6-year-old expelled over Cub Scout utensil

[UGAalum94]

I'd be willing to take my changes with six year olds who brought eating utensils to school, including six-year-old "gang bangers."

Zero tolerance regardless of circumstances is an irrational policy. His "weapon" was no more dangerous that scissors and likely little more dangerous than a pencil or pen. He didn't use it as a weapon, so referring to cutlery as weapons is a little goofy.

Having discretion doesn't have to equal racial discrimination. It's a possibility sure, but it's a possibility almost always.

I think we'd be better off allowing the people entrusted with the job of school level discipline handling these cases, especially at the elementary school level. If they racial discriminate, they face the consequences for that.

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

I'd be willing to take my changes with six year olds who brought eating utensils to school, including six-year-old "gang bangers."

Zero tolerance regardless of circumstances is an irrational policy. His "weapon" was no more dangerous that scissors and likely little more dangerous than a pencil or pen. He didn't use it as a weapon, so referring to cutlery as weapons is a little goofy.

Having discretion doesn't have to equal racial discrimination. It's a possibility sure, but it's a possibility almost always.

I think we'd be better off allowing the people entrusted with the job of school level discipline handling these cases, especially at the elementary school level. If they racial discriminate, they face the consequences for that.

O God no...please don't tell me that the race card was played EVEN in this thread..

**Throwing his hands up....**

....done.

[deepimpact2]

Originally Posted by DaemonSeid

O God no...please don't tell me that the race card was played EVEN in this thread..

**Throwing his hands up....**

....done.

Oh STFU
Honestly. No "race card" was "played." The points made about the possibility of discrimination in the article were valid. Only an idiot would think otherwise.

[DrPhil]

Shut up, deepimpact2.

[deepimpact2]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

I'd be willing to take my changes with six year olds who brought eating utensils to school, including six-year-old "gang bangers."

Zero tolerance regardless of circumstances is an irrational policy. His "weapon" was no more dangerous that scissors and likely little more dangerous than a pencil or pen. He didn't use it as a weapon, so referring to cutlery as weapons is a little goofy.

Having discretion doesn't have to equal racial discrimination. It's a possibility sure, but it's a possibility almost always.

I think we'd be better off allowing the people entrusted with the job of school level discipline handling these cases, especially at the elementary school level. If they racial discriminate, they face the consequences for that.

Did you actually SEE what he took to school? it was more than a piece of "cutlery." What's goofy is a bunch of folks acting like a knife is acceptable at school. So I guess had you been a parent whose child got cut accidentally with that knife, you would not have been ready to blame the school system and the teacher.

And you say we would be better off allowing the people entrusted with the job of school discipline...? what exactly are you talking about? And are you not aware that charges of racial discrimination in this context can be very hard to combat? This is so incredibly naive I can't even believe it.

I wonder how much of this is due to the fact that people really think this was okay, or how much was due to the way the media portrayed him. The media certainly didn't help things by putting up the little cutesy photographs of him with the puppy dog eyes. I'm inclined to believe that the public reaction is really based more or that than anything else. After everything that has occurred in schools in this country, it baffles me that more people would not want strict weapons policies. I worked at an elementary school where first graders were in gangs and would bring things to school. Their butts were sent to the alternative school and no one raised hell about it. people realized that you can't play around with that sort of thing.