I haven't engaged much in the Sandy Hook discussion. Naturally, I find this attack very upsetting. On a personal level, I work with a number of schools, and don't always go through the front door. If you're a familiar face, or project the right kind of friendly confidence, you can often get in a side door, which is much more convenient. I expect things to be different, at least for awhile. I certainly don't mind the inconvenience, in the interest of safety, but the profound erosion of trust, and the reinforcement of a fortress mentality, is going to have a significant impact on students, teachers and schools across the country. That's not something I experienced when I was in school, although during the Cold War, sometimes what we thought were air raid sirens would go off, and I'd wonder if we were about to get nuked.
I'm sure we're all on mailing lists that rely on threat-based fundraising, eg "(insert opponent here) is trying to destroy/subvert/undermine/erode (insert beloved cause here) - please donate to help us stop them". I'm not in a financial position to provide that kind of support, but I'm sure it's quite effective. I'm not on the NRA's mailing list, but I'm pretty damn sure they rely quite heavily on threat-based fundraising, and the enemy is us. Which is the point of this diary.