I sent this letter to state senator Joan Bray (D-STL) when the Missouri legislature was considering CCW on campus:
"Dear Senator Bray,
I strongly urge you to support HB668 AS-IS in order to enact legally carrying concealed firearms on university campuses.
Unfortunately our colleges and universities have experienced a number of mass shooting incidents in the last ten years – all committed in locations where firearms are prohibited.
Facts clearly demonstrate the police can not protect you if you are randomly targeted by a deranged individual who intends to commit mass murder within a short period of time.
N.B. The police can’t protect you. The city can’t protect you. The county can’t protect you. Your friends can’t protect you. Your family can’t protect you. Only you have a chance to protect yourself - and the outcome is not guaranteed.
To maximize your chance for survival, the correct response to a direct attack which threatens life or serious bodily harm is to commit instant, overwhelming violence on the perpetrator at the first practicable moment. The one tactical advantage you have as a potential victim is that the attacker does not expect resistance. In this regard, any tool available to stop the attack should be employed. Whether it be a pistol, rifle, hammer, chair or whatever.
The objective is to survive. And there are no rules.
I will assume that if you do not support this legislation as-is you prefer our students to attend school in an environment where criminals can freely prey on victims without fear of retaliation. Please help make our campuses safer by supporting concealed carry on campus."
Here's the reply I just received:
"Dear MJK,
Thank you for your letter regarding the extension of the Missouri Castle Doctrine. As an elected official, I represent constituents from my district as well as my own predisposition on the issue. Personally I have long been an advocate for improving gun safety. During my service in the Senate I have also found that the majority of my constituents share my views. As so, my responsibility as their - and your - elected official is to represent my constituents as responsibly as possible – taking into consideration my conscience, feedback from my constituents, research, facts, experience in other states, etc.
Therefore, I oppose legislation that would make acquiring and owning concealed weapons easier, as House Bill 668 would have done. Not only would it have lowered the minimum age for getting a permit from 23 years old to 21, but this bill would also have allowed a person with a license to conceal and carry on college campuses. Hundreds of studies within the past few decades, including many recent studies (Dixon, S.K. and S.E. Robinson Kurpius. 2008. Depression and College Stress Among University Undergraduates.; Kerr, S., et al. 2004. Predicting Adjustment During the Transition to College: Alexithymia, Perceived Stress, and Psychological Symptoms.; Gowland, A. 2006. The Problem of Early Modern Melancholy.) have found that not only are college-aged young adults more likely to suffer from depression and suicidal thoughts, but those actually in college are more likely to act on these feelings, as a combined result of academic-related stress and a drug-and-alcohol-filled environment. I feel that weapons being readily available in an often reckless environment is a dangerous gamble on the part of the state -- one that I am not willing to make.
I appreciate being apprised of your support of the bill. I value the opinions of all of my constituents, and your point is understood. Please feel free to contact me in the future with any further comments or questions you might have on this or other issues.
Sincerely,
Joan Bray
Senator Joan Bray
District 24
Missouri Capitol, Room 431
Jefferson City, MO 65101
Telephone 573.751.2514"
What can you say about this kind of thinking?!??!!? The first thing that pops into my mind is that she was one of the actresses in the movie called "Clueless."