More on the Empty Holster Protest

This time a completely positive article in the East Tennessean. How school officials thought it would cause a panic is bizarre, but apparently they let it proceed. -Yuri

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Aiming to protect

Marksmanship Club participates in National Empty Holster Day

Adrienne Cline

Last Monday the ETSU marksmanship club participated in National Empty Holster Day. In this demonstration, students who are members of the club wore empty gun holsters to class as part of their efforts to get a state gun law changed.

Right now, those who are licensed to carry a handgun are prohibited from carrying one on a university or college campus. Organizations like this one want the law amended so that those who have a permit can carry on campuses as well as everywhere else.

A few weeks ago, some of those participating went to the administration to inform them of the activity the club would be taking part in. At first the university officials were against to demonstration.

"They were afraid that wearing holsters might cause a panic," said Jay Adkins, one of the marksmanship club's vice presidents. Since the club was not breaking any rules or laws, they were allowed to follow through with the demonstration on the allotted day. They also advertised their upcoming plans so students knew what was going on.

Adkins said about 15 to 20 students in the club wore holsters last Monday. The marksmanship club set up a booth in participation also with the homecoming charity fair and sold tickets to an "Open Range Day" at the mini dome's rifle range. Students who bought tickets were given proper safety gear and one-on-one training time with experienced shooters. There were also range safety officers patrolling during the activity to ensure well-being of all those present.
Thirty-seven people showed up to shoot. Adkins says that most of them were new shooters, too.

It is not yet known if the law has a chance to be changed to suit its supporters.

As long as a person has a permit, he or she is allowed to carry a concealed handgun wherever they please - the grocery store, a party, the street, etc. These students fear that in a crisis situation there may not be adequate protection available in crucial moments needed by the few officers who patrol the university. By not allowing licensed individuals to carry on campus, the club feels that college-age students are not being treated as adults when they are treated so under most other circumstances.

To obtain a permit, an individual undergoes an FBI background check, takes an eight-hour training course, pays a training fee of $50 to $60, and pays a fee of $115 to the state for the permit. They must also be 21 years of age or older.

"I would feel a whole lot safer if someone had a license to carry and stop someone from going on a rampage," said Jordan Taylor, marksmanship club member.

It is for their and other students' safety that they are fighting to change the law.

"Awareness is key," said Stephanie Adkins, club member. Knowing that there are others in the vicinity who could take action in the event of such happenings like a shooting could provide more reassurance, she feels. "Campus safety can't always be there immediately," she said.

In continued efforts to promote the change in state law, the marksmanship club is also wearing and selling T-shirts that read, "What you can't see can save your life."

Gun Love!

Oh my, where to begin?

Tex Slim (not his real name I'm sure), a free-lance journalist from Lubbock, TX opened forth his mouth and did spew out this bit of tripe. Go ahead and read it (and comment) if you want to, but I'll hit the highpoints here and give my thoughts. Gotta love the anti's though, they're nothing if not predictable.

The first thing this idiot did is smear one of my favorite music groups, big time gun guys (so I've been told) ZZ Top. Don't mess with the Top! The spew is entitled "ZZ Top's GUN LOVE all the rage on college campuses." Click here for the lyrics to "Gun Love", and here to watch a video of a guy loading and shooting a BP revolver with the song playing.

Hold your nose, we're diving in!

"Just when everybody thought college campuses were a peace loving bunch a new idea has surfaced that could bring back the "ugly" american past known as "gunslinger era".This is "Guns On Campus" week and of course Texas Tech students(fringe group,hopefully)will be wearing empty holsters protesting rules and maybe even state law that prohibits concealed weapons on any school campus.This "empty holster" protest will last from Oct 22-Oct 26 and is thought to have 110 college campuses effected. (Shouldn't that be 'affected'? -Yuri)"

First this guy seems to have deluded himself into thinking that college campuses are some magical bastion of peace and tranquility, a Utopian island amid the wild and uncivilized outside world. Last time I checked, schools were still a part of the community and all of the same problems that exist outside don't magically stop at the property line. Every crime that occurs off campus, robbery, rape and murder, to name just a few, occur on campus as well. What makes this guy think that the students are any safer on campus than off? I got it, he "feels" that it is so, and therefore it is...at least in the fantasy world he has made for himself in his own head.

And then he brings up another anti talking point, that concealed carry will lead to wild west shootouts. I have news for him, concealed carry is the law in the majority of states now and the data is in, the nightmare scenario of blood running in the streets has never happened. Why should students who have their CCW permit have to sacrifice their own security for the unfounded "feelings" of hoplophobes? Shouldn't laws be based in facts and logic and not feelings and emotion? That is what this protest is all about. For taking part in this protest he libels decent, law-abiding young people as "gun nuts" (in the next paragraph) a "fringe group" and rounds it up by likening the protest to a disease that "effects" other schools.

"I,being a former Tech student and staff,have never been comfortable with the "Andy Taylor/Barney Fife" types calling themselves campus cops with that "heater" on their hip.I remember a plump elderly fella at Tech med school named "Todd" who proudly carried his "heater" on hip and when I ask him about safety being on he replied,"They don't give me NO BULLETS".I guess he was gonna use his "heater" to pistol whip criminals since he had no ammo.Some years ago Tech med school had a Levelland boxer(Robin Blake) on campus cop roster and we all know about boxers and guns(deadly mix).

My best advice to those characters carrying empty holsters is put a LARGE water pistol in that holster(NO ALCOHOL-PROHIBITED ON CAMPUS) and "Wash away those criminals".For the more adventuresome protesters I could recommend the local US military induction center since personel are in demand for this thing called "IRAQ WAR"."

Way to smear people with broad brush generalizations there "Tex". I've seen my share of overweight security personnel and "mall ninjas" but now you're just trying to be mean. And what's the deal with boxers and guns anyway? Apparently we don't all know about them, so clue us in here. I could generalize about hopolophobic, free-lance journalists from Lubbock, TX as bed wetting pussies but that wouldn't be right, even if it may be correct.

Listen closely dip-shit, it's not about shooting guns and killing people that these students are protesting for, it's about being able to protect themselves if the need arises. Saying that they should join the army if they want to carry guns is disingenuous. Oh, and you misspelled 'personnel'.

"Some Texas colleges such as UT and Texas A&M will probably be involved since guns were allowed on campus in the 60's when Charles Whitman shot up UT campus and fellow students were seen "firing back" at Whitman with their "hunting" rifles.More than likely some "gung-ho" military cadets and instructors at A&M will wear service revolver holsters empty as a show of support for "Guns On Campus" movement.

TEXAS IS "GUN COUNTRY"!!

The learning impaired community(college students,faculty&staff) want to carry concealed handguns on campus??

SAVE US FROM THE GUN-NUTS ON COLLEGE CAMPUS!!!"

"Tex" continues his streak by associating the protesters with the likes of Charles Whitman and then basically calls them "retarded." Again, I could make disparaging comments about the size of his genitals and the like, but that wouldn't be right...

Texas is "Gun Country"? Cool! :-)

Um, exactly who are you praying to there at the end "Tex", Sarah Brady...Nancy Pelosi perhaps...or Hillary Clinton? Who cares...

This little screed demonstrates the difference between the pro-rights and the anti-rights sides. They are losing and they know it, and when faced with a lack of facts and logic on their side, they resort to grade school insults and name calling.

Goodbye Tex, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Local Reaction to the Empty Holster Protest

Click here for the video from KOMO TV 4 in Seattle, WA. This piece about Ethan Pratt and the Empty Holster Protest organized by the Students for Concealed Carry on Campus aired last night.

Over all I thought it was a pretty balanced piece, although a bit short. They did manage to slip in a couple of negative views versus the one pro-gun viewpoint though. One is the Seattle Pacific University spokesman Vick Peirson who thinks that getting behind a lockable door is the best way to survive a "Cho-like" rampage, and the anonymous young woman who says that guns on campus would make her nervous. How she'd know about it since it's called Concealed Carry for a reason is beyond me. Besides, the protest organizers have stated this isn't about arming every student, instead, it is just about letting the students who have CCW permits already to legally carry their weapons with them on college campuses.

Funny, I've never once considered carrying a lockable door around with me for protection. One, like a police officer, it's too heavy and two, a gun is more effective.