HOME  E-DEMOCRACY 98  E-DEBATE WEB MN-FORUM

Frank Germann      Response 6

Question 6: In recent months we have experienced a spate of bloodshed in our nation's schools. What steps, if any, must the governor take to ensure that a similar atrocity does not occur in Minnesota?

It is curious that none of the schools that were targeted by these
murderous children were private schools. It is also curious that no such
"spates" occurred before the banning weapons in the area of school, thus,
I assert that a contributing factor for these crimes is the law that bans
guns on school property. Not that the idea is wrong. Who wants guns on
school property? We can sure that the perpetrators of the bloody
violence didn't want anyone ELSE on the school grounds to have guns.

We cannot post policemen at schools. That would be too expensive and
would promote a police state atmosphere that I am sure most people do not
want to advocate. Calling police when trouble occurs is what we do now.
The trouble with that is, even in the best of conditions it usually takes
police five or ten minutes to respond to a call. A lot of kids can die
in five or ten minutes.

Crime has gone down in areas where people are allowed to carry concealed
weapons since it adds an element of unknown to the equation for people
that are prone to violence. If someone wants to shoot up a school yard,
he will not be quite as inclined if it is possible that someone might
open up a school window somewhere and start shooting back at him. As it
stands now, our fortress schools are completely defenseless against a
madman (or kid) with a gun.

Of course children should not be trusted with guns, but are there others
on school property who can be trusted? We trust teachers and
administrators with the education of our children. Perhaps one or two of
them can be trusted with guns. What I am saying is this: Allow a few
people at each school to carry guns. This may include teachers (those
with enough courage), janitors, and administrators, and even parents that
have a permit from the local police to carry a concealed weapon. There
is no need to tell the public who these people might be, otherwise they
might be targeted themselves. There wouldn't necessarily have to be a
gun toting administrator at each and every school either, only the
possibility that one COULD be carrying a gun.

Another solution would be to fix the schools. The perpetrators were, in
my estimation, probably very upset about something. There may have been
reasons for the anger. Find out what made these kids upset and try not
to duplicate it at other schools. Everyone should understand that public
schools are just an arm of the government. Government is force, and
government is not very friendly sometimes.

The ultimate solution is, eliminate the use of force completely.
Privatize the schools. Private schools can eliminate troublemakers
promptly. Ultimately, this is what is needed to stop the violence.

Frank Germann http://www.tipsmith.com/candidates/germann.html
Libertarian candidate for governor of Minnesota FGermann@Juno.com