Thank The Dear Elvis this guy didn’t shoot Antoinette – she was needed elsewhere.
A Republican state senator from Arkansas who is leading a legislative committee on the subject of giving guns to school teachers accidentally shot a teacher during an “active shooter” drill earlier this year, the local paper of record has uncovered.
State Sen. Jeremy Hutchinson put forward a proposal in the wake of last December’s mass shooting event at Sandy Hook Elementary School that would allow law enforcement officials to deputize teachers and other staff members, effectively putting them in charge of school safety.
You can have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, or democracy. But you cannot have both.
Whatever Works 
You do have a gift for uncovering the darndest things!
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A teachable moment? Unfortunately the student is not teachable…
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Seriously??? Holy crap! NC thought it was time for folks to be able to tote their guns in parks. Those effin’ teeter totter gangs better look out.
Just how many different posts have you cranked out this week! Are you going for a record? Fine job! (says the slacker.)
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marylee: and I’m sure that my posting has slowed to a trickle.
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There does seem to be a relationship between IQ and the desire to do stupid things with guns. An inverse relationship, that is.
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Ya’ think elyse?
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I’m totally mystified at the ‘arm the teachers’ plan. All I can figure out is that those who propose it have very old model in mind of what a teacher does with her/his time. Standing at the front of the room ‘supervising’, or sitting apart from students at a ‘command post’ desk for same purpose, is not an approach I’ve seen teachers use, at least in elementary and middle school levels, (am less familiar with secondary), for a long, long time. Years and years! (I was a teacher, and also a target-shooter … so I can well imagine how the plan would *not* work!)
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It’s not by any means a perfect plan, but it likely beats the situation of totally unarmed school staff and an armed psycho.
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Schools and Guns do NOT mix….
If there must be someone armed?
It should be a Police Officer with Special sensitivity training for working in schools….
Nothing Less….
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Frankly, James, that’s a laughable alternative and one that has already proven to be a failure because we can’t assign enough officers to make much of a difference. Nor are the police well-trained for security work of this type.
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Hi jonolan – won’t get into an extended discussion on this but I’m serious – it really can’t work for teachers to add firearm handling to their already long list of skills and training specific to how children learn and strategies that best support that.
Some years back it was said that teachers frequently make decisions at a pace usually only experienced by air traffic controllers. That certainly seemed born out by teaching experience! A classroom is a very active community with complex needs and goals. The teacher’s full concentration is on serving the needs and meeting the goals. A ‘sudden shift’ to an entirely different set of skills that have potential to be dangerous, and require exceptional training, is neither reasonable nor wise, (in my studied opinion).
I *do* regret that *some* kind of extra attention to security is both reasonable and wise. (My ‘larger view’ study and opinion is that we – society – need to examine what ‘social/economic forces’ we’ve set up that seem to create total dissociative states in minds of those who end up committing extreme violence. I write posts on the topic all the time. But until we’ve worked our way through that – we do need to take extra measures see to safety of children in schools.)
(Don’t mean to be argumentative – just want to contribute some thoughts on the concern. Thanks.)
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As I said, it’s an imperfect idea. I just think it beats the current setup. My hope is that they’ll work out some sort of compromise solution that has some benefit and less drawbacks.
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jonolan you comeback is lame….
Congress can make funds available to let school district hire more officers
All they have to do is switch the money from buying 20 F-35’s….
Second Professional Police Officers surely can handle being around kids
After all most have their own…..
The train would be separate adult behavior response to chidden behavior and to spotlight the juvenile justice system….
Most departments now require their officers to have at least an Assoc. Degree….
And many have BA’s and Master’s….
Wake Up!
Leave the guns to the professionals
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One, Congress can’t / won’t make money available to municipalities for such specific purposes so that’s moot.
Two, I wasn’t talking about being around kids. I was talking about physical and personal security duties. Police are not trained to be a security force for an installation.
Three, a college education is meaningless in this context.
Wake up!
Leave the guns to the professionals unless there are no professionals available, then arm and train as best as you can some number of the amateurs.
And, for the record, I HATE the idea of armed teachers and/or school admins. I just hate soft, high-value targets even more.
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teachers should be JUST teachers…..
and that IS enough…..
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Priceless. Reminds me of this video of a DEA agent demonstrating gun safety in a classroom. Moments after saying “I’m the only one in this room professional enough to carry this Glock 40,” he accidently shoots himself in the foot.
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Of Course Congress can make the money available….
A similar effort was Clinton’s Safe Street’s Program…
Who do you think provides Security duties so the Secret Service can move the President around the country?
The Local and State Police….
If they can help with the President they can help with kids…..
last….
DEA Agents aren’t the same as cops…..
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Are we going totally insane? We don’t need guns in school! What we need is tons more money, much smaller classes, much better teachers, lots more mind and body building activities, music and art classes, sports after school, creative teachers who actually make students think. Guns! Why don’t we just shut down all the schools and put the kids back in the fields and factories where they belong. Oh, almost forgot, there are no more factories and Monsanto owns all the fields.
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Woodstock – saw a news feature somewherre recently about a new charter school that takes students with social and academic problems; they start the day with three hours – THREE HOURS – of sports/physical training, something to get those endorphins flowing. And they say the kids bond with their coaches in a way they don’t with their teachers, so for the rest of the day, the coaches move right into the classroom, as teachers or as aides. But they’re present. I love that idea.
Monsanto? See the cartoon I just posted.
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Also I think when you say “Why don’t we just shut down all the schools and put the kids back in the fields and factories where they belong. Oh, almost forgot, there are no more factories and Monsanto owns all the fields.” you perfectly describe what our oligarchy thinks of the ‘common man’.
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