"When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you find sometimes that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it."—Winnie the Pooh
The United States is locked in a deadly love affair with its guns. Rather than take steps that can make our children's lives safer, government officials refuse to consider that widely available firearms and ammunition make mass shootings more likely. Rather than ensure our kids can go to school safely, it is better to offer them a pamphlet.
Texas' latest is a "Stay Safe Book," featuring characters from The Hundred Acre Woods attempting to survive an attack by an armed shooter. Winnie hides his head in a hunny pot while Kanga and Roo prep to fight back. The characters are in the public domain, so independent works are not blocked. Another fun way for conservatives to take out their repression on Disney.
"Parents and teachers in the Dallas area have expressed alarm and concern that the Stay Safe book, produced by a law enforcement consulting firm in Houston, has been sent home in the backpacks of children in pre-kindergarten and elementary classes," reported Ed Pilkington. "The book features the honey-loving bear created by AA Milne and illustrator EH Shepard instructing kids about how to react to a mass shooting. "
"The subtitle to the Stay Safe book is: 'If there is danger, let Winnie-the-Pooh and his Crew show you what to do: Run Hide Fight,'" said the report. "Run, hide, fight are the tactics advised by the FBI 'should the unthinkable occur.' Inside pages of the book, featuring other characters from the Hundred Acre Wood, tell kids: 'If it is safe to get away, we should RUN like Rabbit instead of stay … If danger is near, do not fear, HIDE like Pooh does until the police appear.' The 'hide' page has a drawing of Pooh burying his head in a pot of honey."
The next page shows Kanga and Roo wearing boxing gloves, with the message, "If danger finds us, don't stay, run away. If we can't get away, we have to FIGHT with all our might."
