Wanted: A Culture of Self-Defense

[qrayjack]

Wanted: A Culture of Self-Defense
By Michelle Malkin
April 18, 2007

There's no polite way or time to say it: American colleges and universities have become coddle industries. Big Nanny administrators oversee speech codes, segregated dorms, politically correct academic departments and designated "safe spaces" to protect students selectively from hurtful (conservative) opinions -- while allowing mob rule for approved leftist positions (textbook case: Columbia University's anti-Minuteman Project protesters).

Instead of teaching students to defend their beliefs, American educators shield them from vigorous intellectual debate. Instead of encouraging autonomy, our higher institutions of learning stoke passivity and conflict-avoidance.
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[Rose St. Louis]

Like everyone else, I'm profoundly disturbed by the shootings at Virginia Tech. I work at a state university with similar prohibitions about weapons on our campus. Interestingly, the only people legally licensed to carry weapons there--the campus police--are protected in their offices by bulletproof glass. The rest of us have no such protection.

To my knowledge, we've never had any threats of gun violence or bombs on our campus. However, VT was apparently considered "safe" by its students, faculty and staff, as well--until two days ago, that is.

I can't wait to hear Hincker repeat his inane opinion that, "with hundreds of highly trained officers armed with high powered rifles encircling the building and protecting him," students don't need sidearms for protection. Hundreds of highly trained officers with high powered rifles couldn't prevent one lone, crazed gunman from chaining the doors shut so he could mow down 32 people. On the other hand, one well-trained student with a legal sidearm in his/her backpack could easily have prevented most of the carnage.

[Luckyme]

one well-trained student with a legal sidearm in his/her backpack could easily have prevented most of the carnage.

I don't get why the left doesn't understand this concept. Well.....perhaps they do get it but it's more important to have us all dependant on the government. What's a few lives lost here or there if they succeed with their larger goal.

[papajaxxx]

Enough is enough, indeed. Enough of intellectual disarmament. Enough of physical disarmament. You want a safer campus? It begins with renewing a culture of self-defense -- mind, spirit and body. It begins with two words: Fight back.

If good is to overcome evil, fighting back is the only way. Otherwise, evil will dominate our one and only planet.

[Charie]

If we hadn't had citizen soldiers we'd still be a colony of England.

The problem with people today not realizing the reason for the Second Amendment is because they don't have enough American History which, by the way, has been abominably taught for way too many years.

The citizen soldiers of 1775 fought against their government. That's right. Their government. That's why the Second Amendment wants citizens to be able to arm themselves, just in case the government becomes too overbearing as did England in those days.

perhaps they do get it but it's more important to have us all dependant on the government.

Very true, Lucky. And when the left wants to keep taxing and taxing us and giving more and more to the undeserving, we'll all have our guns to chase away the tax collectors from the doorways to our castles. Why in the world would they want us to have guns? They'll be the ones we'd be going after.

[tgclark]

That's what the leftist/elitist/liberals want, a gun free country that they can rule, but it would never be gun free because the criminals would always have guns just as the liberals would have their body guards. We have the right to defend ourselves and the government does not have the right to take that away from us even though they keep trying and also keep trying to take away our freedom of religion. They keep chipping away and we have to stop them.

[slickwilly]

The reason I have my conceal and carry permit is a restaurant massacre in Central Texas all those years ago... where a madman cornered everyone in a Luby's and walked around shooting people.

One lady, who lost her father that day, told how sorry she was to have left her pistol in her car on that fateful afternoon. Had she been able to shoot back, many lives would have been saved. The gunman could not have simply walked up to people hiding under tables and executed them with a single shot to the head (as her father was) had he been forced to duck her return fire.

That incident was the largest single massacre in US history... until now.

To get a permit in Texas, you have to be trained and keep that training updated. You are encouraged to practice with your concealed weapon, so that you can protect yourself effectively.

Liberals have a problem with that... and I don't care. I have never seen a survivor, liberal or otherwise, who protested Second Amendment rights after a fellow citizen stopped such a madman.

[STEELMAN]

A well armed society is a very polite society.

People without guns become the slaves of people with guns.

On the other hand, one well-trained student with a legal sidearm in his/her backpack could easily have prevented most of the carnage.

Precisely! Now you're talking sense. Just think if we all were taught how to responsibly handle firearms, when we children growing up by our parents, as in the old days of this country's developement...that killer would have been wiped out before he could blink twice.

I've always felt we should be a nation of well trained "Shootists", if that's a proper term, not criminals now... but proprerly trained citizens, we would have a better, polite society. It would cause all of us to be a lot more respectfull of others rights, freedoms, privacy, property, and self preservation. Now, I know all the arguments against this very well and some are legitimate... but realism still exists.

Those of you who have not had any training in the use of firearms, with exceptions of course, might find it a lot of fun to shoot and practice at the firing range. IMO it really gives you a good feeling to know, if you were ever to be put in a position of being harmed by an intruder or criminal, to be able to defend yourself and save your life, your family,your property, and others who might be involved. If I were you I'd give it some serious thought...it might save your life.

[greg]

In response to student Bradford Wiles's campus newspaper op-ed piece in support of concealed carry on campus, Virginia Tech Associate Vice President Larry Hincker scoffed:

"[i]t is absolutely mind-boggling to see the opinions of Bradford Wiles. . . . The editors of this page must have printed this commentary if for no other reason than malicious compliance. Surely, they scratched their heads saying, 'I can't believe he really wants to say that.' Wiles tells us that he didn't feel safe with the hundreds of highly trained officers armed with high powered rifles encircling the building and protecting him. He even implies that he needed his sidearm to protect himself . . ."
...
Hincker continued: "The writer would have us believe that a university campus, with tens of thousands of young people, is safer with everyone packing heat. Imagine the continual fear of students in that scenario. We've seen that fear here, and we don't want to see it again. . . . Guns don't belong in classrooms. They never will. Virginia Tech has a very sound policy preventing same."

Mr. Hinker should be publicly fired with extreme prejudice for his gross incompetent failure to carry out his duties as embodied in his very arrogant common-sense-lacking statements against Mr. Wiles....based on results of last Monday, April 16, 2007, again (like last August).

[shotgun rider]

Perhaps universities and schools in the USA should follow the example of educational institutions in Israel where every single teacher is armed.
Of course many will say, "Well we're not Israel where madmen terrorists try to blow themselves up in a public area or shoot people indiscriminatly!"
Aren't we? Wake up, take the blinders off! What was VT, Columbine or Pearl, MS or any of those other places? Terrorists are here in the form of wimpering, "poor me" socio-paths, or Islamic madmen. Those so-called "safe areas" such as schools, government buildings, etc. have become killing fields, "safe" only for madmen who don't want to face a threat.
I'm glad I live in a state that allows it's citizens to defend themselves if necessary. Mind you, I'd much rather run, but if they corner me or there's a dire threat of meham and murder, I'll come up shooting!
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Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock. - W. Rogers