School Shooting Newtown CT

[Jeff OTMG]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

And in Pearl, the gun the assistant principal used had to be retrieved from his car; it was not the in school.

True, which was why he was not able to stop the killing sooner. At least he got to the shooter before he left for the middle school.

Originally Posted by MysticCat

The problem is that all too often the "what law could possibly work?" line stops the discussion. The answer is "I don't know. Let's put lots of informed heads together and see what we can figure out."

I agree.

Originally Posted by adpimiz

This. I do think that if the solution is to arm someone in the school, it would need to be someone with extensive training.

Anyone carrying a firearm in public should be trained. Police officers or deputies would be fine, but they have to be there. The govt run Flight Deck Officer program has been successful arming airline pilots for nearly 10 years. El Al has done this for decades.

Originally Posted by adpimiz

I don't know how much it would help to arm teachers..

Arming private citizens has worked in the past. From Austin, TX in 1966 to Pearl, MS in 1997 to West Virginia law school in 2002.

Originally Posted by adpimiz

If someone comes into a teacher's classroom with a gun, the teacher would have to be able to react quickly enough to grab his/her gun and pull the trigger, before possibly getting shot themselves.

Yes, but that would be if the shooter snuck into the school and went to that teacher first. In this shooting the psycho shot out the window to get into the school. Everyone heard it. When the shooting started it wasn't at people. Columbine was the same way. The teachers were not the first to be shot. To have it not be effective the shooter would have to neutralize all the potential threats before going after the children. Unlikely.

Originally Posted by adpimiz

But, I'm not sure that arming teachers is the answer. It's a much more complicated theory than it may seem.

I am not sure that is the answer either, let alone the only answer. As an aside, I just saw the news and Oklahoma is no looking at legislation to allow qualified teachers to carry at school.

Originally Posted by SigKapSweetie

Just having officers with guns at the door may do a lot to deter those who are looking for a 'soft' target. Nothing says "Attack here, helpless people inside!" like the Gun-Free Zone signs outside of our schools.

It would probably be effective and sadly it may be necessary.

Originally Posted by Psi U MC Vito

I also feel that while people should have access to firearms if they have a need, most people who carry weapons have no need to do so.

The problem is that we never know when that need will arise. If we did we would never carry and just not go where we knew there was going to be a problem. Just like auto insurance or home owners. I have not had an accident in 35 years and the only home owners claim I had was a roof due to hail about 10 years ago. Had I known that I would have saved thousands of dollars on insurance. With all the vehicles I have now I would save thousands of dollars a year now, but you won't catch me without auto or homeowners insurance. Same with a gun. When I have needed one, I was VERY happy to have been able to put a stop to the violence and never had to fire a shot. But I would have if needed.

Originally Posted by Psi U MC Vito

Hunting rifles to help feed your family, yes.

We don't need hunting rifles. I rarely shoot a rifle. I don't hunt. You can go to a store if you need food. When I do shoot a rifle it is an MSR, Modern Sporting Rifle. Some call it an assault rifle, even if it isn't. They are popular for hunting. Down in Texas an MSR in .458 SOCOM or .500 Beowolf is the popular choice for hunting deadly wild hogs.

Originally Posted by Psi U MC Vito

Handguns so that you can feel like a badass? no. I'm not anti-gun by any stretch of the imagination, and I do quite enjoy it. However I think people kind of overstate the "right to bear arms."

I don't carry to feel like a badass. I carry to feel safe. I have found myself in bad situations. I grew up differently. I was a target at age five and grew up having to be careful so was trained in firearms use beginning at age six. The right to bear arms is not over stated. There are very specific reasons why the Second Amendment was written and fireamrs like the military uses are actually the specific firearms intended to be protected.
In U.S. v. Miller (1939), the Supreme Court stated that, "The Militia comprised all males physically capable of acting in concert for the common defense . . . [and that] when called for service, these men were expected to appear bearing arms supplied by themselves and of the kind in common use at the time."

If you don't know what the Militia is you can find it in USC › Title 10 › Subtitle A › Part I › Chapter 13 › § 311
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/10/311

10 USC § 311 - Militia: composition and classes
(a) The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and, except as provided in section 313 of title 32, under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard.
(b) The classes of the militia are—
...
(2) the unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia.