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I thought colleges were done with this kind of stupidity.

Let me back up a bit. It seems that some students at Portland State University believe they would be much better off if the campus police were disarmed.

Portland State University students rallied at a Thursday board meeting, calling for campus police officers to be disarmed.

“Police with guns are ticking time bomb,” said Olivia Pace, one of the students who spoke in front of the Portland State University Board of Trustees.

Students in favor of disarming campus police held signs and spoke at the board meeting. They said they believe it has taken far too long for university leadership to take action.

The most recent debate over disarming campus police started nearly a year ago when PSU officers shot and killed Jason Washington.

Washington was breaking up a fight when a gun fell out of his pocket.

He had a concealed carry license but police shot him when he tried to pick up the weapon.

“We have been saying this is dangerous, that someone will get killed, and we were right,” said one student as he testified in front of the board.

Now, what happened to Washington is a tragedy. I vaguely remember that one happening.

However, disarming an entire campus police department is hardly the answer.

I can’t help but wonder how many of the people supporting this have also talked about how they’re terrified they’re going to be gunned down in class by a mass shooter. I’m willing to bet the Venn diagram of these two groups will look like one big circle.

The thing is, you can’t have it both ways. You can’t talk about how scared you are of mass shooters and then talk about disarming the police.

You don’t get to say, “Only the police and military should have guns like these,” and then demand a law enforcement agency disarm completely. The world isn’t Burger King, and you don’t get it your way.

Campus police don’t necessarily get the high-risk calls other departments do, but they do face risks. They need to be armed to protect themselves and the public. That includes protecting the student body of PSU from a potential mass shooter.

These folks probably didn’t give a damn about Jason Washington. He was a lawful gun owner. He carried a firearm. I’m sure if he hadn’t been shot, they would look at him as a part of the problem with the world.

They just don’t like guns.

Right now, they primarily focus their attention on disarming law-abiding citizens, but what happens on campuses tends to spread out. There will be those who think the police should be disarmed next. Not just on campus, but everywhere.

Apparently, the criminals will give up their guns then or something.

When college students wonder why I don’t listen to them on guns, it’s because too many of their peers believe crap like this. Fewer guns don’t mean less crime. It means fewer people able to oppose criminals. If you start disarming police on campuses too, that’s asking for trouble.