By Carl Jackson

The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission stirred up controversy last week when they erred on the side of common sense and the Second Amendment. The Commission investigating the so-called “Valentine’s Day massacre” that left 14 students and 3 teachers dead, and another 17 people wounded recommended that teachers who were willing to volunteer, undergo background checks, psychological evaluations and training, be allowed to carry concealed firearms on campus.

Opponents of the recommendation argue that armed-teachers wouldn’t stop mass shootings and it’s a bad idea that would make students less safe. They feel teachers should be teaching. Not playing Robocop. Some of them have asked the questions, what if a teacher goes crazy and shoots a student? Or, what if the teacher is so inept with a gun that they accidentally shoot anyone who may be in the way? They believe guns are better off left in the hands of trained professionals such as cops and military personnel. But are they right? I don’t think so.

First off, the only things that separate an armed-cop from an armed-teacher is training and permission to carry. There’s nothing a cop can learn about firing a gun that a teacher cannot. Additionally, teachers tend to be patient, caring and protective of their students. It’s no wonder so many have stood in the line of fire in school shootings. You may recall that instead of engaging Nikolas Cruz in a fire fight, it was the Broward County deputies themselves, led by Sheriff Scott Israel, that hid behind their vehicles and school walls while students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High were executed by the killer. Several staffers courageously stood between the shooter and their students. They were the first line of defense for those kids.

Now that you know my arguments, let’s unpack them further.

First, training. Police who are trained in firearms may have an advantage over the average citizen, but not necessarily over an avid gun enthusiast who visits a range frequently. If a policeman freshens up on his skills monthly, but his neighbor goes to the range weekly, who has the advantage over whom? Wearing a uniform and having the authority to carry a firearm doesn’t determine someone’s skill level when it comes to shooting.

Secondly, we all have fond memories of our favorite teacher growing up. I’m sure you can remember that teacher who took the time to give you words of encouragement that made you believe your dreams were possible? They realized your potential even before you did? Remember that teacher who wasn’t afraid to call your parents if it meant they could get better results out of you because they knew you were capable of more? We all can remember those teachers that simply showed they cared. Now, imagine one of those teachers voluntarily undergoing a psychological evaluation and firearms training to protect you from harm in the unlikely event of a mass shooting. Do you think they’d hesitate to take a bullet or fire one to protect your child from a shooter if they had to? I don’t. They have a bond with their students that cops never will.

Lastly, if you add firearms training to a teacher’s natural proclivity to be caring and pragmatic, it’s highly unlikely they’ll snap and go on a shooting rampage themselves. Never mind the ridiculous notion that they’d be so inept with a gun that they’d shoot everyone in site but the bad guy. If teachers were capable of committing mass shootings in schools, we’d be hearing about a growing epidemic of teacher shootings! Especially, given all of the bad behind kids they have to deal with nowadays! Think about it. How easy would it be for a teacher to sneak a gun on campus and shoot someone? Extremely easy. Yet, we don’t hear about that happening.

Furthermore, with all due respect to our cops, their suicide rate compared to teachers are off the charts! Yet, we trust them to protect our communities with firearms. According to a 2016 column in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution titled “Teachers have the lowest suicide rate,” a Center for Disease Control and Prevention report revealed that “the suicide rate among people in education, training and library was 7.5 per 100,000 workers. That’s the lowest among all 22 occupations included in the report.” The highest suicide rate, particularly with women, were seen amongst police officers, firefighters and correction officers due to on-the-job stress and isolation from communities.

The bottom line is this, if we want to get serious about protecting our kids from mass shootings while they’re in school we should develop standard school safety requirements across the country. Including, metal detectors where necessary, mental screenings for kids that have shown repeated violent and threatening behavioral patterns, there should be a minimum of one school safety officer on campus trained to engage a mass shooter where possible and diffuse less violent scenarios. And last but far from least, we need to arm teachers that are willing to voluntarily undergo firearms training and psychologically examinations.

We trust teachers with our kid’s futures. Why not their lives?

Carl Jackson was born and raised in Los Angeles, California by his mother and father until the age of 11 when his mother died unexpectedly of a chronic illness. Carl attempted to find his way as the youngest of six who were lost without the strength of their matriarch. He moved back and forth between L.A and Orlando, FL trying to find his way in life. With the help of family and friends, he was introduced to hard work, faith and family values. However, as a struggling teen he wandered down the path of least resistance, finding himself jailed twice and with a child out of wedlock, he had to fight to raise.

By the grace of God and insistence by his brother and friend, he attended an Evangelical church and found that there was a better way. Once he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, he began to develop a greater desire to understand who God is and why it mattered. He began to see that the cultural dependence on government promoted by Democratic leaders in his community rejected dependence upon God. As he studied America’s history, he discovered for the first time that despite America’s flaws, particularly slavery, God used our Founding Fathers to create our Constitution within the context of the Bible and world history. It’s divine and exceptional nature is undeniable.

It was during his newfound love for American history that he discovered the Democrat party perpetuated slavery, formed the KKK, and fought against the civil rights of minorities. With this hidden history, Carl was launched on a journey to help people of all races and backgrounds discover facts of America’s true past, as well as realize the benefits of utilizing their God-given gifts and talents which far outweigh any benefit from a government subsidy or program.

Carl is committed to persuading people of faith to get involved in the political process. Essentially becoming more than just pew warmers for Christ. Secondly, he has a goal of divorcing minorities, particularly blacks and Latino’s, from dependence upon the Democrat party — big government. He’s dedicated to communicating conservative values in laymens terms in order to reach constituents that the right has either been unable or too afraid to reach.

Today, Carl resides in Orlando, Fl with his wife and daughter. He’s a radio host for iHeart Radio, Orlando (AM540WFLA or Newsradio 93.1FM) where his show airs on Wednesday and Friday from 7-8pm. Additionally, Carl is a contributing columnist for TownHall.com, World Net Daily (wnd.com), TheConservativePundit.net and BlackCommunityNews.com. Lastly, Carl is a political analyst on television for Orlando’s Fox35WOFL.

If you’d like more information on Carl, or if you’d like to contact him for an interview, or even listen to archived shows check out his website at carljacksonshow.com, follow him on Twitter @carljacksonshow, or like him on FaceBook at carljacksonradio.