Anyone carry gun?

[Murfreesboro]

I agree that throwing a football at the principal, if it was done deliberately to strike him, would be grounds for some type of disciplinary action anywhere. However, pulling a gun for something like that would be way, way out of line.

Now, I do wish that school systems would permit some of those in authority, those who have the necessary skills & permits, for example, to carry guns on school property. In Pearl, Mississippi, across the river from my hometown of Jackson, there was a school shooting back in the '90s. Several students were killed, including the daughter of a man I myself knew in 7th & 8th grades. That shooting spree was stopped by an assistant principal who went out to his car and got his own gun. I don't recall exactly what happened to the gunman, who I think was a student. Maybe he was killed; I don't recall. But IMO, that use of a firearm on school property, by a school employee who was authorized to have a weapon, is the right way to do it.

My husband is a former military officer who is certainly trained to shoot a weapon. He deplores that the school system where he works will not allow him to carry a firearm on school property. He absolutely knows that, if he were permitted to do so, he could stop any school shooting, just the way that assistant principal did down in Mississippi. The way the regulations are now, he feels that he and his students are just sitting ducks for the next crazy person with a gun.

[iHaunt]

Mike,

My best friend, the prinicpal can carry the gun at school property b/c he has gun permit i.d. and he wasn't my principal. He was the newest prinicipal to me. WE made friends. The stupidiest student that threw foot ball at the principal's head was suspended for 5 days then he was back again.... still, he got into another trouble again! He threw the door knob and hit someone's head then he was expelled for good!

[Pumpkin_Man]

Murf, I might sound like some kind of a cow boy, but I think anyone should be allowed to carry a gun, no matter what their occupation. I can understand where some places, such as an oil refinery or a coal mine guns could be really dangerous and shouldn't be allowed, and discretion should be used, but a gun can often make the difference in being victimized or not. Austrailia has some of the strictest gun control laws in the world, and they also have some of the highest incidents of home invasions. A lot of elderly people, and others who would be no match for some 26 year old hoodlum would be in real danger without some means to protect themselvs. More often then not, the authorities are too late to do anything. The old chiche "there's never a cop when you need one" often ends up being the case. I, myself, am 51 years old. I still have some health issues, even though my weight loss has gotten ride of the major ones. I don't have the endurance that I had when I was in my 20s, nor do I have the speed or physical strength. Again, if some young hoodlum breaks into my house, what am I supposed to do? Nothing, while he beats me to a pulp and then rips me off blind? And what if he has a gun? How do laws against owning guns protect law abiding citizens from the law breakers who don't care that there are gun laws?

Sorry, but all gun control does is make law abiding people more vulnerable to the non law abiding element.

iHaunt, it's good that football bully was expelled. You can do a lot of damage by throwing things at people, especialy hard objects like door knobs. I was actualy hit in the face by a football once. It happened when I was in high school. It was not deliberate, it was just two of the football bullies tossin the ball back and fourth in the hall way before first bell. I had to get to band practice early that morning, so I had the misfortune of walking inbetween these two idiots, and I was hit right in the face. I was not seriously injured, but it did hurt. The two jerks who hit me with the ball thought it was funny.

I complained to the dean of students and his reaction (keep in mind, this was back in 1975, and the jocks practicaly owned the school where I went) to blame the whole incident on me for not watching where I was walking, and then he "admonished" me that I should be more "grateful" for the hard work the athlets put in to put our school on the map.

HIGH SCHOOL SUCKED!!!

Mike

Mike

[Spookymufu]

people wernt even able to carry a gun around town in the old west, many towns outlawed the carry of guns in the town limits....but, I feel schools should have on site cops now days and if the person can pass a background check and can pass firearms training then they should be able to carry certain weapons in site on their person (and I think thats how it is in Az) but not at schools, I have kids and I dont want someone who might be unqualified in the heat of a situation taking shots around my kids. I seem to remember something about being able to carry an exposed weapon in Az as long as you pass basic gun safety and background

[Murfreesboro]

Mike, that dean of students was a jerk. I'm sorry you had to deal with someone like that.

Amen to your take on gun control. It's a cliche, but nevertheless true, I believe, that if you outlaw guns, only outlaws will have guns. And as for police protection, I have heard another adage I think is worth considering--When seconds count, the police are only minutes away.

[iHaunt]

Mike, that high school bully who threw the football at the principal's head is now in detention home for 3 months because he was beating up the art teacher during the summer school back in June. He will never go back to that school again anymore at all period. He did beat up on other students and teachers too! He will be sent to the special school program somewhere in Richmond, VA. He's very, very bad boy!

[Pumpkin_Man]

iHaunt, let's home that individual will out grow what's troublign him so he can be a halfway decent adult.

Murf, that is exactly right. That dean, like that tneire school cared about 2 things. The sports programs, and making money. If you weren't righ or a jock, you were a 'no body.' And the really sad thing is that this happened at a Catholic school.

Criminals are allways going to have guns, and another aspect to gun control is that there will be a whole new area for criminals to make money through gun ruinning. When we had prohibition, we had guys like Al Capone raking in millions selling illegal alcohol. If we outlaw guns, those same thugs will illegaly buy and sell guns.

Spooky, that is a good point, and I actualy agree with the hard nosed laws against the kids bringing guns to school. You have to be 18 or older to vote in an election. You should have to be AT LEAST 18 to own a gun. In fact, in Illinois I think you have to be 21 to get a FOID card and purchase guns and ammunition. I also see your point about having to take some training for guns. We do require people to pass a written and driving test to get a licensee to drive a motor vehicle. It's probably a good idea to be sure that anyone who carries a gun knows what to do and when NOT to use it.

But a total ban on guns just won't work, and will create a bonanza for organied crime.

Mike

[Spookymufu]

No kid should ever bring a gun to school, ever no matter who they are, and there are a lot of people that have gun permits that would freeze or freak out if something actually happened. Just because you take weapons training and pass a test doesnt mean you could actually shoot someone and take a life if it came right down to it, I prefer those people NOT have a gun around kids.....Put cops in the schools and let them do the gun carrying and protecting.
For everywhere else I think if qualified people carried exposed firearms, criminals would think twice before being stupid......


Fun fact, majority of people are more afraid of dogs then guns....

[Pumpkin_Man]

Guns in school can be a problem. As for people being more afraid of dogs then guns, the reason for that is a dog can be unpredictable. A gun actualy has to be fired. I can't just jump out of the holster and shoot you. A dog can turn on you for a number of reasons. I heard a story about a guy who owned and loved a bull mastiff. While at a dog show, that dog suffered an episode of "Spanial Rage," and tore the guys kidney out right in front of everyone.

Mike

[Murfreesboro]

OMG! I never considered the possibility that a dog would turn on its own master. And a show dog, at that.

I like big dogs, but mastiffs are too big for me. I prefer setters & German shepherds.

[Spookymufu]

well, what i meant was, people are afraid of other peoples dogs more then they are of people pointing a gun at them.....

So in most cases a big dog in a house is more of a deterrent then a homeowner with a gun....

If I'm walking my black lab people will shy away from it more so then if I was carrying a gun....

I didnt mean owners being worried about their own dogs

[NeverMore]

.
Ha! I was just working outside and had my dog's roommate, I mean, my roommate's dog tied up out there. The mail lady came by and was absolutely terrified. Granted, it is a pit but I wonder if she would have reacted that way if a poodle pointed a gun at her. I told her the worst this dog would do would be lick her to death but she wasn't convinced.

[Pumpkin_Man]

I agree that a dog can be a major deterant, but it's not allways the more practicle solution for many people. First of all, a dog requires a lot of work, sacrofice and money to take care of it. I am not willing to put int he work or pay the vet bills. Secondly, I, and many other single people, live alone, and I am often away from home for 14 hours or more because of photo shoots. That would be grossly unfair to any animal. Dogs can also be very destructive while you are raising them, and if you want to travel, you either have to bring the dog with you, which means you won't get into alot of places because they don't allow pets, or you have to board the an imal or ask some one to "dog" sit. I travel by motorcycle, so there wouldn't be a lot of room for a Great Dane, or other animal for that matter.

So if it's all the same to you, I'll stick with my .357 Magnum.

Mike

[iHaunt]

Mike, mostly countries like the President, Prime Ministers, The Leaders do carry guns.... what about our USA President? My grandpa told me the last time that formerly President Bush does carry the gun that we didn't know that?

[Murfreesboro]

I've never heard, iHaunt, nor have I ever thought to wonder about it. As a U.S. citizen, I suppose any President could carry a gun as long as he was abiding by the rules of his resident area (of course, I believe D.C. is a no-gun zone).

Then again, Presidents are surrounded by so much security that they probably don't feel the need to carry guns personally.

I don't know anything about George W.'s habits that way, but it's possible that he carried a gun on his ranch in TX, but not in the White House.