Really?

Horrible, horrible reading about the tragic (is that really the right word?) events in Sandy Hook, especially as a parent of two young children. But in this piece from The Telegraph, a couple of quotes stood out:

“We told them to sit down and be quiet. We do drills so it was doing what we normally do in those.”

And:

Parents had already received an automated telephone call with the news that a shooting was under way at the school.

Exactly how bad are things in America that they actually run through practices on what to do when a crazed gunman with a semi automatic rifle enters their school?
And then someone presses a button and the parents get a call informing them what is going on? Wow.

It sounds like the former approach actually saved many lives, which is fantastic, but something has gone very wrong with your society when you feel the need to prepare for an event like this.