Eliminate school police for budget savings

In the article, "Eliminate school police for budget savings," Scott Henson talks about the cutting of school police to help cut back on spending for public schools. He claims that it wasn't till recently that we decided to have police on school campuses and that we have been fine without them in the past. He also says that the ratio of teachers and non teachers in school systems are equal. Attorney Don Dickinson stated that back when he was in junior high, they had on campus dieticians, but no on campus cops. Today, we have on campus cops, but no nutritionists. Senator John Whitmire had commented on the fact that campus police aren't given full authority to write any sort of tickets so why are they necessary?

In my opinion, I think this whole article is backwards. I believe that in this day it is appropriate to have police on campus during school hours. Yeah, they might not have been needed "back in the day," but a lot of things have changed since 30 years ago. Considering the fact that we are looking to pass a law to allow college students carry guns on campus, I think it's safe to say that having campus police is necessary no matter if it's k-12 or higher ed. There are also plenty of other resources for students go turn to when it comes to dieting. What is more important? The safety of students while going to school, or the obese rate. Even if we did have on campus nutririonists I don't believe it would decrease America's child obesity rate. School is a place where students of all ages should always feel safe. In this day in age, who knows what will happen if campus police are cut. Yes, something needs to be done, but there has to be another way than jeopardizing the safety of kids at school.

Tripp: In the face of danger, Texans must have the option to protect themselves

In Anita Tripp's editorial, "In the face of danger, Texans must have the option to protect themselves," Tripp makes the argument that it is essential that the people of Texas have the right to carry a gun for safety purposes. She works in the capitol and feels a lot more secure because she can carry a gun too and from the parking garage when going to work. It also gives her a sense of security when traveling to and from the rural area of Bastrop everyday. Tripp's son was shot in an armed robbery in North Austin and luckily he wasn't killed. This is a situation where she thought it would have been a good idea to have a concealed weapon. Basically, Tripp feels that if you are properly trained in using the weapon, can pass a background check, and have taken a written couse, that it should not be an issue to carry a concealed weapon.

I strongly agree with this argument. I believe that if a person goes through the proper steps and has had a background check that there shouldn't be an issue with carrying a concealed weapon. Of course, if a weapon falls into the wrong hands it could be bad, but we would really need to crack down on making sure if someone carries a gun in public places that they have a permit for it.