Sandy Hook overshadows ‘fiscal cliff’

I was going to ask you whether you were more afraid of the end of the world this coming weekend or falling off the so-called fiscal cliff.

Think about it: those Mayans were considered an advanced civilization and their predictions about the world ending have been breathtakingly accurate. At least 10 of their end-of-the-world predictions happened at the exact second they said it would. So there’s no reason next weekend shouldn’t be the last days.

The next topic should really scare us, because it depends on politicians. The event, of course, is the approach to the fiscal cliff. The exact date isn’t known, but sometime by the end of the year or perhaps in January, our financial system will collapse and the only way to stay solvent will be to own gold or silver. I recall the predictions of 1980, when the gold and silver prices were due to explode with the concurrent collapse of the dollar. That year, the dollar soared to become one of the world’s strongest currencies. Gold and silver headed straight down, creating several bankruptcies with them.

So much for the end of world or the dollar, now let’s talk about something serious – very serious.

I have to admit that the pictures of those darling little girls at Sandy Hook Elementary School shook me up. I watched at least 12 hours of news Friday and Saturday and along with my sadness for the victims, I was angered and mystified by the solutions offered by various chaplains, psychologists and former detectives.

First, and this was probably split along party lines, there were whose who wanted much tighter gun control and those who said it wouldn’t do any good. Then there were a few who recommended the stationing of an armed guards and a security kiosk, perhaps one with a retinal scanner.

Of course there were those – mostly women – who insisted we “listen to our children” and address problems immediately. Most of them agreed there was anger and loneliness inside the boy – it’s always boys, isn’t it? And then get them to talk about what was disturbing them.

Naturally a few men – or women – of the cloth said these troubled boys had let God go out of their lives and they never asked for his help anymore.

There was only one satisfactory answer, as far as I was concerned. It came from a hefty, retired New York City detective – a big guy with a crew cut. I don’t remember exactly what he said, but in my own words, his strong recommendation was to give senior school personnel – teachers and administrators – training in guns and post them around the school, I guess during their lunch or coffee breaks.

So if a school like Sandy Hook had five armed administrators walking around the school or perhaps placing themselves as snipers, it would give a pause to young killers who had terror in mind.

I can’t claim that teachers and administrators would be the answer, but at least they would be familiar with the students and delivery personnel they saw. Just an idea. Now we can go back to worrying about the end of the world and the fiscal cliff.

Bud Stevenson, a stockbroker, lives in Fairfield. Reach him at Bsteven254@aol.com.