It didn't have to happen.
The bloodbath in Blacksburg could have been prevented but the Virginia Assembly and the elected leaders dropped the ball...
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Jan 21, 2006
HB 1572, which would have allowed handguns on college campuses, died in subcommittee.
By Greg Esposito 381-1675
A bill that would have given college students and employees the right to carry handguns on campus died with nary a shot being fired in the General Assembly.
House Bill 1572 didn't get through the House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety. It died Monday in the subcommittee stage, the first of several hurdles bills must overcome before becoming laws.
The bill was proposed by Del. Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah County, on behalf of the Virginia Citizens Defense League. Gilbert was unavailable Monday and spokesman Gary Frink would not comment on the bill's defeat other than to say the issue was dead for this General Assembly session.
Virginia Tech spokesman Larry Hincker was happy to hear the bill was defeated. "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."
Del. Dave Nutter, R-Christiansburg, would not comment Monday because he was not part of the subcommittee that discussed the bill.
Most universities in Virginia require students and employees, other than police, to check their guns with police or campus security upon entering campus. The legislation was designed to prohibit public universities from making "rules or regulations limiting or abridging the ability of a student who possesses a valid concealed handgun permit ... from lawfully carrying a concealed handgun."
The legislation allowed for exceptions for participants in athletic events, storage of guns in residence halls and military training programs.
Last spring a Virginia Tech student was disciplined for bringing a handgun to class, despite having a concealed handgun permit. Some gun owners questioned the university's authority, while the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police came out against the presence of guns on campus.
In June, Tech's governing board approved a violence prevention policy reiterating its ban on students or employees carrying guns and prohibiting visitors from bringing them into campus facilities.
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Worked real good didn't it?
How many people would be alive today if one or more of the students had been legally armed and returned fire? Sure, we'd be hearing about the "WILD WEST GUNFIGHT ON CAMPUS" but I guarantee you many of those lives which were snuffed out yesterday would still be here to tell the tale. We have been lulled into believing that we do not have to provide for our own self defense, that the police are there to protect us. This is complete bullshit and those who believe it run the posibility of ending up senselessly killed. Words and rules cannot protect the innocent from those who are unwilling to abide by them. We must give ourselves and our children the ability to take care of themselves, to defend themselves if need be, from those who would wish to do them harm. Nothing else will suffice.
The anti-gun people are going to try and use it to further ban guns on the university campuses and everywhere lese.
And it will happen again.
********************************************************************************************
Jan 21, 2006
HB 1572, which would have allowed handguns on college campuses, died in subcommittee.
By Greg Esposito 381-1675
A bill that would have given college students and employees the right to carry handguns on campus died with nary a shot being fired in the General Assembly.
House Bill 1572 didn't get through the House Committee on Militia, Police and Public Safety. It died Monday in the subcommittee stage, the first of several hurdles bills must overcome before becoming laws.
The bill was proposed by Del. Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah County, on behalf of the Virginia Citizens Defense League. Gilbert was unavailable Monday and spokesman Gary Frink would not comment on the bill's defeat other than to say the issue was dead for this General Assembly session.
Virginia Tech spokesman Larry Hincker was happy to hear the bill was defeated. "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."
Del. Dave Nutter, R-Christiansburg, would not comment Monday because he was not part of the subcommittee that discussed the bill.
Most universities in Virginia require students and employees, other than police, to check their guns with police or campus security upon entering campus. The legislation was designed to prohibit public universities from making "rules or regulations limiting or abridging the ability of a student who possesses a valid concealed handgun permit ... from lawfully carrying a concealed handgun."
The legislation allowed for exceptions for participants in athletic events, storage of guns in residence halls and military training programs.
Last spring a Virginia Tech student was disciplined for bringing a handgun to class, despite having a concealed handgun permit. Some gun owners questioned the university's authority, while the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police came out against the presence of guns on campus.
In June, Tech's governing board approved a violence prevention policy reiterating its ban on students or employees carrying guns and prohibiting visitors from bringing them into campus facilities.
***********************************************************************
Worked real good didn't it?
How many people would be alive today if one or more of the students had been legally armed and returned fire? Sure, we'd be hearing about the "WILD WEST GUNFIGHT ON CAMPUS" but I guarantee you many of those lives which were snuffed out yesterday would still be here to tell the tale. We have been lulled into believing that we do not have to provide for our own self defense, that the police are there to protect us. This is complete bullshit and those who believe it run the posibility of ending up senselessly killed. Words and rules cannot protect the innocent from those who are unwilling to abide by them. We must give ourselves and our children the ability to take care of themselves, to defend themselves if need be, from those who would wish to do them harm. Nothing else will suffice.
The anti-gun people are going to try and use it to further ban guns on the university campuses and everywhere lese.
And it will happen again.