Accidents happen, right? Imagine an accident that could have had the potential to harm many people at the same time.

On Sept. 3, a professor at Idaho State University accidentally shot himself in the foot. The bullet came from the unnamed professor’s pants pocket, as reported to the Washington Post.

If anyone gasped and wondered why a gun was in the professor’s pants pocket, it’s okay because I did too. Turns out, Idaho is one of seven states in the U.S. that allows concealed carry on college campuses. Twenty states don’t allow guns on campus whatsoever, and the remaining 23 states leave concealed carry up to the individual college or university’s discretion.

What’s even more surprising is Wisconsin, along with Colorado, Kansas, Mississippi, Oregon and Utah are the six states that make up the seven in the U.S. allowing concealed carry, according to the same report from the Washington Post.

I’m not here to discuss concealed carry as a whole. It’s a multi-faceted debate which is too time consuming for me. However, allowing something like this to potentially have its presence on any campus and to put others in danger is just appalling to me.

But, once again, let me back up. I understand why some might think having someone telling them what they can and can’t have on a campus (in this situation, a gun) isn’t right, but let’s take a look at this situation as a whole.

People are going to do what they’re going to do, regardless of the law. I get that. But some of the most devastating things to happen to this country in the past few years are the prominent and unfortunate too-frequent reports of school shootings. Think UC- Santa Barbara, Sandy Hook, Virginia Tech and, even though it happened 15 years ago, Columbine.

I can even think of non-school shootings. The point is our culture has taken something that should be used as a defense mechanism and has turned it into something people end up fearing. No, I don’t think guns should ever be taken light-heartedly, but when did it turn into a tool used for evil, not to protect someone and everyone around them?

I also understand the point of a permit is to ensure a person passed a class and they’re deemed “educated,” but even that has me weary. Maybe it’s the worrier in me, but then it has me thinking there must be a reason someone has to feel so unsafe, they deem bringing a violent tool to a campus as the best decision.

In order for something like this to ever be unanimously viewed as acceptable, changes need to happen, especially on any sort of school campus. Safer environments need to be created, and communities must be built stronger. If these steps aren’t taken, controversy and conflicts will continue to occur, thus creating more problems in our future.