Give schools a fighting chance

I’m in complete agreement with Tom Martin of Entiat (Dec. 20) when he suggests arming one or two people inside the school for the protection of all who attend the school.

An armed security guard would be a good deterrent if one could be afforded. In addition, a loaded semiautomatic rifle should be kept in all school principals’ offices under lock and key in a gun safe. The principal and vice principal would be required to obtain training in the gun’s operation and safety. Other staff members could be encouraged to take gun education and safety classes and become licensed to carry concealed weapons. This change in policy would at least give our teachers and administrators a chance to defend themselves and their students if a madman shows up at the door shooting his way into a school.

I am sickened by the thought that the brave principal of Sandy Hook had nothing to defend herself with when she tried to stop the madman from entering her school, or the teacher who hid her students first and then was shot and killed by the madman after telling him her students were taken to the gymnasium.

Gun-free zones for our schools only insure that criminals and mentally ill individuals can enter the school environment without worrying that they may be confronted by another person with a weapon defending the school and all those inside it. The Wenatchee School District currently employs a security guard to protect its schools and those that attend and work in them. He is not allowed to carry a gun. How can we ask a security guard to stop a gunman without a gun?

Let’s give our school children and school employees a fighting chance by allowing them the armed protection that they may need sometime in the future to save lives. Lockdowns, fencing, mental health screenings, assault weapons bans and waiting periods may help, but will not completely stop these nut jobs. Let’s do everything we can to slow them down from gaining access to guns and our schools, but if and when they do gain access to our schools, let’s be ready with guns of our own as a LAST line of defense handled by trained school personnel.

For all of you who may think this to be a barbaric and violent means of protecting our children, put yourselves in the place of those 20 parents at Sandy Hook. It can happen anywhere. Pull your heads out of the sand.

Mark Greene

Wenatchee

Criticism isn’t helping, sir

I found Buford Howell’s mini-editorial (“Don’t expect teachers with guns,” Dec. 27) to be so typical of those who are unable to resist a shot — if you will — at the NRA and its leadership. Mr. Howell is billed as a retired naval officer (and teacher). I’m a retired teacher and master chief petty officer, so we have something in common, sort of.

As an MCPO here’s what I’d say to any naval officer: “You’re supposed to lead, sir; not sit there and criticize.” I didn’t find Wayne LaPierre’s remarks to be either insensitive or “out of touch.” I found them to be, perhaps, not realistic. At least he had an idea, unlike Mr. Howell, whose only effort was to tell us all why this wouldn’t work.

So here’s a challenge, Buford: give us your idea of what might work, rather than simply whining about the NRA! Impress this grizzled old master chief with your leadership skills.

In fairness, I’ll open with mine. Put the National Guard into the schools, shopping malls, theaters and on the streets. They’re supposed to be a national “guard” — let them guard! Remove the constitutional/legal barriers, and put ’em out there. Many of them now have combat experience, so I trust them to know that the “pointy end goes ‘bang.’ ”

I do agree that arming teachers isn’t a good idea. Most of my former colleagues would tend to treat firearms like they were a poisonous snake. Come to think of it, most of them probably know more about snakes than they do about firearms, anyway.

Jerry Griffin

Leavenworth

Kids deserve professional protection

With the recent gun shooting in school a lot of folks have brought out their anti-gun platform, and offering no real solutions.

Guns are not the problem — lack of care for those in need of mental health for starters. Way to go, Obama and your “health care,” but let us get back to said solution. Armed guards in schools is the right way to go about it for sure.

Now before you anti-gun folks get your shorts in a bunch, hear me out as to whom I refer. We already have trained veterens returning who need jobs and are, for the most part, unemployed. Put them through mental tests to make sure they are stable and then give them the job. What they do best is protecting US citizens who are mothers and fathers and aunts and uncles. By doing this we make our schools safer and we put honorable veterans back to work. They would have small arms and they would be concealed.

We protect our president with armed security. We protect our money with armed guards and the pope has armed guards to protect him. Are our child less deserving of being protected? No, I say not.

Kids are the future and need to be protected. New gun laws are not going to do it. The only proper way is to put armed citizens who have been trained, our returning military men and women, doing what they do best. Protecting its citizens.

Seth Merriel

Wenatchee