Different Slants

My name is Robert M. Katzman and I am a Chicago writer. Like everyone, I too was horrified by Friday’s school killings and that gave birth to a possible solution to the terror.  Not idealistic, but with practical multiple benefits.  Nothing means more to me than protecting our children from terror.  This is it:

Create a domestic service to protect every elementary, middle and high school. Call it the National School Guardian Force, NSGF, or whatever name people agree on.  That’s not important.  Hire only unemployed, honorably discharged, physically-fit veterans between 20-40 years old to cover two different entrances to all schools. Pay them a decent wage or salary. This will solve several problems all at once.

It will add a very good primary layer of protection to all schools. It will remove a very large number of vets from unemployment. They are already covered by veteran’s benefits medically and educationally. They already know how to handle weapons and hand-to-hand combat, or many of them will. But they aren’t paying any taxes if they are out of work.

Hire disabled vets to administer the program in as many positions as possible.  More taxes.

If every city/town gains newly employed workers, they will all pay federal, state and Social Security/ Medicare taxes.  They will spend money locally, especially in smaller towns, and add something to the economy wherever they are.  They will be popular immediately and that is a benefit emotionally that can’t be measured.  They will have a purpose in their lives that really matters to many, many people. It is a very good way for a lot of presently hopeless but valuable people to reintegrate into America society.

If some towns are too small to attract Guards, offer them a foreclosed or abandoned home to live in—for free—if they agree to live there a certain number of years.  Like The Homesteading Act did a hundred years ago to populate the empty plains states.

I’m sure others could improve on this concept, and should. It is not a political football.  Who would vote against it?  We have a National Forest Service, The TSA to protect air travel, the Coast Guard to protect the water borders and more guards to protect the border with Mexico.

If this idea cost people a dime a day or whatever in additional taxes to insure that people’s children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and, yes, the teachers, too, had a fighting chance to get home from school every day, I think people would pay it.  Maybe even a quarter.

I am not talented with the social media, but if anyone who reads this note feels it has merit, well, you know who to send it to locally and nationally, and how to do that effectively. God bless America.  Now, don’t just sit there.  Do something.

 December 15, 2012