Time To Get Along Folks - If We Want To Save Our Youth and Prepare Them for Success
by Honest Abe
Dear Fellow Americans,
I’m a former liberal. I voted for Obama in 2008 and every Democrat leading up to 2008. Going back to the years of Bill Clinton, I was, in fact, pretty liberal. I spent my college years and the first part of my young adult life believing in many left leaning policies. I also still support some of these left leaning ideals. I feel they have given me the ability to be a better person. And, I carry on many friendships with people who are still liberal. I love them all - great people that truly care about me, and in return, I care about them. In some instances, these friendships go back decades.
As I grew older - took on new responsibilities and different priorities - I became a Republican. I realized many of my parent’s values which are conservative in nature have stuck with me all along. I didn’t always realize this, but those values drove some of my life decisions when I was younger as well. In many instances, they may have been Christian values. Because I’ve seen an economy nose dive, families struggle, terrorism, school shootings, friends and personal family members deal with life challenges (addiction, divorce, and a whole list of other issues), I’ve embraced some right-leaning ideals such as a strong economy that provides opportunity for all and protecting our country from dangers from without and within. And, I’m also embracing more of my Christian upbringing, understanding the value of family, right from wrong, and treating others with respect.
What I’ve learned from my journey is that both sides have good points. And, my deepest hope for our country is that we can someday meet in the middle and begin to have truly impactful conversations. Be proactive instead of reactive. Understand we’re more alike than we are different - regardless of our political ideals, gender, race, religion, etc. - and in the process of realizing this, we can, together, solve some very serious problems.
In particular, and at the moment, the problem is violence in our schools. Instead of waiting for a school shooting to happen and the media going into a frenzy over these tragedies - which causes a huge partisan debate where we essentially just get emotional and go into the same illogical arguments over gun laws as that we did after the last tragedy - why don’t we talk about this problem before it happens? In the process, we are hurting our nation, spreading false facts, and further muddying the issue. It is time for us to act together. Gather real facts. Evaluate all options. Meet in the middle. We’ve done it with terrorism and many other problems over the course of our history. The fact of the matter is that a combination of preventive security measures, protocols in identifying risks, and using armed security detail to protect our schools is the solution, mixing both left and right ideals into a successful strategy.
Let us understand that each side has its rotten apples; both the Right and the Left have some unsavory characters. Violence isn’t tied to one side. This issue of school shootings isn’t just about the second amendment. It’s tied to our cultural values (violence, pornography, movies, video games). It’s tied to poverty. It’s tied to unhealthy individuals and a lack of understanding of mental health issues. It’s tied to a country with a disintegrating moral compass. It’s a result of not having accurate facts about guns. We’re a country struggling with the loss of family values, loss of the value of marriage and high divorce rates. As a result, we are hurting the young in our country, creating for ourselves even more tragedies with our partisan politics. School shootings are not a black and white issue about guns. There are many complex problems coalescing into a big problem which results in loss of life, and the worst loss of life - a young person’s life.
The solution to this problem starts with us “average Americans.” We have more power than the politicians if we work together to send a message through our grass roots efforts, holding politicians accountable through the electoral system, introducing our ideas for laws, our analysis of the problems, and putting pressure on local, state and federal legislators. We can pressure them to seriously investigate and evaluate our ideas. We can make a difference.
“That government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” Abraham Lincoln (November 19th, 1863 Gettysburg Address)
In summary, if you are a responsible gun owner and believe in protecting our community, your family, and our youth, we want to hear your ideas. The large majority of gun owners are good people. It’s time to share your thoughts with our country. We need your support and ideas. Please contact us. If you’re left leaning, Bullets Both Ways is asking for your help too. We’re asking everyone to work together. Are you a psychologist, school education professional, or an organization with the shared goal of preventing school violence? Contact us and let us know your thoughts.
Let’s work together! We want to work with you and share your ideas and find a solution to the challenges we face.
Some Thoughts On Making Our Schools Safer
by Honest Abe
There are a multitude of things we can consider to make schools safer for our youth. Unfortunately, the gun control debate prevents productive discussion and muddies the waters on the school violence issue. The ultimate goal is to prevent situations in which children get hurt. Therefore, it is critical that both sides of this debate come together and understand that it ultimately will take ideas from each side of this issue to actually prevent school violence. I offer a few thoughts in this blog.
Firstly, we should always strive to take threats of harm seriously. Developing better reporting protocols and having laws that allow an appropriate response to an identified risk should be implemented and continually reviewed. Schools have some processes in place to identify a child who shows signs that they may hurt others. How can this process be improved? Are we doing enough to make sure these kids get the help they need to become emotionally healthy after they are identified as a potential threat? Adam Lanza, the Newtown, CT school shooter, is a prime example of how we failed to treat someone who was struggling emotionally. I support the effort for psychologists, teachers, and law enforcement to coordinate on ways to identify and prevent at-risk kids from carrying out an atrocity. I think both sides would agree on this.
Additionally, how are we disciplining kids who are caught with weapons in school? California gathered some frightening data on how many weapons are being brought into schools [1]. Thousands of weapons are being confiscated. This does not include the kids who are not being caught. Not only are we dealing with guns being brought in, but other weapons such as knives are being slipped into schools as well. What is being done with these kids after they are caught? Is the disciplinary action strict enough that it creates better choices or values in our youth? While disciplinary actions won’t prevent all school violence, it surely can help in the long run.
Gathering more data to analyze the problem is essential as well. What new data will increase understanding of school violence? Do we need to push for laws that require gathering and analysis of data? Clearly, having professionals, doctors, teachers, parents, and law enforcement working together to share information is critical. 9/11 showed us that government agencies lacked the ability to share information. What resulted was law enforcement coming together to share and identify threats which has prevented further terrorist actions from happening within our country. I firmly believe this idea would help with school violence as well. State and federal government gathers data presently. Perhaps the first step is for law enforcement and school administrators to share data and identify information that is lacking. We need to push for this kind of sharing of information to prevent tragedies in our schools.
Metal detectors could also be an effective way to prevent school violence. Unfortunately, the equipment is costly and schools frequently don't have the money to purchase or use the equipment. Security personnel may need to be in place in order to run the metal detectors. We could create “law and order” in schools and assist in the use of metal detectors. Perhaps armed teachers or volunteers could monitor metal detectors in the schools. It is time to take a harder look at what it would cost to fund metal detectors and security in schools. Can we align ourselves with companies willing to provide this equipment cost effectively if we all agree it is needed? We have to ask ourselves if not having these devices or not providing the funds needed to have them is worth the cost of not having them. We have already made our airports and other public buildings safer by using better scanning techniques. Maybe it’s time we do this in our schools.
Lastly, we need to better understand how social media is affecting our youth. Several questions need to be answered. Does the constant use of social media prevent kids from developing into healthy adults emotionally? How does the use of social media affect a child’s social skills? What exactly happens to their emotional well-being by using this technology? Does it encourage bullying, or play a role in other bad behaviors? How can parents better monitor a child’s social media use? The answers to these and additional questions could help us better understand this issue. More studies on social media and its psychological effects on children might assist in preventing school violence. A simple Google search will show that there are studies on how social media use negatively affects people, even adults. Children are innocent and basically naive when it comes to the consequences of using social media. As adults, it’s our duty to better understand this for them.
These are only a few of the issues that need to be considered. The problem is large in nature and everyone’s ideas are needed. When we better understand these topics, and most importantly, gather more data, we can help to create safer schools and make a real difference for our children..
[1] - http://surveydata.wested.org/resources/Biennial_State_1315.pdf
Bullets Both Ways: An Introduction To Our Cause
By Honest Abe
As Americans, we have a constitutional right to own and use guns. Bullets Both Ways supports this basic fundamental right given to us by our founding fathers. While the writers of our Constitution originally allowed us the right to bear arms as a means to combat enemies of our country through the use of a citizen militia, the right to bear arms has also been interpreted by our courts as the right to protect ourselves and others from harm [1][2].
Sadly, this Constitutional right is under relentless assault by gun control activists in a debate replete with falsehoods. When gun ownership is respected and appropriately used,private citizens can contribute to a safer society. Of primary importance in our society is the need to stop evil that emerges unexpectedly. Responsible, trained, gun-carrying citizens can help law enforcement in our battle against unanticipated acts of evil.
It is our nation’s desire and duty to prevent additional tragedies like the numerous school shootings and other public massacres from happening. The US Department of Justice and FBI have done reports on how to identify and handle these potential risks [1]. Schools to some degree are being educated on how to deal with identifying children who need help and who may pose a potential threat. Recently, however, in the multiple mass shootings in the US, the FBI has sometimes been warned about these potential perpetrators, and nothing has been done to prevent these people from carrying out their heinous crimes. Teachers in Florida identified an “at risk” student as a potential threat and reported the issues, but unfortunately, the incident was not prevented. The mass shooter at the Aurora, Colorado movie theater is a prime example, as was the perpetrator in the recent school shooting in Florida. In actuality, more measures are needed to prevent these tragedies.
As a nation, we haven’t given support for allowing teachers and citizens to arm themselves in schools and public places to assist in preventing, stopping, or minimizing the occurrence of these tragedies. Nor have we honestly considered allowing schools to use professional security details. Both ideas would have allowed lives to be saved. While we cannot prevent every tragedy , we can arm and protect ourselves from disturbed people, challenging them when they initiate their terror. For this reason, it is essential to educate the Public honestly on the gun issue and to allow citizens who are willing to protect others to arm themselves. Law enforcement alone is not going to stop the problem. It’s up to willing and trained citizens with sound morals and values to help build a safe country for all of us, especially our youth.
The argument by gun control activists for banning guns from schools and government places needs to be re-evaluated [2]. Clearly it’s time to take a hard look at allowing properly equipped, willing and trained teachers to use guns when these threats materialize. Banning guns in schools is not working to make our schools safer. Other methods for preventing these incidents have failed as well. Metal detectors, while helping, are still not eliminating these tragedies and are not implemented at every school. And while counseling and better mental health measures are needed to deal with kids identified as potential risks, we continue to fail to prevent these incidents from occurring. Undoubtedly, we need doctors to understand how mental illness is affecting these perpetrators and how they can be identified. But, when a perpetrator walks into a school with the intent to harm and destroy, science and medicine are not going to prevent this individual from achieving his devastation. Somebody immediately present, somebody trained and carrying a gun is going to save lives.
[1] The School Shooter: A Threat Assessment Perspective - FBI Report
[2] McDonald v. Chicago, 561 U.S. 742 (2010)
[3] District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. 570 (2008)
In future blogs, we will begin to analyze statistics in more detail and reveal truth regarding gun violence. We will also look at ways to help protect our children, teachers, and the general public with the assistance of responsible gun owning and carrying citizens.
Troubled Minds, Guns and Schools – A Deadly Combination
Troubled Minds, Guns and Schools – A Deadly Combination
A Commentary by an American Military Veteran
School shootings are, unfortunately, on most of our minds today. This curse on our kids seems to first have started at Columbine High School (Colorado) in 1999. However, in actuality, the first shootings occurred in 1966 at the University of Texas some 33 years prior to Columbine (15 were killed)1. Thirty-three years between these events without a school shooting. Who would have dreamed? Certainly in those three decades, there was silence in the schools. Nevertheless, there were still other types of mass shootings and bombings occurring around the world. What’s going on? Why does it seem we have lethal chemistry brewing out there for our schools and colleges? There are at least three ingredients in this issue. A brief discussion of the three follows…
- Troubled Minds: Likely the primary cause of school shootings, troubled minds are a difficult issue. The developing troubled mind is likely negatively influenced by associations, emotional turmoil, hormonal imbalance, immaturity, and isolation. As a result of these influences, the potential shooter’s anger is accelerated to a level demanding action. The availability of healthy interaction with family, friends, co-workers, and even casual encounters is somehow thwarted by a self-inflicted isolation. In some instances, people may talk to the troubled individual, but likely do not realize something is wrong. They “disconnect” because they are too busy, possibly frightened, or have unpleasant prior history. Sadly, they choose to ignore the troubled mind. The potential perpetrator, living in his own unhealthy reality, chooses to act out with drastic results for him and others. If the shooter has friends in the same state of mind, the resultant troubled group can further exacerbate the damage. Certainly, the troubled mind, be it a result of genetics, environment or abuse, is very difficult to identify.
Does “Seeking Attention” Come into Play?: The attention given to shooters in the media can serve to sensationalize shootings. Hence, new candidate shooters with troubled minds may perceive the sensationalism as an attraction for the perceived injustices they are experiencing. Potential shooters see an opportunity to get more attention and do more damage. The details in a recent shooting in Kentucky were not given to the media. It appears at least in Kentucky, they were convinced there may be a “desire for attention” in the shooter’s mind.
- Guns: Simply put, guns are the first choice for troubled minds. Why is that?
- A. Acquisition: Guns are fairly simple to obtain by legal purchase, black market, theft, loan or fabrication (zip guns);
- B. Operation: They are reasonably easy to fire. Google training videos are readily available;
- C. Accuracy: At close range as in a school room or hallway, little ability as a marksman is required;
- D. Proximity to target: The effective firing range of rifles or handguns allows for separation from victims. (i.e. knives require getting close). Likely, this is important to the troubled mind. Close contact is eliminated,
- E. Gun Control: Questionnaires and tests for purchasing guns are fallible or inadequate. There will always be people who “slip through the cracks.” Judgments or considerations of an applicant’s mental state are not a part of the gun purchase process. Misjudgments have taken place. In England and Australia, the authorities have required training, interviews, references and frequent renewal of permits/licenses, much like getting a driver’s license. Training for personnel reviewing gun purchasers would be a must. This practice could significantly reduce the number of troubled minds with weapons and result in significant reduction in mass shootings. More stringent evaluation for the purchase of ammunition would also a desirable deterrent. Without ammunition, guns are of no use.
- F. Gun Lobby: Due to the large numbers of gun owners in the U.S., it has been projected that banning personal ownership of guns will likely never be approved. So, qualitative review of candidates for guns and ammunition purchases seems the strongest workable measure at this time.
- G. Shooting Statistics: There has been much vagueness and hyperbole in statistics concerning guns, murders, and shootings in the U.S. As a result, the public may often judge and evaluate without accurate information.
- School (Security/Defense):2 It is clear that most schools are unprepared for armed attacks. Economic constraints are an obstacle to this need. Schools weren’t meant to be fortresses. However, access control obviously needs to be implemented. Once a shooter gains access, there are fewer deterrents to his success so controlled access seems to be the best first defense for schools. The strength of the police presence in and outside of the building is softened by the behavior patterns of the officers at the school. Even with scheduled patrols, the probability of being in the right place at the right time is low; therefore, maintaining a state of readiness is very challenging. Those in the military know the problem with maintaining vigilant guard duty. It requires frequent patrols which still are not foolproof. Unfortunately, armed teachers are virtually nonexistent in school systems. This needs to change - with willingness. Teachers could also be equipped with defensive sprays that can seriously de-mobilize an attacker from as far as 20 feet. This would require only low level skill. Defensive shields as used by SWAT teams could be considered as well.
These ideas can be summarized in President Trump’s recent words; we need to “…harden our schools.” Another writer suggested another possibility: “Instead of hardening our schools, arm us with tools that will help students thrive3.” A combination of these two efforts would be wonderful.
In conclusion, we can see the problem of the troubled mind is with us more than ever. Using “hard” protective measures coupled with “soft” counseling/listening” in our schools should bring much needed relief from this deadly threat which plagues us.
Bibliography
- “The History of School Shootings in the U.S”, Sun Sentinel, February 14, 2018
- “How Best to Secure U.S. Schools,” Lauren Camera (Education Reporter), U.S. News, March 8, 2018
- “Arm Teachers with Resources, Not Guns”, Sydney Chaffee, Sean McComb and Josh Parker, U.S. News, March 7, 2018
Please feel free to send us your comments regarding this article. We encourage the exchange of ideas.