The problem that the United States currently faces with safety in public schools goes beyond the political argument about gun control. Whenever there is a school shooting, some politicians pounce on the issue of banning some guns, while others vehemently oppose any gun ban. So nothing ever really gets done beyond arguing about guns while the greater issue of securing and protecting our schools and workplaces gets neglected. The argument polarizes the debate and the issues circle around gun control, the NRA and the second amendment. Part of the solution, that never gets discussed, requires critical thinking and acting differently on safety and security of our schools and workplaces. If you care about the future of our country, our kids, our workplaces, and general safety and security, then read on because, again, these problems go way beyond the political polarization of gun control in America
Counter Threat Group’s Rick Klepper, recently returned from Texas where he met with a friend who has spent a large portion of his adult life in law enforcement. During their discussion about the recent shooting which happened at the Sante Fe school, Rick’s friend told him quite bluntly, “our school resource officers (SRO) need new training for this environment. They need to be trained by U.S. Navy SEALs.” At Counter Threat Group we have recommended this for quite a while if your entity chooses this path. Such training does exist, and many law enforcement agencies and military units have jumped at the chance to train with The Shooting Institute in Alabama.
Founded by former Navy SEAL, and Shelby County Deputy Sheriff Jared Hudson, The Shooting Institute trains officers for real world hostage rescue scenarios. If the Alabama Governor, as she has proposed, arms school administrators and gets funding for more resource officers, then they need to be trained by professionals who have the experience and expertise to deal with these worst case scenarios. Not all law enforcement agency officers are trained properly to deal with active school shooters, so training for these officers, and educators, if your state elects to do what Alabama is proposing for their schools, has to be skilled training by professionals who specialize in this type of training like The Shooting Institute. They have a very effective curriculum to deal with these last resort scenarios, but even with training for officers, school administrator, etc., we are still faced with the reality that school and workplace violence has to be dealt with on multiple fronts, beginning with preventative measures. Banning certain guns like the political left wants to do, does not address the root cause of why these scenarios are playing out, and neither does fighting against gun control address the issues we face right now in our country. We need layers of security for sure, but what about preventative measures?
How many times have we heard students from these school shootings say, “ I knew if we had a shooting, it would be that guy”. And how many times have we heard that the shooters were bullied at school, coupled with other problems in their personal lives? Where are the counselors and medical professionals to help deal with these root causes? Is it lack of funding, or do we not have the political will to make sure our kids are mentally stable to deal with the pressures they face in our society? What about the effects that video gaming, violence on television, movies and You tube are having on our youth? And what about comprehensive threat assessments for schools by companies filled with security experts such as Counter Threat Group, LLC, that conduct threat assessments and make effective recommendations to prevent acts of violence and future massacres? We all have to think beyond simple arguments for and against gun control.
At this point in time, we do not know if Governor Ivey in Alabama is doing the right thing in arming school administrators, but if arming our school administrators is all that we do, then we have failed our children, and we have failed as a nation. We need more trained school resource officers for sure, but can we not all agree that we owe it to our children and the future of our great country to look at the bigger picture of preventing these massacres from happening in the first place?