Tuesday, March 12, 2013

That tremble you feel means it's working...

Muncie, Indiana is almost literally "Anytown, USA".

Smack in the middle of flyover country, in a state with lifetime carry permits and gun laws that give the Bradys the vapors and which serve as a scapegoat for Chicago mayors' inability to enforce their own statutes, Muncie is as bitter and clingy as any small city you're likely to find.

Muncie is also home to an oblast of Academistan, Ball State University, whose residents, although nominally adults, have been steeping their entire lives in the steady mantra of "Guns are bad, h'mkay?"* that pervades the amniotic media in which they float.

Thus, Monday's events, in which continence was lost on campus over the sighting of a man holding... um... well, something, on campus:
Police say the man had no discernible threatening behavior, nor did he appear to be walking toward any specific building. It appeared he had a handgun in his left hand.
Lack of an actual threat shouldn't be allowed to prevent an honest panic. Plus, think of the stories! "Omigod, Becky! I have a friend who I was supposed to meet that day at the library, but she was sick and I had homework but I was totes almost there! I could have seen that man!"

No word if the object in the man's hand was actually a toaster pastry that had been accidentally nibbled into a vaguely gun-like shape or not.



*at least, between the commercials for Medal of Duty: Zombie Theft VII and the latest Tarantino flick.

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

So, um, what happened?

Just a guy with a pistol on campus? Such activity is not illegal in Indiana, may be prohibited by university code, but not illegal for anyone else.

Why are we shooting off flares over legal behavior, assuming arguendo that it was a pistol and not a Pop Tart?

Shootin' Buddy

Tam said...

But... but... but... GUN!!!1!!eleventy!

TheSev said...

Look at the bright side.

They're so afraid of them, that when we eventually have to pull them out, they will instantly comply.

The Scribbler said...

As one of those 20something college students, born and raised in Mordor no less, I can say two things here. First off, I am a shooter and a gunnie. We do exist at this age, even if circumstances may have tried to teach us otherwise. (Full blog post on that coming soon - ish). That being said, I know many of my peers in Texas are irrationally afraid of guns. I am not allowed to carry on campus, and I seem to be the exception rather than the rule in terms of acceptance of guns.

If I were in the position of seeing an otherwise non-threatening guy walking around with a pistol on campus, I'm the sort to wander up, ask what sort of make and model, and gently remind him that campus carry as well as open carry are illegal in Texas, and while I don't care, it may be for his benefit to be discreet.

Do I think he should have every right to carry his guns wherever he wants however he wants? Absolutely. Do I think it's a good idea to carry in some ways in certain places? Not necessarily. Does the law respect this right? Even in Texas, not so much.

(As an aside, I've noticed the "waaugh scary gun" idea is much more prevalent amongst the squishier majors. I have yet to meet the anti engineering student. I'm sure they exist, but not in my experience.)

Andy said...

My money is on a campus plumber's helper carrying a part to a job site.

Good thing it wasn't a black man with an unidentified object, or the real pearl clutching would commence, with parents demanding action and everything.

Generations raised to fear their shadows.

Fred said...

Here's a news clipping from my neck of the woods a few years ago, very similar-

"STEVENS POINT -- A scare at UW-Stevens Point clears a building and tests campus readiness. Around 2:30 pm a faculty member noticed a man carrying what looked like a gun case through the CNR building. The Stevens Point Police Department was called in. They surrounded the building and evacuated students and staff. Turns out, there wasn't a threat. The student was carrying a science project. University officials say they are pleased with the response of everyone involved. UWSP official Todd Kuckkahn says, "All the steps were followed.. again, to make sure the safest route was taken for everyone on campus." It is finals week at UWSP, so it's unclear how many students were actually in the building during the evacuation. Those who were will reschedule exams with their teachers."

I was off that day, so I missed all the fun.

Farm.Dad said...

I see the problem ...
" Police say someone reported a white man with a gun near the Bracken Library in the direction of the Noyer and Whitinger Business Building. "

Now if this fella had had an appropriate amount of melanin would the apparent identifier of skintone been mentioned ? Or would it have even been reported since the pistol would have likely been part of the " culture " or some such .

Dan F said...

'with a pistol in his hand'.
In the slim chance it wasn't just a pastry etc, why would it be out of the holster?

Colleges. According to LocalBigSchool's dorm policy, my spent brass collection was a weapon because it was (a) deactivated or replica + (c) ammunition. Also, referred to on sight as "bullets". Lesson learned.

Joel said...

New item for my bucket list:

*Freak out an entire college campus, escape unharmed.

Tam said...

Farm.Dad,

"Now if this fella had had an appropriate amount of melanin would the apparent identifier of skintone been mentioned ?"

The story then would have been "SWAT team takes down dangerous gang-banger at Ball State." The student's protest that he was just on his way to an airsoft game would have been drowned out in the crackle of tasers and the syncopated rhythm of a hickory shampoo...

Firehand said...

"Man with cordless drill killed by police on campus:
"It had to be done for student safety," authorities say."

SewerDweller said...

Time to buy stock in 'Depends"

Matt G said...

I'm waiting for a volunteer firefighter paramedic (out of uniform) to be hassled for pulling out an EZ-IO in a public place.

Brad K. said...

But -- what were the charges against whoever made the report, for making false accusations to a police officer?

If it is wrong to yell "Fire!" in a theater, then it must be wrong to yell "gun!" when there isn't a gun, isn't it?

Wilhelm2049 said...

I'm with you. Outside of my enginerring classes people seem horrified when I say I'm a shooter. I've actually had people walk away in the middle of a conversation when its brought up on campus. Granted the campus is in the middle of Denver which has just shown that our House and Senate don't actually care what their constituency wants.

benEzra said...

Giant Burrito Sends School into Lockdown

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/7683168/

Sigivald said...

That reminds me of an "incident" a few years back at Lewis and Clark college, that I read about.

Seems someone had an ammo belt around their waist, you know, as punk rock types have done since about 1978.

So they of course he was stopped by police on campus. Because ammo belt. (Because shut up.)

Naturally, it wasn't live ammunition.

And there was never anything like the resemblance of a threat to anyone at any level.

Anonymous said...

Man seen walking on campus not talking on cell phone or listen to IPOD.

Campus police called to investigate strange behavior.

Video at 10:00 on Eye Witness Sky Watch News!

Gerry

Mike_C said...

> I've noticed the "waaugh scary gun" idea is much more prevalent amongst the squishier majors

Indeed, not just guns. The University of Michigan's Engineering campus is about 1.5 miles northeast of the Arts and Sciences campus. One morning while shuffling blearily into my 8 am class I noticed that someone had parked a fighter jet (!) in the big student parking lot down the hill. "Hunh, wonder how they got THAT in here. Gotta check it out at lunchtime." Apparently the Aerospace Engineering department had arranged for the plane, some flavor of F15 I think, as part of a festival they were having. The hallway vibe ranged from "Neat" to "I wonder how long that #*@&ing thing is gonna be there; they took my parking space!"

Well, lunch time rolls around, sure enough there's a protest. Bunch of trust-fund hobo looking kids had finally rolled out of bed and made their way over from the "other" campus. Chanting and marching around with signs, naturally. My favorite was "This bomber killed thousands in Vietnam !!!" Unless it was some kind of DeLorean time-machine prototype that would've been quite a feat, seeing as it was a fighter that didn't enter service until after the war, but why should facts get in the way of self-righteous emoting?

Joseph said...

I recall back to my days on the IUB campus when I was walking up to the student union when a young man in fatigues comes out of a van with M16s akimbo. Did not soil myself, but it jerked me out of whatever I was contemplating and kicked in adrenal gland for a beat or two, then, I realized two things 1. ROTC 2. The shooting range at the student union where he was headed.

Yes, IU had a shooting range at the student union and I even got to use it for a few years after I discovered it. They had a shooting program as well, taught rimfire rifle and pistol at the indoor range and skeet/trap at the outdoor range. Those were shut down pretty soon after I started attending. As I now work for IU, it would be too nice to have an indoor range 500ft from my office.

Son of Sam Adams said...

Well, Muncie used to be a major center of the Ku Klux Klan too. Just sayin'...

Jeffro said...

David Letterman went to Ball State. There are no coincidences, they say.

Thomas Smith said...

never since I was twelve have I more wanted to organize a game of "killer" on a campus.

JohninMd.(HELP!) said...

I saw what ya did there, Tam. Thanks for the Pop-tart reference, the family of Josh Welch are friends of mine, his dad went to high school with my oldest son. A group of ....friends.... helped push the story viral. We now have a state sen. pushing a bill basicly telling school admin.types to get a friggin' clue, since the only person havin' an attack o' da vapors was an administrater. they actually sent letters home to parents offering 'counseling' for anyone 'tramatized' by a pastry....Ye Gods.

Doug Rink said...

Could you imagine if these young women showed up on a campus today (let alone attempt to pose for a photo at a national monument)?

http://www.radioshownotes.com/2012/07/more-women-with-guns-in-dc.html

Brad K. said...

@ Doug Rink,

I did notice in the 1920s photos, that guns or not, they all wore "proper" dresses. Of course, the guys were all wearing a restricted, full trouser length ensemble as well.

I had read earlier of women shooting in the Olympics before WWII.

Google reports several Girl Scouts completing a marksmanship program (markswomanship? markspersonship? whatever), back in 1964. And apparently Girl Scouts groups and organizations occasionally partner with other gun organizations -- implying there is little support within the Girl Scouts, though guns seem to not be forbidden.

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