It is bad enough we have
liberal Senators advocating for placing the national guard inside of our classrooms but now we have teachers seeking gun training. Not shocking that it happens to be Utah that strikes first in the "Put Guns In Every Classroom Movement". I believe there are many common sense solutions to the violence that guns perpetuate in America. Such as extensive back round checks - Mandatory gun training and safety courses - insurances on each gun - a limit of 10 bullets to magazines - a gun-buy back program much like the one implemented by the Australian government and expansion of mental health services for people at risk.
This however is not one of them.
From Reuters
On Thursday, she was one of 200 Utah teachers who flocked to an indoor sports arena for free instruction in the handling of firearms by gun activists who say armed educators might have a chance of thwarting deadly shooting rampages in their schools.
The event was organized by the Utah Shooting Sports Council in response to the mass shooting in Newtown, Conn., this month that killed 20 children and six staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
The council said it has typically attracted about 16 teachers each year to its concealed-carry training courses. But Thursday's event near Salt Lake City, organized especially for educators in the aftermath of Newtown, drew interest from hundreds, and the class was capped at 200 because of space limitations.
I understand that as an educator - myself being one - you want to feel safe in your profession. Having a gun in the classroom will not make anyone safer. Sandyhook did not happen because of a lack of guns. It happened because of access to guns by a deranged killer. When I was in high school during Columbine I got pulled into the Deans office because I had the misfortune of not knowing that the tragedy had happened and being an alternative kid who liked wearing a black trench coat.
My parents were called, my sister was called into the office - also wearing her black coat - and they would not let me leave until my mother left work and picked me up wearing her black trench coat. It was a gross over reaction and put me in the spot lights of the administration. I did not stop wearing my coat because I thought it was intrinsic to who I was at the time.
I do not think these teachers need to pick up arms to defend their students. We need less guns - not a gun in every classroom.
Clark Aposhian, head of the Utah Shooting Sports Council and a certified firearms instructor, organized the event on Thursday to provide teachers with permits to allow them to carry concealed handguns in the classroom. He waived the usual $50 fee for the course.
NRA chief: If putting armed police in schools is crazy, 'then call me crazy'
"I genuinely felt depressed at how helpless those teachers were and those children were in Newtown," Aposhian said. "It doesn't have to be that way."
After a controversial press conference last week, NRA head Wayne LaPierre made an appearance on NBC's "Meet the Press" saying the American people would be "crazy" to not put armed guards in schools. Meanwhile, Newtown, Conn., continues coping with the death of 26 people during the tragic shooting. NBC's Ron Mott report.
Utah teacher Kerrie Anderson was not about to participate. She is a choir and math instructor at a junior high school near Salt Lake City and said her family is "pro-gun" and uses firearms for sports such as target shooting. But she balks at the notion of carrying a weapon into her classroom.
Bold added by the diarist.
Bravo Kerrie Anderson. I hope this country can have a debate about gun control without arming everyone in the name of safety. Sandyhook shook us on many level. Let's have the appropriate outcome for once.
The floor is yours.