Gunning with Philosophers: An ‘Age of Violence?’ [Contest Entry]

By Dan Zimmerman

By Brandon R.

Occasionally, you have to come up for a bit of philosophical air in the gun debate. The “conversation” over gun rights is so consistently down in the weeds of statistics, hyperbole, and ad hominem, the core values of both sides often become obscured. Anyway, that seems to be what University of Texas Philosophy graduate student Simone Gubler tried to do in her opinion column in the New York Times titled, Philosophizing With Guns. You know, come up for air. Sort of . . .

Gubler’s central premise seems to be giving voice to a now palpable fear that the presence of legally carried guns will stifle the academic freedom of professors and students to discuss and debate controversial topic in safety:

It is my worst fear that, one day, when teaching problems like [suicide], I will have a Young Werther on my hands. And, to my mind, the normalization of guns on campus enhances the probability of this event. So what are we to do if we want to be responsible teachers?

I find delicious irony in Gubler’s attempt to lay blame for “trigger warning” culture at the feet of her gun owning students. Think about it. She …Read the Rest

Source:: Truth About Guns