– From the Commentator, Oregon has overturned a firearms ban on campuses in the Oregon university system:

The law was held invalid, with the judges’ decision citing that it “is an exercise of an ‘authority to regulate’ firearms that is not expressly authorized by the Legislative Assembly.” Under state law, the Oregon State Legislature is the only body with the authority to regulate firearms.

Huzzah for, you know, rights not limited by arbitrary “academic” borders. Embedded in this story is yet another interesting contrast to the UA:

The verdict comes about amid continuing controversy regarding the University of Oregon’s efforts to convert the Department of Public Safety to a sworn police force with the ability carry guns, a transition that is expected to take six years to complete. On Oct. 7^th, the university will make its request to the State Board of Education who, since the passing of Senate Bill 405, now has the power to approve the police force.

UAPD, in contrast, carry AR-15s. Are Arizona schools any more or less safe than Oregon schools?  One has no armed police force and allows certified civilians to assert their constitutional rights on campus, while the other denies those rights and arms its police officers with assault rifles, highly necessary for MIP arrests. What comprises safety in this context?

– The only link, man. Really ties the room together.

– Will Internet abbreviations soon replace more complete language? Do such permutations expand or contract language? Lexicographers report about 400 new words will appear in the new Oxford Concise Dictionary, but about 200 will be removed. Do words (as such initialisms are now considered) like FWIW and BRB deserve to replace words like pusillanimous? Such is language, perhaps: WTF would Mencken say now?

– The UA enrolled a Kardashian (or was it Lauren Conrad?), then a Hasselhoffspring, now the CEO of Sony’s kid: Is the UA targeting recruiting at celebrity’s kids? The Sony Computers CEO and father of UA undergrad John Trenton, Jack Trenton is giving a presentation at Eller during his first official visit to campus this week. UA News reports:

The company Tretton heads is part of millions of households in the U.S. and abroad. That’s because Sony Computer Entertainment America is the corporation behind the hugely popular PlayStation game platform.

This is Tretton’s first formal visit to the UA. He contacted the UA several months ago to “offer his assistance” in building linkages between Sony and the UA and named the University a “preferred recruiting institution.” His son, John, is currently a UA undergraduate.

What does it mean to be a “preferred recruiting institution”? And did the UA earn the accolade for anything more than Pops having a great time rocking a red polo and throwing a few back on University? (And does it matter?)