My first concern with this "packing teachers" discussion is that there is a rush to institute a "solution" that may well end up causing more deaths not less. Not many of the posts have talked about the potential harm that could be done by bringing weapons into schools. I tried to point out that with millions of children and tens of thousands of teachers there would certainly be situations, difficult to prevent, where kids got a hold of the teachers weapon. Not good. Where do teachers keep their guns? In their purse? In the drawer? Where does the coach put his gun when he is in the shower? If they are to respond immediately to an invasion presumably the guns need to be loaded and pretty easily accessible. When the teacher is in the back of the class what prevents the class clown or bully or mentally unstable kid from running up to the desk and taking the gun? What happens then? Does the teacher next door come to the rescue and have a shoot out with the kid? That incident WILL occur if guns are in schools, it is just a matter of time.
Here is another example of what could (will) easily go wrong. A distraught father/mother involved in a custody battle barges into the classroom to get their own child. Maybe the teacher doesn't recognize them. Maybe the news the night before included a reminder about Columbine or VTech, maybe the teacher is just frightened...maybe the teacher pulls the gun and shoots. Arm enough teachers and it will happen. Just wait.
My point is simply that even very very low frequency events, things that you can barely imagine, will in fact happen if there are sufficient opportunities. Putting thousands of guns into schools will provide those opportunities. Think statistically not emotionally.
So, to summarize my own first response to this idea of arming teachers, I think it is emotional, not data driven, not well thought out and without much if any consideration of potential harm that could follow. In my field we try to do good but we alway worry about doing harm in the process. Not many of you are seriously addressing that potential harm issue. Certainly filling out some forms and getting half baked training classes will not do it. As I mentioned in my first post, I don't care if you want a gun in your home if you don't think the police are helpful or you live in a rural area but I don't want guns carried by private citizens in areas where my family is likely to be.
