I live in quite the college town. The population drops by about a third in the summertime when class lets out.
Most students are friendly and trusting, doing things like leaving houses and cars unlocked. Many college students also have "cool stuff" like laptops, mp3 players etc.
Another thing that leads to problems, particularly in my area: the Student Ghetto, is that it is also a historic neighborhood. The houses are older, and cannot be upgraded without using "traditional" materials, like cedar and singlepane windows. This leads to a situation where landlords aren't willing to pay the unnecessarily high cost of security upgrades to homes. I could walk to all but one or two houses on my street, go to the front door, and break in under 30 seconds. That is if the door is even locked.
This is not something that can be blamed on the "hippy communist whateveryoucallit" professors either. Many of the professors at two large local colleges here are very realistic in their world outlook. The prevention of weapons and self defence on campus mostly comes from the administration, the precinct of the local police that serve the campus (many a-holes there, and a couple nice guys) and the state legislature.
One of my physics professors actually did some of his grad work on firearms and ballistics.
The biggest fight is with the administration, the official voice of the colleges. They are more scared of the bad press that would be genereated by one student going whacko than the frequent low-grade violence that happens all around, like the many petty thefts, some burglaries, robberies, the occasional mugging etc.
The college students I know that own firearms are very serious about gun safety. They still have some parties, but the guns unloaded and locked up out of sight for the duration. Guests are not even aware that firearms are in the house.
Most students are aware that bad things happen. Most think that those are things that happen to "other people." Still many are smart with the nightly party thing. Go to parties in groups, have someone sober left at the end of the night to herd the hammered pack home, everyone have a cell phone and stay in contact, bring a freakin flashlight. Little stuff like that makes a big difference.
Another part of the trusting environment is that students also look out for each other. On my block, most of us know each other, and recognize who belongs and ask questions when something looks fishy. Now I don't count on this to actually stop a crime in progess, but it creates a community environment where many of the shady people that were around before aren't now. Rather, they are around, but rarely on my block.
All that said, durning the day many students would be extremely easy targets. On the phone, walking alone, burdened with books/laptop/purse, and trusting the daylight to keep them safe. And on top of that, between class and car (for those who live off campus) firearms are verboten. Michigan law is that CCW is forbidden on campuses, but parking lots don't count as part of the campus. Now, the thought that no gun means no defence is foolish at best. Pepperspray on keychains is common among the ladies (oh wait Mr. Robber, let me hang up my call and dig this thing out, just one more second...), and many of the guys think they are tough enough to fight someone
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or :banghead:. OTOH, you might not.
That is scary. 