Editor:

I studied for six years at Tel Aviv University, Israel, and although gun control is tighter in Israel than it is in the United States, I was accustomed to seeing students and staff carrying firearms to classes on an almost everyday basis.

One may see students in their 20s carrying fully automatic assault rifles while on furlough from army duty and others who carry pistols, either openly or concealed, with the blessing of the university’s security staff and administration.

No students whom I have known have ever expressed displeasure or a sense of lack of safety as a result of students being armed. On the contrary, the only people who would be scared in such an environment are criminals-crime on the campus is virtually nonexistent.

During my six years of study, there was never a sexual assault on the campus with 26,000 students, or any other newsworthy crime. ?Responsible ownership and carrying of guns is fully compatible with an academic atmosphere, and those who choose to carry a gun should not be discouraged or treated as criminals.

As a cost-and-benefit thing, the cost may be intimidating to those who know nothing about firearms, while the benefit is that criminals will not look at students as conveniently unarmed prey.

Lior Bar-On

Kfar, Yonah, Israel