Virginia Tech Aftermath: Signs of Intelligence

Fred Thompson seems to be gearing up for a run at the White House. In the aftermath of the tragic killings at yet another of our educational institutions (Virginia Tech), he's written an open letter to explain his position on the shooting and why it happened at VTU. In short, Thompson argues, if there had been responsible adults with firearms at Virginia Tech, the tragedy would have been much less severe. Here are a few excerpts from his letter:

One of the things that's got to be going through a lot of peoples' minds now is how one man with two handguns, that he had to reload time and time again, could go from classroom to classroom on the Virginia Tech campus without being stopped. Much of the answer can be found in policies put in place by the University itself. Virginia - like 39 other states - allows citizens with training and legal permits to carry concealed weapons. That means that Virginians are far safer than they would be in San Francisco, Oakland, Detroit, Chicago, New York City, or Washington, D.C., where such permits are difficult or impossible to obtain.

Evidence from Israel, where many teachers have weapons and have stopped serious terror attacks, has been documented. Supporting, though contrary, evidence from Great Britain, where strict gun controls have led to violent crime rates far higher than ours, is also common knowledge. So Virginians asked their legislators to change the University's "concealed carry" policy to exempt people 21 years of age or older who have passed background checks and taken training classes. The University lobbied against that bill, and the legislature blocked the measure. Many other Universities have been swayed by an anti-gun, anti-self defense ideology.