We are focusing so much time, money and attention on the problems abroad when we should really consider funding school safety programs right here in the United States.  I agree with the war effort against terrorists and experts say that if we don't take the fight to them... then they will likely strike in our heartland at the churches and schools.  But - how about taking this a step further and spend a little federal funding to begin a mandatory school security project in our public systems.  For a fraction of what we are spending in Iraq and Afghanistan, our legislature could create a state mandated school security or police force for all public schools, (some are already in place).  Hire retired military or law enforcement personnel to keep our children safe and allow the teachers a safe environment in which to work!  I'm tired of hearing about the school violence and nothing is really done about it!  "No child left behind" was a good initiative with good intent but how about "no child left scared in school."  I would like to know what others think about this?  I think the opposition may say that everything comes down to the almighty dollar, but we don't think twice about sinking BILLIONS to help other countries achieve a safe environment.  How about our kids?

Instead of Security, The Feds should set up public/pay school/Jails.
Police are not a deterrent and it is affecting the kids that want to learn. It's little Mary who has a headache and pops an aspirin that gets slammed against the wall, frisked, and taken off to jail.
Of course, there's little Johnny that has a look out thats selling the drugs and not getting caught.
Find the culprit. Make it Mandatory when a child does something stupid, that the parent has to pick 1 or 2 days a week where they get to go to school and follow there child around. I am sure that when the parent sees and hears all the cool stories, they'll deal with said child. Hey, that would even put more eyes on ALL the children, for free.
Second. More offenses, EXPEL THE CHILD. Now they have a choice, continue to grow up retarded or go to another school were Mommy and Daddy have to foot the bill. Call it "Child Support" they can support the child through school. I am sure this will get more parents active in there child's rearing. Take there taxes, garnish there checks, let them pay for there childs disruptive behavior. make them DISCIPLINE and teach there child manners.
Shoot, have them go to Military school.
If some child is trying and has a learning problem, kick them the cash. Otherwise, why make everyone pay for some dumb A**'s mistakes and turn our schools into a police state?
If an adult doesn't want to conform to society, we throw them in Jail. Do it to kids with the option to learn.

The scariest words I ever heard coming home from school was "You find that funny"? It wasn't anymore.

Your plan may take care of some discipline issues, but I'm afraid it won't work against a dedicated shooter with an AK-47 firing rounds throughout our schools.  There have been a number of incidents right here in Oklahoma:  Seth Trickey in Ft. Gibson and recently a plot to shoot up a Skiatook school was foiled by Tulsa Police when they received a tip that a broken-hearted adult ex-boyfriend made plans to take revenge on his lover's kids who went to school there.

Disciplining children is one thing and saving lives in an actual occurance in another.  More than 75% of our public schools outside of metro areas (OKC and Tulsa) are without any sort of defense against these maniacs.  We need mandated funding to protect our children! 

How much of an extreme do parents have to go through so they can protect there children?
Not knocking the police, but if they were a great deterrent, Tulsa's crime rate wouldn't be so high.
Just because a school has a well armed police force with Tear gas, stun guns, batons and M-16's, isn't a deterrent, its an embarrassment.
Yes, we need to protect the children, but we need to get rid of the idiots causing the disruptions to better protect our kids.
If someone is bent on shooting up a school, there going to do it. If someone wants to commit a crime, there going to do it (Keywords: 9/11, JFK).
Parents need to control there children, Teachers need more rights on discipline. I understand the need for security in schools also, but havening a police force IMHO is just plain retarded.

What's next, Bars on the windows, razor wire on the fencing and mine fields? America is becoming more and more of a police state everyday.

Piling police into a school is admitting that parents and teachers have failed the children.

Police are just putting a bandaid on an amputated leg (in the schools).

First of all, you obviously do not have a child in public school.  Secondly - try telling your side to the parents of the victims of Columbine or Virginia Tech.  It's not a "police state" we are wanting, it's just good old common sense:  if an armed police officer is inside the building where your child is getting shot at... then response time is cut in half and lives may get saved!  You may call it a police state, anarchy, martial law or whatever you choose, but as for me... I'd like the piece of mind to know my children are inside a public building with an armed officer certified with training and backed with protective equipment which may save his/her life.  I bet others agree.

Obviously, I just had a child Graduate this year, and Obviously, I have a younger child still in school.
Where is all this money going to come from?

Just like this Half Trillion Bailout, where is this money going to come from? Not from the people that used our money to buy Multi million dollar homes, Yachts, Private jets, etc. It comes from the Tax Payers! This certainly doesn't solve any problems as the Govt put a band-aid on the problem while the people who got rich mismanaging gets off Scott free and goes to other high paying jobs to do it again.

Parents should take a more active roll in protecting there children, plain and simple. Things getting out of hand and need a couple officers, fine. Hiring a police force with many officers takes away from the money used for education.

You honestly think that putting a ton of officers in school is going to stop the violence? Kids aren't that retarded, they will wait before or after or come up with a plan to circumvent the police.

The little town my daughter goes to decided to hire a police officer. Guess where the cash came from? School budget! Guess what got canceled, the activities for the kids to do after school that keeps them out of trouble. Do you know what happened next?

If it can happen in a small town, it WILL happen in a large one.

I don't want my kids shot anymore than you or anyone else does, there's just better solutions.

I think you are arguing apples and oranges!  Anyone who sees the bigger picture knows that we are spending Billions or Trillions of dollars on the war in Iraq.  Where is THAT money coming from?  You the taxpayer.  So I'm offering a better solution... take a fraction of the war effort, bring the troops home and let Iraq begin it's own democracy then fund a line of defense for our children right here at home, so they can learn and not worry about bullets flying around.  Pay trillions on the war effort or pay a million for school safety.  Schools all around the country are sinking budget money into paying SRO's (school resource officers) for their schools and ask any one of the administrators if the money is worth it... ALL SAY YES.  Parents say yes too! 

To answer your question - yes I know putting officers in public schools stops violence.  If Columbine had SROs, lives would have been saved.  On April 20th, 1999, at 11:19 AM, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris entered the High school near Littleton Colorado and began shooting students.  NO OFFICER ON SITE!  By the time a student dialed 911 - the first officer to arrive (a local deputy) began shooting at the suspects and the time was 11:24.  A five minute response (good by any police standards) and still 12 students and one teacher dead with 23 others wounded.   One or two SROs in the school could have saved them all! 

Your money argument just doesn't hold water!  I appreciate the effort and bantor though and if you truly don't want to spend the money then I say put it to a vote and let the taxpayers decide on a bond issue.  You'd get beat every time. 

And there you have it! 9/11 never happened! Why? Because the USA had the strongest and most active military force at the time. Stupid conspiracy theorists, how dare they think I would buy that crap when a strong military is a great deterrent!


Adding police.
Takes away student activity's,
doesn't get parents involved
doesn't teach them responsibility.


Apparently The Tulsa Police weren't worried about Virginia Tech or Columbine. But oh my god, theres a shooting in Finland and now they have to prepare!
http://www.fox23.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=1e8bd3f6-7ace-41d2-9ddc-f77785608bc0

Sorry coach, I went to big school and didn't need a police force. We can sit and have a circle jerk on this all day.

Just remember when you go to McDonalds, be patient when they can't find the cheeseburger key, give them a hug and tell them you understand.

But since you and I are debating this, we are gridlocked 1 to 1. Someone needs to jump in and break the tie.

Once again - you are arguing of point.  Out of the scope of the thread which I initiated.  You talk 9/11, Finland and cheeseburgers.  I speak facts and back them up with genuine statistical data and events!  Lets do something more for Oklahoma Schools.

Adding SROs (school resource officers):  exposes students to police on a daily basis (a good thing so they familiarize themselves with the "good guys" and won't be afraid to ask for help and guidance), helps alleviate parent's worries that their child will get shot in school and... isn't made to teach responsiblity because THAT'S THE TEACHER'S JOB!!!

PS- I think you are generous to yourself with "1 to 1."  I always considered myself ahead. HAHA.

Nice debate Sir - I'll see you on the next one!

 

Here's some stats
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, there are 15,555 Schools in the U.S. (2005 census).
According to http://www.nsc.org/research/odds.aspx
(in a year)
You have a 1 in million chance of ANY kind of death in school.
you have a 1 in 50,000 chance to die in a pedestrian accident (In Tulsa it's 50-50.
1 in 394,000 chance on a bike
1 in 700,000 chance of drowning.
1 in 800,000 chance of Alcohol poisoning.
And the list goes on. So we need to get rid of water, pedestrians and alcohol first!

Statistically, School is safer than everyday life. And they call me paranoid What was that?

Before any state thinks about hiring any cops, we need to redefine what is right and wrong and stop the stupid stuff.
My daughter got an hour detention for taking a freaking cough drop. Is that a crime?
Can't find the article, but a child got sent home for wearing a t-shirt with the U.S. Flag. This went against the schools policy of singling out a "Race, creed, Color or ethnicity". What really made the article retarded is the child wore it on "Hippie Day", UM, HELLLLLLO!

Schools need to focus on CRIME, not stupid kid crap and that's not happening. Were making them criminals out of nothing. School shootings are few and far in between. The kids have a better chance of being kidnapped, but lets put the cops in the schools.

Little Susy accidentally pulls out a nail file to do her nails, the police slam her against the wall and cuff her for having a dangerous weapon. Thats a positive out look the other kids are going to have for the P.D.

Again - off course.  Not interested in US schools or stats (only Oklahoma), not interested in pedestrian accidents, bikes, drownings alcohol poisoning.  Only safe schools for Oklahoma.  Sorry about your daughter's detention, but certainly it wasn't a school cop that gave her detention.  The child was sent home with a US flag T-shirt from an educator (teacher or principal) not a school cop.  "Little Suzy" should carry emory boards instead of sharp metal objects. 

Statistics are ok, but once again... Seth Trickey DID SHOOT UP AN OKLAHOMA SCHOOL!  We need SROs plain and simple. 

PS- you have used the term "retarded" at least four times this thread.  How about trying another word as not to offend all readers with mentally challenged children or relatives.  (Just a suggestion).

Still waiting on a tie-breaker.

LOL, I am NOT politically correct.
Were I come from, you have "Mentally Challenged" or "Mentally handicapped". These are children that are born with some kind of abnormality.
Then you have the "Retarded Children". These are children that know better but decide to to be stupid anyways.

I am getting way to old to "Appease the Masses", besides, whats politically correct in one state, is NOT politically correct in another.

But hey, not picking on people with Handicapped Children.

I did talk to my daughter that graduated last year. Seems good old Watertown schools decided to hire security this year. School "Crime" has went up after they hired Security. Detentions and suspensions are on the rise. Seems quite a few of the good kids are getting in trouble while the gangs are a little inconvenienced, as they have look outs. So the good kids, thinking it's o.k., whatever there doing are getting yellow slips.

Now the good people of Watertown voted this in, but as usual are over taxed and didn't want them raised. School activities have been cut. Now there more kids getting in trouble between the time the school lets out and mommies and daddies are getting home.

All I am saying is find another way and or revamp school policy. Maybe electronic implants?

How about we agree on ankle moniters and shock-collars.  Well I can only say "you get what you pay for" in some cases.  Very healthy debate Sir.  I appreciate your candor.

I anxiously await your next debate. It's nice when you can debate and it doesn't turn into a "name calling" or a "Well your mother" match.