After the recent shooting at the University of Texas, discourse on gun control rapidly spiked in news and public conversation. Normally the argument (of any school shooting) is that the shooting is a prime example of why students should not be allowed to carry weapons on campus. The obvious paradox is that if students had been armed, the school shooter would not have been the only one shooting.
People allow their emotions to get the best of them in these situations, making any logical or rational decision almost impossible. Logically and rationally, however, you can assume that school shootings will continue to occur, regardless of whether students can be armed. None of these shooters went to the on-campus gun store to purchase their firearms; they went off campus and came right back, armed to the teeth. In this light, it is unreasonable not to legally allow competent, responsible students to arm themselves.
Although UH has not had a school shooting, we are a real campus with real crime. We have had countless robberies, muggings, sexual assaults and other general criminal activity. Any college campus is prime rib for criminals because of all the fresh and naive students walking around, but there are a few specific reasons as to why UH is such a target.
First, we are in the middle of Houston’s Third Ward, just blocks from downtown. Even though a lot of students like to pretend we’re part of some nice happy community, this is prime area for drugs, theft and people willing to act. Secondly, there are only so many police and security out patrolling, and the dubious security cameras monitoring us 24/7 do nothing. Lastly, the vast majority of students walk around unarmed — no knife, pepper spray, stun gun or concealed firearm. Mix these together and you have a feeding ground for criminals. Real life crime requires real life defense, not “complying with the criminal,” hoping that you’ll walk away from someone pointing a gun at you.
Texas is a concealed carry state, and yet the schools in Texas, of all places, are not. Another confusing aspect is that guns are legal, yet batons, brass knuckles and the like are illegal weapons. Would it lessen public safety if everyone walked around with telescopic batons in their pockets? How is that less safe? The logic requires the benefit of the doubt, since it’s against the law to carry these kinds of weapons and everyone knows criminals wouldn’t dare break the law.
There are plenty of NRA supporters and concealed campus activists who love to make weak, easily refutable arguments as to why people should be armed, but talking about the Second Amendment or how a gun can prevent violence is miles from the point. The point is that criminals have guns, highly dangerous students can easily get guns, and although the police are armed, they can’t be everywhere at once. This isn’t about prevention — it’s about equivalency.
In an ideal situation, no one would have guns — not criminals, police or citizens. This way everyone would have to fight face to face on equal ground, or take the more civilized route and discuss matters like adults. But this is not a perfect world; instead, it’s a world with firearms.
The most practical solution is to arm as many mentally stable, competent and overall responsible people as possible, students included.
UT was just about to debate the weapon laws on campus prior to the shooting.
What will it take to have the same discussion at UH?
David Haydon is a polticial science junior and may be reached at [email protected].
Forty-eight states allow concealed carry. One that doesn't, allows visible-open carry. Texas colleges ban them altogether. Fishermen have a name for this: chumming. Some chutzpah of these arrogant, elitist, tenured "perfessers-o-da-smrt" to deny God-given rights that are guaranteed by The Constitution and legal in the state that pays their salaries. Houston, particularly downtown, is a high-crime area that offers easy access to citizen and illegal alien dregs alike. They ply their trade without interference while law enforcement keeps a tally. It's a problem for many city colleges and could easily be resolved by permitting a few good guys to carry. They're older, trained and vetted. Libs & mods find fault with that logic. I'm encouraged that this article was written by a student. In time, he'll grow out of the idea that the biggest and toughest get to rule others, fight it out so to speak. While he's in the cross-hairs, it's not about the 2nd Amendment. But it should be and in time, it will be.
Agreed. If you don't allow the good guys to defend themselves you only empower the bad guys who have no qualms obtaining guns and other weapons by illegal means in order to get the job done. It's pretty simple rhetoric.
I cannot agree with the following statement: "In an ideal situation, no one would have guns — not criminals, police or citizens. This way everyone would have to fight face to face on equal ground, or take the more civilized route and discuss matters like adults"
Just think circa 27 B.C.; the time of the Roman Empire. The people who held power were the more physically apt. A skilled swordsman or just a large athletic person was more likely to prevail in an altercation. The gun provided a level of equality to most people that in the pre-firearm era was unobtainable.
A 5' 3" woman weighing 120lbs, when armed with a gun, is many times more powerful than I am, even though I am 6' 5" tall and weigh 275lbs. It doesn't matter than I can bench-press well over three times that womans weight if she is armed and mildly skilled with a gun.
Great! More Rambo………
I agree with your statement that the UT shooting was uncalled for.
Thank you for this well-reasoned, nonpartisan argument in favor of concealed carry on college campuses.
The active shooter on campus is breaking the law, do you think he cares that he is not allowed to have a gun on campus?
Also, it's not just about being able to carry a gun. You have to be a skilled shooter in order to prevent even more injuries. If someone gets hit by a bullet you fired, even if it was an accident and your intention was to stop a campus shooter, you would still be responsible for that injury or death.
right on, who needs laws or police when we can all just shoot each other!
hey when's the last time anyone got murdered at UH. oh right, when a gun-loving student shot a sleeping homeless man for no reason.
haha just read the third paragraph. "we HAVE to have guns, don't you realize scary criminals live in this neighborhood??". hey
I agree with some of all the above comments and parts of the article. But in my opinion colleges, in high crime areas, should either provide students with more security (increase officer patrol, more call boxes, etc) or allow the students to effectively arm themselves against said criminals that take action against the naive freshmen, and sometimes seniors.
I’m not saying colleges should pass out guns to incoming students or allowing them to simply be allowed to use their Second Amendment rights, but offer self-defense classes are student recreation centers, allow students the right to carry pocket knifes (under say 3 inches), pepper spray (in small quantities, like the little cans for key chains), or provide gun safety and campus security/law to eligible students (who pass psych evals) and allow them to actively take part in campus security (kinda like safety or hall patrols in middle and high schools).
Allowing students to proactively protect themselves and the campus as a whole will eventually reduce crime on and around campus, allow for a safer learning environment and allow students peace of mind when walking around campus at midnight after studying in, say, the library.
AaaH! I love to carry my M16-A4 Spring Rifle W/Laser, 9mm Ruger pistol, Smith & Wesson M&P45c and 2 case ammos to college. I couldn't wait for someone to piss me-off. YeeeHaaa! LOL
[Warning: gun are dangerous]
Clearly you don’t own a gun. If you did you would know guns don’t kill anyone. Crazy people and criminals do.
Take your make believe M16 and put it on a table next you all night. See if it kills you.
Keep playing those video games, but please never buy a gun – you’re not mature enough.
I agree, students should be able to have conceal/carry weapons on campus, as long as they have been certified to do so.
Not one case of the recent higher profile cases in recent months has been a conceal/carry holder. People should be properly trained to conceal/carry and the more there are, the less likely criminals will think they have carte blanche access.
I want a chance to defend myself and other innocent people when that one in a million tragedy presents itself with a criminal.