Letter: Arming teachers not the answer

Monday, Aug. 11, 2003 | 8:52 a.m.

In response to Don Pinson's Aug. 6 letter, which advocates that schoolteachers should be allowed to bear arms in the classroom, I must disagree. I certainly respect Mr. Pinson as a World War II veteran, but it is obvious that he has never been a teacher or worked in a school situation.

I taught high school for 35 years and the worst thing I had to do was break up a fight in the hallway. Yes, there are places where metal detectors are now needed, but, in general, schools are safe places to learn and kids are as good today as they were in the "good old days." Mr. Pinson says "several killers have been stopped by armed teachers and others who were armed." If the "others" were police, that is appropriate. But Mike O'Callaghan, writing in his Aug. 2 "Where I Stand" column, got it right -- teachers should not take guns into the classroom. If there is a need for security, hire security guards.

First, the threat of gun violence is overstated by the news media. Second, the image of a gun-toting teacher does more to diminish the feeling of safety to students than to make them feel safe. Third, teachers are not cops or trained as such. They might well leave their piece in an unlocked drawer where a kid could get it. Finally, social problems have causes, the solutions to which are seldom to blow someone away.

JERRY BITTS