This was our KMMS AM Show poll question of the day this morning and results were 50-50 about what you might expect.

The case in point is that Montana has more than 60 one room schoolhouses — more than any other state.

The response time to these rural bastions of learning could be over half an hour or more for county deputies if there are no local police.

A Gun Bill Coming In January

Rep. Casey Knudsen (R-Malta) will introduce a bill in January to address using firearms as a safety measure in Montana Schools.

While school shootings are rare in Montana that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be conscious of them and take preventative measures wherever possible.

Parents And Guns

While many Montanans own guns I would imagine that many parents might be uneasy if there are teachers packing heat in their child’s school.

We have to consider Murphy’s Law. Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. Accidents can and will happen.

That’s little solace if you’re a parent standing at a graveside. But flip the coin and in most cases a man or woman with a gun is usually stopped by someone else with a gun.

Some Final Thoughts

There are no right answers when it comes to personal protection. The bill in question would require extensive training for the teachers.

The most important part of the training is accurately identifying the threat. No one wants a student gunned down for holding a cell phone thought to be a gun.

I don’t think this would work in every state. Montana has a healthy respect and a long history of hunting and gun safety. Many kids are taught at an early age about hunting and the proper use of rifles, shotguns, and hand guns.

I think this bill is a valid test for the teachers who want to participate and take the training.