RUNNINGHEAD: Annotated Bibliography

Annotated Bibliography on Guns

Luis Valdez
RWS 1301
Irma Nikicicz
Annotated Bibliography 2

(2017, September 16). Retrieved March 07, 2018, from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFN6bF6qy3Q

Piers Morgan brings Ben Shapiro to his show to have a debate about gun rights. When Morgan

attacks Shapiro, Shapiro comes back at him with an argument of taking all killing machines

away from the mentally deranged. Morgan sticks to his guns in asking Shapiro why any

American should own a military grade assault rifle, Shapiro responds with the possibility of a

rogue government which is why the second amendment was created in the first place. Shapiro

insists on saying that semiautomatic weapons are acceptable for Americans to own, when

Morgan asks what he would ban because it is too far, Shapiro says that fully automatic weapons

are banned for a reason. This is extremely relevant because the world we live in today has very

high possibilities of public shootings happening anywhere. Shapiro bring a relevant point in

saying that “more guns does not always mean more murders.” What we need especially in a

school such a UTEP is more security and well-established protocols for any life threatening

event.

Advertisement. (n.d.). Retrieved March 15, 2018, from

https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/gun_violence/resources/guns_in_school

s.html

This website belongs to the American Bar Association, which will bring some credibility to any

argument that needs to be made. The website contains some statistics and numbers from school

violence and more specifically, shootings. Although the cite is relatively short, it provides

numbers that will create some diversity in ideologies which come directly from reliable sites

such as the CDC, National School Safety Center, and the Behavior Surveillance System. It is

noticeable that these reports from the various sources are a bit dated, however I can use this to
Annotated Bibliography 3

my advantage. In one of the reports the National School Safety Center wrote that between the

years 1992 and 2001shootings were the leading cause of all violent deaths in schools. Today the

left argues that the main cause of all of this mayhem roots from assault rifles, however during

most of these years there was a ban on all assault rifles. The answer is not less guns, the answer

is more guns in the right places.

The NCES Fast Facts Tool provides quick answers to many education questions (National

Center for Education Statistics). (n.d.). Retrieved March 16, 2018, from

https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=334

This website opens with a question on what security measures are in place in schools; it then

goes on to give a few facts and statistics. Although the page brings references from primary,

middle, and high schools it still is relevant to a university. When it comes to the safety of

students and faculty the age level does not matter. This page could be very important towards my

topic in the sense that it gives schools ideas on how to protect its kids and staff. Most schools

already have some of these security measures in place, however the page still gives some ideas.

From random metal detector checks and dog sniffs to strict dress codes and security cameras, can

schools really be too safe?

(2018, March 17). Retrieved March 18, 2018, from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ln9FFPpp0qc

This Ben Shapiro podcast talks about the school walkout and how it is not a bad thing at all,

however it does bash on the fact that some schools are politicizing these walkouts. Shapiro

explores the idea that public schools are becoming a tool of the left. “if students wanted to

walkout to protest abortion, schools wouldn’t support it nearly as much.” Shapiro then goes on to
Annotated Bibliography 4

refer to the Broward County shooting which resulted in the deaths of 17 people. It is seen on the

video that the sheriff of the Broward County stood outside the school for 20 minutes while the

shooter was mowing down people. This video is relevant to me because it is always said that

good people with guns stop bad people with guns, but the good people stood while the bad

moved. I want more security in schools and this directly shows why that is important.

F. (2018, February 20). Retrieved March 19, 2018, from

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJVv39BJWFg

This video is a news program which tackles the debate of armed security in schools. Most people

in the program agree that armed teachers and/or security guards on campus create an intimidating

factor that would deter shooters from targeting that school. Although the idea may be a possible

solution, a problem is called out; what about funding? The video goes on to point out that some

schools are severely underfunded and arming teachers would bring in more expenses. I think this

is extremely relevant because at the beginning of the video someone gives a personal example of

a shooter that drove by his school when he was little and drove right past it simply because there

were armed guards. If a school like UTEP had armed security closely monitoring every entrance

and exit, we would all be a little safer.

Murphy, K. (n.d.). Armed teachers aim to defend K-12 schools. Retrieved March 19, 2018, from

http://gunwars.news21.com/2014/armed-teachers-aim-to-defend-k-12-schools/

This is a news article that interviews a teacher in Salt Lake City. The teacher explains that

students’ lives are already being entrusted to them, so why shouldn’t they be able to protect them

better? “I’m going to stand in front of a bullet for any student that is in my protection and so I

want another option to defend us” said Kasey Hansen. The article goes on to reveal that Hansen
Annotated Bibliography 5

is not the only teacher to do this. Across 28 states numerous teachers have taken the initiative in

order to better protect students. I am looking at 2 options on making schools safer; armed

teachers and more armed security. I am getting great perspectives from articles like this.

Cornell, D. G. (2014, June 11). Gun violence and mass shootings - myths, facts and solutions.

Retrieved March 19, 2018, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-

watch/wp/2014/06/11/gun-violence-and-mass-shootings-myths-facts-and-

solutions/?utm_term=.eb2d1e25cf5f

This article has a different vibe compared to all the other sources. We open by stating that mass

shootings are things that happen. What we want is to make them stop. The author explains a few

things; gun violence is not increasing, school shootings are statistically rare, prevention does not

require prediction, etc. I like this article because it doesn’t straight up tell us that guns and

teachers are the answer, rather it explains that guns are not the problem. This is exactly what I

need because it shows that guns aren’t the big bad that needs to be rooted out, it points out the

illogical arguments that guns are evil.