The 60's and now…..High School offered Auto Shop for Boys, consisted of a 5 Bay shop with 3 Lifts, Jr./Sr. year a 3 hour a day job at a Dealership, usually New Car get ready or Light Line…Metal Shop was 3 hrs. a day and Students learned Welding, Running a Lathe, Reading Micrometers, setting up Drill Presses. Wood shop taught setting up wood lathes and making Lamps and Tables.
Guns in School? The Guys in Shop class would ask permission of the Instructor to bring in a Rifle, usually a Bolt Action their Dad had brought Home, to place in in a Machinist Vise on a Drill Press to drill and tap for Scope Mounts…Or cut the Barrel back and Re- crown the Muzzle. .Wood Shop also for Routing and relieving Barrel Channel…Only Caveat was NO Ammo with it…
After working on a Car, You'd ask permission to take it off Campus for a test ride…Usually one of the Instructors would hand You some change and ask for You to bring Him back a Coke…11 cents @ Burger King….School would hook You up for a part time job Jr./ Sr. Year @ a Dealership….Ford was putting 390/ 406/427 in their Cars…Chevy 409/ 427 in their Cars…Than Carrol Shelby developed the Cobra Engine and Ford was putting them in Stock Cars You could buy @ the Dealer….or a Crate Engine to put in your Fairlane or Mustang.
Girls took Home Economics classes where they learned to Cook & Sew, and Business classes where they learned to Type and use Office Machines…
Our School, in addition to having A Top Rated Football team, had over 5,000 Students, No SRO, and no need for one. Everybody respected the Teachers and each other….Fights? You'd meet at the Park and after a few punches were thrown, it was over and that was the end of it..No vendettas.
When I went on the street in 1971, If You saw a subject wearing a Fur Coat and arguing with a Tree in 100 degree heat, You Handcuffed Him and searched for weapons and transported him to a Hospital and You never saw Him again.
Mental Patients are now allowed to roam freely and the Justice system rarely prosecutes….preferring to plea down Charges….Kids used to go to a Park and play Ball or pass a Football around, or over at each others House, working on their Cars. Now, they spend their time on the internet playing violent games and becoming desensitized to violence, and not taking their Meds.