The NRA wants us to live in fear: The demented, profitable and cynical logic behind arming everyone

[Electric Monk]

[font size=+2]The NRA wants us to live in fear: The demented, highly profitable and deeply cynical logic behind arming everyone[/font]

Corporations will make millions off chalkboards that turn into armor. Common-sense gun control would keep us safer.

(big snip, mostly about selling bullet proof armor to every school and stadium, like school budgets aren't already strained)

Guns in the classroom will likely have another effect. For fear that they might offend and upset people, students may be less inclined to engage with controversial ideas and entertain risky arguments. The prospect of guns in the classroom may make students reluctant to speak out, and fear sounding too critical, or bombastic—or offensive. And professors may be less inclined to stoke debate on sensitive topics, for fear of what might come of it.

Of course, what’s worse is that none of the aforementioned “security measures” will provide much protection against committed and well-armed attackers. How is a teacher equipped with a bulletproof shield—or a gun—supposed to rebuff someone like James Holmes, the movie theater shooter in Aurora, Colorado, who killed 12 and injured 70? Holmes unleashed two tear gas canisters and carried three weapons with him, including a semi-automatic assault weapon with a 100-round drum magazine. Should we equip our teachers with assault weapons, too, in that case?

Of course, a shooter would first have to get past the armed guard that many schools have stationed in or near their entrances—or, in the case of my children’s school, he would have to deal with our newly installed Sally Port, the kind of entrance system, parents were informed, that is typically used in prisons. But a determined killer could simply shoot open a classroom window, or barge in a side door. Should we get rid of school windows altogether, then? Or outfit them with bulletproof glass? I am sure Hardwire could oblige. To truly deal with someone like Holmes, we would need entire battalions of armed guards stationed on school grounds—and preferably announce their presence with an armored vehicle parked out front.

This all sounds laughable, but it is the path the gun rights movement has set us on. Private contractors—indeed, the whole defense industry in America—would happily pave the way, transforming schools and colleges into fortresses. In the process, however, we degrade the learning environment for our children and young adults, and undermine the lofty goals we have set for them—and for our society at large.

much more...
http://www.salon.com/2015/11/02/the_nra_wants_us_to_live_in_fear_the_demented_highly_profitable_and_deeply_cynical_logic_behind_arming_everyone/