A National Park is no different than a street corner in Anytown, USA. Be alert... and be armed.
Not exactly true. The human population of national parks is made up, by and large, of people who traveled dozens or hundreds of miles to get there. They tend to be folks who travel in groups and are acutely aware of their surroundings (because they went there to soak it in and pay attention).
They're not like a typical office worker who's ambling down the sidewalk alone with his mind on other things and oblivious to a too-familiar environment. It's not a target-rich environment for predators. If you're a street thug, do you want to spend all day stalking a potential victim, or choose a street corner where a hundred a day come to you? And even if someone did manage to pull off a violent robbery, they would then have to escape over a number of miles through one of a few narrow exits.
Yes, there are a few "mountain men" like Cary Stayner who stalk tourists, but it's a statistically negligible threat compared to urban, suburban or even small-town crime. National parks are one of the safer environments you'll find from human predators. Non-human ... not so much.
All that said, I don't see any benefit in prohibiting concealed carry (if the surrounding state allows it, which I believe is part of Allen's bill). A concealed weapon doesn't put anyone ill at ease -- that's why it's concealed. Anyone wondering if the other guy has a concealed weapon should have that concern, whether the weapon is legal or not.
This hippie-dippy notion that wild places are "places of peace" needs a reality check -- unless communing with nature means getting up close and personal with a rattlesnake, a bear, a pack of wolves or a steep fall. For me, a lot of the appeal of being in the wild is the rush of being more alert and aware of everything, not the luxury of being less so. If you want to switch off, go to a resort or a spa.
For me, at least, the decision to carry concealed rather than out in the open is, at least in part, a matter of courtesy. Visible guns make some folks uncomfortable, and whether that's rational or not, when you're on vacation and encounter other folks on vacation isn't the time to get into it. If I'm carrying concealed, what they don't know won't hurt them, and I know I won't.
By way of a small compromise, I offer this: Let state law on concealed carry apply inside National Parks (and preserves, and forests, and wildlife areas, etc.) Impose serious penalties for anyone who draws, points or fires such a weapon without being able to demonstrate a good reason. That would assuage the folks who are afraid of drunken plinking or arguments gone out of control, but without burdening the vast majority who have never flashed, brandished or fired a weapon.
As an aside, I picked up a competition air rifle stock for $10 from the stray parts bin at an Orlando gun store last weekend. I'm planning to make it a camera mount. It had no working parts, but because it's a match-grade stock, it's infinitely adjustable -- and has enough mounts that I think I could hook a tripod head and padded rails to hold a long lens.
Rifle-style camera mounts are great for wildlife photography, when you don't have time to set up a tripod but need more stability than hand-held. Catching deer on the hoof or birds on the fly, for example. But you want to be careful where you use them. I wouldn't advise using one to take pictures of the White House. The specialized versions run about $250, so if I can rig one together for about $50 in parts, it's a good deal aside from being a fun shop project.