Our America has undergone, and will likely continue to experience, many “cultural changes”—all entailing “choices” and “consequences.” Among our worst choices—those resulting in failure to provide our school children and teaching staffs with effective protection from unspeakably horrific massacres.
As should be the case, often there is no shortage of demands for education resources to address needs driven by “advances in technology.” However, too often irresponsibly absent are like demands for resources to effectively “protect lives” in our schools against the heinous threats of today’s world. A truly daunting challenge and moral obligation that continues to get side-tracked, buried, and silenced in an abyss of emotions, miss-information; self-serving political agendas, irresponsible news/social media coverage, etc.
"School safety" is a commonsense duty further encumbered by the unsettling reality that a growing number among us (especially apathetic adults and our more impressionable youth), have even been propagandized with the dangerous delusion that “inanimate objects” (especially guns) somehow have the intent and capability for carrying out murderous or otherwise life threatening acts—“without the hand of humans.” Worse, yet, those offering life-saving, peace-of-mind assuring evidence to the contrary are being shouted-down and demonized as uncaring, irresponsible gun-fanatics, and otherwise socially despicable beings.
Too often disregarded is pertinent information such as, not so many years ago (within my and many existing other’s lifetimes) guns were much more easily accessible in the U.S. than they are today. And, responsibly supervised shooting clubs, rifle teams, etc., were even accepted on various school premises. Schools that even “back then” also included some students who were, for example: treated unfairly; had an abusive home life; were socially neglected; academically challenged; bullied; and at times, even “offended.”
"Back-then schools" where responsible minded students were not expelled for possession of a simple pocket knife, or for drawing a picture of a weapon or a warrior, or for wearing clothing displaying the U.S. Flag, etc. Schools that (regardless of their students’ respective life circumstances) were essentially void of today’s murderous atrocities.
So what has changed and why? The answer: Our American “culture”; for a mix of reasons, including the obvious, illusive, and highly controversial. However, the complexity of the “whys” does not lighten our responsibility for the safety and security of our schools—for the lives of our children and teaching staff. Nor are we absolved from the responsibility to let common sense prevail in our quest for solutions. Starting with accepting that evil does and will continue to exist. And that persons with murderous aims frankly don’t give a damn about laws, policies, age-restrictions, political correctness, “gun-free zone signs" — or about offending someone.
Our solutions must provide our schools with at least the same level of protection we demand (and tolerate) when traveling via commercial aircraft, vacationing on luxury cruise ships, and attending professional sports/other entertainment stadiums, etc. And, we must do so “now”—not later. While keeping responsibly in mind the often late-learned reality that . . . "we (and affected others) ultimately reap what we sow."
—William James Moore
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