30 Sept 20 DOD is not only afraid of guns. They’re afraid of coyotes! Dating from WWII, Camp Lejeune in NC (named after John A Lejeune, 13th Commandant of the Marine Corps) consumes 250 square miles of NC coastline and includes many lakes and waterways. Camp Lejeune has its own Fish and Game Department, and DOD personnel are permitted to hunt and fish on much of the undeveloped property. Lejeune is home to the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Command and numerous other Marine units. The coyote population in NC (including Lejeune) has, for reasons no one seems to understand, exploded in recent years. Lejeune has a large, and expanding, population. Coyotes are considered pests, so coyote hunting is permitted year-around in most parts of NC. However, no one seems to know if coyote hunting is permitted on Camp Lejeune property! While jogging on base, particularly at night, several Marines have been attacked by resident coyote(s). Injuries, consisting mostly of minor bite-marks on lower legs of joggers, have not been serious. Nonetheless, Marines have now been told “not to jog at night” Additional base restrictions are under consideration in an effort to reduce Marine/coyote “interaction” Really? Why aren’t our Marines instructed to continue proudly jogging in the places and times they always have, but to “bear arms while jogging and be prepared to defend yourselves, via gunfire, from attacks by coyotes, et al?” Marines, particularly officers and s/NCOs, know how to bear and handle guns, right? This would appear to be the perfect task for some of those shinny-new SIG 320s that are coming into the System! But, we all know that our current cadre of risk-averse commanders would never even entertain such a logical thought. Trusting our magnificent Marines with guns, at least under our current “leadership?” Unthinkable! We need to start straightway training our officers and S/NCOs to be armed continuously, on and off base, openly and concealed. They all need to be constantly armed, just as our police are constantly armed! But, we know the first career-ending UD will bring that program to a screeching halt immediately! So, our “unarmed forces” remain unarmed, untrusted, and compromised! Even coyotes need not fear us! “The brave and wise do not lie down on the tracks of history to wait for ‘the train of the future’ to run over them!” Dwight D Eisenhower /John