A Florida school just might be the safest in the nation, if one discounts the ones politicians’ kids attend. In fact, the principal of the Manatee School for the Arts claims that armed intruders will not receive a fair fight on that campus.
“If someone walks onto this campus, they’re going to be shot and killed,” Principal Bill Jones told the Bradenton Herald. “We’re not going to talk with them. We’re not going to negotiate. We are going to put them down, as quickly as possible.”
After the Parkland shooting, the Florida legislature enacted the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act. This bill requires every public school in Florida to have armed security. It also allowed schools to hire alternatives to assigned resource officers. However, administrators at MSA decided to hire only military veterans with combat experience. They also armed these officers with Glock pistols and KelTec RDB rifles. The RDB is a bullpup style rifle that uses the same caliber and magazines as standard AR-15 rifles. It does, however, in a much shorter platform even with its 17-inch barrel.
The Palmetto school decided to include rifles for the same reason most folks choose a rifle. It has more power and accuracy at longer distances. Additionally, rifles provide a distinct advantage over handguns in many ways. And, the Palmetto Police Department was involved in the decision.
“We want our SROs and guardians to be as well prepared as possible if God forbid the worst happens,” said Chief Scott Tyler. “This was not a capricious decision.”
Florida School Understand Benefits of Armed Security
It is nice to see a school finally realizing that it takes force to stop force. There are a lot of neat tools and ideas that can help protect students. However, only a good guy with a gun can stop a determined bad guy with a gun. Sure, not every school district can afford to arm veterans with rifles, but there are many arguments for arming teachers.
Even arming only some teachers could prevent or stop many shootings, as attackers don’t know who is armed. This is basically the same argument about how most mass shootings happen in gun-free zones, particularly the ones with higher body counts.
So, just the threat of meeting armed opposition could prevent an attack at this school, or any other school. In any case, an attack won’t last long at this school. Maybe more districts should take a look at veterans.
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