What's wrong with gay bears? Some of my best friends are gay bears. I've been called one myself, in fact. Woof.

(Explanation for the straight folk: A "bear", amongst gay men, is, very loosely speaking, a man who does not tend to the standard effiminate pretty boy stereotype of gay men. Bears tend to be bearded and stocky, very generally speaking, although I prefer the definition "if you self-identify as a bear, you're a bear.")

"I'm not a member of any organized political party. I'm a Democrat." -- Will Rogers

No sleight intended. It was a gratuitous reference to the irrational fears so prevalent in our state. I should have added "and make you get an abortion while burning the flag."

(And curiously, for some reason I am familiar with the slang.)

I was invited to an Appalachian Bears Club party a few years ago.

Great fun!

Visit us at

The Home

Comments at the KNS are quite entertaining:

Sweet! Taking mine up there this weekend

Is an IQ test part of the carry permit process?

I usually carry some form of "bear spray" when I go hiking off trail. I found an interesting link via the intertubes while googling. pepperspray vs gun

(link...)

Simple Explanation is Best.

Self defense is a human right. On that I think both progressives and conservatives and liberals and Martians and gay bears can agree.

Licensed concealed carry of handguns for personal protection is becoming more and more common, and is permitted in about 44 or 45 states if I remember correctly. Vermont, a very progressive state, uses the state drivers license as the only "permit" one needs to carry concealed there, as it allows all adult Vermont citizens to carry legally.

If someone near you is carrying a handgun concealed, you should never know, and likely never will know , especially if they are licensed. Holders of handgun carry licenses are among the most law abiding of all citizens, committing both minor and major crimes at a much lower rate than the general population.

Every day when you are in public, you are likely to pass by licensed concealed-handgun-carrying individuals and never know it. Look for the slight bulge under the shirt, often on the right hip. Sometimes it isn't just a love handle. I wear one when carrying large amounts of cash, and so far as I know it has gone unnoticed by anyone, ever.

Most impetus for the change in this federal regulation was the inconvenience caused to legal gun owners, when they drove down a lonely country road, and repeatedly passed in or out of national parks. Going from NC to TN it is very easy to cross a park boundary. And if your handgun was in the car legally on one side of the park boundary, you could get in legal trouble for possession of it, or improper storage of it, or just hassled for having it, on the other side of the boundary.

In this country we try to avoid making criminals out of those individuals acting innocently, with no harmful intent to others, who are exercising a simple human right that is also a right specified in the US Constitution.

The rule change eliminates an opportunity for government harassment of otherwise law-abiding citizens. It also allows those who feel it necessary to provide for their self defense, primarily against two legged predators, to follow state laws which they are already familiar with, having gotten licensed in their state.

It is not the law abiding gun owner you should worry about in a national park.

Looks like SayUncle must have linked to this post. Checking...

UPDATE: Nope. Close. Number Nine, in comments at SayUncle.

OK, then.

Dear President-Elect Obama:

This rule is bullshit.

Repeal at your discretion if you're not too much of a pussy to stare down the gun lobby.

____________________________

Dirty deeds done dirt cheap! Special holidays, Sundays and rates!

Simple Explanation is Best.

Feeding fears. Why are gun nuts themselves so fearful?

Householder shoots home invader and that's no problem as that is clearly in self-defense.

My problem is that home invader too often turns our to be brother-in-law. Or well-meaning neighbor who thought that was the week householder was out of town. Or householder's child looking for a midnight snack.

I have a carry permit but haven't carried a weapon for about three years. I'm not sure how I feel on this issue but protection from animals is not justified. I understand a few carrying to defend themselves from the two legged attackers since that accounts for most of the deaths.

Bears are know to charge when visitors get too close but usually stop when the individual retreats. Carrying a weapon to defend yourself from bears is not justified. Carrying weapon to defend the bear's life is justified.

Anyone carrying a gun in the park, other than passing through, should register at park headquarters, buy an additional permit, receive a briefing on animal behavior, list the trails they plan to visit, and notify park HQ when leaving.

Another problem in the park is with heavily congested areas like Cades Cove, where tempers seem to run high whenever the traffic slows, i.e., almost normally. Almost every time I've been through there in the last 10-15 years, I've witnessed rude exchanges (--though maybe it was just my presence!). Many might point out that guns have been there all along anyway, just not legally, but I think it's a bad idea to legalize gun toting without fixing the core congestion problems.

Many who favor legalizing guns in parks also believe each individual has entitlement to drive his/her own fossil fuel guzzler through the parks without limit or even a small fee. The Jimmy Duncan "fiercely independent" types come to mind.