25 replies to this topic

[Hyzera]

Should teachers be allowed to pack a gun?

Yahoo News

Quote

Ashland, Ore. - In court documents, she's known as "Jane Doe." Innocuous enough, but the woman behind that pseudonym pushes one of the nation's hottest political buttons: guns and school safety.

What Ms. Doe wants to do is take her Glock 9-mm pistol to the high school in Medford, Ore., where she teaches.

(visit the link for the full news article)

If this woman wins her case, other courts in the nation would have to adopt the same law, allowing school officials to carry guns, if they feel endangered.

Would students feel at ease being in a class knowing their teacher has a gun? Is school security lacking enough to where teachers need to carry guns now?

[Charles]

Our school safety guards don't even carry guns. Why should teachers?

[Hyzera]

Charles, on Sep 23 2007, 07:45 PM, said:

Our school safety guards don't even carry guns. Why should teachers?

My thoughts excatly, guess the kids in Oregan are more rowdy than us

[stephanie]

Maybe having more security might be needed at other schools, but we're certainly fine here. And so many guns inside a school is kinnda scary considering there can be accidents or a student can steal agun from a teacher.

[HoKay819]

^^ Yes, I agree. If students could break into lockers HERE imagine in other schools, where kids would break into the teachers' drawers...

Here, I don't think it's necessary. Other places, I'm nt entirely sure about...

[teknite]

I think even giving our security guards guns would be worse than teachers. Some teachers at least have some sense, many of the security guards don't. And plus tech isn't violent.

[djharkavy]

teknite, on Sep 23 2007, 09:43 PM, said:

Some teachers at least have some sense, many of the security guards don't.

I'm just not sure how to reply to that comment, except to say that I think you underestimate most of the security guards.

[NickC]

Ahhh, we dont need guns. We should just use tasers to tase everyone. Thats what cops are good for, tazing people just as nurses give ice pack for everything.

[EndocrineFlippa]

teachers shouldn't be allowed to carry a gun to school or at all... neither should anyone... if they feel the need to bring a gun to the school that they teach, then there should be armed security there... or the teacher should get out of that school... theres no justification that would make sense in my mind

[Charles]

The presence of guns creates a hostile environment. It can damage the learning atmosphere.

[Hyzera]

Does anyone have the follow up on this story? I can't find it

Curious to see if she won case

[leo2car]

I only trust trained people to handle a gun, does not include teachers, administrators or some guards.

[Neo]

leo2car, on Sep 24 2007, 10:04 PM, said:

I only trust trained people to handle a gun, does not include teachers, administrators or some guards.

What if the teachers were required to undergo rigorous training? A better idea would be CCTV monitoring of all rooms from a central security hub. Then, as soon as a potentially lethal conflict is observed, the doors and windows would be remotely shut and the room would be flooded with knock-out gas. Afterwards, appropriate action can be determined following a carefully review of security footage. It's a bit crude, but it's the most humane you can get if you want to save lives.

Edited by Neo, 24 September 2007 - 11:42 PM.

[tycoonboy388]

Well, my big issue with this case is that is the Jane Doe wants to carry her gun in a concealed matter. Honestly, I think that concealed gun laws are a load of crap, if you want to carry a gun then put it on you hip, so everyone can see it, not down your shirt. Other people should have the right to avoid a person with a gun if it makes them uncomfortable. If a gun makes someone feel safe, then why hide it?

On the general issue of should guns be in school, I agree with what most people said, that guns are rarely helpful in a school environment. Gun advocates always say that if someone else had a gun at VT or Columbine, not as many would've died, but disregarding the fact that few people keep calm when their under attack, much less trusting scared bystanders to shoot down their attackers (outside the armed forces, few people are trained to use guns under combat scenarios), events like Columbine are a rare occurance. In the thousands of schools and universities across the country, there are relatively few of these incidents, especially ones with high casualties.

However, in her case, I think some sort of compromise should be made. This case is really interesting, because it is more about the teacher trying to ensure her protection, not from students, but from her ex-husband, who has tried to attack in her the past (leading to her getting a gun license and wanting to bring the gun wherever she goes). If a simple exception could be made, like she can bring the gun into the building, but it must be stowed away in a drawer or locker whenever she is interacting with students, then I think she should be allowed to have her gun. Barring such a compromise, I'd stay on the side of the law, which bans guns from school grounds.

And Hyzera, I doubt the case has been resolved yet, this is probably really big right now in Oregon, so give it some time. The judiciary doesn't really move fast.

[Danielle A]

I think that Guns shouldn't be allowed on school grounds.. I mean I understand and feel bad with what she's going thru, but Safety first (sadly not hers). The children have to be first and foremost.. there needs to be an example set here.. What will a student think knowing their teacher packing a 9? "Okay she's having problems with this person so maybe I should get a gun, knock off a couple of kids who stole my lunch money and called me names.. I just think this is a delicate matter..

[DBest]

This whole idea is ludicrous to me, Of course ( in my opinion) teachers cannot carry guns.

Quote

"I have no doubt at all that any time a criminal has gone into a school intending to commit violence they did so knowing nobody was going to be able to stop them," she says. "We've seen what happens when teachers do nothing or can do nothing, and that's not acceptable to me."

It is not the teacher's duty to do so, blame it on security. The only criminals that would come into a school to commit violence are those that are mentally disturbed henceforth wouldn't even care if they were stopped or not. Even if teachers brought in weapons, once the crime has been committed it can't change, whose to say the teachers won't get shot first or run.

Quote

But as a veteran teacher, she has come to believe strongly that having responsible armed adults on campus could have prevented tragedies such as those at Columbine High School in Colorado, Thurston High School in Oregon, and Virginia Tech University last April.

If teachers brought in weapons, they could of stopped incidents like these, but that's highly unlikely. For one columbine happened from a distance (correct me if i'm wrong), the teachers wouldn't have the material to stop the shooter, plus as i said before once it was committed you can't stop it, you wouldn't even know if anything happened till the first shot was fired.

Quote

"I have two children in school," she says, "and I would like to think that if something like that ever happened, there would be somebody there to do the right thing to protect my kids."

That doesn't mean anything. For one teachers bringing in fire arms to school would promote violence rather then stopping it. If a teacher could bring in guns, many (slow) kids would think it right if they could to, etc. Also what's to say the teachers in the kind of schools that make them want to bring in guns, wont point there guns at the class to make them quiet? Teachers could also have bad handling, it's a safety hazard for us and for the teachers
If they feel so concerned as to bring in weapons, let the security handle it, or get more funding for security, that is their job. What's the point of them then?

[TheRainbowFalcon]

djharkavy, on Sep 24 2007, 08:55 AM, said:

I'm just not sure how to reply to that comment, except to say that I think you underestimate most of the security guards.

In a soap opera, the organ would swell right after you said that.

My thoughts: I loves me my Constitution.

[TheRainbowFalcon]

DBest, on Sep 25 2007, 01:18 PM, said:

This whole idea is ludicrous to me, Of course ( in my opinion) teachers cannot carry guns.

"Of course" does not come before "in my opinion." But at least it let me know that you weren't going to be making any sense in the coming lines.

DBest, on Sep 25 2007, 01:18 PM, said:

It is not the teacher's duty to do so, blame it on security. The only criminals that would come into a school to commit violence are those that are mentally disturbed henceforth wouldn't even care if they were stopped or not. Even if teachers brought in weapons, once the crime has been committed it can't change, whose to say the teachers won't get shot first or run.

Security is not stationed in the classrooms. And what's this "once the crime has been committed" stuff? Once one kid is murdered, another can be. And then another and then...well at VT over 30 more. And then you say what if a teacher is shot first? So because it may not ALWAYS work out you want to stick with the status quo which NEVER works?

DBest, on Sep 25 2007, 01:18 PM, said:

If teachers brought in weapons, they could of stopped incidents like these, but that's highly unlikely. For one columbine happened from a distance (correct me if i'm wrong), the teachers wouldn't have the material to stop the shooter, plus as i said before once it was committed you can't stop it, you wouldn't even know if anything happened till the first shot was fired.

There were no snipers at Columbine. You are wrong. And again, there is hope to stop something after it has started.

DBest, on Sep 25 2007, 01:18 PM, said:

That doesn't mean anything. For one teachers bringing in fire arms to school would promote violence rather then stopping it.

No. Teachers and students are different people. School is very hierarchical. A gun would be another symbol of that.

DBest, on Sep 25 2007, 01:18 PM, said:

If a teacher could bring in guns, many (slow) kids would think it right if they could to, etc.

WOW.

DBest, on Sep 25 2007, 01:18 PM, said:

Also what's to say the teachers in the kind of schools that make them want to bring in guns, wont point there guns at the class to make them quiet?

The !@#$^%$@#$*&^!@#(%*&@$#)(%*&@#^$ing law. No union can keep a teacher in power after someone pulled that off, even once.

DBest, on Sep 25 2007, 01:18 PM, said:

Teachers could also have bad handling, it's a safety hazard for us and for the teachers
If they feel so concerned as to bring in weapons, let the security handle it, or get more funding for security, that is their job. What's the point of them then?

They don't want to hand out guns like chalk; be reasonable. There would have to be training and stuff. And if you can get a bomb on an airplane, you can get anything into Tech, no matter how much you want to beef up the security.

[NickC]

DBest, on Sep 25 2007, 03:18 PM, said:

If they feel so concerned as to bring in weapons, let the security handle it, or get more funding for security, that is their job. What's the point of them then?

The point of security at Tech is for the scenery

[djharkavy]

NickC, on Sep 30 2007, 03:58 PM, said:

The point of security at Tech is for the scenery

Hope you never need to find out for real.