The police academy at one of the community colleges I work is conducting outdoor training with guns drawn and car search simulations in the parking lot today. This same school had a lockdown due to an actual shooting and bomb threat this time last year. Since I was here during the incident last Spring and very narrowly slipped through the lockdown and subsequent freeway closure, it all looks a bit too authentic for comfort. Also the signs that say “Police Training in Progress” are too small and easy to miss. I came within inches of calling in “fuck this shit” before realizing it was all ok and we were just playing cops and robbers. I wonder if this is setting the tone for a semester full of simulations, illusions, and fake-outs. Let the drama begin!
