Pretty much everyone agrees that people shouldn\u2019t have guns in planes and bars. Guns don\u2019t mix well with alcohol. But what about other places?<\/p>\n
For more than 30 years Washington, D.C. has outlawed gun ownership in your own home. Interestingly, DC has also had one of America\u2019s highest homicide rates for 30 years. Hmmmmm.<\/p>\n
I have talked to people here who support the DC gun ban. But when I ask if they would put a sticker on their front door announcing, \u201cThis House is Gun-Free: no firearms inside\u201d, they all say no. Why let criminals know you\u2019re defenseless, they say. Exactly. The U.S. Supreme Court is considering the constitutionality of the D.C. gun ban, and will likely strike it down.<\/p>\n
What about guns in National Parks? Fifty-one U.S. senators recently wrote the US Interior Secretary, asking him to lift the restrictions on law-abiding people carrying a gun into a National park. Immediately a chorus of opposition arose, singing the same stanza: \u201cWhy would anyone need a gun in a National Park?\u201d<\/p>\n
Well, I can think of two good reasons.<\/p>\n
First, consistency. I went hiking in Alaska\u2019s Tongass National Forest three years ago while visiting Sitka. While checking in at the local ranger station, the ranger asked if I had protection \u201cin case you encounter a bear.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHuh?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe recommend that hikers carry some kind of protection, whether it\u2019s bear spray or a gun.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA gun?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d she said. She went on to say that they advise hikers how to deter chance meetings with bears (make noise when hiking, especially when rounding corners, wear bells, or blow occasionally on a whistle), but if you\u2019re attacked, you have to be able to defend yourself. The alternative is … well, not to defend yourself.<\/p>\n
I opted for the spray. But while firearms are allowed in Alaska\u2019s Tongass National Forest, they are banned in Alaska\u2019s Denali National Park. Does that make any sense? A bear is a bear and both places have them.<\/p>\n
Two years ago while hiking with the family in the northern uplands of Yellowstone National Park, we thought we saw an elk in the distance. When the \u201celk\u201d was about 250 feet away, it became clear that it was a grizzly and was headed in our direction. Nothing happened, but if it charged<\/p>\n
and all deterrence failed, what is a husband and father to do? According to park rules, anything except using lethal force against it. What dad wouldn\u2019t use lethal force to protect his children?<\/p>\n
The second reason that guns should be permitted in National Parks is reasonableness. Washington state law regulates responsible gun ownership, including a provision to allow law-abiding citizens who pass a background check to carry a concealed firearm. But upon entering a National Park in this state, you have to remove, unload and store it. Why? If I can be trusted to carry a firearm in a busy city or a small town, what suddenly changes when I approach the entrance to Mount Rainier National Park?<\/p>\n
The National Park proposal simply extends state law to the National Parks inside that state. The only reason not to do that is blind opposition to guns, period. The reason for the 80-year-old regulation in the first place wasn\u2019t safety, it was poaching. Not many people poach big game with pistols.<\/p>\n
John Carlson hosts a daily radio program with KOMO 4\u2019s Ken Schram each weekday from 3-6 p.m. on AM 570 KVI. He also broadcasts daily radio commentary on KOMO 1000 news. E-mail him at johncarlson@komoradio.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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