Gun laws been at the center of attention recently as a result of the tragic school shootings in Connecticut, in addition to other similar accidents over the years. A recent survey was conducted at BHS regarding whether or not stricter gun laws should be passed. Total of eighty Baldwin students were surveyed, as well as ten staff members.

“Do you support more strict gun laws?” (student results)

• YES – 16 votes
• NO – 54 votes
• UNDECIDED – 10 votes

“Do you support more strict gun laws?” (staff results)

• YES – 5 votes
• NO – 3 votes
• UNDECIDED – 2 votes

Comments not in support of more strict gun laws.

• “We don’t blame the cars for drunk drivers,” sophomore Mitch Madl said.
• “They are there to protect us from the government,” sophomore Bram Craig said.
• “We also need to keep in mind self-defense,” junior Forest Young said. “By passing harsher gun laws for civilians, it makes civilians defenseless against people with illegal ways of obtaining weapons.”
• “I think we need to start by enforcing the laws we have now and go from there,” secretary Kim Bergan said.
• “I think gun control should stay the same because of the fact that there will be shootings no matter what we do,” junior Sarah Gibbs said. People will end up finding a gun. If an intruder comes to our house and we are not allowed to have a gun to protect ourself’s what are are we going to do?”

Comments in support of more strict gun laws.

• “I think we should have stricter gun laws because obviously guns are being put in the hands of the wrong people,” junior Allison Waymire said.
• “I feel like more gun control will help in the long run and hopefully prevent tragedies like what happened at the middle school,” senior Rebecca Mole said. “No matter how many laws we have there will always be those people who try to defy those laws.”
• “I think that there should be more strict gun control because we don’t need another Sandy Hook massacre,” senior Glenn McCabe said. “The gun control policy would only outlaw assault rifles which no normal citizen needs. We are not trying to take away hunting riffles we are just trying to keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of those who can’t use them properly.”