On April 16, 2007, a student at the University of Virginia Tech went on a shooting spree, killing 32 before finally taking his own life. This tragic day proved to be the very worst shooting that has occurred to date at an American college. However the Virginia Tech massacre is not the only instance of a gunman killing innocent students and teachers at an institution of higher education. This incident was only one of more than a half dozen that have occurred since the early 1990’s.
With the tragic Virginia Tech shooting still remaining in people’s minds, it is no wonder that pieces of pro-gun legislation have surfaced in Texas’ 81st legislature session regarding firearms on college campuses. Currently HB 1893 and SB 1164, if passed, would allow licensed individuals to legally carry concealed handguns on campuses of institutions of higher education in the state of Texas.
The only state that currently allows guns on college campuses is Utah. Last year 17 different states presented similar legislation and it failed in every case. It is no surprise that allowing guns on college campuses is a very debatable topic. However, I cannot see a logical reason against licensed carry on campuses of higher education. One common argument against guns on campus is that teachers and administrators alike would be fearful of every student who is upset by a bad grade or questionable policy. To me this idea is ridiculous. First off, the majority of college students are under the age of 21, which is the legal minimum age required for a concealed handgun permit in the state of Texas. Therefore, HB 1893 and SB 1164 are more likely to affect the professors than the student body. Secondly, if a student is willing to shoot a teacher over a bad grade then I seriously doubt that the student is going to be deterred because guns are not allowed on campus. People are going to do what they want regardless of the law. Another argument is that shootings and gun related accidents would increase on college campuses if guns are permitted on them. I don’t quite believe this would be the result. Currently Texas citizens can legally carry firearms in all public places not licensed to sell alcohol, with a few other exceptions. This amounts to a large number of public places. In these carry-friendly places you do not see scenes that resemble the wild west where handguns are being discharged on every corner. Rather these places, such as malls and bookstores, are relatively quiet and safe. I believe college campuses would be no different. There are approximately 24 million citizens in the state of Texas, of that only about 315,000 have concealed handgun licenses. I do not believe that there would be a huge influx of guns on to college campuses, it would be a very small percentage.
To me this issue is a no-brainer. Why on earth would the state of Texas want to prevent law abiding citizens from protecting their own life and the lives of loved ones? I cannot possible conceive a reason why. If properly licensed college students and teachers had been allowed to carry handguns at Virginia Tech then the gunman might not have inflicted as much damage as he did. Lives could have been saved.
About Me
- A Ryan
- My political ideology is that of an enterpriser. My greatest influences are my family and my love of the outdoors. I am an extremely strong advocate of the Second Amendment, which causes me great frustration sometimes. The only political experience I have was voting in the most recent Presidential election. I am taking Texas Government in order to meet degree requirements, but I hope to learn as much as possible about my local government. The main thing that I hope to obtain from this course is a working knowledge of Texas government and to gain the ability to carry on an intelligent political conversation.
3 comments:
I see your argument on this topic, but I think that this law would disrupt the environment of a higher educational campus. Its not because I don't see good in other people, but the fact that certain people have "potential" power that benefits them. I wouldn't want to be stuck on campus due to several students stuck in a standoff, wear a bullet-proof vest everyday to keep myself safe, or constantly worry if there's somebody waiting to mug me. Student safety on all levels of education is a concern, but there are other ways to approach this issue.
If we mandate passengers to go through metal detectors to get on a plane, why not implement them for school? It does cost money, but our government is concerned elsewhere with it's investments. A student with a gun on campus has any potential, regardless of their character. Sure they may save a live or several of them, but we all can't be heroes.
Very good topic but there are some things that I disagree with.I like the way and agree to the situation about students and teacher carrying a gun in school. If you think about it guns do not belong in school because school is made for learning and gaining knowledge. I also believe that there should be no reason why anybody should carry a gun period. Also I do not agree to the HB 1893 and SB 1164,due to the fact that we can stop people from carrying guns in school by having a strong security system in institutions of higher learning. I totally agree on the fact that Virgina Tech had a dramatic tragedy but we can all step forward and create a safe environment in school. I believe that protection should be granted to everyone but it can be created without hand guns.We should carry metal detectors and high security in schools to protect students and faculty. I mean if they have metal detectors at airports why cannot we establish one in schools to secure the environment? They government should spend more money on that rather than investing. This is an issue that we need to take care of in all states.
More guns on campus?!?
This is in response to a classmates blog, Guns on Campus.
I could not disagree with you more on this issue. I don't believe the answer to violence is more violence and I don't believe the answer to guns on campus is MORE guns on campus. The solution must begin before a gunman brings a weapon or weapons to school. There are warning signs to look out for and they need to be taken seriously. In a report done by CBS news a former Virgina Tech professor Lucinda Roy writes in her new book that she saw warning signs before the shootings but they were ignored. "Roy contacted four different departments on campus, including the counseling center and university police. She was desperate for Cho to get help. But, "I was told that - that would never happen," Roy said.
Statistics show a direct correlation between gun ownership and gun death rates. States with higher gun ownership have much higher percentages of gun deaths. Inversely, low gun ownership equals low gun death rate. This was a news report from Violence Policy Center, based on data released for year 2006 from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's division Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
So no, I don't believe the answer is the throw more guns at the problem, more guns means more people killed at the hands of gunmen.
Links to the CBS story and gun statistics can be found below:
URL for the CBS story
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/04/07/eveningnews/main4927476.shtmlURL for the gun ownership statistics http://gunlawforum.com/2009/05/06/states-with-higher-gun-ownership-lead-nation-in-gun-death/
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