A few days ago I blogged about the “soft lockdown” drill I experienced at my school, and the way it made me and at least a few of the children edgy. I came out in favor of stronger gun control measures, as I want to keep all children at school – and elsewhere – safe and away from guns.
The next day, the New York Times ran an article about Kenneth Herman, a man in Michigan who wants to carry his gun out in the open when he visits his daughter’s public school. I think this is a horrible – and selfish – idea. So do the school officials. And now Mr. Herman is suing the school district.
As a result, politicians and gun enthusiasts all around Michigan are weighing in on whether adults can carry guns openly or concealed when they visit public schools. What the article mentions twice – and the pro-gunners seem to overlook – is how the sight of guns in school would freak out the kids and the staff.
Excerpt (bolding mine):
Mr. Spears [the school district superintendent] said having guns carried openly, as Mr. Herman does regularly, was … likely to scare students and cause well-meaning school employees to fear the worst and call the police.
“I certainly am a supporter of the Second Amendment,” Mr. Spears said in an interview. “But open carry doesn’t have any place in schools.”
It gets more insane. One politician is pushing to allow people to carry concealed guns in K-12th grade schools, day care centers, college campuses…and bars. Bars? Mixing guns with alcohol?
Excerpt:
State Senator Arlan Meekhof, a Republican with a concealed pistol license who said he carries a weapon “all the time, except in schools,” is trying to resolve the conflict. He has sponsored legislation that would prohibit open carry on school campuses and require schools to allow concealed carry on their campuses for permit holders who seek an exemption.
The legislation would apply to schools covering kindergarten through 12th grade, and seeks to extend concealed-carry rights to colleges, bars, day care centers and other areas where such guns are currently restricted.
Bars? Mixing guns with alcohol?
I thought I, the guy with Parkinson’s disease, was the one who had to worry about dementia!
