2008 Woodie Awards
To carry or not to carry: that is the question
The Traveler Editorial Board
Issue date: 4/11/08 Section: Opinion
Therefore, the likelihood that a person who does carry a gun on campus will be present when a crazy person enters a building and starts firing at everyone is very small. Anyway, how many people would have the guts to carry a gun and actually shoot another human being?
And what if that gun went off by accident? Could you live with the guilt of killing another human being "by accident"?
Yes, we know, people who have permits generally know how to use a gun, but accidents happen. People who drive supposedly have state licenses and know what they're doing; yet the No. 1 killer of young people is automobile accidents.
If we open campuses to guns, what's going to be next? What other tool will troubled students use to achieve their means? Bombs? AK-47s?
In January 1989, an attacker spray-fired a Stockton, Calif., schoolyard with more than 100 rounds from an AK-47 semi-automatic assault rifle, killing five children and wounding 29 more in minutes, according to the Brady Center for Gun Control.
Steven Kazmierczak, the NIU shooter, snuck a shotgun and three handguns onto campus in a guitar case and under a coat. Police recovered 48 bullet casings and six shotgun shells from the crime scene.
These are horrifying events, but the point is, carrying concealed weapons on campus probably will not prevent someone intent on causing mayhem from going about his business. Perhaps the gunmen at NIU or VT could've been stopped, but the chance seems slim that someone with a gun would've been at the right place at the right time.
Besides, obtaining a concealed-carry license doesn't guarantee a person is going to use it correctly. And for us - well, we'd rather not live in fear that someone with a gun could snap at any time and shoot someone.
We're on the UA campus to have new experiences, make new friends and above all, learn. Do we really want to spend our time at the university fretting over what people carry guns and how they plan to use them?
We understand we live in a sometimes-dangerous society that has evolved with time and has stretched to allow new ideas to come into play, but we just don't think America is ready for its young college students - the future - to be armed and ready to shoot.
And what if that gun went off by accident? Could you live with the guilt of killing another human being "by accident"?
Yes, we know, people who have permits generally know how to use a gun, but accidents happen. People who drive supposedly have state licenses and know what they're doing; yet the No. 1 killer of young people is automobile accidents.
If we open campuses to guns, what's going to be next? What other tool will troubled students use to achieve their means? Bombs? AK-47s?
In January 1989, an attacker spray-fired a Stockton, Calif., schoolyard with more than 100 rounds from an AK-47 semi-automatic assault rifle, killing five children and wounding 29 more in minutes, according to the Brady Center for Gun Control.
Steven Kazmierczak, the NIU shooter, snuck a shotgun and three handguns onto campus in a guitar case and under a coat. Police recovered 48 bullet casings and six shotgun shells from the crime scene.
These are horrifying events, but the point is, carrying concealed weapons on campus probably will not prevent someone intent on causing mayhem from going about his business. Perhaps the gunmen at NIU or VT could've been stopped, but the chance seems slim that someone with a gun would've been at the right place at the right time.
Besides, obtaining a concealed-carry license doesn't guarantee a person is going to use it correctly. And for us - well, we'd rather not live in fear that someone with a gun could snap at any time and shoot someone.
We're on the UA campus to have new experiences, make new friends and above all, learn. Do we really want to spend our time at the university fretting over what people carry guns and how they plan to use them?
We understand we live in a sometimes-dangerous society that has evolved with time and has stretched to allow new ideas to come into play, but we just don't think America is ready for its young college students - the future - to be armed and ready to shoot.
Viewing Comments 1 - 6 of 6
Adam
posted 4/10/08 @ 11:06 PM CST
These concerns are legitimate, but I look at the University as a microcosm of a larger community. Statistics consistently and repeatedly bear out the fact that allowing law-abiding citizens to carry firearms results in less violent crime. (Continued…)
B-man
posted 4/10/08 @ 11:11 PM CST
"Upon looking at all of the evidence available, however, the Traveler editorial board has to side with the flower-power peace movement of the '60s."
Gee, there's a shocker. (Continued…)
Phillip
posted 4/11/08 @ 3:46 AM CST
Before I begin, I would like to disclaim myself as a person who has always considered himself pretty liberal, and I have never owned a firearm in my life, though I have shot them. (Continued…)
Samuel Keane-Rudolph
posted 4/11/08 @ 9:50 AM CST
The Traveler has looked at the evidence?
What evidence did you look at?
Certainly none is presented. Just a lot of 'what if' scenarios that are both self-contradictory and read like the talking points from the Brady Campaign. (Continued…)
David M. Bennett
posted 4/11/08 @ 10:26 AM CST
"A shoot-out is better than a massacre!"
T.
posted 4/11/08 @ 10:40 AM CST
I have my concealed carry permit, and I don't think this article fairly covers everything that is required to get one. I had to go to a class with a licensed instructor for 8 hours. (Continued…)
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