MADISON GESIOTTO: You won’t believe what the Second Amendment critics are arguing now

OPINION:

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

Opponents of the Second Amendment have for years worked to prevent concealed carrying on college campuses across the country, repeatedly using ridiculous claims to limit the rights of students and campus employees to protect themselves and those around them.

However, a bill to legalize “campus carry” in Georgia is likely to pass in the legislature this month, and the Second Amendment critics are turning out in full force.

And you won’t believe what they are arguing now.

Perhaps their most outrageous claim yet, these gun-control advocates are arguing that House Bill 859 should be blocked because they fear it will cause students to shoot their college professors.

Apparently, students crazy enough to shoot their professors in the first place were previously prevented from doing so by the law.

This absurd argument assumes that if House Bill 859 is passed, students will complete the process of legally obtaining a concealed carry permit before shooting a professor on campus.

Or, even worse, their argument seems to assume that Americans old enough to carry a concealed firearm are not responsible enough to do so, an insult not only to college students but also to law-abiding gun owners nationwide.

Clearly, these ludicrous assumptions have been proven time and time again to be false, as criminals more often than not exhibit a complete disregard for the law.

Let’s take a look at Utah, currently the only state to specifically name public colleges and universities as public entities that do not have the authority to ban concealed carry under state law.

Have students with concealed carry permits gone around shooting professors in Utah?

Of course not, and it is not likely to happen in Georgia, or in any other state for that matter.

Americans simply cannot believe these preposterous assertions being used in an attempt to scare them.

Instead of leaving students and campus employees as sitting ducks in the event of a shooting or terrorist attack, let’s empower them to take responsibility for their personal safety and the safety of their classmates, colleagues, professors and friends.

The ridiculous claims coming from the left must be ignored, and the fight must continue.

It is time for “campus carry” to be legalized, not only in Georgia, but in all fifty states nationwide.

• Madison Gesiotto is a staff editor for the Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law. The author’s views are her own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law.