There’s a lot to like about Texas. The state has no income tax, for instance, which we know is a good recipe for faster growth and more prosperity.
That’s one of the reasons why the Lone Star State kicks the you-know-what out of California in the battle to attract jobs and investment.
But Texans also have a more sensible approach to thwarting crime. Some of them apparently took my IQ test, which asks whether murderers prefer armed victims or unarmed victims, and they wisely concluded that the ability to shoot back is a lot better than cowering in a corner (you can see the California mentality in the third image in this post).
So one school district allows teachers and staff to carry concealed weapons. Here’s some of what’s reported in the Fort Worth Star Telegram.
David Thweatt, superintendent of the tiny Harrold school district in northwest Texas, believes his staff is ready. Besides special locks and security cameras, an undisclosed number of staff members and teachers carry concealed handguns. Thweatt said the “guardian plan,” which drew international attention when it was implemented in 2008, definitely enhances student safety. “Is that 100 percent? No,” Thweatt said Friday in a telephone interview. “Nothing is 100 percent. But what we do know is that we’ve done all we can to protect our children.” At the time the plan was put in place, Harrold, about 150 miles northwest of Fort Worth, was the only known public school district in Texas and the U.S. that allowed staff members and teachers to carry concealed weapons. Thweatt said he knows of some other district that have since adopted similar policies, but declined to name them. …Board members approved the measure because the district is at least 20 minutes from the nearest station of the Wilbarger County Sheriff’s Department. …Thweatt said he wanted to minimize casualties that could quickly increase while waiting for deputies. He didn’t want a plan where you “lock yourself in your closet and hope that an intruder won’t hurt you.” …There has not been an incident on his campus, and Thweatt doesn’t expect one.
The last part of the excerpt tells you all you need to know. There have been no mass shootings and the superintendent doesn’t expect any.
Some leftists doubtlessly will fret that a crazy teacher might bring a gun to school and start shooting people. What they apparently don’t understand, though, is that a crazy teacher already has that ability. Or, as we tragically witnessed in Connecticut, some other nutjob can come to a school and engage in a killing spree.
But in Harrold, Texas, at least there are people who can shoot back.
I know I would rather send my kids to school in Harrold than to someplace that advertises itself as a gun-free zone.
And if this poster is correct, Israel puts common sense above anti-gun ideology.
You can enjoy some humor about so-called gun-free zones by clicking here.
And since this post is about Texans and the second amendment, this bit of humor is always popular. As is this example of a Texas police exam and this story of Texas, California, and a coyote.
Speaking of California, let’s engage in a bit more mockery of the Golden State.
P.S. Let’s allow Alabama to make a cameo appearance in this post since this image is entertaining in more ways than one.
(h/t: Ben Domenech, via Erick Erickson)
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Dear Daniel
Thank you for your article it is interesting reading, though I would like to point out a factual error. Teachers in Israel isn’t armed and their success in security they themselves link to gun “control”
http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/23572/Default.aspx
With best regards
Martin
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Here in Arkansas my Sister-in-law and I are going to seek a change in state law to allow precisely this option. We have arranged to meet with the local police and school district to garner their support. We are thinking a pilot program in one town or county to begin. The biggest obstacle we expect to face is not political, rather we feel it will be insurance companies. Should we have success in our efforts, I will post it here.
Apparently,Texas law outlaws firearms on school campuses “unless pursuant to the written regulations or written authorization of the institution.”
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,404721,00.html#ixzz2FQCk52Fn
I’d be very surprised if this is legal. Under state law, no one may carry a concealed weapon, with or without a Texas CHL, on any school premises. Notwithstanding whether it is a good idea or not, I don’t see how the school district has the legal authority to allow this.