A Triumph of Irrational Fear

The MCLA Board of Trustees decided this evening by a nearly unanimous vote to arm the campus police force with loaded, semiautomatic firearms (the student trustee voting against). Most of the reasons members gave for their support had to do with the safety of the campus, as though armed police were obviously synonymous with greater safety.

Of course, well-trained and disciplined as they are, police officers make mistakes, and the statistical risk that they might do so – or that their weapons might be taken from them and used – is far, far higher than that those weapons might come in handy in protecting anyone. Make a mistake with a nightstick or pepper spray and people can be badly hurt; do so with a gun, they may well die.

It is interesting that in the face of overwhelming opposition from all sectors of the campus community, no compromise proposal came before the board, such as that firearms be available in the police office or vehicles, unloaded and locked away, for the unlikely event that they are ever needed. This strikes me as reflecting a serious absence of imagination, and of sensitivity to both the opinions and the cogent reasons against the decision.

Several board members voiced the concern that they would be responsible if something bad happened and they had said no to arming the police. None observed that if something bad does happen as a result of that arming, they will be at least equally responsible. I sincerely hope that nothing bad happens, but I hope we will all hold them responsible if it does.