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Nationwide shootings have left schools concerned for the safety of their students and looking for ways to prevent future occurrences. One suggestion is to arm teachers, but Hawaii hasn’t taken that step like other places have. “I think the emphasis should be more on prevention, recognition, and reporting,” said Roy Yamamoto, director of Safety and Security at BYUH. “I don’t think that here on this campus there is a need for [armed faculty].” As well as a lack of necessity, Yamamoto explained the training of staff and security, as well as the storage of weapons, could be more high maintenance than it is worth. In the worse case scenario here on campus, police are nearby at Kahuku and can be here fairly quickly. Lawmakers here in Hawaii have had their own response to shootings in a Denver movie theater and Connecticut elementary school. In an Associated Press article it says that they “responded by introducing proposals to start a gun buyback program, limit the sale of ammunition to lawful gun owners and increase background checks for people with mental health issues. But all of those proposals have failed.” "Hawaii has some of the toughest gun control laws already," said House Judiciary Committee Chairman Karl Rhoads. "There's not that many pukas (holes) to fill." According to AP, “A board that oversees schools in rural Dolores County [Colorado] voted in February to allow the principal of Dove Creek High School and the superintendent to double as security officers, who under state law are allowed to carry guns on elementary, middle and high school campuses. The pair will receive an additional $1 salary and must complete a concealed-carry course.” Colorado lawmakers have passed strict legislation as a response to the recent shootings. The legislation will set limits on the ammunition in magazines as well as expanding background checks. "I think it will make it more difficult for people to get guns who shouldn't have them, and that's really the goal," said Democratic Rep. Beth McCann on the expanded background checks. Around Hawaii, there’s not much news about local shootings, but students say having additional safety never hurts. “I think that having trained and armed teachers is a good thing,” said Taylor Bobbitt, a freshman in psychology from California. “However, I also believe that the guns need to be locked and hidden in a place easily accessible to the teacher only. With teens and children, accidents can happen. I believe it should be regulated.”

Gun control debates have been taking place in Washington D.C. in early 2013 due to shootings that have taken place throughout the country. There are varying viewpoints coming from conservatives and liberals. On Aug. 1, Senate Democrats “abandoned efforts to pass a law this year expanding background checks for gun purchases — dealing a new setback to the drive for tougher gun laws after the Newtown school massacre,” says a New York Daily News article.Obama called for a gun control vote in his State of the Union address on Feb. 12 and followed up three days later with a speech on shooting violence in his murder-plagued hometown of Chicago."I urge Congress to move on other areas that have support of the American people — from requiring universal background checks to getting assault weapons off our streets — because we need to stop the flow of illegal guns to criminals,” said Obama.Republicans do not agree with Obama’s restrictions. According to the Washington Post in an article entitled, “Republicans are open to gun control. But not President Obama’s gun control plan,” writes Scott Clement. “One potential reason for Republicans’ rejection of the new proposals is principle. Obama unveiled a broad slate of new gun restrictions, and the vast majority of Republicans oppose stricter gun control laws (in general), according to a December Post-ABC poll. While polls found Republicans are open to specific gun control measures, they may be less open to a comprehensive approach.”“A majority of respondents to an Associated Press-GfK poll indicated support for his proposals when his name wasn't attached to them — 84 percent in favor of standard background checks, 55 percent favoring a ban on military-style rapid-fire guns and 51 percent supporting a ban on the sale of high-capacity magazines holding 10 or more bullets,” reports AP.James Devuyst, a permanent resident from Canada and a sophomore studying business finance, stated that Laie “seems like a safe place. There is not a large need for guns.” But he continued, “because you don’t need something doesn’t mean it should not be allowed.”“It’s complicated. Personally I don’t agree with government being involved in regulating the Constitution.” In reference to previous gun crimes Devuyst added, “There will always be a glaring problem. People who do these things don’t have any regard for the law.”

Third times a charm for professional surfer John John Florence, who won his third Volcom Pipe Pro surf competition. The contest took place over three days in which some of the world’s best surfers pushed each other into barrels at the famous surf spot, Pipe Line. The 124 surfers were eliminated down to the final four, which were John John Florence, Chris Ward, Josh Kerr, and Olamana Eleogram. Ward who was 2nd behind Florence and the only other surfer to beat him in an earlier round of the contest, “I’m not sure what it’d take to beat him…It does take a lot of skill… he’s a phenomenal surfer. I’ve been watching him surf since he was 8 years old. He deserves the win. But I was happy to get tubed and get this far,” reports Surfline. The scores were close. All four of the surfers came within less than a three-point range leaving just a point between each surfer. After Florence’s win, he said, “Yesterday was the best day I’ve seen at Pipe all year. Maybe it was because there were only four guys out, but I had a lot of fun in my heat. Today was a lot smaller and peaky. It was definitely more of a battle.”Florence took home the $20,000 prize followed by Ward getting a $10,000, Kerr getting $6,500 and Eleogram getting $4,440, reports Transworld Surf Magazine. BYU-Hawaii students attended the competition and were thrilled with the results. “The heat with John John, J.O.B. [Jamie O’Brien], Bruce [Irons] and Reef was like watching the highlight reel to a surf flick. It’s the kind of stuff that inspires video games. John John Throwing Airs into the flats at backdoor made my pupils freak out and only Jamie would hit a pipe switch in the contest. I’m stoked on Florence getting a threepeat at pipe. What a stallion. What a stallion,” said Dallas Porter, a senior and business major with an emphasis in supply chain management from Huntington Beach, Calif.Jon Hooke, a sophomore and business major from Ventura Calif., said while throwing his hands in the air, “Watching the Pipe Pro had almost the same affect on me as eating a Del Taco grilled chicken burrito. It was amazing.”

Half-dead, bloodthirsty, crazed zombies can be found terrorizing Gunstock Ranch visitors at the second annual Gunstock Zombie Hayride. From the creators of the Haunted Plantation in Waipahu, the 6th most haunted attraction in the U.S. by Matador Network magazine in 2010, comes their newest attraction, a zombie-themed hayride. Angelina Khan, originally from Germany and now living in Honolulu, is one the head creators of the hayride. Khan said, “We came up with the idea of a haunted hayride because we wanted to branch out and try something a little different. Haunted Plantation is heavily based on ghosts and the supernatural. Gunstock Zombie Hayride has a recurring theme of zombies.” Khan said she felt there was a need to provide a haunted attraction based on the North Shore. According to Khan, Gunstock Ranch was the perfect location for this next project. “Gunstock Ranch has a Walking Dead type feel to it and the setting naturally scary at night. Being at the ranch really influences the haunt in a big way by giving it a sense of atmosphere that you couldn’t get anywhere else.” Noa Laporga, commonly known as “The Scare Master” and cofounder of the hayride, said, “I think that it’s a perfect theme for where the location is at. We are the only hayride in Hawaii that I know of. It’s a 25-minute-long ride through dark woods and twisted fields, and there’s only zombies!”Visitors to the zombie hayride last year said they were delightfully horrified with their experience. Rhett Dalley, a senior from Utah studying molecular biology, attended last year and said, “The haunted hayride is a great opportunity to put a little something creepy into your Halloween since the Polynesian Cultural Center killed the Haunted Lagoon last year. Probably the most intense part was when a chained zombie came running at us full speed till his chain ran out. The zombie stopped suddenly just inches from our faces. It reminded me of something out of ‘28 Days Later’ or ‘World War Z’.” Laporga said preparation is a year-long process, “Angelina and I start working on public relations and production work around the year. We actually even make all of our masks and prosthetics which takes a couple of months alone,” said Laporga. Khan added the preparation is to provide quality, originality and realism. Khan said, “All of our actors have to go to ‘scare school,’ where they are taught how to walk, act and sound like zombies. We work year-round fabricating our own silicone masks, prosthetics, costumes and more. What you see at the Gunstock Zombie Hayride you won’t see anywhere else.”This year the hayride will open the evening of Oct. 24, 25 and 27. Tickets are $20 and rides will be held from 7 to 11 p.m. Children must be accompanied by an adult. information can be found at www.gunstockzombiehayride.com and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/gunstockzombiehayride. Khan said, “This is what we love doing. We love scaring people. We get in costume to scare people any chance we get because we just love it so much. It’s our favorite thing to do.”