Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
Earlier this week, Arizona's Attorney General who still believes he is the Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom "banned for life by the SEC" Horne, came up with the "genius" (sic) idea of training and arming volunteer principals or other top administrators at every public school because, by God, we just can't afford to pay trained police officers. Horne calls for armed principals:
Attorney General Tom Horne on Wednesday proposed training and arming principals or other top administrators at every public school.
Horne said he ideally would like to have a trained police officer in every school. But he said the state's budget constraints make that a financial impossibility.
Horne said having a single individual having access to a gun is preferable to letting each teacher be armed [true], saying having that many guns at a school could result in students getting hold of one of them.
What makes the armed administrator proposal appropriate for his office, Horne said, is that it would be his 36 investigators, each a sworn peace officer, who would provide the training at no cost to the schools or the state. He conceded, though, that if they are training one person in each of 2,000 schools statewide it likely would take away from their other duties.
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It would be up to the individual principal or whoever is designated to purchase his or her own firearm.
Similarly, Horne said, those who are designated could obtain body armor – again, at their own cost.
You will note that boy genius does not propose paying these teachers more pay for their double-duty as peace officers. Nosiree, they have to buy their own weapons and armor. I would really love to hear an assessment from the school district's risk management office how this is going to affect the school district's liability insurance policy.
This is just a knee-jerk response from Tom Horne who has been a stooge for the NRA throughout his political career. He is seeking to curry favor from the NRA for his almost-dead dream of running for Governor in 2014. No serious thought went into this proposal.
Sadly, Horne says his lame-brain idea is backed by sheriffs in Pinal, Mohave and Apache counties. Arizona AG proposes arming 1 educator per school:
Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu came out with his own, much broader plan on Wednesday aimed at training multiple educators per school to carry guns, noting his proposal and Horne's were "the difference between putting your toe in a pool or jumping in."
"And they should not be in a locked box these weapons," Babeu said. "Our schools are not as safe as we think they are, and we need to do something about it."
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Babeu said his plan would focus on arming as many educators as possible on a volunteer basis, even those who work at schools where a law enforcement officer already is present. Horne's plan would limit gun-toting teachers to schools where there is no armed presence.
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Apache County Sheriff Joe Dedman said the issue needs to be studied more before authorities approach the Legislature.
"I'm not ruling out any of the ideas," he said.
Trish Carter, a spokeswoman for Mohave County Sheriff Tom Sheahan, said he was "on board" with Horne's idea, but noted it was too soon to comment or offer specific details.
Let's review, shall we? Columbine High School had an armed school resource officer who engaged the shooters but could not stop the carnage. Virginia Tech had its own campus police force which could not stop the carnage (as did the University of Arizona when a gunman shot up the College of Nursing in 2002). Fort Hood, Texas, the largest Army base in the U.S., with multiple armories of weapons and highly trained soldiers and armed MP's could not stop the carnage. This is a false promise of security.
One volunteer armed school teacher per school is not a serious proposal. It is a sick joke.
Now Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio proposes to double-down on the idiocy of Tom Horne. Sheriff Arpaio aims to put armed posse at schools. Would these be the same yahoos from his "Cold Case Posse" still searching for President Obama's real birth certificate? Or a bunch of volunteer vigilante George Zimmermans?
Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has announced plans to deploy an armed volunteer posse to protect Phoenix-area students in the wake of the mass shooting at a Connecticut elementary school.
Arapio tells KTVK-TV he has the authority to mobilize private citizens to fight crime but hasn’t talked to specific districts.
He says he doesn’t plan to put posse members inside schools but will have them posted around the perimeters.
Yeah, no school district has approached Crazy Uncle Joe about this, nor would they. This is just another pathetic publicity stunt by Crazy Uncle Joe Arpaio. Thanks for nothing, state of Maricopa. You should have rid this state of this pathetic loser back in November.
Surprisingly, The Arizona Republic(an) editorialized on Saturday, Your voice is needed:
Don't cede the debate to the loudest, most self-interested voices.
If you abdicate your responsibility to help define your children's future, the response to the massacre of innocents in Newtown, Conn., will be written by gun-rights absolutists and opportunistic politicians.
They are already polishing the storyline.
The National Rifle Association says safety lies in more guns. The Arizona Citizens Defense League wants to arm teachers. Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne wants to arm one educator per school.
Their answer to guns in schools is more guns. These voices could shout down real debate. Don't let them.
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Tucson City Councilman Steve Kozachik, a Republican, says . . . "If you want a voice at the table, you have to use it."
Exactly. So speak up. Define the country you want for your children.