The Real Gun Guys

“How to feel safer…”

Once again the East Tennessean delves into the thorny issue of guns on campus and fails miserably. While I didn’t have much hope for a truly balanced article, I had some. You’d think I’d learn.

We start out with this:

It has become harder for students to imagine themselves completely safe on their college campuses because of the recent school shootings across the country. The one-year anniversary of the shooting at Virginia Tech is at hand and images of the Northern Illinois shooting still fresh in our minds, students everywhere are constantly wondering how to feel safer on campus.

Notice the emphasis on “feeling safe.”

Large decals have been placed on the doors of every building to warn students of six years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $3,000 if a firearm is brought onto school premises. The decal also states that those who have the appropriate concealed handgun license are not excluded from those penalties. Although these are viewed as helpful and useful changes, some on the ETSU campus wonder if more guns could be a solution to the problem.

Decals are helpful and useful changes? Pu-lease! I’m sure a “Cho” would walk up, see the decal and think to himself, “Gee, I’d better not go inside and kill anyone today, I could go to jail and get fined!” Stupid.
They then interview two students who are for being allowed to carry concealed with their permits on campus, one of whom had this to say about who should be allowed to carry a gun.

“I would not be opposed to it, but I believe there should be extensive background checks, a waiting period, and psychological testing done before handing a gun to anyone.“

That’s right up there with, “I own a gun, but…”

Donnie Barnett had this to say.

“Yes, you have the right to bear your arms, no, you do not have the right to take things designed to kill people into places of higher thought and learning which should be a sanctuary for students. It should not be a battlefield, but a campus. Police should be there to quickly respond and protect the innocent.“

The real world doesn’t stop once you cross the campus property line Donnie and like it or not, there are people out there who want to kill you, and some silly decal or “Victim Rich Zone” isn’t going to stop them. You’re idea of campuses as “sanctuaries” is naive to say the least. The cops have no duty to protect you, and even if they do come, odds are they’ll be hiding behind trees, clutching they’re AR-15’s. By the time they get to your body, the shooting will be LONG over.

“I think it is a very dangerous idea,” said Kevin Fox, a senior psychology major. “Accidents happen with weapons all the time, and I believe it would cause more harm than good.” Both Barnett and Fox also stated that they would feel that the safety they currently feel on campus would be jeopardized causing them to feel slightly more paranoid of their fellow classmates.

Gwen Lewis, executive aide for the department of music, expressed her concerns as well. “I used to carry a concealed weapon, but I don’t know that I agree with it being allowed on campus. There are too many immature people and you cannot trust everyone with a gun,” she stated. “Although, if it were allowed, yes, I would probably carry mine on campus with me.”

…

“Although I am a law-abiding Tennessean with a state-issued handgun carry permit, and I carry everywhere but school, the thought of having students carrying weapons (firearms) at school is a school of thought that just won’t ever see the light of day,” said ETSU graduate student Clark Tucker, who has bachelor’s and master’s degree in criminology. Tucker is also active in the ROTC and is pursuing a career as a military police officer. “I hope to God that my personal safety isn’t ever entrusted to my fellow classmates,” he said. “I entrust my safety to my own personal awareness and to those that have decided to make a career out of being police officers. Others should do the same.“

Again the emphasis on feeling safer, rather than actually being safer. The two have little relation to each other. Nationwide, very, very few crimes are committed by people with a concealed carry permit, and of those who do, few of those involve the use a firearm. Permit holders are among the nations most responsible and law abiding citizens. As such, they feel the added responsibility to use their weapons in a responsible manner. I suppose no one should tell these students that when they go off campus, there is a very good chance they will be within touching distance of many armed people and never even know it. Let’s not tell them though, it might make not them feel safe anymore. Clark Tucker is another one of those, “I’m a gun owner, but…” people who feel it’s alright for him to carry a gun, but no one else. It’s fitting that he’s decided to begin a career as an “only one.” That’s right folks, he thinks that only the military and police officers are “Professional enough” that he knows of, to handle a firearm correctly. You don’t need to protect yourself folks, the police will always save you!

I wish Clark all the luck in pursuing his Only One career, and may he never, ever, have to entrust his life to a lowly member of the public. ‘Cuz you know, permit holders have never come to the rescue of police who are in danger of being killed…

Well, after explaining how decals make us feel safer and including quotes from twice as many students against the idea as for it, we’re left with one last nugget.

Across the country though, concealed carry on campus is an escalating issue on campuses everywhere. Handguns are banned on campuses in 38 states. Utah is the only state that requires universities to allow students, faculty, and staff, with the appropriate permits, to carry concealed handguns on campus. In 2004 the state ruled that concealed handguns should be allowed on universities because they are allowed in the state and schools are technically state property.

Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo., and Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave, Va., also allow concealed handguns on campus and have yet to report any gun-related incidents.

Additional information about the issue is available at the Students for Concealed Carry on Campus Web site at http://concealedcampus.org.

Just as with the dire predictions of “blood running in the streets” that the anti-rights people keep baaing about, this too is proving the same. Everywhere it’s been tried, there have yet to be any gun-related incidents.

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