It’s no longer a matter “if” we should arm teachers.
Today, it’s about implementing armed teachers nationwide.
by John Boch
Remember when we had to fight state by state to educate people on the proven benefits and public safety associated with right-to-carry? Today we face similar battles when it comes to good guy guns in schools.
Yes, more and more larger schools across America have hired school resource officers (SROs). Bravo.
Even better though, more and more districts have students protected by civilian good guys with guns. Armed teachers.
Yes, even here in Illinois. Despite state laws against it.
After each school massacre, more and more people – including school staff – sought out training to defend themselves and their loved ones. Later, some of these school staffers started bringing their guns to school to protect themselves and their precious charges. .
Without a doubt, each knows that when seconds count, police are just minutes away.
And even in larger schools with SROs, we know that SROs have a bull’s-eye painted on their back. Simply take out the SRO with a blunt-force instrument and a baddie has a gun, a radio and keys to the kingdom. On the other hand, a discretely armed school staffer looks and acts just like one of the sheep until the wolf appears.
Recently, the Florida Sun-Sentinel published a damning time line of cowardice, ineptitude and political correctness that allowed one dysfunctional loser to murder so many in Parkland, Florida. (Read it only after you've doubled up on your blood pressure meds and have practiced your favorite deep relaxation technique.)
It didn’t have to be, though.
Some teachers say “Not on our watch”: Even in Illinois.
As I mentioned, some Illinois school staffers have decided that a school massacre will not happen on their watch – not unchallenged at least. We owe these private, selfless sheepdogs a great deal of gratitude for risking so much to protect our children.
Last year, at a debate I mentioned that I was aware of school staff members in McLean County who go to work armed. Contrary to Illinois state law, of course.
A Bloomington Pantagraph reporter called me the next day and almost begged me to put her in touch with these armed teachers. I simply laughed. “Why would they risk talking to you? They don’t owe you or anyone else an explanation of the obvious,” I told her.
Following that call, that same Pantagraph reporter telephoned every public and private school system in McLean County asking if they knew of any of their staff who carried in school. Of course, she might have had better luck asking about illicit drug use, marital infidelity or tax evasion among school staff members.
While these unsung, gun-toting heroes face only minimal criminal penalties if outed, the financial penalties could be devastating. They risk losing their jobs and pensions if discovered. In fact, even if they were to stop the next mass murderer, saving countless lives, they still might face the loss of their pension if they were not eligible to retire on the spot. “God bless Ms. Schoolmarm for shooting the killer. Too bad she got fired the next day.”
We owe them respect and gratitude. Each values the lives of their students and co-workers more than obeying the letter of a misguided law. Heroes one and all, just like those from another era who ignored evil laws and helped escaped southern slaves make their way north to freedom.
They are doing something that might save lives someday. As opposed to bleating the company line and leaving our precious children utterly defenseless and unprotected. Like the cowards in Broward.
While more and more states have taken action to legalize trained and licensed school staff to carry guns to protect our precious young people, other states like Illinois resist potentially life-saving change.
Should it surprise anyone? After all, Illinois needed a federal court to order it to adopt right-to-carry as the last state without it. Hopefully, we will not be the 50th state to allow guns in schools.
In the meantime, you can rest assured there are plenty of guns in the schools where our state’s leaders send their kids. Why can’t our kids be equally protected?
As we are here in Illinois and because of who controls the state we are lucky to have anyone trying protecting the children in our schools. Plus, even if someone did take down a mass shooter in one of our schools they would be crucified by not only by the leftists politicians in this state, but by the leftist mainstream media as well.
It is a real pleasure to see your thoughts and insights on these pages again, sir. Thank you. I have re-upped my membership.
John Boch strikes (out) again! I'm sure I.S.P. (Illinois State Police) enjoyed the "ratting out" of McLean County School Staff members! Ya know that a simple misdemeanor can cost an educator their career and retirement! I would think that carrying concealed information of educators, on prosecutorial grounds, is better left unsaid, but I guess that's just asking too much from the gsl crowd. Of course, The Great John Boch will come running to assist teachers, after I.S.P. does an unannounced sweep and arrest of armed educators; that is, if their membership is paid up! Create havoc, then cash in, right John? What a lousy way to make a buck!
Hey Phil: Would you want to hazard a guess as to how many school staff members work at McLean County Schools?
I didn't think so.
ISP doesn't have enough troopers in the entire state to visit every employee in every school in McLean County on a good day. Leaving out the whole "you'll need a warrant" for that angle.
As for leaving things unsaid: Maybe we should just be quiet in sit in the corner while all the smart people named Phil solve the problem of school violence?
Nah, that's not who we are. As you've already discerned.
Gays didn't get to where they are today by leaving things unsaid.
But thanks for reading!
John
Sorry John, I had no idea that you were gay! I did have suspicions, but ya never know for sure.! 😉
Leave it be phil, CONSEALED is CONCEALED, no ones business if I or anyone is carrying legally, JBoch did not out anyone and your implication that he has is demented and just trying to draw attention to your pettiness self. The fact that educators or school employees (custodians, etc.) would have the temarity to educate themselves and train for possible school attacks from idiots trying to up the "kill ratio" from previous shooters should be commended and respected, not denigrated by petty, mental midgets like yourself.
As for JBoch being "gay"? I have known him a few years, trained under his guidance and attended meetings he has spoken as director of GSL, why do you want to disparage him since it is apparant you do not know him, to quote Jerry Seinfeld "Not that there's anything wrong with that (being gay)!" I seriously doubt John is "gay" as he has been married and has a set of twins with his (female) wife.
Phil is apparently the new resident moron on the GSL website. He probably sits in a corner somewhere, doing nothing to further gun rights, while complaining about all those who do.
As Mr. T would say, "Pity the fool."
gsl:Boch "outted" himself through his writing, don't blame me. Meanwhile, Boch has delivered, in writing, a no b.s. reasonable suspicion (no warrant needed) to the brown shirts (I.S.P.); whereby legal searches may be conducted to "insure the safety of our youth" in McLean County Schools. Boch betrayed his students, spat upon Second Ammendment supporters, and delivered c.c.w. carriers into the handcuffs of the States' Brown Shirts, all for an article and two seconds of fame. That's disgusting behavior. "Not that there's anything wrong with that"??????
phil (or is it really "ken"?):
your obvious dislike for someone that has for decades worked for the second amendment RIGHTS of Ill-annoy citizens, as well as trained safe handling of firearms and self-protection against common thugs is what is disgusting behaviour. Why don't you just let it be, did you change your name from the despicable "ken" troll that finally was banned?
GSL1598: There's no "Ken", just me, and my name is Phil. Teachers have everyone snarling and biting at them; they do not need to be "fingered" by GSL for misdemeanors against the Great State of Illinois. What Boch did, by writing about, and speaking of, educators breaking the law in McLean County, is simply disgusting. I wish the best for our educators, and hope that any teacher, in need of self defense training, stay clear of any GSL activity, for their own best interests. Once again, any teacher with a misdemeanor on their record can lose their teaching certification, and pension. Administrators, and board members, will not wait for a verdict; the teacher will be ruined for life by never being able to teach anywhere ever again…for life. Teachers lose five (5) years of degree study, their jobs, and pension, because of the misdirected goodwill feeling of a non thinking gun writer. Congrats, looks like you win!
phil-ken,
Sounds like you are paranoid about things that will never happen. How about you do a report on every instance a teacher or educational employee that has been persecuted for these hypothetical actions related directly to John's article?
Concealed is concealed, administrators and ISP jack-booted enforcers are not going to invade employees' privacy on a whim, wheather they read J.Boch's article or not. If they read John's article it would be more likely they would agree with personal protection by liscensed carriers, trained in personal and possible school attacks by mentally misguided murderers. (I say "mentally misguided" because normal individuals would never think of attacking innocent children/kids).
Concealed is concealed just as hateful trolls are hateful trolls, mr. phil-ken.
Once again people, we need to be viewing things in "wide screen" format, seeing the "big picture" as I've stated many times before on here. I am not aligned with all of Phil's tone about the above article, BUT, I agree 100% with what he is saying. If I was ( and maybe I am) a school staffer, teacher, custodian, maintenance worker, etc. In a McLean county school, that has been discreetly packing carefully concealed….. Now I am screwed. This article will help to display me as a "hot dogger" bucking the system , because…. "I know better than the law".
By writing this article, and publishing it on the world wide web, GSL has done NO favors to responsible, discreet, persons who carry defensive weapons. period.
The sheep see guns as bad and destructive to life. They also view anyone who has one ( they have been programmed to "accept" police and military having guns) as bad and destructive to life. Now, GSL has published an article alerting them that they need to closley scrutinize all people (whom they previously viewed as"good") in school environments, because some of them may be "bad" and breaking the law.
Understand this. I too believe we need more good persons, with good training, skills, physical condition/health, mindset, and tools (aka weapons) in McLean county, Illinois, untied States, and the world….
This article, and publishing this mindset did nothing to further or help us as 2A supporters, responsibly armed persons, or Americans.
This is Macho Bravado and it is complete B.S.
It is comparable to a street thug puffing their chest.
Just like dispatched ammunition down a barrel……. Words and news articles have consequences
And the consequences from this are not favorable.
One of my kids' teachers carried many, many moons ago… before Illinois even had concealed carry. God bless him. A little 5-shot Colt with some wicked hollowpoints that didn't even stick out past the end of the case. I thought it a pretty gun which is why I remember it. And those hollowpoints.
Mrs. Whittemore wouldn't let me spend that sort of money on getting one of my own. With the passage of time, I see she was right. Because I later bought a Ruger LCR… not as pretty, but much lighter. And at about half the cost of the Colt, so I don't feel too badly when it gets sweaty or dinged up a little. He's retired now, so I don't feel bad about "outing" him. And he made me some of those bullets too.
John gay? By writing about the succcess of the gay lobby? Boy, that's a stretch.
John points out the obvious? Only a fool thinks there are no teachers who don't ignore a bad law and carry to defend their students from a nutjob. Plenty of good people have ignored bad laws in our nation's past. Like the Underground Railroad, for instance. For the greater good.
Boch is keeping people thinking about this issue. More so than ignoring the topic (or being quiet and staying "in the closet") and hoping bad people will simply go away.
Sam