By David Codrea
USA – -(Ammoland.com)- “Lawmakers must say no to guns on campus,” the nameless “Opinion Staff” of The Palm Beach Post insists in reference to a Florida bill that would allow licensed adults to carry firearms.
The reason they and “All 12 university presidents, the university system’s Board of Governors and university police chiefs are opposed to the idea,” aside from being politically-dependent kneejerk “progressive” statists:
Because they know that the campus scene is rife with binge drinking — and the bad behavior that follows from that. They know that suicide is the second-leading cause of death among young people ages 15 to 24 (first is accidental death).
Further, they assure us any attempt at self defense is a school shooter situation would only make things worse and ridicule the concept of defensive gun uses as deterrents against rape. What their qualifications are for dictating a “one size fits all” edict covering all situations is left unstated.
That’s because they’re not qualified. But that doesn’t stop them from trying to impose their politically-driven opinions. The fact they can’t deny – well, they can try, but it won’t wash – is they would rather see their student charges executed and raped than armed.
They also can’t back their suicide claim up with any real world statistics, because “the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not collected data on suicide attempts by colleges students specifically,” let alone by method. Disregard for a moment “progressive” hypocrisy on the subject, not to mention the problematic numbers from places like “gun-free” Japan or from, take note, anti-gun chiefs, police in the U.S. Besides, even if such student numbers were produced, since when are the random acts of a few justification for infringing on the supposedly unalienable rights of all?
The thing about binge drinking is, that’s an insult to college students who don’t engage in irresponsible behavior. Plus, not everyone over 21 who may have business at Florida universities falls into the student category. And the fact is, someone who is going to abuse alcohol or other substances on school property will also do so off school grounds.
People who behave responsibly don’t suddenly undergo a Jekyll-Hyde personality change by crossing an invisible property line. Someone who can be trusted to carry a gun across the street from a Florida university won’t suddenly morph into an agent of destruction simply by entering a campus.
What the academic hoplophobes and editorialists throwing offensive stereotypes and hysteria out there are revealing about their true motives is, they really don’t want anyone to be able to carry guns anywhere. But they’ll take what they can get until such time as they can attain that larger goal.
Several years back, I was invited by The New York Times (set up against half a dozen antis, actually, but that was OK, as they were not much of a challenge) to participate in a panel on campus shootings, and I related some information about a guy who shared the same opinion as the academics, the Post and the police chiefs:
“I am licensed to carry a concealed handgun in the commonwealth of Virginia,” [graduate student Bradford B.] Wiles wrote. “However, because I am a Virginia Tech student, I am prohibited from carrying at school because of Virginia Tech’s student policy…”
The published response from University Vice President Larry Hincker was one of ridicule.
“[I]t is absolutely mind-boggling to see the opinions of Bradford Wiles,” he wrote, using terms like “out of touch … inane [and] absurd” to underscore his points.
“Guns don’t belong in classrooms,” he concluded. “They never will. Virginia Tech has a very sound policy preventing same.”
We saw Mr. Hincker’s “very sound policy” play out and prevent nothing. We saw 32 innocents slain without a chance, even though the police response to a campus shooter had begun two hours before the mass slayings at Norris Hall.
Nothing has changed as far as “gun free” campuses are concerned. They still guarantee would-be predators the one thing they crave the most: Success. And plenty of blood for the antis to dance in, as they exploit each new tragedy to demand Americans become even more defenseless…
For more information, see “Common Arguments against Campus Carry” by Students for Concealed Carry. To keep apprised of Florida-specific gun rights advocacy efforts, check out Florida Carry.
About David Codrea:
David Codrea is the winner of multiple journalist awards for investigating / defending the RKBA and a long-time gun rights advocate who defiantly challenges the folly of citizen disarmament.
He blogs at “The War on Guns: Notes from the Resistance,” and also posts on Twitter: @dcodrea and Facebook.