"I brought my trusty taser from home, which she now carries with her daily to her classes"
Self defense should be taken personally
by Ben Almand on November 5, 2009
You see them all over the dorms now: bright red flyers signaling cautionary alerts to anyone walking alone on campus at night.
NAU CRIME ALERT: Armed Assault; NAU CRIME ALERT: Rape; NAU CRIME ALERT: Burglary.

These are all scary things, although ultimately avoidable. How is it avoidable, you ask? Self-defense.

When I was in my self-defense class in elementary school, we learned that no matter your size, with the right technique, you can fend off any attacker.

To that I say, “Yeah, right.” No freshman lightweight little lady walking back from McConnell to Cowden at midnight is going to be able to defend herself without aid from defensive tools against a dark, hooded figure on a poorly lit path.

Recent NAU crime studies show the most frequent cases of assault and sexual harassment occur near McConnell and Mountain View. After hearing this, I decided I should probably do something for my girlfriend’s safety because she is a resident of McConnell and a member of a sorority.

So I brought my trusty taser from home, which she now carries with her daily to her classes, sorority meetings and walking from my dorm to hers.

The reason for this anecdote is to give an example of what we should all do — hide and move only in the daylight, or arm ourselves with self-defensive measures such as tasers, pepper-spray, and if the university would allow it, a gun.
This brings me to my personal opinion of campus gun control. If the government allows open-carry at age 18, why should it be banned on campus?

If anything, it should be allowed and regulated with safety measures such as a permit and a background check (something I still disagree with, but a negotiation must be made somewhere) to open-carry a handgun on campus.

The benefits of carrying a handgun are endless.

For one, the 2007 Virginia Tech massacre took place on a campus where guns were prohibited. However, for a tragic display of senseless violence, someone was willing to break the rules.

So if guns are going to be present on campus for dangerous, destructive reasons, why not allow them for constructive reasons, such as self-defense and the defense of others in peril?

Of course, there will be added dangers with guns being introduced to student life. However, the pros far outweigh the cons when you take into consideration the lives that could be saved when a hostile intruder is removed as a threat
http://jackcentral.com/opinion/2009/11/s...