<p>I predict the stun gun gets used as part of drunken antics long before it gets used to “defend” anyone.</p>
<p><a href=“If%20I%20had%20a%20D%20living%20in%20an%20off-campus%20apt,%20a%20good%20watch%20dog%20(not%20something%20dangerous%20to%20innocent%20people),%20would%20be%20mandatory.”>quote</a>
[/quote]
</p>
<p>8-| </p>
<p>I honestly thought I had seen everything, but this takes the cake. </p>
<p>I cannot imagine a campus where students–other than a few lunatics–carry weapons. </p>
<p>If anyone comes across the names of universities that allow students to bring guns please name them here so I can cross them off the list for any of my children! We have already discussed the problem of binge drinking on campuses and firearms do not need to be put in the mix. The idea they need them for hunting is ridiculous because how can a college student dress and freeze his quarry? Another forum I was on recently said some states will prosecute the owner of a firearm that is stolen out of a vehicle. The owner has to install a firearm vault in the vehicle. Usually that is only practical with handguns which would require a concealed weapon permit and handguns/permits can’t be purchased by those under 21. I think it’s insane to allow a college kid to take a gun to school and if their personal safety is so at risk, choose a safer school. </p>
<p>@romanigypsyeyes Why the eye-roll? </p>
<p>Sorry, but if I had a D in an off-campus apt, I would want her to have a dog for protection. Call me crazy, but I (and my H) would likely insist. </p>
<p>@OspreyCV22 if you click on the states in the map linked in post 28 you can get the name of the individual colleges. </p>
<p>Take your pick:
1- You’d treat your D different from your S.
2- You’d make your D take care of a dog (already a hard task and VERY hard for college students) just for the remotely small chance that… what… someone’s going to break in or something?
3- Dogs are actually pretty inconvenient considering that you can’t have them in most student-dominated apartments.
4- It’s not smart for a student to get an animal if he/she doesn’t know where he/she’ll be post-graduation.
5- Let’s assume that someone is going to bust into your student’s house. Since the vast majority of crime is done to people that you know and not strangers the dog is going to be ineffective (as they’ll know the person) OR there is a specific reason that they’re targeting your daughter and will be prepared to deal with said dog. </p>
<p>I could really go on. </p>
<p>I’ve had a lot of very sexist, strange suggestions for off-campus females but watchdog was a first. </p>
<p>If you’re that paranoid, get a good home security alarm. Much more effective than a dog AND the alarm doesn’t require feeding/attention. Oh… and make sure that whatever rules you have for your D, you have for your S. </p>
<p>
No. Weapons in the hands of untrained people are very dangerous to themselves and everyone around them. Your child would be better off with even 6 months of serious martial arts training before going off to school. No weapons.</p>
<p>It is time to pour myself a nice glass of red and plop my tired body into the comfy living room chair… ;)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Pocket knives (manually opened, not switchblade) seemed to be reasonably common when I was growing up (think Boy Scout knives, Swiss Army knives, and the like) for utility purposes, as opposed to criminal or fear-of-crime purposes.</p>
<p>Of course, that may be different now, with paranoia about crime up even though crime itself is down.</p>
<p>Knives in general can be found in just about every home or restaurant kitchen, including the kitchen in the dining hall of a college dorm.</p>
<p>People have Swiss Army Knives for utilitarian purposes, not because they think they will fend off intruders or assailants with them. </p>
<p>Can you just freaking imagine the lawsuits from having a gun on campus and having it go off accidentally or a small roommate tiff turning into a huge disaster. Or a guy using it to force a girl to do something she doesn’t want to do, or confronting the guy who asked her out first. </p>
<p>It’s bad enough there are parts of the country where there is no shame in owning a gun (bridal showers at the gun range, gag). Time to heap on more shame. </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>A few years ago, there was a thread on CC wherein someone insisted that in Texas, rage road shootings are commonplace because everyone has a loaded gun hanging on a rack in their back window. I stated that I’ve lived in Texas since I was 6 and hadn’t seen a rifle displayed in the back window in years. I was told by this poster that since they used to live in Texas, they knew better. </p>
<p>Since that thread years ago, I have looked for a pickup with a rifle displayed in the window. I have not seen ONE. I’ve traveled through west Texas, I’ve traveled through the Hill Country, I’ve traveled to the coast, I’ve traveled to South Texas. We’ve actually made a game of it-first one to spot a truck with an occupied gun rack wins 20 bucks. Still, NOTHING. Rural areas, suburbs, college campuses, and still nothing.</p>
<p>I asked DH why it is that we haven’t been able to find even one example of this in many years. He guessed the above-you are setting yourself up for theft if you display a rifle in your window. I don’t believe there are any laws against it, but if this were commonly done, I would have at least spotted a few of them in a period of at least 5 years or so.</p>
<p>I imagine on land leased out for hunting, one may find a few mounted shotguns or hunting rifles, but this would NOT be a common sight at a Texas university.</p>
<p>My bad - the thread I referenced was about Middlebury and hunting culture. <a href=“Middlebury supports HUNTING - surprised? - Middlebury College - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/middlebury-college/1699676-middlebury-supports-hunting-surprised-p1.html</a></p>
<p>And unless you can really imagine yourself “sticking” someone, especially when you are panicked, frightened and intimidated, a knife is a bad thing. As others have said, there is a much higher risk that the person threatening you will take it and use it agaainst you.</p>
<p>@Nrdsb4 I relate to your story. Given my town’s close proximity to various major cities, it is currently changing from a rural to suburban area. I don’t see gun racks or “bridal showers at the gun range” in the towns east, north, and right of here. There are many in the town who have lived here their whole lives and whose grandparents, parents, pastors, teachers, neighbors attended the high school. I think people are just desperately trying to hold on the their “old way of life” which I why some of my stories might seem so extreme. </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>LOL! Are switchblade knives still illegal? What father would recommend a switch blade for protection? I think a Bowie knife or perhaps a machete would be a better self defense option. Oh well, at least it stimulated some conversation. </p>
<p>Now, on the other hand, although it may seem obvious to many of us that mixing guns with young college students who tend to drink a lot, is a very bad idea, there are many who believe that if only there were students armed with guns in class the mass murder at Virginia Tech could have been stopped. </p>
<p><<<
1- You’d treat your D different from your S.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>Uh, yes…because there are far more women who are sexually attacked in their homes than men. Few women break into “guys apts”. Men do break into women’s apts because, A) they don’t fear much resistance, B) women are less-able to defend themselves, etc.</p>
<p>I could respond to the others, but won’t bother. You’re not a parent. When you are…</p>
<p>8-| 8-| 8-| </p>
<p>I’m a parent, and I agree with Romani. A dog is a living being that needs a lot of care, not an appliance. Very, very few students are situated such that they can responsibly care for a dog for its entire life. And that is the ONLY circumstance under which someone should get a dog.</p>
<p>Really @Romani, my son is approaching 6 ft. and is a hockey player used to physical contact. My D is 5’1, 100 lbs. Someone breaks into my sons apartment he is going to have a fighting chance. My D, not so much. I think it is an intelligent way of thinking to plan ahead and do what one can to even the playing field if a break in occurs. People on this site have children all over the country in cities and suburbs that vary from very safe to downright dangerous. These are our children - we do what we can.</p>
<p>I’m looking at it from the perspective of how I raise my kids…to take care of pets, happily and joyfully…we love, love, love pets…and I would happily pay for any added burden/expense/whatever. </p>
<p>If one of my kids didn’t have those traits, then I would seek another route…but I will not be naive enough to think that any D of mine (likely small-petite like me) would be a match for most males, unlike my much larger sons. In my family and H’s family, women run small…short, petite, small boned. </p>