DailyNewsGems

Arming Teachers with Guns is On Shaky Ground

Teachers and staff of Clifton Independent School District in Clifton, Texas take the Concealed Handgun Permit training from Big Iron. Big Iron is owned and operated by Johnny Price. February 7, 2013.

Photo Credit : Lance Rosenfield/Prime

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Here’s a disturbing statistic.

Since 2013, there have been more than 300 school shootings in America — an average of about one a week, according to Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit organization backed by billionaire and former New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg, 

Troubling, indeed.

So, what’s our best line of defense to protect students from active shooters, such as the horrific tragedy which took place at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.? 

To hear President Donald Trump tell it, he would like to see some “highly trained” teachers armed with guns.   “We have to harden our schools, not soften them,” the president said.

How realistic is such a proposal?

Not very.

At least not according to a number of gun and school safety experts I reached out to. Even if teachers were “highly trained” how accurate would they be in cutting down approaching assailants?

One way to measure such a scenario would be to take a hard look at the accuracy rate of police officers, highly trained officers, that is, when they’re confronted with a hostile situation.

According to William Lewinski, a psychologist and the founder of the Force Science Institute Ltd , a company that studies human behavior in high stress situations, the accuracy of police officers when discharging a gun is somewhere between 15 and 45 percent.

"Remember," Lewinski told me, "most officer shootings occur at a distance of less than 15 feet." “Generally, the hit rate varies as well with the quality, duration and frequency of instruction as does any psychomotor skill that is performed under stressful circumstances,” Lewinski said.

If highly trained police officers have an accuracy rate between 15 and 45 percent, do we really expect our teachers, with tons of other things on their plate, to perform equal or better than law enforcement officers?

"Considering the universally very short time of instruction required for concealed carry permits (6-14 hours) and the limited range times to practice," Lewinsky points out, "we do not expect civilians to even come close to the officer's hit rate.  This would be particularly true when matching a handgun with a rifle."

In addition to the steep hill armed teachers would have to climb to protect students, what about the liability issue?

Lewinsky argues that "every time someone has a gun, there not only is the liability issue involved in appropriate use of firearm, such as a parent suing the school division for a teacher shooting their armed and dangerous child, but also the decision errors we are sure to get. "

The liability concern if teachers were armed with guns is echoed by John Donohue, a Stanford University law professor, economist, and gun violence researcher, who stresses the proposals of arming teachers with guns are so troubling that many insurance companies have increased school insurance rates or cancelled policies altogether.

Donohue is also quick to point out the "FBI analyzed 160 cases of active shooters  over the period from 2000-2013, and not one was stopped by a concealed carry permit holder who was not active duty military, a security guard, or a police officer. 21 were stopped by unarmed civilians."

Another factor to consider: aren't we putting students into even more danger, if these teachers lack the skills of highly trained professionals in law enforcement?

Just last week, for example, a high school teacher in Monterey Calif., accidentally shot off a gun during a public safety session in class. Thankfully, no serious injuries occurred. 

Lewinsky said the Force Institute is currently reviewing about eight police departments in which they discovered over 300 unintentional discharges of a handgun in training, performance or maintenance functions. “Over the years these have resulted in many injuries and some deaths,” Lewinsky says.

Before even debating such a drastic measure as arming teachers with guns, shouldn’t we be asking teachers themselves how they feel about such a proposal?

A recent Gallup Poll , shows that nearly three-quarters of U.S. school teachers oppose the idea of training certain teachers and staff to carry guns in school buildings, while six in 10 teachers think it would make schools less safe, and about seven in 10 teachers think carrying guns would not effectively limit the number of victims in the event of a shooting.

Similarly, according to Lily Eskelsen García, President of the National Education Association (NEA),  writing in a press release : “The idea of arming teachers is ill-conceived, preposterous, and dangerous…arming teachers and other school personnel does nothing to prevent gun violence. In fact, quite the contrary, educators would feel less safe if school personnel were armed."

In addition to the wide concern over arming teachers with guns, some federal laws already in place, might already pose an obstacle.

The Gun-Free School Zones Act, for instance, generally prohibits individuals from knowingly possessing firearms on school grounds. Though, this act doesn't apply if someone is licensed by a state or locality to possess a firearm.

Another issue that needs serious consideration is who is going to pay (and how much will it cost) for teachers to be trained and armed with guns?

The Washington Post’s sharp analysis reports that it would cost anywhere from $250 million to $1 billion to arm one-fifth of all teachers (President Trump clarified that he thought 20 percent of the most adept teachers should be armed).

Further, how many schools and teachers are we talking about?

Data from the Department of Education, indicates there are an estimated 3.1 million public schools and 400,000 private-school teachers in the United States. In total, there are about 3.6 million teachers. 

The Department of Justice (DOJ), at least right now, doesn’t provide grants for purchasing firearms for teachers.

There are, however, some social welfare organizations, who train school personnel, such as the Ohio-based Faculty/Administrator Safety Training & Emergency Response program (FASTER) run by the Buckeye Firearms Foundation.

The program is reportedly free for teachers, since it's funded by corporate and individual donors. It includes 26 hours of training over three days, which will “allow teachers, administrators, and other personnel on-site to stop school violence rapidly and render medical aid immediately.”

The Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) , a component of the U.S. Department of Justice, allows grants to be used for active shooter training. But according to the Congressional Research Service (CRS), it’s not entirely clear if grants can be used to train teachers

Another option for funding, would be for Congress to consider expanding the authorization under the Matching Grant Program for Armor Vests  in order to allow school districts to apply for funding to help offset the cost of purchasing armor vests for teachers.

Clearly, pitching ideas over how best to make schools safer and too prevent more school shootings, is paved with good intentions. The idea (proposed by President Trump) of arming teachers with guns, however, no matter how well trained they are, doesn’t appear to be an idea worth pursuing, largely because overwhelming research indicates it would be counterproductive with unintended consequences.

A group of teachers who recently took to the streets to push for an increase in classroom resources -- not the ability to carry guns in school--held up a sign which read: "Arm Me with Books."

In all the proposals advanced so far, that sounds the most logical.

Teachers, to be sure, have a monumental task in educating children, including preparing them for the future and helping them realize their full potential, taking up arms, should never be one of those roles.

 

-Bill Lucey

[email protected]

March 19, 2018

 

Facts about Guns in Schools

• The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) reports that 19 states allow anyone with permission from a school authority to possess a firearm on school grounds.

• Five states allow anyone with a concealed carry permit to possess a firearm on school grounds.

• New Hampshire allows anyone, except for students in certain circumstances, to possess a firearm on school grounds.

• Missouri allows people with a concealed carry license to have a firearm on school grounds if approved by the school authority.

• Wyoming allows school staff to carry a firearm if they have permission from the school authority.

Source: Congressional Research Service (CRS), The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL)

St Patrick's Day Special: Baseball and its Irish Roots

 

Jack Hannahan, who is proud of his Irish heritage, played third base for the Cleveland Indians from 2011-2012.

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With St Patrick’s Day right around the corner; and the start of the Major League Baseball season only 21 days away , I thought this might be a good time to highlight some of America’s greatest passions: baseball and St Paddy’s Day, with a special concentration on baseball players with strong Irish roots.

Facts, Feats, and Historic Firsts

• On March 17, 1871 (St. Patrick's Day), the National Association of Professional Baseball Players  became baseball's first all-professional league in a saloon called, fittingly enough, “Collier's Café” on the corner of Broadway and Thirteenth Street in New York City.

• By the 1880's, Irish immigrants and first-generation Irish-Americans comprised between 33 and 41 percent of professional rosters.

• Of the more than 16,000 players to appear in the major league since 1876, 38 were born in Ireland, while hundreds more have been of Irish descent.

• Andy Leonard (County Cavan), who was born during the Potato Famine, was the first Irish-born major leaguer, making his debut with the Washington Olympics of the old National Association in 1871. 

• According to the Baseball Almanac, 43 MLB  players were born in Ireland: 

• More than two dozen sons of Irish immigrants, who played in the 1880-1920 period, are enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

 New York Giants manager John McGraw (on left) and Philadelphia Athletics manager Connie Mack, two Irish-Americans, shake hands before the start of the 1911 World Series.
Photo Credit: Phillysportshistory.com

 

• In the first quarter of the 20th century, 11 of the 16 major league managers possessed Irish roots, including John McGraw and Connie Mack  (born Cornelius Alexander McGillcuddy); both were sons of Irish immigrants.

• The last Irish-born player to take the field in a game was Joe Cleary. He pitched in only one game , giving up seven earned runs in a third of an inning for the Washington Nationals against the Boston Red Sox in 1945.

• Roger Conner, (son of Irish immigrants) called "Dear Old Roger'' by fans, was a power hitting Hall of Fame first baseman for the New York Giants, who was so proud of his Irish ancestry that he had a shamrock stitched to his uniform.

• Irish pitchers, Jim (Pud) Galvin and Tim Keefe , were the first two major leaguers to win 300 games.

• On May 12, 1912, the New York Giants donated proceeds of ticket sales to the Irish Relief Fund to aid the rebellion in Great Britain.

• "Big" Ed Walsh carried a lifetime ERA of 1.82, the lowest of all time. Walsh is additionally the last pitcher to win 40 games in a season (1908).

• American writer Ernest Thayer who wrote the baseball poem, “Casey at Bat” in 1888, said he chose the name "Casey" after a non-player of Irish ancestry he once knew. The first recorded version of "Casey at the Bat" was made by Russell Hunting, speaking in a thick Irish accent in 1893, in which the Mudville Nine, including "Flynn" and "Jimmy Blake" lose when "Mighty Casey" strikes out.

• The original lyrics of the Tin Pan Alley song, "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" (the unofficial anthem at baseball games, beginning in 1934) composed by Jack Norworth in 1908, underscores the central character, Katie Casey, an Irish woman and a dyed-in-the-wool baseball fan. The song, was an instant hit, jumping to number one on the charts for seven weeks and was sung at movie theaters and in vaudeville shows. Norworth in 1927, however, reworked the song and removed the lyrics mentioning Katie Casey. 

• There’s a pub in New York City that calls itself the home of the Irish American Baseball Hall of Fame, which recognizes players, managers, executives, journalists, and entertainers of Irish descent who have significantly and positively impacted the game of baseball. They also maintain a Facebook Page. 

• Many of the biggest stars at the turn of the 20th century were either immigrants or their descendants, including Michael “King” Kelly , Roger Connor (Home Run King before Babe Ruth), Eddie Collins  , “Big” Ed Walsh and managers Connie Mack  and John McGraw. 

• ''Henry Cooke McIlveen, nicknamed "Irish" is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1906 and the New York Highlanders in 1908-1909.''  He was born in Belfast, Ireland.

• Patsy Donovan was considered the most successful Irish-born major leaguer, having played the most games with a .300 lifetime batting average and stealing 518 bases. He was also instrumental in bringing Babe Ruth to the Boston Sox in 1914 through his association with one of the Xaverian Brothers who coached Ruth at a Baltimore orphans' home. 

• In 1887, 11 players carried batting averages of .400 or more, including James "Tip" O'Neill who led the American Association (AA) with a .435 average.

• In the 1890s, the Baltimore Orioles (NL) were managed by Ned Hanlon , a team comprised of mostly Irish Americans who innovated the "Baltimore Chop," which involved hitting the ball sharply into the ground, forcing the fielder to wait for the ball for so long that it enabled the batter enough time to reach base safely.

• Brooklyn Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley was famous for holding an annual St Patrick's Day bash in Vero Beach. where the Dodgers trained during Spring Training. Invited guests included club officials, press reporters, and players featuring green beer and green whiskey at McKee's Jungle Gardens. 

• In 1962 on St. Patrick's Day in Fort Lauderdale, New York Yankees catcher, Yogi Berra, was honored as "Irishman of the Day" at an Emerald Club breakfast, a day in which he was reportedly decked in a green coat, green vest, and green hat.

Dressed as a leprechaun, Tedi Valentine of Cape Coral, Fla. talked to fans as Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz taped No. 15, Dustin Pedroia's number, on his back. The Red Sox wore green uniforms Tuesday in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Photo Credit: AP

 

• On St. Patrick's Day in 2004, the Boston Red Sox wore green jerseys for the first time in team history, when they took on the Cleveland Indians at Fort Myers. Previously, in 1991, the Sox donned green hats and played with green bases. 

• In 2006, "The Emerald Diamond" was released, a documentary film which followed the history of Baseball in Ireland and the Irish national baseball team. 

• September 5, 2014, on "Irish Heritage Night" at the Great American Ball Park, the Cincinnati Reds wore green uniforms. 

 

Former Boston Red Sox flamethrower, Jonathan Papelbon (2005-2011), became an instant fan favorite for performing the Riverdance

 

• According to Baseball Reference , 43 Major League Players were born on St Patrick's Day, including  Paddy Mayes (1885) and Danny Ainge (1959).

• Tim Ireland, was a former major leaguer for the Kansas City Royals, appearing in 11 games over two seasons (1981-82). 

• There were 25 Major League Players with the last name, Green; 12 named Greene. 

• Donnybrook Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy wrote on July 25, 2004: "And now they'll have Varitek dope-slapping A-Rod, triggering a donnybrook worthy of last October's playoff mano a mano featuring Pedro and Don Zimmer. " The Oxford English Dictionary defines ‘Donnybrook’ as ‘scene of uproar and disorder; a riotous or uproarious meeting, a heated argument’.

Word Origin: The Donnybrook Fair was held in Donnybrook (a suburb of Dublin), Ireland from the 13th century until the 1850s, an event especially noted for its lively brawls.

Source: Irish America Magazine, Baseball Hall of Fame Library, Major League Baseball Press Office, IrishCentral

--Bill Lucey

[email protected]

March 7, 2018