LAKE PEND OREILLE, Idaho – School board members are elected to offer suggestions they think may be beneficial for students.

Their colleagues on the board and the rest of the community are free to reject their suggestions if they choose.

But should they punish board members for simply offering suggestions?

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A sufficient number of registered voters in the Lake Pend Oreille school district have signed a petition to force a recall election against school board Chairman Steve Youngdahl, according to FoxNews.com. If he chooses not to resign – which he says he won’t do – there will be a recall question on the ballot sometime in the spring.

What did Youngdahl do to incur the wrath of the community?

He suggested putting guns in secure, locked storage units within schools and training some staff members to use them in emergencies. Youngdahl was reportedly concerned because five of the district’s 11 schools are in rural areas where police officers might take as long as 20 minutes to respond.

For a crazed gunman with no armed opposition, 20 minutes is more than enough time to kill a lot of people.

There are many people who disagree with the idea of arming school staff, even in schools where there are no hired guards and the police are miles away. That’s certainly their right.

But should they be punishing a concerned school board member for simply suggesting that it might be a good idea to have a few guns carefully locked away in school buildings, but within reach of trained staff if the need ever arose?

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While we read nothing to indicate who might be behind the recall effort, our guess is that a local teachers union, with lots of radical anti-gun members, is trying to push Youngdahl out the door and make him an example of what happens to those who oppose union positions.

Should the community stand by and let an honest board member be persecuted for making a suggestion? This story should be interesting as it unfolds. Stay tuned.