Wednesday night the ISU Faculty Senate voted against arming the Department of Public Safety with advanced tasers.

Members were concerned about the effects tasers might have not only on students and officers, but also children, the elderly and pregnant women.

Max Wortman, distinguished professor of management and senate president-elect, said he would even like to get rid of the metal batons DPS is currently allowed to carry.

Are faculty members thinking beyond their office doors?

It doesn’t seem like it.

Palmer Holden, professor of animal science, put it well when he pointed out that the majority of ISU faculty leave campus before 6 p.m., returning to their homes which are protected by armed Ames Police officers.

More than 8,000 students live in the ISU residence halls, not to mention the numerous families in University Village and the trailer court by the College of Veterinary Medicine. These areas are all patrolled by DPS, an organization that does a lot more than just hand out parking tickets and make sure buildings are locked.

Unarmed DPS officers are responsible for the safety of thousands of people every night on the ISU campus.

Put a faculty member in the dorms for a semester and a couple of those “no” votes might switch sides.

And what would Ames residents think if the Ames Police Department decided to disarm? Would they be comfortable knowing that their family’s first defense would be an unarmed police officer?

Probably not, but it’s the same situation many residents on the ISU campus go to sleep with each night.

Both the Government of the Student Body and the Inter-Residence Hall Association have given their support of the tasers to DPS. These are two groups representing a majority of the people DPS protects everyday.

These students are the ones who will reap the security benefits of better-equipped DPS officers.

The Faculty Senate’s vote reflects a naive, narrow view of DPS.

They should look beyond their office doors and parking lots.

editorialboard: Andrea Hauser, Tim Paluch, Michelle Kann, Zach Calef, Omar Tesdell