Integrity News

At the Virginia Tech campus several students wore empty pistol holsters last week to protest the university’s “gun free zone” policy that forbids students from carrying guns on campus, even when they are lawfully registered to carry concealed weapons under Virginia law.

Check out the article here.

I know a lot of you may not favor the idea of guns on college campuses. For me the issue has less to do with the guns themselves than it does about the rights of students to defend themselves. Guns used to be referred to as “equalizers” - meaning that it didn’t matter what your size was, you could kill a man (or woman) three times your size when you were armed. Women could fend off attackers with a pocket pistol and prevent becoming a victim.

Well-meaning citizens and civic leaders created these so-called “gun free zones” to try to curb violence. But what effect have they caused? Violent crimes still take place. Laws and campus regulations against firearms aren’t deterrent to criminals - they have already decided to break the law by attacking, or even killing, someone, so what’s the big deal about a minor infraction against bringing a gun?

By eliminating these “gun free zones,” those students and faculty members who are lawfully registered to carry a concealed weapon would be allowed to do so. If you don’t want to carry a gun, you don’t have to.

A lot of liberal people support a woman’s right to choose whether to have an abortion or carry the fetus full term and give birth to a baby. They also support the right to choose - to make decisions - for lots of people on lots of issues, but why not the right to carry a firearm lawfully registered? Most gun owners have more experience and training with their weapon than potential new mothers have with children.

Conservatives like to say there is a “culture war” in this country - and they usually place the blame for starting this war on liberals, gays, feminists, immigrants and others. Liberals like to shout back at the conservatives that they don’t care about the poor, the sick, the downtrodden, and others. What does this moronic bickering accomplish? NOTHING.

I believe the real reason so many people support gun control laws stems from their lack of trust. They don’t trust the other members of our society to do the right thing. There are lots of bad people out there, so, to some extent, those feelings are understandable. But there is no society where there is no trust. I have talked to many people who oppose “gay rights” and most of their objections can be traced back to that lack of trust - they are convinced we aren’t safe. They believe we are all infected with HIV and want to molest their children or have sex with them.

So you have two groups lined up on opposite walls who want play together because they don’t trust one another. So, Bill O’Reilly and company, this is what the culture war is all about - not the hot button issues you scream about across the radio waves. For you liberals out there, stop worrying about whether or not someone is going to shoot you in the back. Maybe that lack of trust is your conscience trying to tell you something. This country won’t go anywhere until we learn to trust one another.