Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Head of ND Univ. System Forbids Firearms On Campus- Gets Armed Bodyguard

A committee of the North Dakota House heard testimony on ending the ban on concealed firearms guns on North Dakota college campuses in late January.

The Chancellor of the North Dakota University System, Bill Goetz, was there to testify against the practice. He told the legislators that state college campuses ban concealed handguns for safety reasons.

He further testified that North Dakota college campuses, which don't allow guns, are safer from violent crime than any other place in the USA. He made a carrying exception for trained law enforcement.

But, when there are killings in gun free zones, like schools, college campuses, churches, and other gun free zones, they are spectacular in their scope and size.
Grouping the unarmed and those unable to defend themselves in close quarters, is an invitation to mass murder.

Just three days earlier, Goetz himself received a personal armed bodyguard at school events in the form of North Dakota State University Police Captain Scott Magnuson.

The Chancellor denied asking for a bodyguard, but said that there had been an incident where someone came uninvited into the school's President's home while his family was there.

He said there had been other events on campus that lead to concerns about security.

Chancellor Goetz believes the college community in North Dakota has the same level of protection that he has, namely, the campus police.

Of course, they can be there in minutes, when seconds count.

Immediately coming to mind is another "Chancellor" in Germany who denied guns to the public he controlled, yet had an army of armed bodyguards to protect himself. This is not to equate Goetz to the German Chancellor.

But, such examples of gun hypocracy aren't so extreme.

In places like New York City, and all over California, and other "may issue" areas, those who are politically connected are able to arm themselves legally, and with impunity.

Many Hollywood stars like Jennifer Aniston carry firearms themselves. She even used hers to hold a burglar in her bedroom at bay until police arrived. Others who disdain guns, have armed bodyguards.

If Chancellor Goetz doesn't believe he needs an armed bodyguard at school events, then he should get rid of him. If he doesn't believe that the same threat of potential deadly violence exists on college campuses in North Dakota as it does on other campuses like Virginia Tech, then he should go it alone and unarmed, like his students and faculty do.

Once he does that, then he can experience the same level of threat and concern about armed attacks that those he disarms experience on a daily basis.

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