Will we have guns on campus?

On Feb. 6 a new piece of state legislation was introduced which would further our Second Amendment right. Senate bill 1381 would allow individuals with a concealed weapons permit to carry a gun on campus.

Utah is currently the only state in which the state board of education is not allowed to set rules or provisions which would be contrary to the rules set forth by state legislation concerning firearm regulation. Idaho is about to be the next.

We live in a time where there is always that threat of having another Columbine, Virginia Tech or something equally horrifying, and due to university policies we don’t have the ability to defend ourselves.

Boise State University policy 5017-a clearly forbids the possession of firearms on any university-controlled property regardless of a state issued license. This doesn’t make sense to me. What gives the university the right to prohibit the carrying of firearms when the state has issued a license to do so? It just seems that if we are in a gun-free zone, only the law abiding citizens will leave their weapons at home; not the criminals. Criminals could care less about whether or not we are in a gun-free zone, and it’s the criminals I’m afraid of.

An argument I heard is the fear of knowing that 10 other students in the classroom could have a gun on them. In a sense, wouldn’t that make you feel safer? If I knew that there were 10 students in my classroom carrying guns, my fears would be considerably less than if there was a possibility of only one student possessing a gun.

Statistics show that concealed weapon laws actually reduce crime rates. Violent crime has dropped 4.9 percent, rape has dropped 5.3 percent, aggravated-assault has dropped 7.01 percent and murder by 7.7 percent with the implementation of concealed weapon laws. Even at a state level, violent crimes decrease up to 10 percent after the adoption of concealed weapon laws.

Do you really think our school will be more dangerous if students are allowed to carry concealed weapons? I think if we truly analyze the facts we can come to the understanding that this would be better for our school community.

The people that take the time to obtain a concealed weapons permit do so because they are respectful law abiding citizens. There is a process that you must go through to obtain a permit, which is not as easy as most people think. First of all, you must pass a thorough background check and be 21 years of age. To obtain a concealed weapons permit you must complete a firearms training course. You also may not obtain a permit if you are convicted of a felony or if you have been incarcerated for a year or more. You cannot obtain a permit if you lack the mental capacity or have a history of mental illness. If you have ever been convicted of certain violent crimes, again, you may not carry a weapon on your person.

I completed a firearms training course when I was 14-years-old. I have it instilled in me that guns are to receive the highest respect. To be honest, nothing scares me more than a loaded weapon, and you learn that with having the proper training. I do not like the idea of having a bunch of weapons on campus and it is highly discomforting. I understand how discomforting that can be to other students as well. However, this world is a very dangerous and unpredictable place, and sometimes you have to settle for a little discomfort in order to realize the greater good. It’s more unsettling to know that at any moment someone could break into my classroom and start taking innocent lives. From my perspective, it seems that at least soon we will be able to have the chance to defend ourselves.

GABE MURPHY
Opinion Writer

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