Thread by @FreedomFriesInc

Given that cowardly so-called LEOs have waited outside a school massacre twice in the past 5 years (AFAIK), here is an idea:

Along with multiple other things, a school & it's parents could carefully design a system where parents & other adults who give a damn provide security.

I know it sounds extreme but we are in an extreme situation right now, and all lawful/ethical options must be considered on their merits or otherwise.

Meaningfully improving mental health care, making it harder to obtain guns, and hardening the target are all vital steps.

This thread is about just one of those steps: hardening the target.

Many schools have armed LEOs or other persons on site. IMO that is necessary but (evidently) not sufficient.

Having a parental team would be difficult, I know...

But IMO it's an idea worth exploring. I do support the right of responsible gun users to own and use them, according to the law. I do believe the Constitution allows for some limits to be placed on these rights. And, further amending it is NOT impossible, in time.

If the majority of voters (who are pro-democracy and pro- the rule of law) can defeat enough Republicans at all levels of government, Constitutional amendments become possible. It will take years, though.

Meantime, parents are braver than these wannabe LEOs.

I can see how such a system could go wrong, but that is no reason to preclude it at first glance.

We protect other places with adequate fencing, monitoring, alarms, emergency shelters, and crucially: adequate armed personnel who are willing to act. Why not schools too?

If I had a child I would not want them attending a school that had not hardened itself as a target.

I don't think teachers are the right people to be armed. I think parents and others, are.

Yes, many parents have to work, but it could still be done.

Quite apart from security measures, a school is most effective educationally when it's strongly engaged with it's community of parents, other caregivers & family, health & social service professionals, & frankly everyone living nearby.

Citizens already have the power to help.

Americans cannot afford to wait for politicians to help fix this problem through law changes. Even if enough of them were willing, it would still take years to see a positive impact at your local schools and other public places.

You already have the power and the right to act.

The pandemic was the catalyst for social and economic regress around the world, including in the USA.

It's a hard time to try to get healthcare workers, law enforcement agencies, and civil servants to improve their competence levels and performance outcomes...

Pre-pandemic, the services for children and young people experiencing mental illness or even behaviors of concern were inadequate, almost everywhere in the US.

Good luck relying on them now.

The quickest win would be to harden the targets better.

Adequate perimeter fencing is costly to build & maintain. But what is the alternative? Get used to massacres of 6 year olds increasingly occurring?

Layers of protection are needed, from the perimeter all the way into the classroom. Don't like the look and feel of that? Tough.

Along with the protection of physical barriers & other equipment & design decisions, operational protections are needed. This means boots/shoes on the ground.

Government funding will be needed to ensure such programs are effectively run & don't just worsen the safety problem.

The rationale for doing all this is simple. The value of a human life is priceless. And these massacres have ripple events far beyond the families of the murdered children and adults. They are fucking everything up for the USA, esp. during the current crisis of democracy.

Law abiding, mentally healthy adults need effective firearms for self defense & the defense of vulnerable others.

Any country needs to have reasonable safety offered at public schools.

These problems CAN be solved.

It is imperative to #VoteBlueToSaveAmerica this year.