To address a couple of questions:
First, the issue of local run schools vs. state run schools vs. (unbelievable) fed run schools is being debated all the time. Got a friend on a local school board. He tells me all the time that there are people pushing to eliminate local school boards in favor of a state run system with local politically appointed administrators to run local districts. Like everything else, it's a money and power thing, and the debate is for another day, and should involve copious amounts of alcohol.
Second, on school security, it is another money thing. Who is going to pay for staff to run metal detectors and x-ray machines each morning, the equipment, etc.? I know when we finally updated our security at the courthouse, it was a big budget hit for the equipment and staff for the checkpoint.
Bottom line, schools are inherently soft targets. Yes, you can harden them, but it's gonna cost money, and people aren't gonna like seeing their kids behind armored walls with armed guards.
As for the backpacks, my kids are in high school. Each carries a backpack daily. In the pack they have a laptop, charging cord, a few spiral notebooks, a graphing calculator, the occasional book for reading assignments for a class. Younger, who is on the FIRST Robotics Team, also has a small tool kit, including a Gerber multi-tool, for work on the robots. Older kid, in training for track season, has a pair of hand weights that are gloves with lead shot sewn into the back of the hand and knuckles, for wearing while throwing shot and disc. So, essentially, both are lightly armed.
But yes, the backpacks are necessary.
