Woman talks down school shooter, no one injured at Atlanta school.

[LSN80]

Be it Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook, or Aurora, I've written and we've talked quite a bit about school and massacre shootings, and the impact they've had on their communities and the nation as a whole.

For a change, it's nice to talk about incidents such as the one that happened Tuesday, where Antoinette Tuff talked a possible school shooter, Michael Brandon Hill, 20, out of shooting at police and/or students by sharing her own life story and struggles with the young man.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/21/us/georgia-school-gunshots/?hpt=hp_bn1

Police are crediting Tuff, a front-office worker/bookkeeper at Ronald E. McNair Discovery Learning Academy, as talking down the man by sharing her own struggles. And as a result, no one, either in or outside the school, was injured as a result. After Hill fired shots, Tuff called 911, and relayed the following message to the dispatcher, after approaching the man and playing negotiator, essentially, for the man.:

"The police should refrain from using their radios and stop all movement or else the suspect would shoot. He doesn't want the kids, he wants the police, so back off. What else, sir? He said he don't care if he die, he don't have nothing to live for, and he said he's not mentally stable."

But what threw the shooter for a loop was when Tuff shared her own personal struggles with him:

"It's going to be all right, sweetie. I just want you to know I love you, though, OK? And I'm proud of you. That's a good thing that you're just giving up and don't worry about it. We all go through something in life. I thought the same thing, you know, I tried to commit suicide last year after my husband left me. But look at me now. I'm still working and everything is OK."

And with the shooter and police never making direct contact, Tuff then talked the man into putting the gun down and surrendering. Despite shots being fired prior, when Tuff entered the equation, no students, teachers, or police were injured as a result.

We've talked before, over and again, what makes a hero. We've debated the Manning's, Snowden's, and Assanges' of the world, and whether their actions made them heroes or traitors, or something worse. To me, a hero is someone who who risks their own life with no personal agenda or something to gain as a result. Tuff had nothing to gain, and everything to lose herself. Although her words were soothing and kind, one never knows how what they'll say will impact someone who describes themself as "Mentally Unstable."

Yet she risked her own life certainly in order to preserve the lives of both the students and teachers she knew, and the police she did not. Tuff, for the record, doesn't wish to be known as a hero, but is there any doubt she's anything but?

The craziest part? Tuff wasn't even scheduled to be working that day, but did so because of a last minute schedule change. Call it providence, the hand of God, or a great big freaking coincidence, but I'd gather there are undoubtably many people thankful she was.

Why don't we talk about the Antoinette Tuff's of the world more often?

What truly makes a "hero", in your eyes?

 

[Mustang Sally]

Why don't we talk about the Antoinette Tuff's of the world more often?

It's not the news people want to read/hear about. A small newspaper in Connecticut that's affiliated with ours has a full page four days a week called "Community." It features nice people doing good things, including the achievements of students. The editors tell us it's by far the least read section in the paper. People prefer to read the blood and guts stories and, apparently, learning about a sexual assault that occurred in South Dakota to a woman they'll never know and will forget about tomorrow is of far more interest than reading about the achievements of young people in their own community.

TV stations report the same thing when asked why they give their main coverage to tragedies and disasters, replying that in the quest for ratings, the stations that cover death more than life are the ones that come out ahead. It's a decision based on economics.

Sure, we'll be given the message when a hero is involved in a situation in which death or severe injury occurs. Given that Sandy Hook is only 14 miles from my home, many of us knew Dawn Hochsprung, the school principal who was killed by the gunman last year. Forensics showed that she actually had her hands on his gun, fighting for possession of the weapon before being killed. Now, that's the kind of hero the media is going to tell us about.....and they certainly did.

Ms. Tuff is a hero too, but don't be surprised if today's coverage is the last you'll read about the incident. No one was hurt or killed.

Was Tuff's courage as deep as Hochsprung's? You bet it was.

But death makes juicier news.

What truly makes a "hero", in your eyes?

Opportunity, mostly. As you say, Tuff wasn't even scheduled to work that day. Without her, the whole thing might have turned out differently, so thank the fates she was there.

Still, what measures heroism? Is Tuff a hero?.....absolutely.

Is the father of four who loses his job but spends the day collecting empty cans and bottles on the highway and goes around to neighbors asking for lawn mowing jobs so his family can eat also a hero?....absolutely. Just because you won't see it on the 11 PM news doesn't make it any less heroic.

Ms. Tuff and Ms. Hochsprung's deeds are more dramatic....and therefore more newsworthy.....but there are thousands of examples of everyday heroism that you'll never read about.