Up North Progressive

They say there is no bad publicity. If you want to make a name for yourself, doing something negative will produce the same result as doing something positive. The tea party has been using this tactic for years to get their names in the papers. Let’s meet a local man who decided to give it a shot, and it seems to be working. Andy Marek of Interlochen is a single dad with a 17-year career at Home Depot. A lifetime resident of Grand Traverse County, he is now running for county commissioner.

You may have heard of Andy Marek if the you read the Traverse City Record Eagle, because there was an article about Marek bringing a loaded firearm to a Traverse City Area Public Schools board meeting in January. Marek’s reason for bringing a gun onto public school property comes from his fear of being shot at a public school, as he stated for the newspaper, “Most shootings happen in schools, I need to be able to protect myself.” He went on to say he would feel really bad if he didn’t have his tool with him, because schools are dangerous.

Andy Marek is a firm believer in the NRA gospel that he is a “good guy with a gun,” and that means he can take his gun with him anywhere he wants. Unfortunately for the public school district in Traverse City, it appears the law is on Marek’s side. After all, he pointed out that schools are dangerous places where lots of people get shot. Walking into one means Marek had to put his life in danger.

Making public schools safer is something Andy Marek thinks about and he admits having a gun may not be enough. What else does Marek believe needs to be done to our schools so he can feel safe walking into one with his tool? He shared that with the public in an online discussion.

• A way to easily secure the doors from the inside of each classroom.

• Bars over all windows on the first floor, Including windows on doors.

• No openings in fences around school except the main entrance to minimize access to the building.

• Door buzzer at main entrance.

• Panic button that goes direct to central dispatch in each class room.

• Resource officer in each school. Or at least the appearance of one there.

• Insure that the Public Address system works in each school. One failed during a recent lock down drill.

• Two levels of fencing around school with a sally port to restrict access until person verified to have reason to be there.

• A conference room or sterile area for meetings with non employees to keep the criminals away from our children.

The only thing missing from this list is sniper towers and a moat filled with piranhas. According to Andy Marek, the way to make schools safer is to turn them into prison facilities. He must also believe school districts have magical money trees that always produce bumper crops of funds to pay for extreme security upgrades. An important question a sane person my have after reading Marek’s list is who needs all that protection, children or the good guys with guns who walk into school buildings?

Schools have comprehensive policies in place for dealing with firearms entering buildings. Unless the person with the firearm is an officer of the law, walking into a school with a gun triggers two things, the school building goes into lockdown and the police are contacted. Regardless of any permits the gun owner has, the safety of children and staff in the school are the first and only priority of the school. Anybody who is not a police officer and walks into a school with a gun becomes the bad guy with a gun.