After staying away from any issues involving guns, Starbucks recently asked customers to keep guns out of their stores. Starbucks did not ban guns, they just politely asked customers to keep guns out of their more than 12,000 stores nationwide.
That doesn’t mean that customers in states where guns are legal can’t still walk in to Starbucks with a gun and get their frappuccinos, cappuccinos or lattes. Starbucks just doesn’t want firearms in its stores.
The State of Texas pulled the trigger on new regulations for the Concealed Handgun License class that cut eight hours from the mandatory classroom time, shot the written test in half and kept the same caliber of instruction.
The new regulations changed the mandatory CHL classroom time from the previous 15 hours maximum and 10 hours minimum to six hours maximum and four hours minimum.
It’s a straight shot north on I-35 until you reach exit 343 toward Elm Mott. Hang a right at the corner Dairy Queen and drive half a mile until you see the old white sign. You can’t miss it.
Tucked away on a nondescript side road, the small building doesn’t look like much at first. Your initial reaction of indifference won’t last long.
We’ve discussed concealed carry on college campuses extensively within these pages, covering several petitions from students and faculty who have offered support or a lack of support for the idea.
We haven’t yet talked about arming elementary school teachers.
Concealed carry laws: They’re all over the news.
Congress can’t come to consensus on the issue. Here’s the answer: Texas should secede. Then we will be free to make our own laws. It’s the only logical solution.
A bill that advanced through the state Capital yesterday would cut the amount of time necessary to earn a concealed handgun license by more than half.
The bill, proposed by New Braunfels Republican Sen. Donna Campbell, would reduce the class time necessary to get a CHL to a measly four hours because it’s apparently “long, redundant and boring” to spend the requisite ten hours learning how to properly and responsibly carry a potentially deadly weapon.
Student government hosted two prominent Baylor figures during the weekly meeting Thursday.
Dr. Kenneth L. Hall, senior vice president for university development and strategic initiatives, spoke in depth about his life and his role at Baylor.
The Baylor chapter of the Young Conservatives of Texas and students for concealed carry aren’t going down without a fight.
Cisco senior Zachary Maxwell, director of operations for the organization, started a petition as a way to show his support for Texas Sen. Brian Birdwell’s bill for on-campus concealed carry.
Thanks for your timely and balanced coverage of current gun law debates. I’m writing in response to your survey results on Sen. Birdwell’s proposed concealed carry bill that would allow licensed carriers to bring firearms onto college campuses. It is often the case with “opt-in” surveys that those who respond are often those who have the strongest feelings, one way or another.
Thank you for your viewpoint on concealed weapons for our campus that was expressed in Friday’s Lariat, in the article “Professor’s perspective”
My objection to your comments concerns your statement “The issue boils down to the probabilities”. To use your words, you are also engaging “in emotionalism” since the facts – or probabilities as you refer to – really do not back you up. A joint U.S. Department of Education/Secret Service report estimates the odds that someone dies in a school shooting is 1 in 1 million.
I am writing in response to a few issues raised in The Lariat’s excellent coverage of the controversy over the petition my colleague Dr. Blake Burleson and I wrote opposing Sen. Brian Birdwell’s Campus Personal Protection Act.
It is stated in the article “Students’ take” from the February 26 issue of the Lariat, that “Baylor professors expressed concern for their safety in a classroom that permitted concealed carry.” My personal safety is not the issue. As a professor and the father of two Baylor students, I am concerned first and foremost for the safety of my students.
The Baylor Lariat printed an article titled “Professors unite against concealed carry” on Feb. 21, detailing the Baylor professors that have signed and filed a letter in opposition to Sen. Bill 182.
The bill was filed by Texas Sen. Brian Birdwell on Jan. 17 and would allow concealed handgun license holders to carry concealed weapons on college campuses.
1. Do you think those who have concealed carry licenses should be allowed to bring a concealed weapon on Baylor’s campus?
Yes: A person that has completed the required training and earned their Texas CHL has proven that he/she is a trusted and law-abiding citizen that has made a conscious decision not to be a victim and to potentially defend the defenseless.
Yes: Those who want to do harm will do harm regardless of a concealed handgun license. This would allow staff and students to protect themselves against this type of violence.
Online Survey Results
The survey closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday. Ninety-two people responded from across the community. Below are the results and some answers from our readers.
To see more answers submitted by readers, check www.baylorlariat.com under the Opinions tab. Tweet @bulariat to submit your own opinion. Tweets will be chosen at the editor’s discretion.
The talk of concealed carry on college campuses has sparked a debate among Baylor professors.
State Sen. Brian Birdwell submitted Senate Bill 182 on Jan. 17, which would allow concealed carry on college campuses. Private universities will have the option to opt out.
Dr. Earl Grinols, Distinguished Professor of Economics at Baylor, said he agrees with the bill Birdwell proposed.
Students have engaged in a verbal gunfight that has resulted from the proposal of The Campus Personal Protection Act, introduced by Texas State Sen. Brian Birdwell in early January.
The bill has already resulted in a petition by Baylor professors. Now, students are going vocal.
“I think everyone should have the right to carry a concealed handgun anywhere they want,” Brownsville senior Ruben Pizana said. “But there are restrictions for a reason. I think the concealed carry process should be at least five times harder.”
A concealed carry bill has caused controversy and spurred reactions from Baylor and others in the community.
Senate Bill 182, proposed on Jan. 17, would allow students who have a concealed handgun license to carry concealed weapons on campus.
“My number one responsibility is to protect your right, even if you disagree or don’t express the opportunity to use it,” said State Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Waco.
Locations you may carry:
On the person’s own premises
Inside a person’s motor vehicle or watercraft
Any other place that is not specifically stated against in the Texas Concealed Handgun Law pamphlet.
Fortunately, we live in a country that affords us the rights to have debate and to elect leaders to create laws for us as a nation. The 2nd amendment right is a contentious issue for many and continues to be divisive at a national level. Concealed Carry on college campuses has gained traction in many states. In Texas we currently see Bill 182 that will allow licensed concealed carry permit holders to carry their personal weapons on college campuses.
Local media outlets, including the Baylor Lariat, have reported that Baylor faculty members Dr. Blake Burleson and Dr. Robin Wallace recently drafted a letter condemning Texas Senate Bill 182 and circulated it among the faculty. The letter strongly asserts that the freedom of licensed citizens to carry concealed weapons is disruptive to a learning environment. The authors and signatures of the letter contend that the possible presence of a firearm on campus would “introduce an element into this environment that causes anxiety, tension, concern, and fear” and “impede the free flow of ideas and exchanges which are essential in the academic enterprise.”
In response to the article in The Baylor Lariat, “Professors unite against concealed carry,” I would like to voice my concerns as a faceless Baylor student.
First off, everyone should have a say in policies that would, in fact, affect their personal/professional lives, yet to make technical claims that are outside the scope of one’s expertise, claims that these professors make, should be first thoroughly researched before attempting to sway public policy. Dr. Burleson, a religion senior lecturer, and Dr. Wallace, a professor of musicology, while wise and learned are certainly not the first individuals whom I would take credible statements from regarding a topic primarily associated with criminological and sociological studies. Having said that, I found some errors supporting this claim.
After reading the Feb. 19 article “Professors unite against concealed carry,” about how opposed the faculty at Baylor is to concealed carry, I felt a rebuttal was called for, and some misconceptions need to be corrected.
After all, isn’t proper academic rigor focused on objectively evaluating facts, not making decisions based on mere emotion?
First, a simple correction: The bill introduced by Sen. Birdwell was Sen. Bill 182, not 128. That’s an understandable typo, but it did make it more difficult to get the facts of what is being proposed.
Before we begin, it must be stated that this is not a unanimously written editorial.
The Lariat editorial board, whose voice is supposed to be represented in this space, could not come to a unanimous decision on the issue of allowing concealed handguns on campus.
That is why it is the official position of the Lariat editorial board that Baylor University, through the Office of Institutional Research and Testing, should make it a priority to survey the campus to see where we all stand on the issue. It should then make those findings public as soon as possible and send them to area lawmakers.
Baylor professors have signed and filed a letter in opposition to Sen. Bill 128, filed by Texas Senator Brian Birdwell on Jan. 17. The bill would allow students to carry concealed weapons on college campuses.
Dr. Blake Burleson, a senior lecturer in the religion department, and Dr. Robin Wallace, a professor of musicology in the School of Music, took the letter and the 120 signatures by Baylor faculty and staff to Birdwell’s office Monday.
