I Can't Believe What I Just Heard!!

[Angel Down]

Was watching a news story about the latest high school massacre.

In light of it, students are now demanding they be allowed to carry guns on campus, so they can defend themselves. 

Yeh, that's a solution! 

[GNRfan2008]

Are you talking about the shooting at Northern Illinois University? If so, it's not a high school. And they're adults by the time they're in college. This is the second college slaughter in the last 10 months. If they feel that they need to carry a weapon to protect themselves or help others in such a situation, then I support it.

[Angel Down]

University students!

By that stage of their education, I would expect them to know so much better.

Perhaps, the notion is being expressed by Freshmen, straight out of highschool?

Is it too costly to provide metal detectors?


Also, I am suprised that the student's lecturers did not pick up on any emotional disturbance? Unfortunately, many university teachers do not exercise proper duty of care of their students. Yes, they are young adults - who still need to be supported and guided so they may reach their full potential at university.

I can only hope that some good educators on campus use the opportunity to discuss the issue and explore the question - 'should uni students be allowed to arm themselves'.

You do bring up two debatable points GNRfan2008 - the need for protection or to help others.

[The Dog]

Are you talking about the shooting at Northern Illinois University? If so, it's not a high school. And they're adults by the time they're in college. This is the second college slaughter in the last 10 months. If they feel that they need to carry a weapon to protect themselves or help others in such a situation, then I support it.

are you out of your mind?

I couldn't list all of the reasons why this would be an absolutely terrible idea...

[Genesis]

I think they need to improve security on campuses. You shouldn't be able to walk in with a gun, let alone three. More cops are needed on campus. Allowing students to carry guns is the stupidest thing I've heard in light of what has happened.

[norway]

More cops are needed on campus.

You must have horrible conditions there, hope for a change in USA.

[lynn1961]

Are you talking about the shooting at Northern Illinois University? If so, it's not a high school. And they're adults by the time they're in college. This is the second college slaughter in the last 10 months. If they feel that they need to carry a weapon to protect themselves or help others in such a situation, then I support it.

I don't agree with that.  They may be adults, but you get one fucker..one psycho/stupid fucker that walks in with a gun.  Second college slaughter in the last 10 months?  Let's talk about the past slaughters...high schools, elementary schools, anywhere. Then there is work places, too.  And McDonald's.  Some random store in a mall  It's America.  The right to bear arms has gone overboard.  I don't agree that we have the right to bear arms, like that.   I, personally, don't believe that the "right to bear arns" has anything to do with carrying a gun.     

[Angel Down]

I recall that Finland was recently rocked by several massacres/attempted massacres.

Is is true that Finnish people also 'have the right to bear arms'?

If it is true, then how is this right explained in the Finnish Constitution?

Just to compare the two.

[GNRfan2008]

Are you talking about the shooting at Northern Illinois University? If so, it's not a high school. And they're adults by the time they're in college. This is the second college slaughter in the last 10 months. If they feel that they need to carry a weapon to protect themselves or help others in such a situation, then I support it.

I don't agree with that.  They may be adults, but you get one fucker..one psycho/stupid fucker that walks in with a gun.  Second college slaughter in the last 10 months?  Let's talk about the past slaughters...high schools, elementary schools, anywhere. Then there is work places, too.  And McDonald's.  Some random store in a mall  It's America.  The right to bear arms has gone overboard.  I don't agree that we have the right to bear arms, like that.   I, personally, don't believe that the "right to bear arns" has anything to do with carrying a gun.     

Never owned a gun in my life nor do I ever plan on it, but I am a college student at a big school (second largest in the nation in terms of acreage, so it is very spread out and very difficult to monitor every inch of the campus properly) and I realize how easy it would be for some nut to come in blasting away at random classes, which is exactly what happened at Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois. If there aren't laws to somehow stop the whackjobs from having guns in the first place, then I'd feel more comfortable if there was better security -- perhaps a cop in every class (holy shit, the costs on this would be through the roof at major universities) or the more chaotic free for all with everyone being allowed to have a gun on campus if they are licensed to do so. Anyway, something should be done about the issue. Perhaps banning guns altogether but the problem with that is the criminals will always find a way to get weapons on the black market and one of the good things about this country is that a woman can actually save herself from getting mugged and raped if she has a gun in her purse. Likewise, older people can protect themselves from getting mugged.

Also, I am surprised that the student's lecturers did not pick up on any emotional disturbance? Unfortunately, many university teachers do not exercise proper duty of care of their students. Yes, they are young adults - who still need to be supported and guided so they may reach their full potential at university.

They said he was off his medication and that he wasn't even a student at NIU at the time of the shooting. He had transferred after the Spring 2007 semester to the University of Illinois. He was also described as harmless and gentle by people who knew him. So it has nothing to do with NIU's professors. He got off his meds and went bat-shit crazy. Perhaps now they will start instituting at the very least metal detectors at every door to enter college class buildings.

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080216/NEWS07/802160362/1008

[Izzy]

Was watching a news story about the latest high school massacre.

In light of it, students are now demanding they be allowed to carry guns on campus, so they can defend themselves. 

Yeh, that's a solution! 

hmmm, solutions....solutions

here's one....its a shot in the dark i know, a bit...'far out' perhaps, but i'll say it anyway

Ban guns

How many shootings in college and Universities has the UK had.......

Hmm i wonder.....

[mrlee]

why not just do what the UK do and install cameras everywhere so nothing is private so people would shit themselves for one, and two more likely to be caught before it happens.

[Axl4Prez2004]

Are you talking about the shooting at Northern Illinois University? If so, it's not a high school. And they're adults by the time they're in college. This is the second college slaughter in the last 10 months. If they feel that they need to carry a weapon to protect themselves or help others in such a situation, then I support it.

At first that sounds like a good solution, but the more I think about it...I was undergrad. in college about 15 years ago.  Are the kids anymore mature or responsible now than they were then?  The overwhelming majority of students at school were responsible and mature...but with more students armed, inevitably that will lead to more V. Techs and N. Illinois' situations.  Sure, a brave student may react in time to take out the gunman halfway through a rampage....but....it also may make the situation even worse by exciting the shooter and turning the horrible situation into more of a game.  Hell, I didn't trust my suite-mates when it came to taking my Ramen Noodles!  What'll happen when they're pissed at a girlfriend or boyfriend, if they come home drunk from partying, and guns are everywhere?  It just doesn't seem like a safe situation to me. 

That said, I don't know what the answer is...or even if there is an answer.  I do agree that technology that employs cameras can be very helpful, especially in densely-packed populations...but that still probably wouldn't have made a difference in the N. Illinois tragedy.      

[CheapJon]

Was watching a news story about the latest high school massacre.

In light of it, students are now demanding they be allowed to carry guns on campus, so they can defend themselves. 

Yeh, that's a solution! 

hmmm, solutions....solutions

here's one....its a shot in the dark i know, a bit...'far out' perhaps, but i'll say it anyway

Ban guns

How many shootings in college and Universities has the UK had.......

Hmm i wonder.....

exactly, civilians don't need guns

[Angel Down]

That said, I don't know what the answer is...or even if there is an answer.  I do agree that technology that employs cameras can be very helpful, especially in densely-packed populations...but that still probably wouldn't have made a difference in the N. Illinois tragedy.      

Perhaps, the answer may be to write it out of the constitution.

Other countries have very strict gun laws, where it is forbidden to carry a gun in public. In fact, these countries make sure that any behaviour to do with guns is very strictly policed.

[TAP]

I was a graduate student at NIU ( quite a while ago), had an office in the building right next to the lecture theater where the shooting happened. 

[Axl4Prez2004]

That said, I don't know what the answer is...or even if there is an answer.  I do agree that technology that employs cameras can be very helpful, especially in densely-packed populations...but that still probably wouldn't have made a difference in the N. Illinois tragedy.      

Perhaps, the answer may be to write it out of the constitution.

Other countries have very strict gun laws, where it is forbidden to carry a gun in public. In fact, these countries make sure that any behaviour to do with guns is very strictly policed.

Well, that may be a problem.  I'm sure the Founding Fathers of this country never imagined guns like the guns of today.  For god's sake, what were they back then, muskets?  How long did it take to load those damn things?  There has to be a middle ground between banning every firearm in the country and letting folks walk around with automatic weapons.  Where that middle ground lays perhaps might best left to the states?  If I lived on a farm or out in the middle of the wilderness, you can bet your ass I'd have firearms.  If folks are living in the city, are there many examples of folks using concealed weapons as a deterrent?  I don't think so, but I'm not sure. 

[Genesis]

More cops are needed on campus.

You must have horrible conditions there, hope for a change in USA.

Thankfully, I don't live in the U.S of A.

[Angel Down]

Good points.

Why any civilian feels the need to carry around semi automatic weapons is beyond me. They could definately be banned.

But then that doesn't address the problem of say a sniper rifle.

mmm, bad thought: It just occurred to me that these campus shootings, and the like, could very well be the old U S of A's version of the suicide bombing. 

Same effect, only different weapon.

[BlowUpYourVideo]

a shot in the dark

Was that deliberate??

[Axl4Prez2004]

Good points.

Why any civilian feels the need to carry around semi automatic weapons is beyond me. They could definately be banned.

But then that doesn't address the problem of say a sniper rifle.

mmm, bad thought: It just occurred to me that these campus shootings, and the like, could very well be the old U S of A's version of the suicide bombing. 

Same effect, only different weapon.

Nah, the fundamentalist terrorists actually have a message.  These a-holes over here are just angry and decide to take their frustrations out on the innocents around them.  Both types of suicide/homicide are horrible and wrong, but at least I can see there's an ideology behind one of them (no matter how warped it is).

It still is important to remember as horrible as all this stuff is, every year there are more suicides than homicides.  The biggest threat to your long-term well-being and safety is looking right back at you in your mirror.