Sheriff Joe's Posse to Protect Schools

We do not need gun control. That will never solve any problems of violence. What we need are retired police volunteers protecting schools, just as volunteer school crossing guards assure the safety of children heading to and from school. Or, as Fox News reports, we need Sheriff Joe Arpaio's armed posse patrolling schools. With an armed presence at schools, cowards will no longer show up at schools determined to do evil because cowards and bullies don't like the thought of resistance. This armed presence at schools needs to become widespread throughout the United States.An Arizona sheriff has proposed placing an armed volunteer posse at many  Phoenix-area schools, in response to the deadly school shooting in  Connecticut.Earlier in the week, Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne proposed firearms  training for one educator in every school in the state. Following that lead,  Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Thursday he wants to start dispatching  volunteer patrols to schools within a week, according to MyFoxPhoenix.com.The report emphasized that the plan calls for armed posse members around the  perimeters of  schools, not inside them. It will focus on about 50 schools  within Maricopa County.Sheriff Arpaio says members of the volunteer posse provide their own  equipment and don’t receive a salary, so there’s no cost to taxpayers. But, he  says, the volunteers have the experience to handle the job."The posse has the same training regarding guns as our regular deputy  sheriffs, over 100 hours of training, plus refresher courses," he said. "We  should never have a defeatist attitude. We look to the future and take whatever  precautions we can do. I don't just want to talk, I like action.”Arpaio has used similar volunteer groups to patrol malls over the holidays.  Posse members arrested 31 people this year, and the sheriff thinks their  presence may deter criminal activity.When MyFoxPhoenix.com tried to get reaction from school officials, a  spokesperson for Arizona Superintendent John Huppenthal said they are looking at  a number of proposals and released this statement: "In addition to  potentially adopting one of these approaches, we would want to ensure all  schools and districts complete the necessary intensive threat assessment and  violence prevention training that create a comprehensive solution to create the  safest possible environment for our students."