Friday's mass shooting in a Newtown, CT, elementary school prompted many discussions this weekend regarding whether school staffs now should be allowed to carry a concealed weapon (CCW).
Greg and Loni Pugh teach firearms handling and safety every day from their privately owned and operated business called St. Louis CCW. Their facility and shooting range is located near Lonedell, about 39 miles west of Eureka.
"I believe we saw the answer on Friday. They give people who are intent to do harm a government guarantee that they will be the only ones with a gun in our schools," said Greg.
"Then government officials pretend to be surprised when things like this happen. Government representatives need to stand up and say from this day forward, CCW is authorized for any qualified principal, teacher or janitor."
Greg, who has taught firearms classes for the past 30 years, including to law enforcement officers and highway troopers, said he spent 14 years lobbying about CCW in Jefferson City.
He said lack of security in public and private schools was one of the reasons he and his wife chose to home-school their children until they reach high school age.
"My opinion is that teachers are put in charge of helpless kids, but they are given no means to really do that when something like an intruder shooting happens. Not every person should carry (CCW), but if a teacher chooses to take on that responsibility and takes it to heart, those who are willing and certified, should be allowed to defend themselves and the children," said Loni.
Loni, who frequently works with women at their facility regarding how to get comfortable with CCW and how to stand with a gun, said it always made her nervous to get automatically buzzed in to schools. "It just seems like school staffs can't see who is coming in, and that there is no security there. No one even asks why you are there. School safety includes dealing with so many variables."
Research Behind the Pughs' Approach
Greg said last April he studied with Dave Grossman, an American author who has specialized in the study of the psychology of killing—which has been termed 'killology'. The Mascoutah, IL, resident is a retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. According to Grossman's biography, he is a member of the American Board for Certification in Homeland Security as well as the American College of Forensic Examiners Institute. He speaks internationally about human aggression and the roots of violence and violent crime.
"Grossman said many eye-opening things," said Greg, who attended the same class as St. Louis County Police Department officers.
Grossman, as Greg recalls, said there are two steps that every school should take: have a single point of entry and give teachers dead-bolt doors that can be locked from the inside of classrooms.
"He said every teacher who props a school door open for any reason should automatically be fired," said Greg.
"And that it's a proven fact, those who go into lock-down mode in classrooms and stay there, are not as likely to get shot."
Greg said the problem is that U.S. culture has taught us guns are bad, which is only partially true. "Guns are only as bad as the bad people who have them."
Moving Forward with School Safety
Under CCW in Missouri, qualified people are allowed to have guns in their vehicles. Greg said he knew of one case during which a school principal with a CCW license ran to his vehicle to get his gun and eventually shut down a situation that was about to result in children getting killed from an intruder.
"It's such common sense to allow qualified and licensed gun users to have them in places such as schools and hospitals. We are trusting people with our children and with our lives for medical needs, but won't trust them in this other area; it doesn't make real sense," said Greg.
He said he believes one of the main reasons there are so many school shootings is that society has "put it out there that no one at an elementary school will be carrying a gun."
Greg said a faction of politicians prompted a no-gun policy, and that they need to own the consequences. "Politicians have invited these bad people into our schools. It's time those politicians own the results."
"Gun free zones only work for good people, because bad people don't obey those rules," he said.
I renounced my NRA membership in the 1970's after I left the service when I saw how uncompromising they were. Since then, I've never regretted turning away from the extremism they espouse. My world isn't based on the hatred and scare tactics they proselytize - Thank GOD! The automatic rifle used to kill those kids can shoot between 200 and 900 rounds per minute. It's shear madness to allow ordinary citizens to own such weapons designed for killing people. These are not hunting weapons - there is no sport in destroying the game your going after unless you're out to kill people. It's time to put a stop to the sale of high capacity clips and military weapons to ordinary citizens. Only the military and police should own weapons of this type.
To see what's wrong with America just follow the money on any issue.
Did they intend that bearing arms was to provide protection against criminals? Civil authorities provide some protection from armed thugs by police forces. If our civil authorities claim that crime is effectively prevented by armed police forces, then it follows that there is no reason for the people to bear arms. Did they intend that bearing arms was to hunt and kill animals for sustenance? In our society hunting is not required to procure meat. If people claim that hunting is brutal and unnecessary, then it follows that there is no reason for the people to bear arms. Did they intend that the phrase the people implied a militia, and that bearing arms was only for military men? If our leaders claim that state national guard units constitute a militia, then it follows that there is no reason for the people to bear arms. So that pretty much settles it, or does it? But there is another view, the real reason that our Founding Fathers insisted that the Constitution specified that private citizens have the right to bear arms. The primary reason that we have the right to bear arms is to deter aggressive and oppressive acts committed by a government against the people.
I'd say the same about you, Mr. Perez. The idea that the AR-15 used (which is semi-automatic) isn't an assault rifle is ridiculous. It is built to kill people. A lot of people in an efficient manner. Parse that any way you like, but it's true. There is no reason for you to own own a large-cap mag, semi-automatic weapon. You're only argument is that "it's legal." Well... I think the discussion should be whether it should be legal. The right to bear arms doesn't shouldn't allow you to bear arms that can kill masses of people. You don't need these things to hunt, and you certainly don't need it for self-protection. Answer this for me: Why do you need a large-cap mag and semi-automatic weapon? Please, tell me what reason.
You're insane. You're all insane.
Good luck with the militia thing.
Why do you think I need to justify my purchases to you or anyone else? I don't ask you to justify the size house you buy, the amount of food you eat, the car you buy (more people are killed by cars than guns each year), the number or kind of knives you buy, the baseball bat you buy, the swimming pool in your backyard, etc. Drownings are the number one cause of injury death for children age 1-4 according to the CDC. http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml12/12186.html Will you be consistent and call for the outlawing of all dangerous items? Or just the ones you personally don't like?
We could magically get rid of all the guns in the whole world but then what would we do about the mad man who kills children in a school with a knife? What do we do about the psychopaths who use acid to burn and dissolve their innocent victims? Will you now ask yourself an honest question and that is; Can eliminating guns, knives, stones and acids eliminate mass murderer and psychopaths? The answer is? NO The fact is neither the guns nor the bad people are simply going to disappear by banning guns. No human is born a bad person. It is the circumstances, the life experiences and many other similar factors that play role in making someone’s behavior bad. To conclude, I simply want to ask the reader's to please stay rational and reason with logic. "The one who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. Those who walk alone are likely to find themselves in places no one has ever been before.” Albert Einstein
Try educating yourself. Read More Guns, Less Crime by John Lott and you'll see the benefits of an armed society that was eluded to earlier. You should be thanking us for making you more safe. http://rense.com/general76/univ.htm http://www.cato.org/policy-report/marchapril-2012/how-guns-stop-crimes And check out this map of murder rates around the world. Explain why countries like Mexico, Brazil and Russia have much higher murder rates than the U.S., despite guns being highly restricted in those countries. The problem is not the inanimate object. It's people, societal problems, etc. Wake up and stop trying to give away your liberty in exchange for promises of a little false security.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/01/12/2586195/world-murder-rates.html
My conscience, and the urgency of our current situation, compel me to speak out. The victim disarmament freaks are now telling us that they don't want to disarm us- oh, no! They just want to take away our "assault weapons" - our semi-automatic, magazine fed, military-style rifles - and the "high capacity" magazines that feed them. They want us to believe that so long as we can own some kind of firearm, after our semi-auto military rifles are taken, we are not disarmed. That is a LIE.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=M1u0Byq5Qis