Arming teachers is the solution now? Yes I guess arming students was a little OTT.

So what happens when our ten years olds are sitting in class knowing that their teacher is armed? Oh it's just until the guns are gone kids. Until then your teacher is there to protect you from any armed maniacs that might come through the door. I can just imagine the message that sends to kids about the necessity of guns for their personal security. I guess teachers don't have nervous breakdowns either. How many parents would like to have their children taught by teachers that chose to be armed at school?

Then again, they might do their homework more often.

I would like to offer an alternate reason for this latest massacre.

There are numerous examples of people who have gone on a shooting rampage and killed their classmates, co-workers, members of their family and often took their own lives, then it was discovered they were taking antidepressants. It initially appears the person was mentally ill and went on a rage but when these cases have actually been looked at closely they find the person did not have any violent tendencies and in most cases was not even suicidal before they started treatment with their antidepressant medication.

SSRIs, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, are the pharmaceutical company’s latest cash cows. Their use has skyrocketed in the last ten years. Nicknamed “Chemical Babysitters” and designated anti depressants, they are causing dozens of murders, thousands of psychoses and are altering the minds of millions of users. All but a very few of the latest “Mass Murderers” have been on these drugs. Schools encourage parents to put their children on these drugs for the smallest signs of “non conformity”. Schools in the US receive more money for “disabled” students.

SSRIs markedly alter brain chemistry, particularly drugs like Prozac. A few people have tried to warn authorities, but no one is listening. And SSRIs don’t backfire in children only.

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors are commonly used to treat depression in children and adolescents. In 2005, the US Centre for Disease Control reported that 118 million prescriptions had been written for anti-depressants, and that the number of people using anti-depressants had “almost tripled between the periods 1988-1994 and 1999-2000”.

As more and more people are given SSRIs to combat depression, mounting evidence suggests that the side effects of SSRIs can lead to violent behavior and suicide. Many of the high fatality school shootings of the past 10 years have involved shooters who had been prescribed SSRIs. An in depth look at school shootings, and the commonly known side effects of SSRIs, reveals these drugs to be a primary factor leading to violence.

It will be interesting to see if the latest ‘killer’ was on SSRIs.

Rhosty,

The only use for guns is to kill and maim...that is their sole purpose.

To create a situation where a society and culture is awash with these tools is madness. The "Guns don't kill people. People kill people" excuse is a cop out.

The fact that these "tools" can kill and maim at a distance and are readily available in the US to any Tom, Dick or Harriet - and which are, all too often, resorted to in the first instance is obviously the prime reason why so many killings, woundings and massacres are reported in that country.

That was very brave David.

Do be careful now, the anti gun lobby will be gunning for you.

I waited with bated breath as I read the article, and almost couldn't believe it when I found what I was expecting: the argument, right there in the penultimate paragraph, that this whole problem could have been averted if a teacher had been able to have a gun at school.

It's possibly true. Of course, that teacher would have to have been in the right place at the right time, had his/her gun on his/her person, had his/her wits about him/her and had an opportunity to shoot the assailant. Is that really a direction we want to take: primary school teachers taking guns to school? Carrying them in a holster while in the classroom?

When that carries through to the secondary level, do we allow students who are of age to carry guns, just in case? After all, it seems unfair that teachers are armed and students are unable to protect themselves against potentially loony teachers. Particularly around reporting time.

The Guns control issue revolves around three key points, licensing, uses, and types.

To obtain a license the person should be able to show he is of sound mind, has had appropriate training, and has a legitimate use for the firearm. Guns are meant to be to be dangerous, we don't let people out on the road without a license so we should definitely not allow people to own guns without one. Registration of the individual guns should also be mandatory. In America it appears that in some states you do not require either!

This brings us to the type of firearms which should be available, this is dependant on the use that the firearm is going to be put.
Hunting:-For this purpose a long barrelled weapon with a no more than two shots is all that is needed for example the double barrelled rifle is all that was required to hunt even the largest and most dangerous animals.

Sport:- For example target shooting here it includes the weapons as above and also hand guns. There is nothing to be proved with any gun that has more than 6 shots before a reload. These sort of activates can be very tightly regulated with guns and ammunitions to be securely stored on site.

Farming:- Again I see no need for anything beyond two shots before the gun has to be reloaded by hand. Shot guns and small calibre rifles are all that is likely to be needed.

Policing:- I am not a fan of armed police, but I accept that from time to time it may be necessary. This will typically be a hand gun, plus a few special marksmen with military riffles.

The fewer the number of guns in circulation the more difficult it becomes for criminals and nut cases to get hold of them. The premiss of the article that we arm everybody is a recipe for wholesale slaughter and is totally irresponsible. The idea that there is any legitimate use for military style rifles among the civilian population is crazy.