The high school my grandsons went to has a armed school resource officer. I have no problems with this.
Can he stop a shooter? Maybe, maybe not. Much depends on the skills of the shooter.
Could he be a deterrent to a young person with mental issues hoping to rack up a high score of "kills" before he is taken out or commits suicide? Quite possibly.
The reason many shooters chose gun free zones as a target is that they are a shooting gallery. If that statement is offensive and it disturbs you, please understand that I also find mass murders such as occurred in Connecticut EXTREMELY disturbing. I rarely have nightmares but after this recent school shooting I woke up in a cold sweat after one truly terrible dream about the shooting.
I want to see some real solutions. I do support some improvements on our gun laws and the implementation of a mental health care system that actually works. Still even with a truly effective assault weapons ban and the confiscation of these weapons we might well see more massacres in schools and theaters. Realistically in the current political environment even another watered down AWB will be extremely difficult to pass in our Congress.
Improved security measures and the presence of armed and trained security personnel in our schools could do far more to stop future massacres than a ban on high capacity magazines or requiring all firearms to be registered.
I feel that the 24/7 coverage of these massacres has led to copy cat shootings. We hear endless coverage of the shooter who becomes a demigod to those who harbor fantasies of going on a killing rampage. Is it any wonder that some person with severe mental issues might decide to go out in a blaze of glory after watching over one hundred hours of coverage on a shooter?
There have been recent instances where an armed security guard stopped a potential attack. These incidents never made national headlines.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Terror at Southwest Side Movie Theater, as Gunman, Patron Shot in Lobby
gunman first attempted to open fire in nearby restaurant, but his gun jammed
Jim Forsyth
Two people are hospitalized after a gunman chased terrified restaurant patrons into the lobby of the Santikos Mayan 14 movie theater during a showing of "The Hobbit" last night, 1200 WOAI news reprots.
Police detectives and sheriff's investigators say the incident started in the China Garden Restaurant on Southwest Military Drive about 9 PM Sunday, when an employee of the restaurant walked in looking for a woman.
When the woman, who officials say is also a restaurant employee, wasn't there, the man pulled a gun and attempted to open fire in the restaurant but his weapon jammed.
"It started at the restaurant and then went into the parking lot and then into the movie theater," Deputy Lou Antu told 1200 WOAI news.
Investigators say some of the terrified restaurant patrons poured into the movie theater, and the gunman followed.
He opened fire, shooting one man in the chest, before Antu says an off duty sheriff's deputy who was working security at the theater shot him once.
http://radio.woai.com/cc-common/mainheadlines3.html?feed=119078&article=10644119
Perhaps the national news media should have interviewed this off duty cop and called him a hero. That might help offset some of the attention they have given the deranged shooters recently.
Another thing that has also disturbed me is all the attention given to rifles similar to AR-15s. The media has basically advertised these rifles as a weapon of choice for anyone considering a mass murder. The media push for another assault weapons ban has caused millions of these weapons to fly off the selves of gun stores and end up in the hands of people who have little or no reason to own one. It is quite possible that one or more of these weapons will be used to commit a massacre in the future.
Piers Morgan on CNN is always asking pro-gun supports why there is any reason to own such a "military grade" rifle as they are useless for hunting and only good for killing a lot of people very quickly and he makes a convincing argument to the uniformed. However the facts are that for a few people such rifles do serve a purpose. They ARE legal for hunting game such as deer with reduced capacity magazines in many states and have distinct advantages over more traditional hunting rifles. They are also used for completive shooting at the national level. In a rural area they may actually be a better self defense weapon than the typical rifle, shotgun or hand gun. I don't own one as it would serve no purpose for me as I don't hunt or target shoot rifles and I live in an urban area where a rifle used for self defense might endanger my neighbors.
I hope that if you are a strong gun control supporter that you don't feel that firearms are for everybody or that the solution to guns is more guns. That is totally false.
I personally want to see an end to these tragic massacres and also the gun violence in cities like Chicago. The solutions are complicated and expensive and I personally hate all the political games that lead to passage of useless "feel good" laws that accomplish absolutely nothing.
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