The Spectator The independent student newspaper of Valdosta State University
People need to stop complaining about parking
VSU Campus Parking. No one’s going to be completely happy with it until each hall has its own parking deck, every student has their own space, and every level of the deck has an attendant on hand to powder your face after the oh-so-arduous ten second walk over to your vehicle.
As a longtime employee and former student of the university informed me, VSU students have been arguing about parking for over 20 years. And over the decades, every development in addressing the issue seems to only exacerbate the degree of complaining. VSU has made efforts to keep parking availability in pace with student enrollment, but it is in the opinion of many that these efforts are not adequate.
To the students who are dissatisfied with parking, I ask: what are your ideas for how the situation could be improved? If your answer involves expansion and construction, then I’ll ask an additional question: how much more are you willing to pay in order to fund the building and maintenance of those developments?
Georgia Tech students pay $632 for a parking permit and students at UGA pay $180-$480, depending on the zone and semester. If the students at these campuses are satisfied with their parking arrangements, they’re certainly contributing more of their tuition towards maintaining that satisfaction!
Instead of making noise over the issue, we need to start making conversation. The decision-makers at VSU are not a bunch of authoritarian overlords with their thumbs in their ears. In reality, they are quite open to hearing thoughtful input from students. A satisfied student is a university’s best promotion for new enrollment, it’s unrealistic to assume that VSU turns a deaf ear to discontent.
FYI: Sending in Rants and Raves proclaiming “build us a new parking deck!” isn’t going to solve anything.
-Rickey Hooks, sophomore, biology major
Response to
University of Texas campus shooting
This is why law abiding, licensed students, need to be armed. I don’t know how many more students have to die before the government lets people defend themselves. These “gun free zone” laws obviously aren’t stopping anything. This guy just walked onto campus with an AK47 and started shooting. All students and faculty are disarmed and therefore at the mercy of this maniac with no way to stop him. As you read in the article, at the first sign of resistance, the gunman killed himself. It has been shown that these shooters do not want to face opposition. When police start to show up, they kill themselves. Thankfully nobody was injured in this shooting, but there was absolutely nothing anyone in the library could do to stop him. The governor of Texas has been quoted, “I want there to be legal guns on campus. I think it makes sense, and all of the data supports that if law abiding, well-trained, backgrounded individuals have a weapon, then there will be less crime.” At least he gets it; I wish Georgia did.
Take a simple example. Suppose your family is being stalked by a criminal who intends on harming them. Would you feel safer putting up a sign in front of your home with the message: “This Home is a Gun-Free Zone,” probably not. The sign would only tell criminals that they would meet little resistance if they attacked. But in effect, we have put these signs on everything from schools to a couple of cities.
-Charles Curtis, senior, business mangagement
A lot of love for Gavin DeGraw
I am a huge Gavin Degraw fan! I was able to get second row at the concert and the chance to meet him and his entire band afterwards. They were all so fun and energetic. They invited me and a couple of friends to go hang out with them afterwards at Flip Flops. It blew my mind that I was hanging out with one of my favorite artists but at the same time it kind of ruined this perfect image I had of this guy through his music. It was defiantly one of my favorite nights and it created memories I will have for a lifetime.
-Camille Pollitt, freshman
Submit your letters to the editor to Editor-in-Chief Amy Johstono at acjohstono@valdosta.edu or Opinions Editor Molly Duett at mkduett@valdosta.edu. Please limit word count of your letter to around 300 words. We reserve the right to edit for content and grammar.
In reference to the letter written by Mr. Charles Curtis, I offer the following:
I have been a peace office in Georgia since 1999, shortly after my graduation from VSU. I am currently the Chief Deputy of the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office, and I am also a certified Active Shooter Instructor, which means that I am specially trained to train officers in how to deal with active shooters.
Here are some statistics from active shooter incidents on campuses in the United States and Canada:
University of Texas Clock Tower Shooting (1966)- 15 dead with 32 injured and a murder attempt occurring at a rate of one every two minutes
Columbine High School (1999)- 13 dead with 24 wounded with a murder attempt rate of 2.1 per minute
Red Lake (MN) High School (2005)- 7 dead with 7 wounded with a murder attempt rate of 1.5 per minute
Dawson College (2006)- 1 dead with 19 wounded with a murder attempt rate of 2.9 per minute
Virginia Tech (2007)- 32 dead with 25 wounded with a murder attempt rate of 7.9 per minute
Northern Illinois University (2008)- 5 dead with 18 injured with a murder attempt rate of 11.5 per minute
As you can see, for every minute that such an event is allowed to continue the potential for death and injury increases. Furthermore, the studies show that the suspects in such incidents either surrender or commit suicide immediately upon being confronted with resistance. It is imperative the suspects be confronted as soon as possible.
So, what is more dangerous, an armed and trained citizen ready to immediately confront such a threat or an armed gunman bent on killing defenseless victims allowed to do so until the police arrive?
J. Lee Weems, Class of 1998