Once again it is brought home to me, with this latest school killing spree, just how much safer colleges and high schools could be if teachers were given concealed firearms and appropriate training. If schools offered adult-supervised handling, safety, and target practice courses with all types of firearms for interested students.
Maybe if people stopped being so wary about guns, criminals could no longer gain such absolute power over their victims with just a couple of illegally-purchased firearms. Then distraught students won't need to scream "call 911!" and hide in classrooms until the police arrive--after four or five people are already dead.
About Me
- Connor Hamilton
- Hillsdale, Michigan, United States
- I am a junior History major at Hillsdale College in southern Michigan. I would like to write, or teach (or, if God wills it, both), in a way that honors God and benefits men. My interests include writing, reading, foreign affairs and politics, friendly discourse, and outdoor activities like hiking and cycling. I am interested in many historical eras, but I have focused on Europe (particularly Germany and Russia) in the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as the history of the Middle East, and Islam as a whole.
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4 comments:
Connor, when you come to college yourself, I think you might understand why I modified my position on this question. Spend enough time around college boys, most of whom are barely old enough to own a handgun at all, let alone obtain a concealed permit, and you'll see why there is NO reason you'd want them packing heat at frat parties/keggers/whatever. Combining the rampant alcohol and (sometimes) drug abuse on major campuses with handguns, and you just plain end up with many more dangerous situations.
I wouldn't, however, be opposed to some kind of system where a school could have "hall marshals" -- maybe ROTC students could do it, or students at a local police academy. The point is that these shootings take place during class time, so if we want some protection then, fine. But not just a bunch of guns floating around every campus. That would honestly freak me out.
That's a really good point, Robert, and thanks for bringing it up. (There always are other considerations in these things!) I certainly don't want plastered 20 year-olds waving guns in my face, or shooting guns in the air "for fun," which can be just as dangerous.
I like your "hall marshal" idea; it sounds sensible and would certainly give a more immediate level of protection in the time before the police could arrive. I also think teachers should be allowed to have guns any time they want (as long as they don't have criminal records, etc.). Also, as far as I could tell when I was last there, the campus security officers at UD only had flashlights and maybe some kind of night stick. I definitely think that if anyone is going to be carrying guns on campus, the first and foremost people to do so should be campus security.
It's sadly true that a huge number of college kids (and older people who like to act like irresponsible college kids) are totally unprepared to take the responsibility of owning a firearm. I don't think we should have gun booths set up on colleges, to be handed out no questions asked. :-P On the other hand, it sickens me how easily someone can essentially hold an entire college hostage. I think we need to strike a balance between totally banning guns (which, it seems to me, clearly doesn't work) and letting anyone get his hands on a potentially dangerous weapon regardless of his background.
Thanks for your comment!
I should have said, "totally banning guns on colleges." I never think that banning guns in general would be a good idea. ;-)
I believe, though I can't present evidence at the moment, that most school shootings are committed with legally-purchased firearms.
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