Reality is something that can be very subjective. It shouldn’t be but it often is. I mean the truth is the truth regardless of what someone might believe. During high stress and some type of disasters (even combat in some cases) there are some who refuse to believe it. This is called the normalcy bias. When a person faces disaster (or crime, or an accident, or something dangerous) they can slip into this mental state.
I have been wondering about why so many people seem so incapable of seeing all the changes that are happening right in front of us. Why instead of so clearly seeing that things are slowly going ever so wrong, they doubt themselves or refuse to believe that there is anything different happening or that they can do anything to effect change. Many people see the normalcy bias as a problem of spouses and children that “just don’t seem to get what we are seeing”. The assumption that is made in the case of the normalcy bias is that since a disaster never has occurred then it never will occur. It also results in the inability of people to cope with a disaster once it occurs. It also can affect how someone prepares or views preparation.
There is a scene in the movie “Clue” where a character looks into a room and then says “Everything’s fine, four dead bodies.” It’s a funny scene because normally, several dead bodies in a room would not be fine! There is also another scene where a group of people come upon another dead body and one of them says, “This is getting serious…” as if one dead body is not serious enough.
The mainstream media will try and lull people into a state of “normalcy bias” and into a sense of false security. Surely by now you should have realized that the mainstream media is nothing less than a propaganda tool and a means for the “dumbing down of society” to truth and reality.
CNN reports that two students were killed in a shooting Thursday, December 7, 2017 at Aztec High School in Aztec, New Mexico. The suspected shooter is also dead.
Officials said the shooter was a male but did not provide any other details, such as whether he was a student or a visitor. Based on CNN's reporting, one major item sticks out about the student/staff response, and it is very common in these types of scenarios, it is clear that the school district failed to train their staff and the student population as a whole to override their 'normalcy bias.' That is, the bias we have developed as a civilian population living through decades of peacetime to deny that horrific violence is being directed at us when it is actually occurring, as it did in New Mexico.
It is one of the few negative byproducts of the strong defense our nation continues to enjoy, and only because sustained periods of peace for the majority of civilian society leads to a degradation of the natural defense we all have in us. This is why scenario-based training is so critical to keeping natural defense intact.
This CNN quote shows that specifically.
"Garrett Parker, a sophomore at Aztec High School, said he was in a classroom when students heard what they thought was someone punching the lockers. As the noise got louder and the suspect got closer to the classroom, they realized it was gunshots, he said."
No training or the normalcy bias put students and faculty in denial that an active shooter was closing in on their location with intent to murder. A student and staff member's automatic reaction to the sound of gunfire should be to immediately identify and get behind cover. All follow-on response decisions should be made from that point. The worst thing that could happen if a sound actually turns out to be something innocuous is that you have just performed a very effective individual active shooter response drill, and can simply step out from behind cover and resume your normal activities.
To accurately discern the sound of gunfire as well as effective cover, students and staff require scenario-based active shooter training to hone such skills. Every school district across the nation should view this horrific event in New Mexico as a catalyst to implement this type of training at every school under their purview.
Here is another quote that jumps out from the CNN story. It's from the mother of a student who was in the New Mexico school as the active shooter event occurred:
"I just can't believe this happened in our community. This is all a horrible feeling. I'm glad my kids are safe and with us but I am devastated for my community and for the families who didn't get the chance to take their kids home."
When will our naiveté about the active shooter epidemic in schools cease? When will we come to grips with this reality and implement the training necessary to completely avoid (behavior detection and response) or effectively respond in real-time (cover vs. concealment/tactical training) to these types of scenarios?
Reality should have shown us by now that every school across the nation is susceptible to this type of event. Therefore, we need to adopt an attitude that does not ask 'if' an active shooter event will occur at the school our children attend, but 'when.' From there, we need to attack this problem head on at the community level instead of hoping government at the state and federal levels can find a way to legislate this problem into extinction.
Legislation is not equipped to effectively control this epidemic of violence. Like so many ailments of modern American life, it is too complex to be addressed by lawmakers in Washington. You must take responsibility for your family’s safety.
The responsibility of effective active shooter preparedness and defense can no longer be outsourced to law enforcement alone - it has outpaced their ability to effectively respond. All of us - parents, educators, students, whole communities - must be part of a comprehensive, grass-roots solution, and we need to move forward on this immediately.
To do anything less is to submit to complacency, and complacency is a disease that costs us the lives of our children.
This is also a problem with any violence or disaster event. We must stop hiding our head in the sand and become prepared and trained.
The tragedy in Florida yesterday is almost exactly like the New Mexico shootings. Yet all anyone can come up with is gun control.
Israel have been dealing with this for a long time. We can learn a lot from a country who is almost always under attack.
The following is what a security expert took away from their visit to Israel:
1) Identify the most likely threats to your students and staff.
2) Solicit the help and active collaboration of stakeholders and form all-hazard threat assessment teams to identify the threats and methods to warn your staff and others about the threats that can be prevented or interrupted. This is provided that they can be mitigated. For example, foul weather cannot be prevented, but it can be mitigated. Concentrate on preparedness for the most likely threats, and use resources that are readily available as guides such as FEMA, the Department of Education, reputable private firms, non-profits and your state’s emergency management.
3) Have a no-hassle and confidential way for the reporting of unusual/concerning activity (e.g. an unattended bag). Any system/method you employ for public reporting should be very user friendly.
4) Develop and communicate as simple of a plan as possible to staff or students on the proper course of action they should take to deal quickly with threats.
5) Train, train, train on that plan, and include students and staff, not just your own public safety staff. Then, evaluate the plan and tweak it where necessary. Also, ensure that safety drill practices and evaluations are a weighted part of staff performance expectations.
6) If you use security cameras and technology, get a vendor with good support and don’t bog down people trying to monitor technology that is beyond their ability to mentally handle. The Israelis were quick to point out that they limit anyone monitoring video to a four hour shift. Anything beyond that greatly decreases human capability to observe.
7) As much as possible, sanitize areas that are to be used for large gatherings on campus. You might not have a K-9 or sophisticated explosive detection equipment on hand, but you can have trained observers. Train them on IED detection and use them. Once you sanitize an area, ensure it is secured and not left unattended before participants begin to arrive.
8) Use community policing to make safety a mindset and culture on your campus so the programs you employ will be sustainable in the future. Soliciting others on campus is a force multiplier, so get students and staff involved. Properly applied technology is a great asset, yet nothing really beats an engaged observer who is properly trained on response.
We must get vigilant, and stay that way.
Fighting the normalcy bias is a difficult task but it can be overcome. Ensure you don’t become part of this bias yourself. Keeping an open mind and knowing what to do in disasters or in the face of violence, will help you to not just survive, but thrive.
Semper Paratus
Check 6
Burn
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