The week that was.

With apologies to David Frost and the BBC.

What a week we’ve had, here in the Sault. It started with a “threatening message” e-mailed to the Algoma District School Board.

At this point, no information has been released as to whether this was merely a hoax, a deliberate act of mischief, a serious threat, or a plea for help. What we do know is that a 16-year old youth has discovered, as has the entire community, that the authorities have no choice but to take such apparent threats seriously.

In discussing this with the Grade 8 class I was teaching on Monday, we talked about the signs posted in airports warning people about using words such as “bomb,” “gun,” or “hijack.” The authorities have absolutely no sense of humour when it comes to those who disregard these warnings, and “I was only joking” is never an adequate defense.

Likewise, the ADSB and the Police Services had no choice but to take this threat seriously, as did the parents of about 75 per cent of the SJD students. Only 170 students attended school on Monday, and they were greeted by armed tactical officers surrounding the school, and had their bags and belongings searched upon entering the building.

Fortunately the police were able to trace the message – routed through overseas e-mail servers from a public access computer – and identify the person who sent it. That person, a male student, was arrested and charged with one count of threaten death or bodily harm, one count of mischief and one count of conveying a false message.

Unfortunately for this young man, who was an ‘A’ student who had never been in trouble prior to this incident, he also faces possible expulsion from school, in accordance with the Safe Schools Act.

There are a number of lessons to be learned from this incident.

First is that, as has often been noted but now hits closer to home, the world has changed. Whether this was a prank, a serious threat, or a plea for help, the consequences of one person’s actions can be huge. We were fortunate that this incident ended as it did; “it can’t happen here” is no longer something any of us can say with assurance.

Second, this will, hopefully, serve as a warning to others of the severity of one’s actions, and the commensurate response that can be expected from the authorities.

Third, this young man may have thought he was sending an anonymous message, but the results prove otherwise. Technology available to the police enabled them to trace the routing of the original e-mail, and determine the identity of the perpetrator.

As others have discovered, there is no such thing as “anonymous” on the internet.

Finally, as many of us on this site keep stressing, with freedom comes responsibility. The oft-cited example of limitations to our freedoms is that of shouting “Fire!” in a crowded theatre.

This young man is finding out now that, whatever reasons he may have had for doing what he did, he is ultimately responsible for his own actions.

As someone who was an “insider” of sorts during this event – the school I was in stood ready to issue a “Code Red” if necessary – and someone who has been involved with and has training in Emergency Response, I was quite pleased with the overall response of the ADSB and the Police Services.

The public was kept informed – although some will argue they didn’t have enough details – and the action that was taken was decisive and appropriate to the situation.

Later in the week our Police Services were again put to the test, this time for an armed robbery in the west end of the city. Again, tactical officers were deployed, while other officers established and maintained a perimeter.

As it turns out, the suspect was identified, located, and arrested in relatively short order, however concerns about a possible accomplice and the whereabouts of any weapons (the suspect intimated to the victims that he had a gun) resulted in police keeping the area secured for a further hour or so.

Again, the response by the Police Services is to be commended. While some have suggested that their response may have been excessive, I prefer that the police err on the side of public safety in such situations.

That the suspect did not actually have a gun is immaterial; he suggested to his victims that he did, and the police cannot spend any time second-guessing whether or not he was bluffing.

Many people criticize the police, both locally and elsewhere. Too often I hear comments regarding donut-eating and officers driving around aimlessly.

What’s odd about these comments is that you don’t hear similar comments about firefighters; no one complains that firefighters spend their time polishing their trucks and cooking themselves a hearty meal.

Why? Because when firefighters are called upon to respond they do so immediately, and put their lives at risk doing so.

The thing is, the same is true for our police. Yes, they drive around seemingly aimlessly. Often when doing so they spot something out of the ordinary – perhaps a break-in in progress – or a wanted criminal.

Are they able to be Johnny-on-the-spot and stop all crime from happening? Of course not. But when they are called-upon to respond, they do so immediately, and often putting themselves at risk doing so.

I will also say that our local EMS Service deserves a hearty round of applause, too. Theirs is another tough job that often goes unrecognized by the public.

In fact, we are very luck here in the Sault to have the Emergency Service community that we do. (I’ll explore this further in a column in May).

Meanwhile, our local Police Service deserves a tip of the hat and a hearty "thanks" for their diligence and professionalism.

I hope that's not... just my opinion!