Sunday, May 20, 2018

MassillonLIVE! We Take You There! Editorial:

May 20th 2018:

Campus shootings!
 
As a community, the solution may be in our hands!

(Massillon): Another day, another shooting. The sad reality is with so many acts of violence, we have become desensitized. That is a very dark statement. Our children are dying at the hands of a violent act and we feel helpless. It's the guns! It's the lobbyists with the NRA! There's not enough mental health support! Many of these statements have merit but the bigger question is, even if all of those statements were in order, would that have stopped a determined shooter with a plan, or just changed that plan to meet that shooters ultimate conclusion of violence.

Have we come to a point where we have lost respect for human life? Thanks to the media and the entertainment industry, have we become numb to violence? These very issues may play a role in changing an awkward teen or someone with a heavy burden into a mass killer. To this point, all we have been able to do as a nation has been to react to these massacres.

MAYBE THE PROACTIVE SOLUTIONS ARE FOUND RIGHT HERE IN OUR OWN COMMUNITY!

To heck with Washington. It seems by the time they make a decision we will all be dead and gone from old age. Massillon is a unique city. First of all, we are a tight little town of folks that have each others back. Always have been. Secondly, resolving a problem is a lot easier when there's not a lot of hoops to jump through. You see a problem and you take measures to find a solution. Below are a few examples of that.

WASHINGTON HIGH SCHOOL:

Some people said it was a crazy idea, but the Massillon City Schools went ahead and installed a metal detector in the main entrance area of Washington High School. All students must go in and out through that area. At the open and close of school, the Resource Officers (Police) are out front on the grounds to be a friend and a guardian. Other security measures are being activated throughout the district that we won't talk about for security reasons.


MASSILLON CITY HALL:

If you've ever had to go to court to pay a parking ticket then you know that in order to get access to our courts, you go through a check point metal detector with law enforcement standing guard.

In addition, a new detection system is now in place on the administration side and manned by law enforcement during city council meetings. City council chambers will also undergo security changes in the near future. The mayors office is being addressed as well. Bottom line? Massillon is doing whatever it takes to protect its citizens and our children. That doesn't mean something couldn't happen. That is why we should always be aware of our surroundings which leads us to our final thought.

A.L.I.C.E.

Recently our city council and administration were addressed by Patrolmen Aaron Franklin of the Massillon Police Department. The topic? 'ALICE' which stands for ALERT, LOCKDOWN, INFORM, COUNTER and EVACUATE. This training presentation deals with how to respond to an active shooter situation. It is very informative and could save lives if anyone at city hall is faced with an active shooter. If you would like more information about this training presentation for your group or business, contact Patrolmen Franklin at The Massillon Police Department at 330-830-1755.

Massillon is not going to wait for Washington to come up with an answer. As a community, we'll work hard with each other to protect ourselves as a community. We hope that other communities will look into their own strengths to protect themselves. Perhaps the best thing to do in Washington is to mandate federal funding for safety protocols that we discussed here today for communities and schools across the country.

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