Yet another tragic loss of innocent life today in Santa Fe, Texas. Yet again! As a school nurse, and one who is close to your children and my children, every day during school, these senseless losses tear at my heart...and yet again, it happened today - again.
So here is the relevance of my post to "allnurses." Nurses are, probably, the most accomplished and innovative, critical thinking, problems solving, life saving, "git-er-done," people on the planet. It appears "the experts" have contributed only to reliving the definition of insanity in regard to school shooting; doing the same thing and expecting a different result. Sometimes it takes someone from the outside looking in to find the golden key.
I am requesting your ideas, recommendations, suggestions, thoughts, etc., regarding what you think would prevent future school shootings; as you would a head to toe assessment, identification, and intervention of your patient, so to speak. Or from any other relationship you have to school age children.
I am requesting genuine input. Sarcasm and political attacks are not welcome. If you don't have a contribution you think would be helpful, please don't.
If this turns out how I'm hoping it will, I intend to print the entire thread and mail it to the Governor of Texas, Greg Abbott; opinions from nurses from around the world - how to stop the insanity of school shootings!
Yes, that would be the whole damn problem summed up. Thank you for making my point.
And now Im going to withdraw from this conversation again, because Im to old and my low tolerance for what I perceive as a lack of critical thought drives my blood pressure up.
Immediately stop all "gun free zones", you are just making those places sitting ducks.
Use school funds for metal detectors instead of putting it in admin pockets or other wasteful expenditures, prioritize the funds.
Better ID of bullies with appropriate punishment/intervention of bully only (no punishment for the one who was bullied)
Check facts and have a plan prior to protests (merely protesting stopping school shootings will not stop school shootings)
I believe in upholding the 2nd amendment while at the same time having appropriate gun (owning) controls, we need to be able to have an adult conversation about where this ends up without screaming at each other.
Know and understand the facts, do your own research instead of just listening to news people or politicians, they are bias
Get back to teaching our kids how to deal with life, the ups/downs etc, stop with the everyone gets a ribbon mentality, kids don't learn that way, guns have been around a long long time and this has not happened until (relatively) recently, its not the guns, its the people/society that has changed
And, most importantly we need to hold those who commit crimes accountable, stop with the stupid defenses, no excuses, you commit crimes, you pay. And don't blame parents unless there is very clear cut evidence that they were somehow also actively involved, this will not stop any shooter (anyone who could commit such a heinous crime will not care that their parents will be sent to jail etc)
I am so sorry to those who have been personally hurt by these crimes and hope we, as a country, can come together to try to stop these evil people.
Thank-you OLD DUDE for opening this very important discussion!
THANK YOU, THANK YOU... Love this, and you are so right on!
Yes, that would be the whole damn problem summed up. Thank you for making my point.
And now Im going to withdraw from this conversation again, because Im to old and my low tolerance for what I perceive as a lack of critical thought drives my blood pressure up.
Before you go...have you read anything here that you had not heard before or other opinions you haven't contemplated?
In my opinion, there are two problems: school environment and security. First, I need it's important not to ignore the sad truth that bullying is very common in public school. Sadly, a lot of school shootings has taken place mainly due to school bullying or peer pressure leading to personal trauma in the school environment. Yet, school officials seem to have failed at looking at the minute details of shooters' struggles at school, and therefore putting bullying issue aside. Secondly, I believe security really is lacking among public schools. If you ever visit courthouse or government-related places, you may notice that there are literally no shootings ever happened. Why? Because there are metal bars to detect contrabands, there are police officers present to prevent future terror. While I'm not sure whether adding such security system into public school is overkill, I believe that, if budget is not the issue, adding such options can significantly reduce the number of shootings. one of the things I liked about private school is that they have officers patrolling around the school both inside and outside. The key here is prevent any contrabands from coming inside the schools. Once school is immune to any weapons, then no more shootings will ever occur in the first place.
I HATE guns. I HATE the NRA even more. I want stricter gun contol, but I have come to the realization that things will not change. The gun culture in this country has proven time and time again that their right to have hand guns, shot guns and semi automatic rifles far outweighs the right of American children to attend school safely. I am so GD tired of their circular arguments about how guns don't kill people, good guys with guns, just look at Chicago. After Newtown, when nothing changed nationally, I gave up. If a pile of 20 dead six year olds who were shot cowering in their classroom's bathroom changed nothing in this country, than NOTHING will ever change. It could be 1000 dead preschoolers and these a holes will send thoughts and prayers and do nothing because God forbid they can't buy more of their precious guns. It makes me very upset that this country is so in love with violence, torture and weapons, but it is completely ingrained in American culture, things will not change. People place value in violence, while things like healthcare and education are dismantled. The only solution to these tradgedies is to fortify schools, metal detectors, police, just like when going to concert or sporting event. That's the only thing these NRA jerks will agree to, and at least something needs to be done. I hate what our country has become, a violent, amoral, ignorant cesspool. For those on the other side, try to find a way out, find a country that values education and health and love. America is divided and at least to me, the outlook for our nation is not good. :'(
There are many people who had/have no parents, and/or who were/are abused/bullied (on a daily basis), but they didn't become mass murderers. Instead, they grew up functional adults. The problem with many of those mass murderers is that they aren't worried about their basic needs. If they were busy to fend for themselves, they wouldn't be able to think about guns. Yes, they would probably commit petty crimes. This is a complex broad topic; nevertheless, there were/are people who were worried what to eat next. I know what was like to be hungry and afraid; I was homeless, too.--Foraging for my own food and looking out for my safety kept me out of trouble. I bet, we should start limiting people's access to foods at a certain age unless they have special circumstances that limit them from fending for themselves. Allow them to find them for themselves. Without a purpose in life, people go crazy.
Also, many people today are selfish. They think that the government gives them happiness. How about being friendly? Kind? Polite? Practice gratitude? Practice generosity? Afterall, we're all connected. Maybe engage in a conversation with your neighbors or strangers. Have a community, don't exclude people just because...Have some faith in people. Well, the larger the population, the higher the crime rate is.
How about the social media has to be very very careful what to feed its audience, especially to our youngsters? Some people are easily manipulated--they believe anything that feeds and confirms their belief and value systems. Lies shouldn't be part of our journalism, even if it's dead boring. It's easy to radicalize those kinds of people who are mentally weak. Then again, deaths in the past were due to poor or lack of medical knowledge. Today, mental illness and mass murder are probably the new evolutionary methods of controlling or decreasing population.
1). Someone below age 18/21 got YOUR gun? You have to surrender every single one of your guns and never can buy them again.
2). As above + someone got killed? You go to jail.
3). You got to register to own a gun, get license, pass exam, pay yearly tax, demonstrate ownership of a working safe programmed by your fingerprint. Just pretty much like you do with your driving license.
4). No one in household of a person with known history of certain felonies (like aggravated assault) and mental health disorders (known anger outbursts within last 5 years with h/o harm to others or involuntary confinement) can store a gun. If they still want to shoot, they can own one but must belong to some sort of organization like hunting club and store it there.
5). Only organized sales with centralized background check. No more gun shows.
6). PMHNP/Pediatrics in EVERY school. Double the number of high school counselors, force them to have at least 6 months education specifically in children's mental health issues.
7). No military- grade guns for public (or whatever the stuff is named). The existing ones are bought out by State within 10 years. Having them after that = felony, with all the sequela.
8). "Want to help America? Stop a bully, whenever you see one! Back to manners, USA!"(yup, including reporting to police that guy on Facebook who just said that Hitler was the greatest man ever and all immigrants are pigs).
9). Make mental health, and especially holistic mental health management, a priority over heart disease in management and prevention. Force employers to provide FMLA for that and insurers pay for medical stress management, gyms and community health activities.
10). EVERY school district gets a community center for teens, led by teens (ours has one, and it does splendid job. "Girls only/boys only" nights, pool parties, shopping crazies, tutoring, games, summer camps, book clubs. But we're in district which doesn't know how else to spend money it gets).
Sounds like something that makes sense?
I'm more or less with you except for "the thought police" aspect.
Hitler was a charismatic speaker. A monster and first rate villain, but a charismatic speaker. He caused millions of people in Germany to have a rebirth of hope. They were starving, out of work after WW 1 and the Versailles Treaty. He chose a scapegoat - Jews in particular, also Gypsies and Slavs, political dissidents, the mentally ill, the physically disabled, perhaps other "sub-humans". He gave them hope and someone to hate. He defied the powers that were trying to punish Germany for WW1. As awful as this fellow was, along with Mao, Stalin, Pol Pot, Fidel Castro,and other egomaniacal mass murderers, people have the right to have and express their views of him.
My solution to gun violence in public schools is to close the public schools. Kids can be home-schooled, complete requirements at home while overseen by public officials, or go to private schools, the cost born by government, which would otherwise spend it on public schools.
Specializes in Preop/PACU, IM, Orthopaedics, Med Surg.
I live 10 minutes from where this happened, have friends that has kids in this school, knew one of the teachers. A Santa Fe, Tx minister said it best...""We have created a culture that does not value life, that does not honor God, that does not respect authority. We are reaping the consequences of those actions, and that's not going to be reversed by a security guard or a metal detector."
"the long-term goal is to change hearts."
"We're allowing the culture to raise our kids," We need to get prayer back in the schools, discipline and teach respect to our kids.
There are many people who had/have no parents, and/or who were/are abused/bullied (on a daily basis), but they didn't become mass murderers. Instead, they grew up functional adults. The problem with many of those mass murderers is that they aren't worried of their basic needs. If they were busy to fend for themselves, they wouldn't be able to think about guns. Yes, they would probably commit petty crimes. This a broad topic; nevertheless, there were/re people who were worried what to eat next. I know what was like to be hungry and afraid; I was homeless, too.--Foraging for my own food and looking out for my safety kept me out of trouble. I bet, we should start limiting people's access to foods at certain age. Allow them to find them for themselves.
I live 10 minutes from where this happened, have friends that has kids in this school, knew one of the teachers. A Santa Fe, Tx minister said it best...""We have created a culture that does not value life, that does not honor God, that does not respect authority. We are reaping the consequences of those actions, and that's not going to be reversed by a security guard or a metal detector."
"the long-term goal is to change hearts."
"We're allowing the culture to raise our kids," We need to get prayer back in the schools, discipline and teach respect to our kids.
I agree with you but whose prayers? Who will they pray to?
There are a lot of underlying issues that have nothing to do with taking away guns. Bullying in schools, mental health, parents not being involved in their children's lives, unacceptable behavior at school being allowed to continue etc... I do have a right to own a gun. For protection, hunting, sport etc... it is our right and I'll be damned if someone going to take that away. I have a right to protect my family and myself. There are other attacks in schools that are from stabbings, acid, etc... people run people down with cars. It's not the weapon of choice that is the issue, it's the person behind it. Now I'm all for some changes when it comes to the gun laws. Background checks need to improve, if you have depression, anger issues, attempted suicide etc.. than you shouldn't be allowed to own a gun, parents need to keep theirs secured, but just like criminals find guns, so can anyone else. You can even go on Craigslist and buy a gun.
Parents who are involved in their kids' lives do not always know everything that's going on in their kids' lives. Kids don't always tell the truth.
Your opinion lacks any form of wisdom or experience. It's so easy to say, "nobody needs a gun" when you're protected in you uber liberal pseudo reality. I'm pretty confident that your stance on this issue would change if someone were to break into your house and attempt to rape you (I hope this NEVER happens). Life is brutal, people are inherently evil in nature, & a gun is nothing more than a tool.
broughden
560 Posts
Yes, that would be the whole damn problem summed up. Thank you for making my point.
And now Im going to withdraw from this conversation again, because Im to old and my low tolerance for what I perceive as a lack of critical thought drives my blood pressure up.