If 9/11 had never happened, it is possible that the last great American nightmare, our last national “remember where you were moment,” would be the school shootings at Columbine High School in April 1999.
When there was a school shooting in Littleton, Col. last month, literally just down the road from Columbine, television media was kind enough to rebroadcast the tapes of Columbine students fleeing the school building with their hands clasped above their heads; the images still as painfully powerful as they were when first broadcast live almost 11 years ago.
In the aftermath of the Columbine shooting, schools across the country adopted crisis response plans. Such plans basically codify what should be done and who should do what, and when, in the event of an emergency.
In Boothbay this week, we got a glimpse of such a plan in action.
A gun incident came to naught because the students took action and the administration acted quickly to defuse the threat. That’s how it should work. Hopefully the good that will come out of this will involve the student at the center of the issue getting needed help.
We also commend Boothbay School officials for taking the step of putting cameras on school grounds. It’s unfortunate and it was probably not an easy decision for the board in these budget crunching times, but we imagine that, when balanced against the expense of a typical bomb threat, the cameras will pay for themselves in the long run.
Still, it is troubling to think of the damage that could have been done if the student involved was determined to take his frustrations out on the people around him. As we have seen in the past, all the best laid plans in the world can still only account for so much.
Here in Lincoln County, where most of us know our neighbors, or at least know people who know our neighbors, it is easy to get lulled into thinking that it can’t happen here, but it can. People in Littleton undoubtedly used to think it couldn’t happen there, but it did.
It’s tough times we are living in. Unfortunately, we need to remain prepared for the worst, but we can, and should, still hope for the best.
