So everyone has been wondering about my opinion about the tragedy at Sandy Hook on December 14, 2012. But when do you post your opinion when 20 precious souls who have yet begun to live life are cut short. Then we have the six adults who died that day trying to protect the children: Mary Sherlach, Mrs. Hochsprung, Victoria Soto, Lauren Rousseau, Rachel Davino, and Anne Marie Murphy. The day of the tragedy, the day after, or two days. It is hard to tell when the time is right. Families need time to grieve. The community needs time to grieve. The media is so hungry for a story that they forget that human side of story - the mantra goes on: if it bleeds, it leads. Even if the facts are sketchy at first, stated wrong, or misleading. Reporters used to report the truth. Now, they report what the highest bidder tells them to.
A lot of people are screaming for gun bans and gun control legislation. But this is not the answer. Why? Because criminals will NEVER follow the law. The knee jerk reactions will only trample the rights of those law-abiding citizens, who are afraid of what goes bump in the night and blindly follow their leaders. The end result is that we disarm ourselves to the point that we can no longer defend ourselves from the criminals. This has happened in other countries, such as Australia, Canada and England. Criminals become brazen and bold because NO ONE can do nothing to stop them; not even the police.
Some people are now talking about labeling the mental ill and tattooing them. But this right along the lines of what Hitler did with the Jews. As a mother and grandmother of individuals, who suffer from Asperger's, this is not the answer either. I can tell you that one of my grandson's in Iowa was beaten on the playground yesterday. Why? Because he has "Autism like that murderer in Sandy Hook." Obviously, the fifth grader who beat up my first grade grandson heard this at home. Such hatred cannot and should not be tolerated in our country. We were established as a "melting pot." This means that we all blend together and respect one another's differences - not bully, beat up, tease, or pick on another because they are someone different from us. If anyone has been to the Middle East, this is how Arab children are raised to hate Israel.
So here is what I have to commend about Sandy Hook. First, I have to say thank you. Thank you to school principal Dawn Hochsprung for giving her life as she lunged at Adam Lanza to try and save the 700 students entrusted to her care. No greater sacrifice could she have made that day. I only wish that the State of Connecticut could have different laws to have allowed you to have more resources at your disposal or your option to choose from, such as a concealed weapon, to stop him. But I am eternally grateful that you used the one weapon that you were born with - your brain - and used your body to shield the lives of those children that at most 700 families entrusted to you. You saved 680 of them and escorted 20 of them to the Heavenly Father. Thank you. Thank you to Mary Sherlach, the school counselor, who joined the school principal and rushed the shooter in an effort to save the children, without a thought of self or the insurmountable odds, you did all that you could. Thank you. Thank you to Victoria Soto, who reportedly hid some her students in a bathroom or closet and shield others from the bullets. The lie you told that the rest are in the gym in an effort to redirect the shooter away from those smiling faces that you taught daily, not caring if the weapons he carried could turn on you. Thank you. Thank you to Lauren Rousseau, who took the place of another as she left on maternity leave and accompanied 14 children on their way home.
All of the adult victims that day were women and they all acted to save the children. Now for the acts that I have read about and recognize as being smart although, I probably would have done differently. The male custodian, who ran the hallways, alerting all the classrooms that there was a shooter and to take cover. While his act of courage to alert as many of the classes as possible giving those teachers time to secure their classes and hide the children saved lives that day, it could have been different. Given the layout of the school, I might have urged the teachers to get the students out. Morning announcements were being read at the same time as the shots were being fired. Kaitlin Roig barricaded her 15 students in a tiny bathroom with a bookcase and told them to be absolutely quiet. I have no idea how you managed to keep 15 young elementary students quiet in that chaos, but I commend you. You saved their lives. To the clerk in the library, who led 18 students on their hands and knees to a point of safety, barricaded the door with file cabinets and then distracted them with paper and crayons.
Now, what would I propose to all school districts across this country. Stop locking our children up for the madmen, who break in, or the students, who seek revenge. Plan escape routes. Train your teachers and administrators what the sound of gunfire down your hallways sounds like. Work in conjunction with your local police departments, so the 911 calls can be an affirmative "There is an active shooter." Train your students how to quietly and quickly exit your buildings in the event of active shooter. Know your closest points of safety. Coordinate with local stay-at-home moms to establish safe homes in the event of such events happen to where your students can flee. Create less open space on your playgrounds, creating cover points as the children flee to safety. Coordinate with local businesses to shelter children in the event of an active shooter. Parents and communities have to be willing to spend a few tax dollars to make our school's entry points more secure in that the windows cannot be shot out by these shooters who would prey on our most vulnerable. Sometimes, in order to protect our most precious assets, we need to ask those who work with those who live in the gutter - the criminal defense attorneys of our communities. We know how our clients think and we can analyze situations and determine the vulnerable points and tell you how to fortify against our clients. Reach out to us, we are not so bad. We are all for keeping our children safe.
Next we need mental health reform. Not labeling or locking them up. But really dealing with the mental health problems. It does not need to be seen as a stigma to have a mental health problem. Sometimes individuals are born this way, sometimes there is a traumatic event that leaves them with a mental illness due to a brain injury, and sometimes it is just bad genes. There are also theories out there that it may be due to all the immunizations or all the efforts that society is taking to protect the environment. But we need to understand that children with autism, especially high functioning autism, have unique needs and are often overlooked because they do not fit the bill of true autism.
But above all, we need to realize that one event committed by one person does not mean that everyone with the same mental health problem will end up doing the same thing. We need to stop generalizing and being afraid. We need to mourn and look for solutions that are realistic and that do not hold our children hostage for madmen to pick off like fish in a barrel.
