Self protection and protection of our loved ones is not only a right, but it is a duty.  Evil and deranged people can be anywhere and we have seen the carnage they can inflict on defenseless innocent victims at VT and elsewhere. 

Many of us enjoy our State forests for hikes, photography, fishing, etc.  What do you do if you are confronted by a group of ill-intentioned people?  What do you do if you are a woman alone?  What do you do if you have a child or two and are threatened by a group of young men?

There is not one single logical and defensible reason why we should be forced into the role of defenseless victims anywhere in Virginia, whether on the street or in the woods.  A firearm is our only chance to deter an attacker or to fight back if he does not back off, possibly our only chance for survival.

Add to this the extremely rare instance when a wild animal may be threatening you or you are injured and gunshots is your only way to signal your need for rescue.

Concealed carry permit holders are known to be the most honest and reliable people and had to prove through a background check to get a permit.  Then, what is to fear from them being armed in our forests?

I believe that allowing concealed carry in our State forests is a question that does not even need to be raised by reasonable people.  Only uninformed gun-phobic people can claim that  the freedom to carry a concealed firearm anywhere in Virginia is a danger to anyone but the criminals and the predators, human or otherwise. 

Guns in the hands of good people have saved many more lives than any other form of protection, including our friendly Police Officers and Park Rangers.  They usually have the gruesome task of investigating crime scenes after the crime, not often are they given the opportunity to intervene and prevent a violent crime.  I know that from my Police Officer brother.

I hope That our legislators do not give too much power to the arguments of the paranoid gun-phobic candid and ill-informed citizens who oppose guns, not realizing how much evil and suffering they prevent every day in our country.

Respectfully,

C. Bernard Lambert