Ever try to bring a gun into the U.S. House of Representatives or any U.S. Senate office? How about any state legislative chamber or governor's office? I would not recommend that you try to do this or you are likely to get arrested or, as we observed last week in our nation's capital, you may be shot by police or other security personnel guarding our local, state and national representatives.
Last week, a man identified as Larry Dawson, of Tennessee, pulled out a gun at the Capital Visitor Center and was promptly shot by police. As of last Monday, Dawson was listed in critical condition.
To enter any federal building or office in Washington, or any of our 50 state legislature chambers, you'll need to pass through a metal detector to make sure you are not armed. Our government officials take their safety very seriously. I've always found this interesting in light of the fact that many of these same national and state representatives are always telling us that we would be safer if more people had guns.
Indeed, they want guns in schools, on college campuses, in hospitals, in movie theaters and on the streets. They keep telling us that we'd be better off if more good people had guns to protect us from bad people with guns. But when it comes to their workplaces, our representatives seem to have a different attitude about gun rights. Indeed, our government officials seem to want the rest of us to be surrounded by guns, but not them.
For example, the Alaska State Legislature is considering a bill that would allow anyone to carry a gun, without a permit, on the campus of the University of Alaska. Like their state representatives who care about their safety and don't want guns at their workplace, the good folks at the University of Alaska are also concerned about their safety and the safety of their students. They made it clear to their representatives that, with the exception of university police personnel, they don't want anyone else carrying a gun on campus.
That didn't stop State Sen. Pete Kelly to offer a bill, likely to pass, that would allow anyone 21 years or older at the University of Alaska to carry a concealed gun without a permit. The bill is likely to pass as the Alaska legislature is controlled by Republicans who put their support of the NRA ahead of the safety of their children attending college.
According to Dermot Cole of the Alaska Dispatch News, Republicans even "objected to sensible proposals from the university that the bill be amended to require people to get a concealed gun permit and to restrict in situations where K-12 students are on university facilities." According to the NRA, people have the right to carry guns, without a permit, wherever they want. And a majority of members of Congress and state legislators seem to agree with this philosophy, but apparently not in their offices.
Why is the safety of our national and state representatives more important than the safety of ordinary Americans looking for reasonable gun control and safety? Why do federal and state representatives have the right to work in safe, gun-free zones, but not faculty members at a college or university? Why do members of the Alaskan legislature think that anyone should be able to carry a gun anywhere on the campus of their state university, but not into their senator's office?
Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz have promised, if elected, to eliminate sensible laws that make our schools gun-free zones. Yet, they are very quiet about the decision not to allow guns into the Republican National Convention in Cleveland this summer. Why is their safety more important than our children's safety? More than 30,000 Republicans have signed a petition to allow guns into the GOP convention, but don't expect their wishes to be respected. Couldn't the GOP-controlled Senate and House pass a law allowing guns at national conventions? Sure they could; but they will not.
Thirty Americans are killed each day by guns. Perhaps if our national and state representatives had to live and work under the same risk of being killed as the rest of us then they would be more inclined to push for reasonable gun control and sensible gun safety measures. But until they have some skin in the game — and I mean their skin — why should they care about the rest of us?
Tom Zirpoli writes from Westminster. He is program coordinator of the human services management program at McDaniel College. His column appears Wednesdays. Email him at tzirpoli@mcdaniel.edu.
