?t=298526

He opted not to fire, I do believe he was one of the people who tackled or went after the assailant. You have to make a decision as to whether or not to draw. One thing we're taught is that you are 100% responsible where your bullets go. If they go clean through the perp and kill an innocent bystander in the background, in Texas you can be charged with manslaughter, even though it was accidental. So you have to keep your eyes open (even through the tunnel vision) and know what's going on around you. In a political crowd situation, I don't see how one could have safely returned fire without hitting bystanders. He made the right decision, IMO.

I'm not a gun nut. I hadn't fired a pistol since 1994 (before November of last year, when I got my license... I walked up to the firing test and began shooting for the test.. the first pistol I'd fired in over 15 years. And I passed the "test". )

How about a couple cliche's...

I carry a gun because a cop is too heavy...

When seconds count, the police are only minutes away...

etc...

I live in a nice neighborhood in the country. We've had some crime out there recently - not in my hood, but a couple of miles away - a home invasion, a large daytime burglary (caught 4 guys loading a trailer with stuff), etc. I don't want to rely on the Sheriff to get to my house in the country...

{Edit: oh, about the BG380 / pocket carry... of course in a small holster. Gotta keep the trigger covered, even though the pull is long and it's fairly stiff, and the BG380 has a thumb safety (that I honestly won't use). I have an Uncle Mike's cheapo pocket holster until I find something else I like. The G27 rides in a Crossbreed Supertuck.}

 

[ALBin517]

If someone had carried in tuscon a couple weeks ago, we would be listening to a different story entirely.

The difference in the story would be, "gunman kills XX people, and would-be hero kills XX more people." That is a much more realistic scenario.

I have not followed that story closely but don't think it would have been nearly that bad. If even 10% of the crowd was armed, the dude would have not been allowed to wander through the crowd and shoot a number of people at point blank range. Sounds like he was like a wolf in the hen house.

 

[Road Guy]

we got a warning sent out by the National Park Service to all Boy Scouts that use the AT that there were three incidents they didnt state the exact issue but the finding the womans head sort of creeped me out to be honest..

if it makes you feel any better the girl was abducted from a state park, but they didn't find the head in a state park. They found it just a few miles down the road from where my parents live...

terrific.....

I have always thought your in more danger out in the sticks than you are in the city

 

[ALBin517]

[No message]

 

[roadwreck]

terrific.....
I have always thought your in more danger out in the sticks than you are in the city

you're probably right, but I don't think it's due to crime. A big problem with living "out in the sticks" is medical services response time. In a major city you usually can have an ambulance or firetruck at your door pretty quickly. Out in the sticks it takes a while.

Moral of the story? Don't hurt yourself when you are out in the sticks.