I know some will jump on me for this but I have a problem, again, with thousands of students carrying weapons on campus. Considering the original post, what do people think would have happened if these students had been armed and went running out of the building, weapons drawn, and met a bunch of heavly armed police? I think we would have had another big disaster on our hands. The police would not have know who these kids were. There’s got to be another answer.
Unarmed and Vulnerable...
Just the way Rudy Giuliani likes us.
I think it's time for America to become an armed camp for a while.
Better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6.
Larry Hincker; VA Tech spokesman and Vice President.
2005 - "I think it's fair to say that we believe guns don't belong in the classroom. In an academic environment, we believe you should be free from fear." - Larry Hincker2006 - "I'm sure the university community is appreciative of the General Assembly's actions, because this will help parents, students, faculty and visitors feel safe on our campus." - Larry Hincker celebrating the defeat of the bill allowing guns on campus
I sent this on to a friend in the Metropolitan Police in Wales. I await his reaction.
Yes, it would be nice if there was "another way". But until moral character is reintroduced into the mentality of the general population, being prepared to defend one's life with lethal force is a *real good idea*. Of course, lacking that, a chair thrown, a knife, ANYTHING is better than just cowering behind a desk waiting your turn to be slaughtered. Again, the mind is the real weapon.
Of course, that still leaves the problem presented by creatures like Cho, who are not American citizens and bring their own foreign brand of brainwashing to our shores when they come here. Again, the solution is to be able to neutralize the threat as soon as it presents itself. And if the threat has a gun, you damned well better have one too. I'm not saying I like it; I'm saying that's the way it is.
It is sad to note that a large undercurrent to the whole cowardice-as-courage mindset is the simple fact that these sheep do not trust themselves with their own preservation, and thus they do not trust their peers either. Of course, just slap a badge on someone and *Bingo!*, there's their superhero to save the day.
Pathetic, really, and all too common.
Sorry archy- I didn’t notice at 1st that you HAD posted the original date.....mea culpa...LOL
Your post generated this response in the Roanoke Times. The writer was living in Blacksburg when it was written. I wonder what she's thinking now?
http://www.nra.org/Speech.aspx?id=6043
First, we believe in absolutely gun-free, zero-tolerance, totally safe schools. That means no guns in America's schools, period ... with the rare exception of law enforcement officers or trained security personnel.
We believe America's schools should be as safe as America's airports. You can't talk about, much less take, bombs and guns onto airplanes.Such behavior in our schools should be prosecuted just as certainly as such behavior in our airports is prosecuted.
Of the 6,000 young people the President acknowledges were caught with a gun at school during the past two years, we believe all of them should have been prosecuted. But the truth is that only 5 were prosecuted in 1997 and just 8 in 1998. That's not zero tolerance.
The National Rifle Association believes in no unsupervised youth access to guns, period. We have always supported holding adults responsible for wilfully and recklessly allowing access to firearms. Just as every kid should have a guardian who knows where he is and keeps him safe, every firearm should have a guardian who knows where it is and keeps it safely stored.
Nancy Pelosi says "Jump", and NRA says "How High?"
What happens when the NRA jumps higher and higher for Nancy? Well, you might just see a situation in the U.S. where you have to get a permission slip from a psychiatrist to own a gun. Don't believe it? Learn how similar techniques were used to transform England in a matter of decades. This is a long article, but it's quite educational.
Here's a message someone posted at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wa-ccw/message/42293
I attended the 1999 NRA convention in Denver where LaPierre gave that speech. I remember that to his statement of support for "gun-free schools" he received a response of silence and weak applause.
I think the membership back then clearly realized the folly of such an approach. I would hope that the NRA would now show some backbone and renounce such stupidity.
For some reason, I'd guess mostly political, they can't admit that if concealed firearms carried by responsible, law-abiding people is a good thing, then it's a good thing almost anywhere and everywhere.
Shut up, and be like lambs...