School Shootings: A Realistic Solution
Children are dying, and it’s time we tried something new. I have an idea that could possibly save countless lives. This is a nonpartisan idea. It has nothing to do with guns or gun laws. I will leave that fight to others. I’m more concerned with protecting children than I am with engaging in useless political debate.
To solve this problem and effectively protect the children from mass shooters, I decided to look at the shooters’ goals. This is important. From all the evidence we have seen over the years, it’s clear that these shooters want to make a splash in the media. To do this, they need numerous victims. In short, they want a high body count. Yes, this is horrifying, but it’s the truth. So, what we need to do is find a way to prevent shooters from getting the body count they seek. How?
I have paid close attention to the stories of past shootings. They are all unsettling, and there is a common theme. When the shooting starts, the children run into the classrooms. They close the door and try to hide. We have all heard survivors recount the story of hearing the gunshots in the hallway. They tell of how the shooter went from classroom to classroom, shooting his way in, then turning the weapon on the kids hiding under desks or in closets.
It may be hard to read the previous paragraph, but the answer is right there. The students are typically trapped in the classrooms. They have nowhere to go. They can only hide and wait and pray. They are trapped. Let me use (what may seem to be a cold) analogy:
“This is like shooting fish in a barrel.”
Do you see? This is an old expression, but it describes this scenario. You’ll notice no one ever says — “It’s like shooting fish in a river or a stream.” Why? Because the fish in a barrel are trapped. Fish in a stream or river will scatter when the first shot is fired. They will survive. This is the answer.
Let’s make sure the children cannot be trapped. How? Actually, this is a simple fix. And YES, it CAN be done. Let me explain my idea. I share this, hoping someone brighter than me will take this and do some good.
We need to make sure that when a shooter enters a school and opens fire, he will quickly find targets lacking. We need to remove the children to eliminate the body count the shooter seeks. Here’s how we do that:
We must add security doors to each classroom that can be locked from the inside. (Let’s first get the children out of the hallway.) Even if these doors are only strong enough to slow the shooter down, the children in the classrooms will have more time.
Once in the classroom, the children are still vulnerable. We need to get them out of the building. This can be accomplished by adding an emergency exit to each classroom. YES, this can be done, even in multi-floor buildings. Fire escapes will work here. (See image below.)
If logistics make this difficult in some older buildings, then doors connecting classrooms without needing access to the hallway can be added. That way, multiple classrooms may share exits.
Each emergency door can have an alarm connected to all first responders. As soon as the first child uses the emergency door, help will be on the way. There will be no need for cell phones or any other means of calling for help. This will ensure that the response time will be as swift as possible.
If these simple steps are taken, any shooter who is seen approaching the building with a weapon or any shooter who fires a round, alerting the children to his presence, will find empty hallways and the sound of fire alarms inside the building and police sirens outside. There will be no grand body count, only the story of a crazed gunman arrested alone in an empty school.
Now, for those who wish to claim that this can’t be done, let’s look at the excuses someone who doesn’t value children’s lives might make.
Logistics: Some will argue that many buildings aren’t built for such alterations. Really? Politicians believe we can remake our nation’s entire infrastructure to accommodate a “No carbon” transportation system, including eliminating all gasoline-powered vehicles — in 10 years. Adding doors to schools would seem an infinitely easier task.
Besides, on May 25, 1961, John F. Kennedy declared that America should commit itself to landing a man on the Moon by the end of the decade. On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man to set foot on the Moon. I’m not asking the country to send a man to the Moon or Mars. I’m asking for some doors . . . doors that will save children’s lives. Is that too hard?
Expense: Anyone who has been paying attention to the ways the United States Congress throws money (by the hundreds of billions) around so incredibly recklessly knows that these politicians ALWAYS find the money for their special interests. I say we demand that Congress make children’s lives a special interest.
If any politician were to argue against this simple plan, I’d like to think they would be asked, “Why don’t you care enough to save children’s lives? What do you prioritize above the safety of innocent children?”
I’d be interested to hear their response.
In addition to the above, I would like to offer another suggestion. In the suburbs (where, ironically, most of these shootings occur), it would be easy to have each police officer stop at a local school on a random basis during each shift and walk through the school.
Every officer should do this during every shift. It should be random, with no regular schedule. This way, no shooter could devise a plan. They would never know when the next officer would be arriving. In fact, occasionally, officers should do this back-to-back, one after the other. That way, a shooter wouldn’t be able to guess that an officer leaving the premises would mean the school would be unprotected for any particular length of time.
The above is my best idea for protecting children. If you think this will help, please pass it on. Forward this article to anyone you can think of who might be able to make this a reality. Or pass it on to someone smarter than me, who could use it as a jumping-off point to develop something better.
More from this author: Writer Wade
