Signs, signs, everywhere a sign…
There is a sad belief among leftists in this country that the sign “gun free zone” has magical powers. In essence they believe that a law that criminalizes the possession or use of a firearm on school property protects the students therein. As the Parkland shooting demonstrates beyond any ability to disagree, that simply is not true. All it really does is ensure that, at the time when it might be needed the most, a civilian with a firearm won’t have one. And it also insures that the shooter will know that he has no competition. In fact, all the shooter need do, even if the school has a school resource officer, is wait for him to appear and take him out first. “No Guns” may as well say “No Survivors.”
Free Publicity
Ben Shapiro has recently said that because mass shooters crave attention he will no longer publish their names or photos. It’s a good first step, and certainly one the mainstream media should undertake. Make the name (but not the photo) available on Google, but don’t give these jackals their 15 minutes of fame. That’s because this need to feed their self-importance is what drives many of these wackos to do this kind of thing, and it’s important to remember that they choose gun free zones and later surrender without firing a shot for a very good reason. They crave the attention, even if it means going to jail, because their lives otherwise lack meaning.
There is a great cartoon of two terrorists stopping outside a school with a pair of AK-47s and seeing a sign that says “No Guns Allowed” and then saying “well, darn, I guess we can’t kill anyone here.” It captures the lunacy that goes with a gun free zone sign. Cruz knew the school was a gun free zone. He didn’t care. Neither will the next one. The left is populated by idiots!
If you want to stop a school shooting – and let’s be clear, school shootings are, for the most part, done by screwed-up young white kids with enough money to buy guns and ammunition – then the way to do so is to make sure they understand that once bullets start flying there is no quarter, no surrender, and someone with a firearm is going to keep you from enjoying your 15 minutes of bloody fame. Give them something to fear. Acquaint them with the sound of lead whizzing by their ears. Give them the knowledge that they have only a 20% chance of surviving where armed security exists. I would post the qualification targets at the school entrance!
Other Places, Other Rules
America has taken steps to protect critical infrastructure in other places. At airports you must be screened. Why not at schools? At airports there are sterile areas where only screened people can be. Why not at schools. Try getting into a court house with a gun most anywhere and, in most cases, a sheriff is going to shoot you. If we protect our flyers and the instruments of justice from threat, why on earth would we not protect our schools. The answer is because school security, like curriculum, teacher pay, and teacher-to-student ratio, is a local affair. It’s paid for with local tax dollars. And people don’t want to pay their tax money for that kind of improvement. And so squishy politicians blame guns to avert the suspicion of the public from the true causes of mass casualties: school administrators and the local school board. And let’s be fair: those curmudgeons who vote against raising taxes for needed improvements also share some blame.
Can’t Happen Here…
And, of course, there is cognitive dissonance. “That might happen in [pick a large city] but it won’t happen here in [insert your town] where everyone knows everyone else. Except it did. It happened in Sutherland Springs, albeit not in a school, but the idea that mass shootings are only likely in big cities is ridiculous. Every school is at risk. Every teacher is at risk. Every student is at risk. They are at risk every single day.
“If it saves even one life,” is frequently the rallying cry of the anti-gun left. Ban this gun. Ban that gun. Let’s all sit down and sing Kumbyah. And that way we’ll all be together when the crazy bastards that don’t obey any laws come for us.
Where Tax and Spend Makes Sense
How about a new rallying cry: “We can all afford a tax increase for 3 years to secure our schools.” It is really that simple. Outer doors that only open outward from the inside. All points of entry secured and monitored by video camera. Doors that alarm when left open for more than 15 seconds. Metal Detectors at student points of entry. Hardened steel doors in classrooms. Bullet-resistant Kevlar curtains to cover up classroom windows. And let’s be realistic: armed security present in the building from 1 hour before classes until 1 hour after.
Train, Interdict, Prosecute, Repeat
In addition, get counselors the training necessary to spot students likely to cause trouble, and get them early intervention and interdiction. Make mental health assessment a part of the testing curriculum. Get the kids that need it the help they need. Ban those students by court order that refuse to accept the help or fail to follow the rules. Fully and furiously prosecute straw purchasers of handguns for minors. Make sure that gun crimes receive special attention from the press and that the criminals pay with serious sentences that send a message. The Hanging Judge, Judge Parker from Arkansas, said “it is not the seriousness of the punishment that deters crime, it is the certainty of it.” Make punishment certain, and make it certain that anyone who goes into a school to commit mayhem is not going to come out in one piece.
That’s what people like Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris would do if they were serious about stopping school violence. But they are not. Like Planned Parenthood, DACA, and Immigration, its all about the money with them. They use things like this to increase their DNC coffers and generate cash to crush your gun rights. A direct attack on the Second Amendment:
It is time for those of us with guns to start fighting back with better ideas, better plans, and louder voices.
Guns do not kill people, foolish people unwilling to take protective action to protect our kids kill them. And until they start doing the right thing, we need to get in their face.
The Well Armed Attorney 