Deputy Scot Peterson

[WTR]

I turned 18 at the end of 73. I did not go to Viet Nam. The closest I got was a Draft Card that the Gov. Never used. I knew people who lost their life in VN when there Moms and Dads could not pay a Dr. to sign off on a deferment.( not that they would have asked). I did go to College and actually found a way to graduate. What does that matter? Yes I would have gone in. I have had 62 good years with people loving me. If I caused nothing but a distraction and saved even one kiddo, it would have been worth trading lives.

[Ruark]

I worked for 15 years with state and federal school finance, and budgeting will be a core issue here. Many schools can barely afford to replace their light bulbs, much less pay a professional security guard $50,000 a year. And what about larger schools that are scattered out, with 10, 20 or more temporary classroom buildings? Stoneman Douglas covers 45 acres. That's as big as the University of Texas at Austin. What are they supposed to do, hire 40 armed security personnel, all of which will spend their time standing around waiting for a shooting that, statistically, will never happen? Even if you had them, would that stop a lunatic who is going to shoot himself anyway?

Of course, the Plan B is volunteers, but even then you run into logistical issues where multiple buildings are concerned, given that a shooter can kill 2 or 3 dozen kids in a matter of seconds.

The best answer might be to control access not to the school, but to the campus itself. Most schools already have tall fencing around them. So maybe an approach is to put in an entry gate, where only approved vehicles and/or personnel can enter. Non-approved persons (e.g. visiting parents, special guests, etc.) could step through a metal detector next to the gate. It would only require 1 or 2 personnel, and the whole thing could probably be contracted out by the school district.

I'm just thinking off the top of my head here, but from a budgeting and effectiveness standpoint, something like that is MUCH more feasible than having a platoon of armed guards wandering around all day.

[Charles L. Cotton]

I turned 18 at the end of 73. I did not go to Viet Nam. The closest I got was a Draft Card that the Gov. Never used. I knew people who lost their life in VN when there Moms and Dads could not pay a Dr. to sign off on a deferment.( not that they would have asked). I did go to College and actually found a way to graduate. What does that matter? Yes I would have gone in. I have had 62 good years with people loving me. If I caused nothing but a distraction and saved even one kiddo, it would have been worth trading lives.

When you said "deferment," I thought you meant Trump had a college deferment. If he was medically disqualified, then that wasn't a deferment, it was a medical disqualification that may or may not have resulted in a 4F classification.

I find it most interesting that you claim you would have gone in the school, but resolutely claim Trump would not. You base your opinion of Trump's willingness on a medical condition from 50 years ago. What possible good comes from attacking his sincerity as to what he would have done under the same circumstances?

Chas.

[WTR]

My largest concern is that he would open himself up to the scrutiny of the left. He has. His most recent blunders show him to be a wuss. Tell Howard Stern that his VN was avoiding STIs does not look too great either. Bone spurs?..... You are correct, that was a medical condition Daddy paid for. He also had 4 deferments for college. Once he graduated in 68 and was eligible for the draft , the athlete developed bone spurs.

[Redneck_Buddha]

Had it been you OR me, what would you OR I have done? Just wonderin'.....

That question is only valid if you are asking forumites who are LEOs.

I knew someone would pop up to defend this derelict coward.

[Ruark]

I find it most interesting that you claim you would have gone in the school, but resolutely claim Trump would not. You base your opinion of Trump's willingness on a medical condition from 50 years ago. What possible good comes from attacking his sincerity as to what he would have done under the same circumstances?
Chas.

I wasn't in the military and didn't go to Vietnam. However, both I and many in my family have worked on military bases and spent many years around military personnel. I used to eat lunch every day with GIs who still had Vietnamese mud on their boots.

One thing I've heard repeatedly is that one can not predict how you would react to a real-life combat situation. It is totally individual. In a real, intense, life and death firefight, a big gorilla might turn into a whimpering puppy, and a little wimp might turn into a rampaging death machine.

So a lot of these guys trying to armchair-quarterback this and saying oh, yeah, I would have gone in and done this or done that.... they're blowing smoke; they don't know what they would have done. We like to THINK we'd be Rambo, but you really don't know, until you're actually in that situation. Let's keep that in mind before we start calling somebody else a coward.

This could also apply to Peterson, to some extent. In a smaller community like this, it's entirely possible that he had never fired his gun in his 30 years with the department, and drew it maybe once a year for his mandatory qualification and gun-cleaning. I'm not defending him by any means; I'm just speculating as to what was going on in his head. The prospect of drawing his handgun and going into a building where some unknown party was blasting nonstop with an AR may very well have been more than he could handle, i.e. he may have been just plain scared shirtless.

[rotor]

I find it most interesting that you claim you would have gone in the school, but resolutely claim Trump would not. You base your opinion of Trump's willingness on a medical condition from 50 years ago. What possible good comes from attacking his sincerity as to what he would have done under the same circumstances?
Chas.

I wasn't in the military and didn't go to Vietnam. However, both I and many in my family have worked on military bases and spent many years around military personnel. I used to eat lunch every day with GIs who still had Vietnamese mud on their boots.

One thing I've heard repeatedly is that one can not predict how you would react to a real-life combat situation. It is totally individual. In a real, intense, life and death firefight, a big gorilla might turn into a whimpering puppy, and a little wimp might turn into a rampaging death machine.

So a lot of these guys trying to armchair-quarterback this and saying oh, yeah, I would have gone in and done this or done that.... they're blowing smoke; they don't know what they would have done. We like to THINK we'd be Rambo, but you really don't know, until you're actually in that situation. Let's keep that in mind before we start calling somebody else a coward.

This could also apply to Peterson, to some extent. In a smaller community like this, it's entirely possible that he had never fired his gun in his 30 years with the department, and drew it maybe once a year for his mandatory qualification and gun-cleaning. I'm not defending him by any means; I'm just speculating as to what was going on in his head. The prospect of drawing his handgun and going into a building where some unknown party was blasting nonstop with an AR may very well have been more than he could handle, i.e. he may have been just plain scared shirtless.

The man was paid over $75,000 a year to defend the students and school. With overtime he made over $100,000 a year. That was his job and he didn't do it. The issue is not what you or I would do. The issue is what would the man who had the job do. The final insult is that he retired and now collects a pension for not doing his job.

[dlh]

I am interested in how much "active shooter" training Peterson had as an LEO. Since he was an armed deputy at a large high school you would think that he had at least some training but I have not seen anything about it in the press.

On another issue involving Peterson's "hesitation at the moment of truth" folks might be interested in the book written by Army Ranger Dave Grossman entitled "On Killing." That book is available over on Amazon. Apparently it is also a problem in the U.S. military though Grossman's (and S.L.A. Marshall before him) book remains controversial.

[BBYC]

The man was paid over $75,000 a year to defend the students and school. With overtime he made over $100,000 a year. That was his job and he didn't do it. The issue is not what you or I would do. The issue is what would the man who had the job do. The final insult is that he retired and now collects a pension for not doing his job.

Your tax dollars at work.

[Ruark]

I am interested in how much "active shooter" training Peterson had as an LEO.

Same here. I live rural and have run into quite a few small-town sheriff's deputies. I'm sure some of them have received additional training since they left the academy. It's pretty obvious, though, that the majority of them would be hard pressed to run across the front yard. It would be interesting to know what kind of additional training Peterson had - if he was kept up to date, or if he was just one of those good ol' boys down at the donut shop who couldn't hit the side of a barn with his hat.

[Oldgringo]

Had it been you OR me, what would you OR I have done? Just wonderin'.....

That question is only valid if you are asking forumites who are LEOs.

I knew someone would pop up to defend this derelict coward.

If you're accusing me of defending him, you are wrong......among other things!

[Charles L. Cotton]

My largest concern is that he would open himself up to the scrutiny of the left. He has. His most recent blunders show him to be a wuss. Tell Howard Stern that his VN was avoiding STIs does not look too great either. Bone spurs?..... You are correct, that was a medical condition Daddy paid for. He also had 4 deferments for college. Once he graduated in 68 and was eligible for the draft , the athlete developed bone spurs.

What proof do you have that his "Daddy" paid for a fraudulent medical report? As for Trump not having the guts to get involved, read and weep.

Chas.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =3&theater

[WTR]

https://www.snopes.com/trump-stops-mugging-1991/ By the way I voted for Trump. I am just tired of the tweats, boasting and patting himself on the back.....Not the way I was raised.

[mojo84]

https://www.snopes.com/trump-stops-mugging-1991/ By the way I voted for Trump. I am just tired of the tweats, boasting and patting himself on the back.....Not the way I was raised.

Funny you are using Snopes to counter a news article that was posted almost 30 years ago. Have you researched who owns and runs Snopes?

The issue is, the one guy that was hired to protect the kids from exactly what happened did nothing and there are 17 people dead. You are criticizing Trump for saying he'd like to think he would have gone in and then you state you would have. Oh, the irony. Have you been in a situation when you ran to the sound of gunshots to assist others? If not, your statement is no more credible than his.