Letter to the Editor - Gun-free zones off public safety target

In the Feb. 21 editorial "Prof. Dirty Harry should teach 'Fun with Guns 101' course," the author spells out the objections to lawful firearms being carried on campus in the form of amusing jokes and baseless, fabricated scenarios of classroom shootouts and collegiate anarchy.

In the interest of dispelling myths about the proposals of Students for Concealed Carry on Campus, it should be noted, first of all, that no so-called "Saturday Night special" would be capable of firing an armor-piercing projectile. Such a weapon would likely break Mother Teresa's wrist if it were.

The Daily Forty-Niner displays a distressing contempt and distrust of the campus population, dismissing the possibility of allowing Californians to carry lawfully on college campuses via shady generalizations.

These licensed residents have already demonstrated an above-average respect for, and ability to follow, the law.

In California, carrying a handgun defensively is not even an option unless you are over 21, have proved citizenship, are going through a state-approved gun dealership, have gone through state-certified firearms safety training, have been fingerprinted and documented, and have waited 10 days after purchasing the weapon.

You must undergo a state background check, and you fail that if you've been on drugs, convicted of a felony or judged mentally unstable.

SCCC submits that the individuals who have fulfilled these requirements are not the trigger-happy outlaws the Forty-Niner imagines.

So far, no mass shootouts over a "D" grade have been reported. What is it that makes us suppose these licensed citizens become irresponsible lunatics the instant they cross the borders of campus?

Gun-free zones do not work because they are on the honor system. Mass shooters will continue to flout the law and, until policies change, will continue to find perfect hunting grounds full of defenseless victims.

The editorial suggests that mass shootings have been "anomalies." But with seven shooting incidents (all occurring in supposed "gun-free zones") during the past 30 days, how many more anomalies do we need? What comfort is it to tell the grieving families at NIU that their sons and daughters were victims of anomalies?

How much blood has to be spilled before we resolve to change?

- David Burnett Students for Concealed Carry on Campus