Grillz are barred at some Texas schools

[valkyrie]

Originally Posted by Rollergirl2001

I believe in self expression and I like one or two gold teeth, but the grillz are nasty looking. Good move by the school board.

This line of "reasoning" bothers me, and I've noticed it a few times here on GC. It goes something like this:

I really don't like [whatever].
Therefore, I approve of/support/advocate for a regulation/law/policy prohibiting/outlawing/limiting [whatever].

-or-

I really think [whatever] is a great idea.
Therefore, I approve of/support/advocate for a regulation/law/policy requiring/imposing/recommending [whatever].

Examples:
-Oh, I always wear a helmet while riding my bicycle in dangerous areas and there should be a law requiring everybody to wear helmets.
-Smoking is nasty and I hate the smell! Nobody should be allowed to smoke in public.

I hope everybody recognizes that personal thoughts, opinions, and feelings on an issue are NOT a good reason for creating laws or policies. Whether you like or dislike something is irrelevant in terms of whether it should be required or prohibited by law or other policy.

[shinerbock]

I don't really think thats a good analogy. Smoking in public discomforts people with health problems, and we all know about second hand smoke. Your right to do something should not impede upon anothers. Similarly, while I hate wearing my seatbelt, its not just my safety law enforcement is concerned with. People unrestrained in a serious car accident can cause injury to others. For some reason the link didn't work for me, but I assume this grill banning is in public schools. I think its great. Its the same as saying you can't wear your pants half off your ass, or you can't wear a shirt with a rebel flag on it. I personally think "grills" are one of the stupidest trends our country has seen in a while, plus it could be distracting.

[valkyrie]

Originally Posted by shinerbock

I don't really think thats a good analogy. Smoking in public discomforts people with health problems, and we all know about second hand smoke. Your right to do something should not impede upon anothers. Similarly, while I hate wearing my seatbelt, its not just my safety law enforcement is concerned with. People unrestrained in a serious car accident can cause injury to others. For some reason the link didn't work for me, but I assume this grill banning is in public schools. I think its great. Its the same as saying you can't wear your pants half off your ass, or you can't wear a shirt with a rebel flag on it. I personally think "grills" are one of the stupidest trends our country has seen in a while, plus it could be distracting.

If you say smoking should be banned in public because it causes harm to the health of others, I think that is a compelling argument. I'm taking issue with people who say that they, for example, hate leaving a bar smelling like smoke therefore smoking should be banned. The end result is the same if smoking is banned, but the arguments are very different.

[f8nacn]

I agree with the ban and pray that more school districts will follow suit! They are not attractive, they are not contributing to anything but, as mentioned, distractions among young people, who instead need to concentrate on graduating and being a student. There is so much craziness in high school now from the latest trend to the issue of oral sex being a common practice among this age group (Reference: Tyra Banks Show had high school students talking about oral sex and how common it is). I just think our young people need redirection...redirection from proper parenting and positive influences...

[valkyrie]

Originally Posted by f8nacn

distractions among young people, who instead need to concentrate on graduating and being a student.

Are you saying that they are a distraction to students other than the students who have them?

[AlphaFrog]

Originally Posted by valkyrie

Are you saying that they are a distraction to students other than the students who have them?

Both, the one who has it because he's busy showing it off and/or playing with it in his mouth (the tongue is a nervous organ and cannot help but play with anything unfamiliar in the mouth), and the other students looking at it.

[Dionysus]

What is "distracting" varies from person to person. Grillz are so common in certain areas, that I don't even notice them that much. I'm not that distracted by crazy fashions (I've seen it all), and I'm a pretty easily distracted person.

[epsilon99]

I recently saw a sign in Atlanta that said you could buy 4 grillz and get one free.

[f8nacn]

Originally Posted by valkyrie

Are you saying that they are a distraction to students other than the students who have them?

Quoting a piece of the article who stated that they are a distraction...however, I can only imagine that they are a distraction to both.

[Rollergirl2001]

Originally Posted by valkyrie

This line of "reasoning" bothers me, and I've noticed it a few times here on GC. It goes something like this:

I really don't like [whatever].
Therefore, I approve of/support/advocate for a regulation/law/policy prohibiting/outlawing/limiting [whatever].

-or-

I really think [whatever] is a great idea.
Therefore, I approve of/support/advocate for a regulation/law/policy requiring/imposing/recommending [whatever].

Examples:
-Oh, I always wear a helmet while riding my bicycle in dangerous areas and there should be a law requiring everybody to wear helmets.
-Smoking is nasty and I hate the smell! Nobody should be allowed to smoke in public.

I hope everybody recognizes that personal thoughts, opinions, and feelings on an issue are NOT a good reason for creating laws or policies. Whether you like or dislike something is irrelevant in terms of whether it should be required or prohibited by law or other policy.

What I'm saying it that having one or two gold tooth is fine. My mom used to have a gold tooth and I never had a problem with it. But grillz are a different story. Grillz cover more than two teeth. Grillz are unattractive and are a big turn off for me.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by Rollergirl2001

What I'm saying it that having one or two gold tooth is fine. My mom used to have a gold tooth and I never had a problem with it. But grillz are a different story. Grillz cover more than two teeth. Grillz are unattractive and are a big turn off for me.

You missed the point. Valkyrie is saying that unless you have proof that grillz are harming someone or causing disruption in class, just them being "unattractive" isn't good enough of a reason to ban them.

One of my classmates who was not the skinniest used to cram her butt into skintight designer jeans. It certainly was unattractive, but they couldn't very well say "you can only wear skintight jeans if you're under x amount of pounds."

[Marie]

Originally Posted by 33girl

One of my classmates who was not the skinniest used to cram her butt into skintight designer jeans. It certainly was unattractive, but they couldn't very well say "you can only wear skintight jeans if you're under x amount of pounds."

Well many high schools do have rules that say that students must wear 'loose fitting' clothing. Even in my HS, where we didn't have that particular rule, the teachers/administrators had the discretion to send students home if their clothing was just generally inappropriate. For instance, a girl who is almost 6' tall wearing 'booty shorts' may be told to change while a girl who is 5'2'' wearing shorts the same length might not; simply b/c the tall girl is showing a lot more leg/has a lot more leg to show, and may look 'sexier/more inappropriate' to the decision makers. Or a big breasted girl might be asked to change her top while a small breasted may not b/c even if they are the same...they look different. I don't think that this is uncommon.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by Marie

Well many high schools do have rules that say that students must wear 'loose fitting' clothing. Even in my HS, where we didn't have that particular rule, the teachers/administrators had the discretion to send students home if their clothing was just generally inappropriate. For instance, a girl who is almost 6' tall wearing 'booty shorts' may be told to change while a girl who is 5'2'' wearing shorts the same length might not; simply b/c the tall girl is showing a lot more leg/has a lot more leg to show, and may look 'sexier/more inappropriate' to the decision makers. Or a big breasted girl might be asked to change her top while a small breasted may not b/c even if they are the same...they look different. I don't think that this is uncommon.

This was the 1980's. Loose fitting clothing didn't exist.

We actually had quite a bit of contention because one of the teachers' daughters would show up in quite slutty clothing and never was reprimanded, while other girls in miniskirts were sent home to change. You can't say it's OK for this person and not for that one...it has to be across the board. If you don't want the 300 pounder showing up in shorts and a tank top, you need to ban them period, not say "if you're skinny and cute you can wear them." That's setting the school up for immense amounts of bad publicity and a discrimination lawsuit.

[shinerbock]

On a similar note, I heard some schools are banning kids from packing at school. What is our world coming to, when a kid can't even bring his own gat to school? So much for self expression.

[GeekyPenguin]

I used to live in a neighborhood where I would think grillz would be popular and I have NEVER seen one in real life. I thought it was just rappers doing it until I read about this.

-Deprived in the midwest