Thankful for a false alarm
One of Monday's Short Stack items.
Appalachian State University didn't plan to hold a mock drill for an armed intruder last week, but it was forced to respond when a student called police to report seeing a gunman running toward campus.
That was a fabrication, deserving a misdemeanor charge of filing a false police report for 22-year-old senior Matthew W. Haney. He's due whatever punishment the courts and the university can give him. Campus shootings are only too real and too frightening. Haney's thoughtless deceit caused too much trouble and trauma.
It did give the university and local police a chance to test their emergency procedures, which apparently worked well. But, then, there was no real gunman. That was the only reason to give thanks.