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Editor:
Signs have begun to appear in various places about campus declaring the UA to be a "WEAPON FREE ZONE."
Is it? I see cops on campus everyday carrying thirteen round, semi-automatic Glocks strapped to their hips. In case this first line of "defense" should fail in the apprehension of some rogue bicyclist, they also carry chemical mace, billy clubs and handcuffs. Furthermore, in case the "need" should ever arrive, these same cops would be granted the authority to bring shotguns, automatic rifles, tear gas and attack dogs onto campus, all in order to protect us in this WEAPON FREE ZONE.
Remember Kent State University?
What do you call a society where only a select group of individuals is allowed to carry arms and the majority of the population is barred from such a right? Some people would go so far as to call it a police state. Others might not go that far, but one still has to wonder what sort stratification results in the face of such an obvious power imbalance. Personally, I begin to worry when a certain group of people is allowed to have weapons that we are not. Why don't they trust us?
What about our friends in ROTC? They have guns in the UA's WEAPON FREE ZONE. Ah, but I stand corrected. They have guns in order to protect our democracy - (Question: If democracy is defined as rule by the majority of the masses, why are guns necessary in order to enforce it?).
And as long as we are going to declare the UA a WEAPON FREE ZONE, we must consider the notion of air space. Those anti-tank aircraft that fly over campus every morning returning from their bombing runs on the Barry M. Goldwater military reservation (no civilian access) should NOT be allowed to fly over campus, as those aircraft carry missiles, bombs and the largest cannon ever to be mounted on an aircraft straight through our WEAPON FREE ZONE.
The assertion that this campus is a weapon free zone is blatant hypocrisy. As long as the rest of us aren't allowed to carry weapons, why don't we extend those same privileges of being "weapon free" to our friends in law enforcement and the military. Hell, if they're really "officers of the peace," what do they need those guns for anyway?
Matthew D. Pilcher
anthropology senior
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