In a time when our leaders are not devising intelligent solutions to keep students safe from shootings, the students themselves are stepping up. Justin Rivard, a senior at Somerset High School in Wisconsin, can't prevent an armed maniac from pulling up to a school with bad intentions. But his invention can prevent them from entering a classroom.
Rivard used his skills in shop class to devise a simple, compact object, made from bar stock and steel plate, that can be used to quickly render a door impassable. Look at how it works:
As stated in the video, after seeing the device Rivard's school district ordered 94 units in total, covering every classroom for the elementary, junior high and high schools.
It's not a cure-all, of course; a shooter might time a rampage for when he knows students will be in the hallway, and the Parkland shooter deviously pulled the fire alarm in order to provide himself with ample targets. But at least Rivard is trying to do something to mitigate the problem. That's more than I can say for our so-called leaders. Amidst their lack of worakable solutions, hopefully more smart students will step up and figure out what else needs to be done.
I’m a lapsed industrial designer. I was born in NYC and figured I’d die there, but a few years ago I abandoned New York to live on a farm in the countryside with my wife. We have six dogs.
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Shop Class Skills vs. Mass Shooters: High School Student Invents Clever Classroom Security Device
I applaud his desire to solve a problem through design and make his own version while also learning new skills in the shop. I just don't think it's right for the news station to credit him as the inventor. Devices like this already exist.
Why don't you have locks on the doors? Here in Sweden it is quite rare with doors with no locks.
On the other hand I applaud Justin for attacking the problem given the real restraints of the world we live in.
Unfortunately, this is a good example of designing a solution without stepping back and questioning the premise of the problem. The obvious answer is the much simpler solution is to outlaw automatic weapons, it’s just we’re too uncivilized to have already realized it.
Jeff, estimates for how many AR-15s--and that's just one type of assault rifle--are in U.S. circulation range from 5 million to 15 million. How do you propose to get those back?
50K tax levy, if you don't turn the weapon in.
Oh like Australia got rid of most guns successfully.
I don't think you stepped far enough back. You only stepped back far enough to see the method. Following this path, we should probably also outlaw vehicles, computers, gasoline or anything flammable, matches, lighters, knives, swords, fertilizer, pipes, pesticides (actually, we really should outlaw those), and on and on and on...
Following this path, we should probably also outlaw.....
vehicles (not designed for killing... but have been used time and time again for this purpose. The Bastille Day attack in Nice, or more recently the attack in Manhattan)
I agree those are MISS USES OF THE INTENDED ITEMS.
This argument is based upon the pretense that all those other potentially deadly items are equally deadly to what we have dubbed "assault style weapons." Assault weapons are weapons of war.
They are created to enact maximum casualty in the most efficient, reliable and compact package. They are in fact amazingly designed machines. But they have no place in society.
I recognize that there are relative risks to consider (e.g. active shooter versus fire), but I believe that technically, the installation of this device violates the building code. Is anyone aware of a loophole that makes devices like this legal, perhaps in a temporary installation?
I say issue them all blindfolds and the NRA should pay for it.