School safety, security, and violence prevention resource

HELLO, READERS.  I hope you are still out there, still reading.  Hard to tell since I have received zero comments in the last year or so, even though I have posted on some hair-raising and provocative issues surrounding school violence, including, of course, a half-dozen of the hundreds of rage shootings in our schools, churches, movie theaters,malls, and other workplaces.

Even if you are not out there, or are out there in dwindling numbers, I will keep on keeping on because I am committed to and set afire by somehow intervening, somehow reversing this inexorable and seemingly irreversible trend of mass shootings.  I know, even though I write books on these issues, even though I train educational professionals, and even though I try to be nearby, that I cannot do it…so I write…..and write some more…

SNAP OUT OF IT, HAMMER, FOR PETE’S SAKE.   WHAT ABOUT THE SHOOTER?  WHAT ABOUT OTHER FUTURE SHOOTER?

OH, YES, SORRY.  About the latest shooter.  Since I penned my last post (two days ago), we have learned more about him.  As usual, his days upon this Earth produced little of any value to mankind.  In the end, of course, he proved to be a cipher.  Meaning he took nine (9) people to the afterlife with him.  Meaning the only event that proved significant in his pathetic life was that he stole from humankind, their families, their friends, nine productive, loving souls.

Since I am trying to come up with a teachable moment, there are a few things we might be able to learn from this massacre:

• The shooter fit the Active Shooter Profile to a tee.   He was a loner.  He was fascinated with guns and other weapons of killing, fascinated and almost obsessed with other past active shooters.  He failed at almost everything he tried, including military service.  These failures stung him, set afire anger and rage inside him.  Lit him up.
• He lived with his mother.  For an adult, that is rarely a promising sign.  By itself, that does not predict future rage shootings, but add to that apparent emotional problems, an inability to establish a relationship with a girl or woman, maybe sexual inadequacy.
• Predictably also is the fact that investigators discovered in his room scores of illuminating writings expressing his dedication to violence, to his mistrust of all organized religions, to his worship of those who took innocent lived through rage shootings.
• This shooter was typical in that his hatred burned with specificity.  He hated organized religion, specifically Christians, he disliked blacks.
• And, perhaps the most prophetic line in one of his writings was “…it seems that the more blood you spill, the more you are in the limelight…”
• Oh, yes.  Let’snot forget that responding police and others also found six or seven (legally purchased) shotguns and semi-automatic weapons in his apartment and in different locations around the community college.
• If nothing else, the shooter was a planner, was committed to killing as many  students, teachers, and others.  He was wearing kevlar body armour, so he was determined to shoot it out to the end.

So, Big Deal.  The moron fit the profile to a tee.  So, neither his mother nor anyone else in his life saw  or heeded the warning signs.  This is getting monotonous, because this story continues to regurgitate itself over and over.  Question is, what can individuals and schools to to somehow get ahead of the curve, to put the next loser from doing this?  

Read about it in the next post.  Until then, stay safe, if you can.

BEFORE I GO, A LITTLE TALE THAT MAY TELL YOU WHY SCHOOLS AND OTHER WORKPLACES WILL ALWAYS BE BEHIN D THE REACTIONARY CLOCK:

This past August I conducted a Disruptive Student Management (DSM) course for 16 administrators and teachers from a local school district.  This district is, like Bloomfield is in a gorgeous and fairly well-to-do community that has experienced rare violence, save for an occasional crime, easily handled by the police department (which was invited to participate in this training).  During my Power Point presentation, I introduced the profile of an active shooter and how to identify when a person was carrying a concealed weapon.  Neither component drew any interest, characterized by questions or requests for more cogent information.

On the second and third day of the training, I took the class through several drills dealing with how to disarm a student or invader wielding a handgun or long gun.  A good number of the class failed to even show up for the lessons, some halfheartedly participated, and only a few seemed to take the exercises seriously.

This might mean nothing to you, The Reader, but I swear, somewhere, some how, a future active shooter, who maybe harbors a lifelong grudge against a teacher, a school, a religion, a group of people, is studying a campus, watching how security operates – or, worse, doesn’t operate, and, sure dogshit is slippery, is practicing how to massacre as many of you as he possibly can before police can ever respond!

Next Post:  Making Soft Targets (Schools and Churches) Tough Targets.  Active Shooters Avoid Tough Targets!

 

Don't miss another post -- subscribe by email or RSS today!