2/26/2018, 3:10 pm
[img]/images/various_uploads/Gun_Free_Zone_Body_Outline.jpg[/img]
[img]/red/images/clipart/karakteroff/OutOfCharacter.gif[/img]
So, let's talk about guns.
[img]/red/images/clipart/karakteroff/OutOfCharacter.gif[/img]
So, let's talk about guns.
First, humans have a right to defend themselves. I'm no sociologist, but I find it strange that we live in a society where the right of self-defense is not a given, but possibly controversial. Some of the protest posters in the wake of the Florida shooting included slogans like, “What about me?” “Am I next?” and “Protect me, not your machine guns!” I know there's a lot of emotion in this, and there should be – innocent people were murdered in cold blood. But the mindset revealed in those slogans seems to be something along the lines of, “I can't defend myself, so when is somebody else going to do something to make sure I'm safe?” If we get into the habit of passively waiting for someone else to intervene in our life and death struggle, then we increase our likelihood of being the next victim.
Not only do people have a right to self-defense, our government is one of the few which from its foundation protects that right. For more, I recommend James Madison's Federalist #46 where he explains the need for an armed citizenry as a check against government tyranny.
It's true that Israel and Switzerland have heavily armed citizens and low crime rates. America seems to contradict that rule, but when cities with the strongest gun control laws are removed from the statistics, the overall crime rate plummets. There are exceptions, but strict gun control laws tend to give criminals the advantage and are usually accompanied by high crime rates. Add to that a media culture that promotes violence, and the problem gets worse as human life becomes devalued first virtually, then really.
Most mass shootings and I believe all school shootings have taken place in gun free zones. Police may be able to arrive within minutes, but assessing the situation and responding to it allow the shooter about 20 minutes of an unhindered murder spree before he can be stopped. The gun free zone is read by the shooter as a free fire zone and assures him that he has easy prey. This is why gun free zones are preferred by mass murderers, and it's also why it's time to reconsider whether we should continue to herd our children into them in post Columbine America.
Should we arm teachers? There is a breadth of opinion from those who are horrified at the thought of arming teachers to those who think it's a good idea. If you are a fellow teacher and passionately opposed to carrying a gun to school, then please don't. All teachers shouldn't be armed for reasons of personal conviction, temperament, and physical ability, and so some schools prefer a stronger police presence, a police substation on campus, etc. So here's an idea: let the administration decide on if and how to provide more armed protection for students. Some schools will continue to choose to go without guns, but they should at least be given the opportunity to be ready for that moment of crisis when seconds, much more minutes, mean lives saved or lost.
But could something go wrong with armed teachers? Of course. This point has been made, and sometimes absurdly overmade, but it's still a very valid point. That's why the training is so important. In a dynamic, chaotic, and terrifying situation, things can go wrong – in fact, have already gone wrong, and yes, there exists the possibility of an innocent student being killed by friendly fire. But, if the crisis happens in your school, would your first thought be, “I'm so glad I'm unarmed!” There is no perfect solution, but trained staff having the ability to shoot back will make a shooter prefer a school where he doesn't face that hazard, which is nearly all schools at the moment.
Wrapping this up, let me mention what I learned as I dropped by a gun store over the weekend. One of the salesmen told me that the previous day he had seen a mother and her son. Their house was broken into, and the mother was raped while the son was held to the ground with a pistol shoved into his forehead. They didn't even have the chance to call the police. The young man still had the ring of the muzzle imprinted on his forehead when he and his mother came to the gun store. They experienced the brutality that some humans are capable of inflicting, and they have made the choice not to be victims again. Shouldn't that choice be extended to our schools, or will we continue to put our faith in the gun free zone sign to protect our children?
