I don't see anything in this story that deals with state parks.

Guns in Acadia won't be affecting the tourism industry Ms. Pingree. That's a fact. Just think of other places where CC'ing is allowed.

You can hunt in many State Parks that is why it isn't mentioned. Gee, wouldn't want to have a gun on hand in many western National Parks while camping and a grizzly bear decides to make you his midnight snack. Glad to hear the Friends of Acadia still exist. I was wondering what they were doing with over $10 million bucks just sitting in the bank. Hmm, how about spending some of it there...not all, just some. After all, you are a nonprofit and should be expending funds on Acadia.

Who in their right mind would carry open on the Appalachian trail, or in a busy national park setting. That being the case, it will always be concealed carry, and since hikers and campers have big packs which they carry, they can easily carry a gun concealed whether they have a permit or not. The law or any restriction is a total moot point. Who cares if anyone is carrying concealed, and how on earth would anyone ever know the difference anyway without random illegal searches?! And even with a law, any nefarious criminal will not respect the law anyway, and will still carry a concealed weapon. So what does this supposed law accomplish other than give a stepping stone to the anti-gun crowd? "Bear" in mind that national parks are often places where one might run into a bear or mountain lion due to human food refuse and animals seeking food, and so carrying a gun might not be a bad idea. Also, women hiking the trail alone might find comfort with a concealed weapon against a rapist who might stalk the trails in search of isolated women - it's happened before.

Yeah it seems to me that there were some women (and guys?) a few years back that were murdered on the AT...bet they wished they were packing.

oh PS don't you idiots in Augusta have anything more important to be debateing these days? Typical....more state laws (that should be left to common sense) for our saftey while the state is going down the toilet.

ATTENTION! Rapists, Muggers and Murderers: come to Maine's Acadia National Park or Appalachian Trail for easy unarmed targets!

The State of Maine is now writing laws and rules for federal lands? The order of succession appears to have changed over the years. I believe something is being misunderstood along the way from Washington, D.C. to Augusta, Maine. This is a non-issue that has no place in our State Capitol unless it solely concerns state lands. The State of Maine has no power imposed over the constitutional rights of the United States of America.

Part II...As I just finished another long day slaving to survive. My advice to our elected representatives in Augusta; create jobs, reduce taxes, stop spending on things we do not need (laws included), and stop whining. You look small and childish when you whine when you are displeased something doesn't go your way. When you are in a tantrum you cost us taxpayers more through your inefficiency by not addressing the real problems as aforementioned. Take a lesson from all of us who worry where the next house, insurance, electricity, heat, tax, etc., payment is coming from. Stop screwing around, or you will get fired.

What is the problem with law abiding citizens, properly trained and having a background check and permitted by the state of Maine to concealed carry in parks? Since when do you suspend a constitutional right within a park?

Article I of the Maine Constitution: Section 16. To keep and bear arms. Every citizen has a right to keep and bear arms and this right shall never be questioned.

Chapter 252-A: FIREARMS REGULATION HEADING: PL 1989, C. 359 (NEW)

§2011. State preemption

1. Preemption. The State intends to occupy and preempt the entire field of legislation concerning the regulation of firearms, components, ammunition and supplies. Except as provided in subsection 3, any existing or future order, ordinance, rule or regulation in this field of any political subdivision of the State is void.

[ 1989, c. 359, (NEW) .]

2. Regulation restricted. Except as provided in subsection 3, no political subdivision of the State, including, but not limited to, municipalities, counties, townships and village corporations, may adopt any order, ordinance, rule or regulation concerning the sale, purchase, purchase delay, transfer, ownership, use, possession, bearing, transportation, licensing, permitting, registration, taxation or any other matter pertaining to firearms, components, ammunition or supplies.

AgentP, do you have any idea how remote your chances of being attacked by a bear are? You stand a greater chance of being struck by lightning.

I’m not concerned about Acadia because of the way they go about selling permits to vehicle owners who unknowingly drive a mile or so in on a one-way street, only to find a park ranger wanting 20 bucks for the privilege to continue on and a little sticker that they want attached to your vehicles windshield. I’m not going there again to be treated like that.

My concern would be hunters near the AT and my past fishing experiences and the written rules for open water fishing on the Kennebec River. Rules for fishing on the Kennebec refer to “red marker” boundaries along its shores that are sometimes non-existent. On one side of the “red marker” you can fish with worms, and on the other side you have to use artificial lures. The new red marker at the rest area in Skowhegan on route #2 was either replaced, or was placed there for the first time after writing what would have been an embarrassing letter to receive, to the DIF&W asking them to clarify where that marker is located referred to in the written rules.

I can just envision all Maine Game Wardens strategically placing themselves along the AT in Maine to catch some unsuspecting hunters who will have no idea where these new boundaries start and stop. They would be easy targets to fine for carrying firearms on federally owned parks affected by Maine’s added law. I would have language added that would require clearly identifying boundary markers, which would be maintained at least annually by the DIF&W, that determine boundary’s for the AT and specific language added to the written rules for hunting in the State near those borders.

Legislators--GET TO WORK ON JOB CREATION--

All you legislators, please take the time to look in the mirror, and ask yourself, " Am I a good American"? If you are, stop trying to undo the law of the land, Bill of Rights, the right to bear arms,...................and another thing, stop trying twisted ideas like gay marriage. Demonstrate fiscal responsibility by spending your time on ways to make our economy well. Maine people are fed up with you, this will be your last term.

Ryanrobbins: about as much of a chance of drowning, but I will still wear my life jacket or getting aids; etc. See how ridiculous your stament is?

Alos, more people are killed by knives than guns; it just isn't 'News' like a gun is..

Rapists, muggers, killers don't use guns; just knives, frying pans and or axes; etc...and don't forget the ones who abduct little children and kill them; they sure don't use a gun..

Another ridiculous law...too bad Augusta doesn't have some common sense.

What a surprise the gun nuts are up in "arms" about this one. Small wonder we have a murder rate 4-5 times every other modern country...

Yesterday an article was in the paper about a man from New York that is wanted in connection to a murder and may be hiding in Maine or Vermont. Today an article is printed proposing a ban on carrying a firearm in some places. This society is so bass akwards it's not even funny. I don't need a law to tell me where I can or can't carry a gun. No law ever to be created will save you from a crazed lunatic with murder on his/her mind. Get over it.

The only reason someone would need to carry a weapon is because people are allowed to carry weapons. Let's not have this false debate again. Once again, this posting will become infected with the comments of hysterical NRA members who are going to tell us that they could be attacked by a pack of wolves at Acadia, or a bunch of dangerous robbers and that by virtue of the fact that they are carrying a gun, they'll be able to "defend themselves' and make somehow make the rest of us safer too. Letting people run around with guns will accomplish only one thing - it will increase the odds of someone being shot.

Wasted State tax dollars. Every day in Agusta, our legislators need to find ways to reduce their encroachments on our freedoms, reduce the hindrences to our economy, reduce the theft of our assets.

A gun is just a tool, like an axe, a knife, a hammer, or even a walking stick. Gun laws only affect the honest. Criminals don't care.

Guns don't kill people, people with guns do!

TurkeyTalker wrote: Gun laws only affect the honest. Criminals don't care.

You hit the nail on the head here...all these laws do is further limit freedoms given to us by the constitution. Its high time the law makers in Augusta find more productive uses of their time.

With concealed carry nobody knows that you have a weapon on you so I dont see what the big deal is, if you want to ban open carry thats fine with me. I dont think that the state should be taking away rights given to us by the federal government.

Letting people run around with guns will accomplish only one thing - it will increase the odds of someone being shot- Bangorian

My girlfriend and I were canoeing in Western Maine and got to a campsite a couple of years ago. Some chumps who thought that first responders were miles away (it was quite remote) showed up in an old canoe. They discovered that roughing us up and taking our possession became quickly dissolved, Long story short- they split and we went the other direction. I suppose picking up a stick and saying, "stop it" would have done the same thing. I'll agree with Bangorian's quote... It wasn't a great feeling, but I'm thankful to have the right to protect myself and someone else...

babyblue- I do not understand what happened. Did you have a weapon?

focaloca, guns rarely kill anything, it's the bullet that's the killer!

outdoorman, sounds like babyblue had a firearm, revealed the firearm to the baddies, hopefully with the disclaimer "I will shoot to kill", and said baddies turned on their cowardly tail and ran.

Very well played babyblue. Very well played.

Maybe Maine should tax guns 500%: I'll bet you loonies would buy them anyway...

hophead loves his taxation! So typical it's sad.

As one who has used a firearm for defensive purposes as well as recreation I find it strange that this state requires a lifejacket to protect ones self from such a benign substance as water yet there are those who have a conniption fit over the idea that one should be able to protect ones self from wild animals (some humanoids included) in a public place. The last time I did that 2 reprobates were taken into custody by the local gendarms one of whom had an outstanding warrant for his arrest. AAlso, by the looks of the pages of the Bangor Dialy of not so long ago, one does need to consider whether or not ones safety will be put at risk by park employees. I think that was the last publicised attack to have occurred in Acadia.

I have also seen what a pack of coyotes can do to a full lgrown buck deer. The attaack took place within hearing distance of my house. I found the remains a few days later. And YES coyotes DO HUNT IN PACKS. No human can survive such an attack alone and/or unarmed.

LD 1737 would be a violation of our Constitutional Rights under the Second Amendment. Although we all know Hannah and her mom are both Extreme Far Lefties with an agenda, they should focus on the REAL problem - actual crimminals! Wakeup Hannah and stop wasting our taxpayers' time and resources.

Hannah Pingree is a progressive/communist with a end goal of completly revoking the 2nd Amendment. By the I have a Concealed Carry Permit that alows for carrying anywhere at anytime. It's called the 2nd Amendment, it's expiration date is from July 4th 1776 - Forever....I carry locked and loaded 24 -7. I would dare anyone police, game warden, judge, FBI whomever to attempt to revoke my Right. Good luck with that.

"It's called the 2nd Amendment, it's expiration date is from July 4th 1776 -"

Umm, the second amendment is to the Constitution, which wasn't written in 1776. Good to know that our poorly educated populace is well armed...

No, but that is when we declared our independence and became a soverign nation, so that's when the document became legit.... so thats the date on my CCP.

Typical moonbat response from 'hophead', screen name is quite telling...

hophead you might enjoy this article: http://www.theonion.com/content/news/area_man_passionate_defender_of

"No, but that is when we declared our independence and became a soverign nation, so that's when the document became legit.... so thats the date on my CCP. "

Surely you mean sovereign nations as the government structure set up by the Articles of Confederation actually creates 13 separate nations with a loose affiliation. If you're citing 1776 as the date on your CCP, it must have been issued in Massachusetts as Maine wasn't a state until 1820, by which logic, you shouldn't actually be carrying a loaded gun in Maine. The Bill of Rights came into effect in 1791 not 17776 and the Constitution, which is the "supreme law of the United States" was ratified in 1787. 1776 was the year we formally declared that we were at war.

Furthermore, by making such accusations like "Hannah Pingree is a progressive/communist with an end goal of completely revoking the 2nd Amendment", I must assume that you either a.) Are privilege to some sort of insider information to which the majority of people who voted for her in the 36th District were not privy to or b.) believe yourself to be endowed with some exceptional rationality or insight that her constituency is deprived of. Nice to know that you are so much smarter than all of the people who support her (I do believe that meets the definition of an intellectual elitist), which is why you don't even know when you were legally granted the rights given to United States citizens and are flaunting your CCP in one of the safest states in the country. Just what are you so afraid of anyway? Some of us actually view these forums as a legitimate discussion board and not an outlet for absurd and misguided notions and statements that wouldn't hold water in a public discussion so why don't you do us all a favor and stop clogging the thread with your laughable notions and think about what you're going to say before typing it out as I am sick of having to wade through drivel to find something worth reading here.

Bangorian writes: "Letting people run around with guns will accomplish only one thing - it will increase the odds of someone being shot."

Statistics show that you are 100% wrong, and that in fact the opposite is true. The incidence of crime is lower in states that allow citizens to defend themsleves (like Maine) than it is where citizens are not allowed to defend themselves (like Washington DC). Do you seriously believe that criminals are concerned about breaking firearms laws? They aren't planning to get caught. You are safer in Maine than in states that prohibit concealed carry because of those of us who are armed. You're welcome.

Washington DC has gotten significantly safer in the past 10 years, Baltimore not so much and it is impossible to get a concealed carry permit here unless you are a law enforcement officer or member of the military. However NYC also has extremely tight gun restrictions and is one of the safest cities in America. It's not necessarily a large armed citizenry that deters violent crime but rather an absence of a significant drug problem. Almost all murders here in Baltimore are drug related. The same goes for New Orleans, Detroit, and northeast DC. Most major metropolitan areas have much tighter gun restrictions than rural areas, but not all of them have high rates of violent crime. In Maine, most murders are the result of domestic violence in some form, either between couples or parents/children and I'm not sure how helpful a concealed carry permit is in that case. Ultimately I think it is the absence of a concentrated drug trade that contributes to Maine's low violent crime rate rather than people packing heat under their arm.

Laws are like locks. They only effect those who are willing to abide by them. If someone is intent to break in someplace is a lock really going to stop them or just make it more of a challenge? Is a person intent to use a gun in a felonious manner going to be hampered by some new regulation? For some reason, I don't think so. Unless they are going to start searching every backpack, vehicle, suitcase, etc (hmmmm...perhaps a perk as they would have to hire more people to carry out this job), the only way this law will be enforced is if someone makes it obvious they have a firearm and by that time it would probably be a little late to say "tsk tsk, you shouldn't have a firearm in this area".

On 2/4/10 at 2:11 PM, baltimorean wrote:"However NYC also has extremely tight gun restrictions and is one of the safest cities in America. It's not necessarily a large armed citizenry that deters violent crime but rather an absence of a significant drug problem."

NYC Doesn't have a drug problem huh? Sounds like you've never been to the Bronx...It sounds like you spent your time in Manhattan sipping Chablis......Maine has a very low crime rate because most homes have a firearm present. They banned almost ALL firearms in Australia, now the #1 crime is home invasion. More guns in law biding people's hands = less violent crime, FACT. Detroit, D.C. New Orleans all have very strict carry laws and or bans and their crime rates are obscene. DC's crime rate hasn't gotten better at al,l actually.....What do you expect from a Mayor that smoke crack...

By the way Baltimorasshat.....50% of all hard drugs in Maine come through NYC. Your pathetic, sophmoric worldview is laughable. Why don't you call 911 when someone breaks into your house and abuses you and your family, I'll just grab my shotgun and call a meat wagon.

Pass any law you want...I'll still carry. It's the cheapest insurance policy I can get, and one that I will be around to cash in.

Why don't you all see the part that is not written here ? It's one word Quimby. She has land at Baxter State Park I'm betting that some of it entails the AT! It's also land that can at this point still be hunted on foot! She doesn't let vehicles on her land just lies and says she does. To pacify Millinocket councilors and manager. Now she's going around and about with arms full of money to your elected officials to get the guns out too!

Wake up it's always the same answer - Quimby!

Fiction, you nailed it! If more of our legal residents are trained and carry a firearm on a regular basis, I believe our world would become a much safer and better place to live... if only we could get rid of the liberal moonbats that are ruining our USA.

let's see, ban guns in the parks and that'llj mean only only predatory criminals will have them. but i suppose if your family is being threatened by thugs in the middle of the woods you could call 911. when seconds count the police are only minutes away.

The notion that we have a lower crime rate because of guns is absolutely ludicrous. We have a far higher murder rate than any other Western "first world" country, and by far the loosest gun laws. In fact we have orders of magnitude more ACCIDENTAL gun deaths than other countries have intention gun deaths. It's nice that you all have rationalized your obsession with violence, but let's not make things up...

@prettypinko: "No, but that is when we declared our independence and became a soverign nation, so that's when the document became legit"

This makes no sense. The Declaration of Independence said nothing about the right to keep and bear arms. Americans, in fact, had no such right until 1788, when the Constitution was ratified. Sorry that the facts conflict with your feelings.

An armed society is a polite society. I love it when they advertise that I AM UNARMED. I was talking today with a woman in Zimbabwe. She said only the police and military have guns there. Guess what, the criminals run roughshod over the citizens, pretty much a slightly more wild place than Australia has become since their Great Gun Grab. It won't be long before some whack job who has been programmed by dope, or some other method, wipes out a day care center and the 'public outcry' demands the instruments, and not the players, are banned. Stick around, Obama will institute some form of gun control that will be the next 'health care overhaul' except it won't be met with just squawking and talking but with something more effective. America is NOT going to hand over their firearms. It has worked pretty well up until now and I expect it to last a while longer. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

People, please read up on Warren vs. District of Columbia. It's important to note that the safety of an individual does not depend on police, to think that an America without guns would be safer than one with guns reeks of blatant stupidity. You don't need to be an alarmist to know who you can truly depend on in a time of danger.

"NYC Doesn't have a drug problem huh? Sounds like you've never been to the Bronx...It sounds like you spent your time in Manhattan sipping Chablis......Maine has a very low crime rate because most homes have a firearm present."

I never said there wasn't a drug problem. I said they have one of, if not the, lowest violent crime rates of major metropolitan areas in the country and also have tight gun restrictions. So it isn't high rates of gun ownership that have made the city so much safer, but rather more and better policing. I was offering the possibility that cities with a more severe drug problem had a more severe violent crime problem as the two are related. Maine does have a low crime rate and many homes do have firearms present but that does not intrinsically mean they are related. I'd like to see some statistics that prove gun ownership is the primary cause of a low crime rate. Not sure what sitting in Manhattan drinking wine has to do with anything though. I can't imagine what train of thought you're riding.

"DC's crime rate hasn't gotten better at al,l actually.....What do you expect from a Mayor that smoke crack..."

Again, you seem to think your groundless opinions are more accurate than the actual facts. DC crime actually has decreased according to this chart: (http://mpdc.dc.gov/mpdc/cwp/view,a,1239,q,547256,mpdcNav_GID,1556.asp) which comes courtesy of the Washington DC Metropolitan Police Department, directly from the city website, showing a steady decline in every category of crime from 1993-2008. Perhaps most significant is the number of homicides, which went from 454 in 1993 to 186 in 2008. Generally, that is considered to be "getting better". And the mayor you refer to as smoking crack, the infamous Marion Barry, left office in 1999. Crime was going down then and continued to go down after he left. 11 years ago.

"More guns in law biding people's hands = less violent crime, FACT. "

Wrong. Every country in Western Europe has stricter gun laws and they have lower rates of murder. Here is an interesting chart that compares murder rates per capita around the world: http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita. If your statement is true (and I don't see anything backing it up) then Colombia, Venezuela and Mexico should certainly be safer than Norway and Switzerland. Instead, they have some of the highest murder rates in the world. I'm sure it can't possibly related to the drug trade...

FINALLY..."By the way Baltimorasshat.....50% of all hard drugs in Maine come through NYC. Your pathetic, sophmoric worldview is laughable. Why don't you call 911 when someone breaks into your house and abuses you and your family, I'll just grab my shotgun and call a meat wagon."

Any NRA-certified firearms instructor in Maine will tell you that you should only use deadly force as an absolute last resort. So, if you're so intent on shooting someone, I would recommend you make sure that there is absolutely no way for you to remove yourself from the situation and that they are threatening your life, otherwise get the lawyer's fees ready for your manslaughter trial (an NRA instructor's words, not my own). Yes, I would call 911 in addition to taking whatever other steps were necessary. Shooting someone however, would not be my immediate response if there were other options available. Love the cavalier attitude towards shooting people though, shows some real chutzpa. Sorry that the facts support my argument and not your ranting, looks like that inconvenience really touched a soft spot. And what's an asshat anyway?

killers who are not deterred by laws against murder are not going to be deterred by laws against guns.

Everything has to be put into context. It is impossibe to accurately compare one society's rules and their out come against another without knowing the commonality and disparity of the nations. A nation with a common ancestry, religion, and smaller geographic area are going to have less conflict than a more diverse people with far ranging ethnicity, income and beliefs. We as a nation, are the classic "melting pot" and until we learn to respect each other as individuals nothing will ever change by simply trying to regulate it. You may as well pass a law that says "you cann't get sick", it makes as much sense. The underlying social problems create the crime and unrest, it is the feeling of helplessness, futility, and isolation that fuel crime.

Excellent point.

fiction, well said in a measured, articulate manner. but you forgot to mention those with anti social personality disorders. these sociopaths exist in greater nunmber that is generally thought and they don't merely appear because of social problems. they are completely without remorse when they inflict harm. why do they exist? nature or nurture? or both. who knows but they do exist.

Furthermore, it's been years since there was a murder in Acadia and I believe the last time it happened, it was a husband pushing his wife off Otter Cliffs or Great Head. Guns haven't been allowed in the park for years and this law would simply reinstate the law as it was up until a few years ago. I would wager that most incidents of violence/assault that park rangers respond to are domestic disputes or drunken fights. The rate of violent crimes in national parks is still much lower than it is throughout the rest of the country. If people don't feel safe in the park without a gun, perhaps they should look at the possibility of going somewhere else on vacation where they can carry their gun and/or feel safer. Why would you want to go on vacation to a place you feel is dangerous? There are certain neighborhoods in Baltimore where I wouldn't walk at night and rather than fighting the system tooth and nail to be able to carry a gun, I go around them through safer areas.

finally some common sense going on. no need for guns in national parks. only will lead to a lot of problems.

U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK), offered an amendment on May 12, 2009 to protect the second amendment rights of law-abiding citizens. The amendment ensures that law-abiding visitors to National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service public lands can possess firearms in accordance with federal, state, and local law. The amendment passed by a vote of 67 to 29. Both Sentor Collins and Sentor Snowe voted in favor of the amendment.

“This amendment has two important purposes. First, this amendment is about protecting every American’s Second Amendment rights. Second, this amendment is about protecting the right of every state to pass laws that apply to their entire state, including public lands. If an American citizen has a right to carry a firearm in their state, it makes no sense to treat them like a criminal if they pass through a national park while in possession of a firearm,” Dr. Coburn said.

“Visitors to national parks also should have the right to defend themselves in accordance with the laws of their states,” Dr. Coburn added. “National parks, while still generally safe for visitors, have seen an increase in crime recently.”

• According to the National Park Service and the Fish and Wildlife Service, in 2006 there were 16 homicides (including one manslaughter charge), 41 rape cases (including two attempted rapes), 92 robberies, 16 kidnappings, and 333 aggravated assaults. These offenses only include homicides and other crimes handled by national park and refuge law enforcement, but don’t account for the homicides and crimes other law enforcement agencies processed.

• In a Seattle Times article titled, “Crime Slowly Creeps Into Parks, Forests,” Captain John Klaasen of the U.S. Forest Service states, "If you see [a crime] happening in the city, it happens in the forest." Whether it is meth labs hidden amid lush forests or car prowls at trailheads, park rangers and forest officers are seeing an increasing amount of criminal behavior.

• With one law enforcement officer for about every 110,000 visitors and 118,000 acres of national park land, park police may not always be close by and individuals may be left to defend themselves.

Hophead said: The notion that we have a lower crime rate because of guns is absolutely ludicrous. We have a far higher murder rate than any other Western "first world" country, and by far the loosest gun laws. In fact we have orders of magnitude more ACCIDENTAL gun deaths than other countries have intention gun deaths. It's nice that you all have rationalized your obsession with violence, but let's not make things up...

Look what happened in the United Kingdom when they banned hadguns, gun crime went up, the bobbies had to start carrying guns. Why? Because the criminals are now able to prey on anyone they wish to.

Watch the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGVAQOUi6ec

I stood behind some of you in line at the store. You were not afraid. I pumped gas right beside you. You were not afraid. You even smiled and commented about the weather. Why is it that now, at the very thought of my being allowed into Acadia, you are scared witless? Obviously it is not the knowledge I was armed all those other times. It is the very thought that I might be in Acadia! Irrational fear of the unknown is no way to go through life.

Both baltimorian and hophead need to get a grip on reality and stop being sheep. The of us need to work tirelessly to make sure that Pingree and Damon are defeated in their next elections! They have been bad for their districts and bad for Maine. They are perfect examples of why we are in the mess we're in now!

If the State of Maine says they trust me to responsibly carry concealed everywhere else, they should trust me to carry responsibly in Acadia also.

And to Friends of Acadia; YOU ARE A JOKE! Acadia is not YOUR private playground! Stop acting like it is.