Should We Put Armed Guards in Every School?

A popular Christian blogger has responded to the most recent school shooting with a radical, yet simple and common-sensical, solution. He insists that it is time to put armed guards in every public school in this country. This idea, while viewed as radical by many, really shouldn't be novel or radical at all. Walsh's logic is sound when he points out that most public buildings already have armed guards and that schools being the exception really doesn't make much sense; that this is an unpleasant reality of living in a fallen world and that bad things, which should never happen, do, in fact, happen; and when he says that the real issue is evil, not politics.

As much as I agree with his logic, I still must ask the question, is the solution to our problem really putting armed guards in every school? That might be too radical for some, but it's not radical enough for my blood. I have a far more difficult pill to swallow. How about we get rid of public schools altogether? No, I'm not suggesting this just because it would be a good idea to avoid the inherent vulnerability of hundreds of minors congregating daily with few adults present, even though that's probably a good enough reason by itself. I'm suggesting that we get rid of public education because it is that education itself that is largely contributing to the problem.

Has public education in this country been successful? Yes, and no. No, public education has not been successful in making the youth of this country well-educated, but, yes, it has been successful at accomplishing the goals of its founders. Yes, it has been successful in destroying the religious foundations of this country, making atheists and secularists out of our children. Yes, it has been overwhelmingly successful in recruiting sheep who will stay in line and maintain the status quo. Yes, it has undeniably successful in incrementally normalizing socialistic ideals in our political landscape. Yes, it has taught our kids that truth is relative and that guilt is an illusion used by society to elicit conformity. Yes, our nation's children think they are highly-evolved mammals and they act accordingly. Yes, we have a generation whose inflated self-esteem is inversely proportional to their common sense. Yes, we continue to pump our kids full of drugs so that we don't have to deal with them and so that we can keep the drug companies out of the red. Yes, I'm afraid, our public education system has been a glaring success.

So let's abolish public education in America. Let's privatize the public schools and sell the buildings to the teachers' unions. Heck, let's give 'em the buildings! The private sector is always, and I mean that literally, more effective and efficient than the government. Getting the government out of education would simultaneously restore freedom, save money, and increase our academic standards.

Now, Walsh might actually be inclined to agree with me (I can't speak for him--I only know that he supports private education), but I know that my solution is too radical to be digestible for any significant portion of this country. Given this reality, his suggestion is probably as good as you'll find.

"Father, Forgive Them"

“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Forgiveness is hard. Forgiveness is really, really hard. It’s difficult to forgive others who have genuinely harmed or offended us. It’s easy to say , “I forgive you,” but it’s extremely difficult to feel it–to make peace in our hearts with the injustices that others have perpetrated against us. It just doesn’t feel right. Sin should be punished! Wrongs should be righted! Right?! It’s difficult to forgive others when they ask for it. It’s even more difficult to forgive them when they haven’t asked for it–when they don’t even recognize what they’ve done to hurt us. As our Savior hung upon His Cross, He asked the Father to forgive those nearby–those who were unwittingly contributing to the greatest injustice in the history of the world. These thieves, soldiers, and standers-by had no idea what was happening. They had no idea that the jealousy of the Jews had placed Christ on that Cross...

The Real Presence & Paedocommunion: A Deeper Rift Between Reformed Churches

You're going back to Rome! Theological disagreements within the Reformed world, especially those of the last half century, often devolve into these sorts of accusations. As controversialists like Doug Wilson and Peter Leithart began to break away from the larger conservative Presbyterian and Reformed denominations, it became clear that the rift was deeper than semantics and systematic minutiae. Much like the Reformation four centuries before, the Table was a primary point of conflict. What does it mean? Who may partake? What do we call it? These questions, along with a few more, divided Reformed brethren as the physical elements of our religion reflected deeper conflicts. Good men began to understand that the problem wasn't just in our logos, but in our pathos and ethos, as well. Paedocommunion (hereafter PC) has been one of the hottest points of contention. PC has always been normal to me as I grew up with it. I underst...

"The More Things Change..." or "Joe Biden Doing Joe Biden Things"

1 Samuel 2 relates the story of Eli, the well-meaning high priest whose only flaw (apparently) was his refusal to discipline his sons. These sons, described as worthless men , utilized their position to abuse the people and indulge their lusts with impunity. Eli's dereliction of duty brought his otherwise noble career in service to God's house to an ignominious end. There are, of course, important differences between Eli and Joe Biden. Joe Biden is not a religious leader (though he is a practicing Roman Catholic ), nor would I consider his record to be otherwise spotless. However, similarly to Eli, Biden's pardoning of his own worthless son, Hunter, will prove to be his legacy. His long (and I mean loooong) career in politics will likely be overshadowed, even in the eyes of those who previously respected him, by this one shameless act. By pardoning his son despite promising not to, Biden has yet again demonstrate...

Always Reforming

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