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guns
So today on NPR, I actually heard somebody saying "if only there had been a few teachers at that school armed and trained with firearms, they could have saved a lot of lives."
That's quite possible, if the teachers made
a habit of bringing loaded guns to school every day and keeping them handy enough to respond in case of a shooter. Let's look at numbers.
There are about 10-30 murders per year in America's 100,000 schools. So if all school ahootinga were the size of the Newtown shooting, the average school could expect one every 100,000 years. Multiply by 180 school days/year, and we have 18 million days of guns in any given school. Multiply by, say, 10 teachers/school to provide adequate coverage, and we're at 180 million gun-days between shootings.
A gradeschool classroom is a chaotic place, and a teacher with 30 students has a lot to think about other than keeping tabs on the gun. Let's say once in a 50-year teaching career (10,000 school days), a child gets hold of my gun, and one in ten of these leads to somebody getting killed. So the proposed level of guns would cause 1800 accidental deaths in exchange for taking down one Newtown-style shooter and saving (say) 15 lives. That's 120 times as many gun deaths with guns in the classroom as without.
But we'd have our freedom, right?
That's quite possible, if the teachers made
a habit of bringing loaded guns to school every day and keeping them handy enough to respond in case of a shooter. Let's look at numbers.
There are about 10-30 murders per year in America's 100,000 schools. So if all school ahootinga were the size of the Newtown shooting, the average school could expect one every 100,000 years. Multiply by 180 school days/year, and we have 18 million days of guns in any given school. Multiply by, say, 10 teachers/school to provide adequate coverage, and we're at 180 million gun-days between shootings.
A gradeschool classroom is a chaotic place, and a teacher with 30 students has a lot to think about other than keeping tabs on the gun. Let's say once in a 50-year teaching career (10,000 school days), a child gets hold of my gun, and one in ten of these leads to somebody getting killed. So the proposed level of guns would cause 1800 accidental deaths in exchange for taking down one Newtown-style shooter and saving (say) 15 lives. That's 120 times as many gun deaths with guns in the classroom as without.
But we'd have our freedom, right?
Posted via m.livejournal.com.
guns
Is their no end to the insanity?
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Now - I have, indeed, *had* a gun in my classroom. (Most people I've seen recommend this have not had that experience.) A couple of the kids I taught had parents in law enforcement. Between them, and others I know who carry for the same reason, I know one of the basic rules - the only safe place for a loaded weapon that is not locked in a gun safe is on your person. So I would have to limit children throwing arms around me... But I see people talk about having them in a purse or a desk drawer. Really???!!!
One of the fathers worked nights, and often would pick his child up in midafternoon, when we were in the playground. He *always* wore a jacket... He would play with the children, and always was aware and careful...
And, for what it's worth... A detective I knew, who certainly had more training than most people would, once had an arrest go very bad... The perpetrator stabbed him, and got the weapon (and, luckily, did *not* shoot...) He was in the hospital for days. If this could happen to an experienced professional...
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Video of a test showing how well non-pros do with concealed weapons.
Not actually statistically significant, but interesting, nonetheless!