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School shooting. Is it time for armed security on all campuses?

Posted by LetsShrug 12 years, 4 months ago to News
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The school shooting at an elementary school in CT yesterday is particularly unsettling to me, as I work at an elementary school and most of my day is spent in the Kindergarten classrooms working with 5 and 6 years olds. I am not, however, one of those who are saying that something like this happening is "unfathomable". I'm probably viewed as being a little on the paranoid side among my peers because I always jump to the extreme when anything seems a little off kilter.

For example, a few weeks ago I heard office staff talking on the radio that the overhead system (speakers) weren't working for some reason and I immediately grabbed a few extra radios and passed them out to teachers saying, "keep this on your person until the overhead gets fixed", some looked at me perplexed until I explained, "What if somebody's tampered with our speaker system? If something crazy happens we won't be able to communicate...call me nuts I don't care just take a friggin' radio!" I got different reactions from them. Some were surprised with my train of thought and others were appreciative of my preparedness. The speaker system was quickly fixed and all was well.

Maybe I am being extreme, but when I see kids on the playground, or sitting in a classroom, it has crossed my mind that 'if some lunatic wanted to cause chaos here it could be easily done', but let's face it because it's true...as we have just seen, once again. I was at a Christmas dinner last night with my book club friends (almost all teachers) and eventually the school shooting topic did come up, although we had vowed to avoid it for the evening because it is so upsetting. We didn't talk about it for too long, but we quickly came to the conclusion that there is no real way to make a school "totally secure" from an intruder if someone is so inclined to intrude.

Sure, there are certain "security" measures in place, enforcing them is a priority, keeping the kids safe at all times is paramount (even to the extreme of not letting children 'chase' each other on the playground to avoid injuries...and I could write a book about all the bloody noses and head lumps that result from this practically daily because enforcing the "no chasing" rule on a playground with 90 kindergartners is just as difficult as maintaining a "secure school"...you do your best, but if they're inclined to chase, they're going to chase...they're 5 year olds and that's what they want to do).

I've been thinking about school security a lot this morning, watching the news etc. and the topic of having an armed security officer/cop on every campus has been brought up. (Gun control has also been brought up, but being a gun enthusiast and freedom lover and a believer in having a right to defend myself and my family I do not believe that adding more gun laws to the books will do a damned thing to stop lunacy.) So I'm wondering... is it time to privatize schools and add an armed officer to each campus? Or should some charter schools pop up offering this service on campus, giving parents a choice of sending their children to schools where they think their kids will be as safe as possible?

Sure, some parents would opt to not have their kids attend a school where there is a gun present ANY where on campus, even if it's holstered on a hip of a trained law enforcement officer and that's their choice to do so, but is it time to do this? Would public schools ever offer this? (I'm sure the unions would love it as they could collect union dues from an officer too), but it would work against their current gun control agenda so I'm not so sure really.

What say you?


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  • Posted by 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Mass shooters don't want to be met with a gunman, which is why they typically plan their massacres where there aren't any. (Schools, colleges, malls, churches, movie theaters --which a little riskier to run into a gunman hence all the body armor he had on, but alas, no one in the theater ended up having one...perhaps they have a visible sign at the entrance saying that guns are not allowed and law abiders abided--...) And they usually keep shooting until the cops arrive (after minutes and minutes and minutes and many bodies and bullets later) and one of the cops finally picks him off. Maybe one armed person isn't enough, but it's sure better than NONE. I was at a work Christmas party last night (yes, another party) and my table got to talking about this and at one point I blurted out, "Maybe we should ALL be armed." I totally expected someone to say "WHAT???", but everyone actually nodded their heads and said, "Yep". So that was refreshing...
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  • Posted by wgingram1 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Precisely. However Liberal "think" does not use logic. They do not realize that allowing guns in schools would be performed by trained professionals and not by the students themselves.
    I just gave you a perspective that any Lib reporter would portray as the intent of guns in schools.
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  • Posted by wgingram1 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    You are absolutely correct however there are those in these forums that still hold to the Liberal idea that guns in schools ONLY means that children will shoot other children. They do not understand that it is responsible (Trained) personnel that protect the schools in Israel, not a random bunch of morons.
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  • Posted by 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I believe the Gov has taken the sales lists from the food storage companies. I remember hearing something about that. One of the companies refused to give it up...or something like that. Is anybody NOT on that list, besides the REAL terrorists?
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  • Posted by wgingram1 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Do you not understand satire when you read it.
    Do you not know how the left views guns in "Our" hands?
    We all know they love guns in the hands of their "UN" troops.
    We all know that they think of us as primitives because we do not fear defending ourselves and our liberties.
    I tried (and obviously succeeded) in putting a perspective together that bothered you. Get used to it because the Left will use it against you until the day they have complete and utter control over your life and that of everyone else.
    Have a nice day..... For - Tomorrow we die. if you have your way.
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  • Posted by khalling 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    home schooling is an interesting answer. Maybe with the unemployment rat staying stagnant and the under-employed not counted, we'll see an increase. After all, you are "paid" if you choose to home school.
    As for Israel, there is a difference between safety training in locations that are regularly attacked by organized groups and safety training against random events. I don't want to sound callous or anything like that, but one armed guard standing around looking important and is probably not always "on guard" if you take my meaning has less impact than 30 watchful adults. Maybe this is off topic, but I have always thought it made no sense to build large fishbowl schools in the first place. The fluctuation in enrollees might spike a few years then decrease and before you know it there's a big bond issue and then a 3 story glass facade with atrium. Seemed to make more sense to me to buy up the houses around the existing school and remodel them to be appropriate classrooms. safe as houses....
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  • Posted by khalling 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    how do they know if one has food storage? and why animal doctors? oh, you mean military vets? military vets are an easy list to have. I try to remain listless.:)
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  • Posted by LeoRizzuti 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Of course the safest schools are home schools, that was kind of my point. I was simply pointing out one government's solution to the problem, pursuant to the comment and the original post.
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  • Posted by itisntluck 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Home Schoolers are on the DHS terrorist list, along with vets and people that have food storage. I talked with a guy from Ft. Carson in Colorado Springs today. He said there are 400,000 NATO troops here in the USA.
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  • Posted by 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I totally expect to see a rise in that. Home schooling, not Palestinian rockets. Wait, yes, Palestinian rockets too.
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  • Posted by itisntluck 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    The safest schools in the world are right here in the U.S.A. - Home Schools. Safe from liberal indoctrination, safe from childing molesting teachers, safe from kooks like Lanza, and safe from so-called Palestinian rockets.
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  • Posted by 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Wow, did you even read the title OR what I wrote? Please point out where I said anything about arming children? I've been called a lot of things, but you're the first to call me a Liberal Nut. And I can't even get a the liberal nut name calling to jive with a "guns on campus" argument.
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  • Posted by LeoRizzuti 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    The safest schools in the world right now are the schools in Israel. It was not always the case, though. The tide turned when the Israeli government decided that it was time to stop letting their children be sitting ducks and began training and arming teachers in all schools. Since the people that commit these acts are cowards the school shootings stopped.

    Of course, I do not allow the government to take control of the education of my children. I home school, and anyone wanting to attack our classroom will find out very quickly that the teacher is a well armed, well trained former Marine. My children will not become statistics.
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  • Posted by Lucky 12 years, 4 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Pardon if my thinking is disturbed, but,
    " ..add an armed officer to each campus? "
    is to me not the same as
    " allow guns in the hands of children".
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  • Posted by terrycan 12 years, 4 months ago
    I have an idea on this subject. Will create a new topic for it. Stay safe.
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  • Posted by wgingram1 12 years, 4 months ago
    Oh no. Not guns on campus. Just think of all of the daily incidents on campuses all over the US when each "armed" child would shoot another simply because they wanted to use the swing or teeter-totter instead of the ones that currently occupied "Their" desired spot.
    Kids would shoot each other over a stick of bubble gum or even bumping into them in the hall or something equally mundane.
    How could we allow guns in the hands of children? Are you fools?
    --- Well, I guess it would help decrease the world population which is a good thing. It would also make for a "survival of the fittest" mentality which would also help strengthen society.
    I guess it might be a good idea on second thought.
    It would also quickly resolve traffic alterations and people who cut inline at games and concerts.
    It would resolve neighborhood conflicts, quiet barking dogs, stop people with hot rods with boom boxes blaring/blasting pure noise as they drive past your home.
    Guns would be a good thing.....

    Is that what you were thinking? If so you were probably a Liberal Nut and should be shot.
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