Reading, Writing, Arithmetic... and Lockdowns.
What are we going to do about guns in our schools?
Over the last week and a half, there have been numerous reports about school "lockdowns" after a gun threat was detected in the vicinity of a school. A simple search of the words "lockdown" and "school" at news.google.com shows the frightening regularity of these events.
It is chilling how real this threat continues to be nearly six months after the Virginia Tech Massacre - and just over one year since the Amish schoolgirl shootings at Nickel Mines, PA. America is once again experiencing a spate of school-related gun incidents, including assault and murder.
Recent events show that if we choose to do nothing, another tragedy like Virginia Tech could happen tomorrow. Condolences aren't enough. We must act now to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people.
One solution is the NICS Improvement Act (H.R. 2640) [pdf document], a common-sense bill designed to prevent dangerous individuals like the Virginia Tech shooter from legally buying guns. Supporters of this legislation include the Brady Campaign, strong gun law advocates in Congress like Rep. Carolyn McCarthy and Sen. Charles Schumer, and even the National Rifle Association. The bill has been stalled in the Senate by a single member, Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma.
Every concerned American should contact their Senator to get their support to bring this bill to a full vote as soon as possible. Congress must pass strong legislation to ensure that the records of dangerous people who are already prohibited from buying guns actually get into the Brady background check system.
For your information, here are some of the most high-profile examples of school-related gun incidents over the last couple weeks:
- Tennessee State University, September 20th
Police were searching for three men who pulled a gun on a Tennessee State University student inside his dorm. The men walked into the dormitory, knocked on the student's door, and when the student opened the door and saw that the men had a gun, he tried to close the door as a shot was fired into his room.
- Delaware State University, September 21st
Two students were shot on the campus of Delaware State University. The accused shooter was expelled for violation of the zero-tolerance policy for guns on campus. One of the victims remains in serious condition.
- St. John's University, September 26th
A mentally ill student wearing a George Bush mask and carrying a .50 caliber rifle was arrested on St. John's campus in New York. According to state and federal laws, because the rifle was considered a replica of an antique, he did not have to have a background check at the time of purchase. The NYPD test fired the rifle, and confirmed it was fully operational.
- Las Plumas High School (Oroville, CA), September 28
A 17 year old student in a California high school held 30 students at gunpoint with a .22 revolver. Shots were fired but no one was hit. After many hours, a standoff with police ended peacefully.
- University of Mississippi, September 29
Mississippi sprinter Rodney Lydale Lockhart died from one gunshot to the front of his head at his apartment near the Ole Miss campus. Lockhart was a member of the gold medal-winning U.S. 1,600-meter relay team in the 2006 World Junior Championships in Beijing. His death is being investigated as a homicide.
- Dean Middle School (Houston, TX), September 29
A 12-year-old girl allegedly brought a handgun to school and threatened to kill three teachers and a maintenance worker. No one was hurt, and it is unclear how police took her into custody. The student reportedly faces two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and could be charged as an adult.
- University of Memphis, September 30
A University of Memphis football player was shot and killed on the campus of the University of Memphis. University police said the preliminary investigation indicated that the player was targeted and not the victim of a random act of violence.
Clearly, we have a lot of work to do to end the threat of guns in schools. To help prevent another Virginia Tech, we need to keep asking our elected leaders, and each other, "What will you do to reduce gun violence in America?"
(Note to readers: This entry, along with past entries, has been co-posted on bradycampaign.org/blog and the Huffington Post.)
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And, since there appears to be a HUGE difference of opinion, on the meaning behind the political term "moderate," I'd like to ask the following: Just how many of you in the progunrights circle believe that writer DMeadow's ideas represent a "moderate" POV in gun politics ... & how many of you agree with her?
KELLI
Hi Paul,
As you probably already know ... there was an alarming 'lockdown' incident just recently here ~ in an affluent, upper middle class suburban high school. I think it's safe to assume, too, that most parents in our country are extremely concerned about this issue of gun violence/gun availability ~ esp. with respect to their children.
I am, as well.
Frankly, it makes me pretty sick to think that people in this country want to see more dangerous firearms out on the streets and in our communities that could do great harm others!
And to be perfectly honest with you, I can't name a single parent whom I've worked with in school functions over the years, who feel like the progun extremists do here. Contrary to the ideas this latter (eg. progun) group keeps trying to push on us & others reading ... it's NEVER okay to have guns in our schools or near our children.
Never.
KELLI
"it's NEVER okay to have guns in our schools or near our children. Never."
Does "NEVER" include law enforcement?
In your opinion, whose job is it to protect our children from the (albeit uncommon) armed assailant, when the children are in the school environment?
Should that person have access to arms, or should that person be expected to do this job unarmed?
What chance of success do you give an unarmed protector vs. an armed assailant?
http://www
Paul....
Again, how can we clean up our society when our Judicial system is failing miserably? Your fight against inanimate objects is rather shallow when you have a judicial system that churns out violent offenders.
"Two students were shot on the campus of Delaware State University. The accused shooter was expelled for violation of the zero-tolerance policy for guns on campus."
Again, this student was from New Jersey, not Delaware. NJ has the most retrictive state gun laws in the US. The other kids ivolved in these shootings were from Washington DC, where they've had a gun ban for twenty-some years.
If you can't keep bad guys from getting guns, even with gun-bans, and the ridiculous anti-self defense (anti-weapons) laws we have in NJ,
then it's time to arm the other side.
You'll never see a mass-shooting at an NRA convention.
Hey Ben, do you remember the Pettit family in CT? Wife and two daughters assaulted and murdered by two miscreants who broke into their home at 3AM? Just a month or so ago? No need for civilians to have guns? Are you for real?
Sounds like you're looking forward to being a subject. I suggest you read the 2nd Ammendment, again, and the US Code, Article 10, Item 313.
You are right, Paul ~ abolutely!
It's past the time for saying how sorry we are about the dangers our civilian guns pose to others in our schools & communities. I honestly don't care how well trained someone else claims he or she is, when it comes to handling guns outside of their homes.
Dangerous civilian guns have absolutely NO PLACE whatsoever in our nation's schools & among our (& other people's) children.
Excellent blog today from those at the Brady Campaign! Keep them coming...
KELLI
Kelli,
I'm not sure I understand. I didn't think it was "civilian" guns that were posing all the problems, but the guns owned and purchased illegally by criminals?
You seem very paranoid. You should go outside and meet people.
What exactly is a "civilian gun"?
Is your claim that guns in untrained or criminal hands are somehow preferable to those in the hands of those properly trained, or well-meaning good citizens, or are you simply squaring-off to launch an attack on the law-abiding gun owners in general, who by the millions and millions have never harmed anyone?
(Quote)
Dangerous civilian guns have absolutely NO PLACE whatsoever in our nation's schools & among our (& other people's) children.
(End Quote)
Keep telling that to the criminals that take guns into the "gun free zones" that your kind creates. They either don't seem to get the message or they simply don't care what laws you make.
So what is your reaction to criminal violating your laws and killing the innocent, to strip the law abiding (who are not the problem) of their means of defense themselves and/or stopping these criminals. What this does is forcing every law abiding citizen in these "gun free zones" to be helpless prey for those that don't obey the law?
But, you continue to believe we should keep guns out of the hands of the law abiding even it has been shown time and time again (such as in the Salt Lake City Mall shooting incident) that legally armed civilians can (and do) stop rampage shooters "in their tracks", thus limiting the body count when such a tragedy occurs.
Perhaps, if you want someone to blame for the high body counts that occur in "gun free zones", you should look in the mirror and then around at your gun-banning friends. What else do you expect when you legislate forced helplessness on law abiding people?
Ben, in case you missed this on an earlier post, i'll repost it:
The most foolish mistake we could possibly make would be to allow the subject races to possess arms. History shows that all conquerors who have allowed their subject races to carry arms have prepared their own downfall by so doing. Indeed, I would go so far as to say that the supply of arms to the underdogs is a sine qua non for the overthrow of any sovereignty. So let's not have any native militia or native police. German troops alone will bear the sole responsibility for the maintenance of law and order throughout the occupied Russian territories, and a system of military strong-points must be evolved to cover the entire occupied country." --Adolf Hitler, dinner talk on April 11, 1942, quoted in Hitler's Table Talk 1941-44: His Private Conversations, Second Edition (1973), Pg. 425-426. Translated by Norman Cameron and R. H. Stevens. Introduced and with a new preface by H. R. Trevor-Roper. The original German papers were known as Bormann-Vermerke.
By taking your position, you are acknowledging that you support the notion that humans do not have the inherent right to self protection. Furthermore, you are acknowledging that you think the US Constitution and Bill of Rights is nothing more than a scratch pad that the founding fathers used during one delirious night of cheap whiskey.
Gun control advocates and politicians who also share your thinking believe that the Constitution is a "living, breathing document" that should be amended with the changing times. I wonder how many of those same people feel that the 1st Amendment is also out dated? I know that it is your opinion that citizens shouldn't have firearms..
I for one will do everything in my power to make sure that criminals and tyrannical governments and terrorists aren't the only ones who will have access to weapons. When that day happens, we are all doomed.
Ben, if we, as a nation, can't keep drugs out our prisons, we can't keep guns out of a country. They're here to stay.
In addition, you say that only the government should have the guns. Do you see politicians as generally more honorable and moral than the average Joe?
This concept fascinates me.
I support passage of the NICS Improvement Act (H.R. 2640), but I'm not so sure it's going to significantly reduce guns being illegally brought to and used in schools. Many of the perpetrators are youths who steal the weaponry, thus NICS is not a factor.
Thus, violence committed with guns in schools will continue to happen. That is reality. The answer to that reality is to stop the active shooter as soon as possible. That is done by not prohibiting responsible, trained, and lawfully armed people from disarming themselves while in a school.
There are several very good and sensible proposals in many states that remove so-called "gun-free zone" prohibitions from lawfully armed citizens or allow faculty with concealed weapons permits to carry concealed in school, etc. These are the steps necessary for the reality, and they deserve to be supported.
Amen!
Another attempt by Paul at the old “bait and switch.” He presents a number of isolated instances of gun crimes on campus and claims this is an epidemic that needs to be stopped. Then he says that improvements to the NICS background system could somehow be the answer to stopping such incidents. Well, lets look at each case he presents.
1. Tennessee State University, September 20th
What you have here is a student forced to be the helpless victim of gun toting attackers who violated a “gun free zone.” However, there isn’t any information on the attackers, such as how they obtained the weapon. Certainly, there is no evidence to suggest that failures in the NICS system is what allowed to obtain their firearm.
2. Delaware State University, September 21st
Here you have an 18 year old charged for his use of handgun. According to the Brady Campaign state report card, Delaware state law “restricts selling or giving handguns to juveniles under 21.” The current Brady background check already checks for this. The changes you want in the NICS system wouldn’t have changed anything in this case.
3. St. John's University, September 26th
The “.50 Caliber rifle” in this case was A MUZZLELOADER. Current law doesn’t legally consider muzzle loaders as “firearms” and don’t require a Brady background check. Once again, the changes you want wouldn’t have changed anything in this case.
4. Las Plumas High School (Oroville, CA), September 28
In this case the gun toting student was 17 years old meaning he was already prohibited from having the handgun he used. Once again, the changes you want to the NICS system wouldn’t have changed anything in this case
5. University of Mississippi, September 29
This is another story that doesn’t have any information of the shooter. Paul is just assuming the legislation he advocates could have helped. Once again, this is Paul is trying to exploit a rare tragedy (even the very story he mentions says it is s a rare incident) to support his own agenda even though he has no reason to believe that his agenda could have helped.
6. Dean Middle School (Houston, TX), September 29
So Paul, how would your changes to the Brady background check have had any effect on a “12-year-old girl (who) allegedly brought a handgun to school?”
7. University of Memphis, September 30
Once again, no information present that would suggest the Brady background check would even have been relevant to this case,
So Paul, when it comes to providing evidence to support your advocacy of the changes to the Brady background check's NICS system, you actually come up 0 for 7. Paul, when will you stop trying to exploit isolated tragedies to push an irrelevant agenda?
Hmmm. The author points to several examples of guns being used in violent and criminal acts in schools and on campuses: places that are generally "gun free zones".
How long are we going to ride this dead mule before the smell is bad enough to snap us awake?
Murder is illegal. Attempted murder is illegal. Assault is illegal. The making of terroristic threats is illegal. Having a gun at school...u
I'm confused. Which law is it that we need to blindly pass that is the magic end-all be-all of gun control again?
I'm pretty sure some of the perpetrator in Paul's examples obtained their firearms WITHOUT undergoing a background check, perhaps buying stolen fireamrs, and that is a crime in and of itself...b
The lgeislation that is beig pushed has proven ineffective. Perhaps it is time to look elswhere for a soluton.
Mr. Dixon, what do you suppose the results would be of the government having sole control over all (legal) firearms? Do you suppose they would rid our society of them the way they have rid it of illegal drugs?
Do you suppose the government would be as effective at removing the guns from the hands of criminals as they are at defeating those same criminals right now?
Do you think a government which held all the power could be trusted to be fair and reasonable in it's dealings with mere subjects such as you and I?
Don't you suppose that sort of power would only create high-level positions sought specifically by those who wish to reign, rather than govern?
This has been tried before. As I recollect, the results were not good. Not good at all. mark0
Ok, I offered my suggestioned solution. So whats your's? How do we keep guns out of schools and keep the children safe?
Since you asked, Mr. Dixon, I will take a stab.
I always heard that knowledge is power. How about we start by teaching gun safety in schools. Since guns are not going to dry up and blow away, and since the anti-gunners are not likely to achieve a ban on firearms in the lifetimes of our children, lets just go ahead and acknowledge the existance of firearms, and give our children the knowledge they need to treat them with the proper amount of respect.
Rather than letting our kids get their knowlegde from television, lets give them the TRUTH.
In my opinion we might want to follow that up with some instruction on how to behave under threat from an active assailant(s). We already teach kids to stop, drop, and roll...loo
Has anyone ever taught our children to SURVIVE?
Have we taught our children to resist an abductor or rapist, or do we continue to teach them to tacitly comply with an aggressor's actions?
Maybe a little instruction on "This is the sound of a gunshot. Its a good idea to move away, or at least toward cover, when you hear this. Oh, and its also OK to do so. You don't have to wait for someone's approval."
Maybe some early instruction on assessing a situation while looking for a safe exit, would have saved lives at Virginia Tech or Columbine. People have died in fires because they didn't know if it was alright to use an Emergency Exit.
Perhaps the knowledge that a fire extinguisher could also be used to briefly incapacitate an assailant would prove beneficial.
The truth of the matter is, keeping guns OUT of schools is not going to play any part in keeping our children safe, because the gun is only a tool...not the root cause of the problem.
Your turn, Mr. Dixon. What are your proposals?
mark0
Ben,
You are not going to defend your opinion, in this market of ideas?
It is legitimate for someone to ask good questions of someone else's ideas. If we want to get to correct solutions, ideas need to not only be presented but also discussed if there are points of major concern with them.
Are you here to try and get to a correct solution, by discussing your ideas and discussing other's ideas with them, or not?
Ben Dixon, Considering the assault on our rights and civil liberty's by this administration and others there is a very real need for fire arms today. That is unless you want to be a slave to corporatism.
Hey Ben, maybe we should have a "war on guns". Would that make it all better for you?
Perhaps the better question is what are we doing about guns in our society? In this day and age there is no need for any private citizen to own a gun. Firearm ownership should be solely in the hands of the government.
That's a recipe for tyranny. No thank you.
Hitler, Mao and Stalin tried that and it ended pretty bad for the people without guns. I dare say Burma is a prime example of guns in the hands of the government only.
"there is no need for any private citizen to own a gun"
--Ben Dixon
Ben,
What about self-defense? If I can't get away from a rapist or an attacker wielding a baseball bat or large knife, and/or the attacker is significantly more physically powerful than I, what am I to do?
Ben,
I think there might be a few people in Burma who would question your rationality.
Add 42 million to those you see here opposed to that idea.
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Posted October 4, 2007 | 04:12 PM (EST)