Editor,
"Gov. Bill Richardson established a task force to establish best practices for colleges and universities in New Mexico," UNMPD officials said in Wednesday's Daily Lobo. As usual, we are asked to place our lives in the hands of the police, rather than investigate what would truly be the best practice for New Mexico campuses: arming the citizens. I'm glad UNM Police are getting AR-15s. I hope eventually every police car on campus will have 10 readily available. But this is a Band-Aid on a bullet wound, a distraction from the real problem: Students, faculty and staff at UNM should be allowed to carry concealed arms on campus. I implore Richardson and President David Schmidly to stop infringing on our Second Amendment rights and allow us to protect ourselves. Trained or not, Americans have proved themselves over and over and over again in the line of fire. Numerous times nationwide, school shootings have been stopped from ordinary citizens running to their car to get their gun. They're just faster than the police. Stopping the infringement on our Second Amendment rights does not mean every person on campus will be carrying a firearm, but the people who have concealed-carry licenses will have that choice at least. I ask for the bureaucracy making these decisions to truly consider what is best for UNM, not what is politically correct.
Jean Aragon
UNM staff
