The Texas Legislature has proposed a bill that will make carrying guns on college campuses legal. The guns must be concealed, but that doesn’t change my mind on how I feel about the proposal. This legislation is a bad idea even though I am pro-gun.
Texas Governor Rick Perry is known to pack heat when he goes for his morning jog. Currently, Texas law allows state lawmakers to bring guns to the Capitol, and college campuses should not be next.
I am a firm believer in the idea of somebody being “in the wrong place at the wrong time” when certain bad things happen and the victim(s) are innocent bystanders. I also believe if a person is crazy enough or wants revenge, then packing heat won’t do much good because the gunman would have already fired his or her gun several times before you wonder what is happening.
The Texas lawmakers who want to allow guns on campus will use the shooting at the University of Texas at Austin as their local example of how things could’ve been if the law was different. They also cite other national cases of gun violence on campus. Having just any kind of gun might not work anyway because in many of those cases the lawmakers cite the gunmen had assault weapons which could fire many shots in a relatively short period of time.
Let’s say a gunman is on the loose. If people shoot back, then they will cause grave danger to bystanders since many times bullets miss the target. How are the police and security guards supposed to know who the culprit is when there would likely be several people with guns drawn? Texas should keep its campus gun laws the way they are. Campuses should have more police officers and security guards in plain sight while the rest should remain undercover.
There is the argument guns would help thwart rapes and robberies. But there is one problem: what if there are several perpetrators, you’re by yourself, and on top of that, you are caught off guard? The gun won’t be of much help if they take it away from you. The common sense measure is to never walk alone at night.
How are people supposed to know which concealed guns are “legal” and which are not? I’m sure the lawmakers who proposed this ridiculous idea didn’t mention a person can still get guns illegally. Then, that person would be in trouble with the law anyway if he or she used a legally-obtained gun as self defense.
Altering the law to allow guns to be brought on campus would probably increase the number of murder-suicides. I get the feeling the threat of violence would rise as well simply because if your enemies know what kind of gun you are carrying and if they know theirs is far superior, then we know there could possibly be some kind of intimidation that leads to a gun war.
There would also be cases of “ooh, look at my gun” and then it accidentally goes off, striking the other person. This is dangerous because it can lead to the innocent person firing back out of anger.
There should be a preventative measure in place, like classroom doors being locked during classtimes. This is common in many high schools but not so much for universities. I think some of the massacres could’ve been lessened by that measure alone. Also, things like mental health evaluations are important. Many school shooters have exhibited behavior that many people will say they noticed after the shooting.
I think college campuses can take the tragedies that happen elsewhere and enact measures to increase students’ safety. But let’s not overreact. There are reasons why most places don’t allow guns to be brought on the premises.
Christopher Webb is a junior majoring in  business administration. He can be contacted at [email protected].