Today I got to go to training rather than another typical day at work. The training for today was IARD (Immediate Action Rapid Deployment), which a is relatively new concept. IARD was developed in response to the Columbine school massacre and other suicidal attacker events of recent years. The basic concept is that if there is an "active shooter" (someone is in the process of killing innocents) law enforcement's old concept of "contain and wait for SWAT" doesn't work anymore because it plays into the hand of the suicidal shooter. The more time that is takes to formulate a response, the more time the bad guy has to perform his dastardly deeds.
IARD trains us to aggressively confront the active shooter, something that is totally contrary to what we've been taught in the past and totally contrary to one's concept of self-preservation. It takes a whole different mindset to go forth into the fray with bullets coming towards you. However, every bullet fired at you is one that is not being put into someone else. And that, at it's center, is what IARD is all about...being willing to go into harm's way and trade your life for someone else's. The difference is that the shooter has no plans to go home...and he's not. We have plans to go home....and we will.
IARD at Wikipedia
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