As a former Marine NBC Warfare officer I appreciate the thoughts! :)

I responded to the other thread, "Suggestions for a home defense weapon" about the same time this event was hitting the news Friday. I will be quite candid and say that when I am out in public I scan everyone, I sit in restaurants so that I can see all those around me, and I feel I have become so used to it that it is affecting my quality of life.
I own a Sig P226, a Baretta FS92, a Colt AR15, and a few other weapons. These are the ones I mastered in the Marines, I am completely comfortable using them and pretty damn proficient with them.
That said I wish I never felt the need for them. I wish I never had to worry about being confronted by another with a gun. I wish I could feel the police would be there to protect my family. I hope I never witness carnage here like what is found on a battlefield, ever. The reality is, though, there is a chance that I will need to draw against someone as a civilian. A small chance, but a chance enough to make me carry (which I hate doing).
This country doesn't have a gun problem, we have a spiritual decay problem that has been going on for decades. The decimation of families, abortions (not starting a fight, just pointing out how cheap life has become), the dumbing-down of education, the hollowness that comes with celebrity worship, and the focus on exterior appearances have all contributed to the decay. Hollywood has a fixation on the young, the people with the least life experience and therefore the least wisdom. Even the music industry is affected, imagine the stars of the 60' & 70's being put through the "image-conscience, camera-friendly" world of todays music industry.
There is no depth in our society today, no wisdom espoused to a greater audience, no appreciation for (or knowledge of) our history and that of the world. I'm a 100% capitalist but our rampant consumerism has pushed artisans and craftsmen to the side, so little we make is of value anymore.
We have "9-11 truthers" and other people so gullible it's beyond my comprehension.
I look at my boys, 16 & 18, and I weep at the thought of the world they may end up living in. I've taught them what they need to be self-sufficient, to protect themselves, and taught them the lessons of history. I hope it serves them well when I'm not around any longer.
I also weep when I see this sort of event unfold. I avoid watching the news reporters and all their "experts" trying to "understand" what has happened, as if they could, while making the nutcase a celebrity in the process.
To be honest, I also feel an enormous amount of frustration when something like this happens and there is nobody like myself there to intervene. I have begun carrying in those "gun-free" zones as it seems this is where the shootings are most likely going to happen. Nothing is more tempting to a coward than not being a target himself.
Should I ever be present when one of these horror-events happen I will make certain that the tax-dollars spent to train me will not have been spent in vain. I'm not itching to start a fire-fight but have no problem finishing one. In the mean-time I will continue to train those in my life on how to protect themselves and others should they ever need too.
May God bless the vicitims of this, and other shootings, and may God have mercy on us all...

I've been thinking similar thoughts with regards to these shootings. Looking back at this horrific incident, the movie theater shooting earlier this year, and then all of the strange college campus killings we've had over the last 5 years and the common demoniator is age. You don't find any 65 year old people commiting these murders, but rather young men, sub 30, typically acting alone. The Columbine shootings were ony different in that there were two young men acting out what they may have seen thousands of times on screen. Americans are becoming numb to these types of concepts at an accelerating rate. Our society injects it forcefully into our youth without much restraint. In the 50s it may have been a cap gun for a 7 year old's birthday, but today it's Black Ops on Xbox which leaves little to the imagination with regards to death. Militaries of the 21st century thrive on these types of electronic scenarios to remove the emotion from war. Drone pilots can reduce a village to dust, then step outside to take a smoke break. I live next to one and it's a weird conversation around the BBQ.

For 99.999% of us these themes are a controlable, non-issue. For folks who can't process life within it's normal boundaries, this becomes a lit fuse. It's a tragic reality we all live with and there's no going back on it now. I don't know what the answer may be but I'm sure it's gotta strat with education and parenting.

Just saw this in the paper regarding the Morgan Freeman "rant"....


Many people -- including celebrities -- have spoken out on the horrific tragedy that struck Newtown, Conn., on Friday, when a 20-year-old gunman opened fire and killed 26 people, including 20 children, at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
However, Morgan Freeman is not one of those people. The actor has not released a comment on the incident that took place a few days ago, despite numerous stories reporting otherwise.



The lengthy quote attributed to Freeman is indeed a hoax.

I read that too Greg. It's still a good read

Here's something the NATIONAL NEWS didn't carry regarding the recent shooting at the Portland Oregon area mall....

TOTALLY AGREE!

RIP Jessica
 

Just received this email from the school our kids attend:

Dear Briggs Parents,

Our hearts go out to the families and community of Newtown, Connecticut. Any news like this is deeply saddening, and an event of this magnitude is especially horrifying.

We know that at a time like this, many parents want to know about the school safety and security measures we have in place.

• Safety training & planning: The Springfield School District has an emergency procedure plan that schools practice regularly. We train staff to handle the demands of emergencies, and all schools drill regularly for emergency responses for lockdowns, earthquakes, evacuations and more. Staff and students handle emergencies well when they have practiced what to do.

• Strong relationship with police: Through the School Resource Officers program, we have two police officers working full-time in our schools. Additional patrol officers can respond very quickly to a emergency situation. The school district and Springfield Police work together on all areas of emergency response, including making the best decisions together for student safety.

• Fast, clear communications: During an emergency, the district works with police and school staff to get accurate information about the situation and share it with parents as quickly as possible. We use email, cell phones, websites and other communication to notify parents, students and media with prompt and accurate information. It is critical that parents provide the school with complete and accurate contact information, so we can reach you if there is ever an emergency.

• Continuous improvement: While safety measures already are in place in our schools, we are committed to continuing to find ways to improve. The district is conducting safety assessments at every school, thoroughly reviewing physical security measures and safety procedures to ensure that our school buildings are as safe and secure as we can make them.

Our thoughts are with the families who lives have been forever changed by this devastating event. We know it may have an impact on your family as well. You may find helpful the following suggestions for talking with your children about this tragedy.

-------------------------------

My query back to the school:

Thanks for the info. Hopefully these officers are armed and proficient. In my opinion (and the FBI’s profilers) Gun Free Zones are soft and desirable targets. Due to the saturation of weapons in the US in the interim of any form of effective gun control you can only fight fire with fire as these offenders are not going to comply to gun control laws. A fact in most shooter events is - when seconds count the police are only minutes away.

While it may seem like a "crazy" idea --- I wonder if it's not time to seek volunteers at all schools to be "safety officers"... and where at least two classrooms in the school have a safe with various items capable of stopping an attack. With the volunteer teachers/staff receiving very serious training and receiving extra pay etc for this "service".

These safes would have auto dialing to local precinct - so that all one had to do was to open the safe to alert authorities of an attack.

Those classrooms should be monitored with cameras and that classroom should also be able to have a camera view of the entire school room by room and hallways etc. So that the "safety officer" would be able to have an idea what they were up against -- and where the attacker(s) are.

In the meantime - none of the children would have to know or see the safe or any "armed guards" -- put the safe behind a paneled wall/corkboard etc. Directly behind the teachers desk.

Budget constraints, hazard pay and just the insurance liability would be astronomical. Just because a person would volunteer doesn't mean a family member would not sue if that person was killed.

I read today that the school was very secure. One would have to show ID and get buzzed in to be where the shooter was. No amount of armed guards would have stopped this. If one was to shoot his way in then you would need volunteer targets plain and simple.