Future soldier suspended from school
Tankerbabe sent us this last night from an Albany, NY TV station about a high school boy who looked forward to a career in the military until one;
Matthew says school officials approached him on Sept. 21, asking if he had a weapon on him. When Matthew answered he did not, he says the officials asked if he had a knife in his car. Matthew said it was a pocket knife, and took officials to his car when asked. He also turned over the pocket knife when asked.
The Lansingburgh Central School District has a zero-tolerance policy on weapons. According to the district’s Codes of Conduct, students are not allowed to have “a weapon of any kind” on school grounds. Even though a pocket knife is not considered a weapon under New York State penal code, the district also prohibits students from possessing anything “that reasonably can be considered a weapon.”
What did they think he was going to do, go on slasher attack in the cafeteria? Hijack the school and fly it into a skyscraper? It illustrates perfectly what I’ve said for years about the “security” system in this country. It’s designed to harass people more than protect us.
George Goodwin, Superintendent, District Office 518-233-6850
Category: Society
I often get in trouble for making a statement to the effect that “we have given away too many rights in our nation”. Yeah, yeah, yeah….I know…that’s what democracy and freedom are all about. I totally AGREE. However, in cases like this (far too many I might add) when it is CLEAR that their was NO INTENTION of wrong doing where are the RIGHTS of the everyday, law abiding, positively contributing citizen? There is NO excuse for the fact that this young man has been put through what he has or that his entire adult life could be affected negatively because of some dumbasses who refuse to use common sense. Stories like this piss me off to no end.
I’ve made my call. I hope others will do the same for this young man.
I want the cars of the administrators and security personnel searched for tire irons. I then want them arrested for possessing what reasonably can be considered a weapon. Then I want them strip searched, booked, and held without bond as a reasonable threat to society …
Seriously…this is too much. Leave the kid be, someone else has a vendetta against him or how could they know?
Anyone out there a lawyer who can help the kid? I’m on the horn…and spreading the word…
What makes me totally apoplectic about these stories is the total lack of common sense exhibited by school officials. It’s a pocket knife, in his car. Some folks will undoubtedly chime in with, “Well, rules are rules, and he broke the rules” .The principle and the school administration are happy to have any kind of decision making removed from their shoulders. Grow a spine folks!
Zero-Tolerance is the same as intolerant.
Tankerbabe: You must understand that the reason these “zero tolerance” policies are put in place is to insulate the faculty from having or using common sense. All they have to do is point to the policy, that way they don’t have to use critical thinking skills, or common sense. I sometimes wonder if the students aren’t smarter than the teachers.
Will they also be confiscating paper clips, staplers, and spiral notebooks since they too can “reasonably can be considered a weapon”?
The PC crowd run amok again. What the hell has happened to this country.Where are our rights??
Stories like this just make me want to bang my head on my keyboard. I remember when I was in High School carrying a pocket knife was no big deal. He could have just lied and said that he didn’t have a pocket knife, but no he was honest. What ever happened to teachers confiscating pocket knives, etc… and making the parents come get them. Lets hope that his family fights this like the kid in Deleware Zachary. You can read the story at helpzachary.com
“It’s designed to harass people more than protect us. ”
Oh, yeah …
IMO, Old Trooper nailed it, or so it seems …
The good thing is that the School admin dropped the charges and are changing the law…for kindergarden through second grade…
Makes me wonder what these asshats would have done at my high school during deer season. Oh, and anyone with a Leatherman tool in your car’s tool kit, you’re also in violation.
well, there is another case of pocket knife “weapons” and zero-tolerance policy – in Alabama for a 8-year-old boy scout. This case got a national attention: a swiss-knife combination tool: spork-pocket knife; a boy scout eats everything and anywhere including at home with this spork; brought to school to eat with it his lunch; it fell out while on a school bus, the teacher saw him pick it up and asked for it; kid went to class, teacher to the principal, parents called, kid sentenced to 45 days in a remedial school; parents homeschool him while waiting for the Board hearing; seems like the Board will include exceptions or an opportunity for the teacher/principal to use common sense when faced with the situations…
In Alabama case, the zero-tolerance policy was enacted because “the studies showed that when common sense is used, the minority students are prosecuted more often than white students” and the board wanted to have equality.
I hope the kid parents get him a good lawyer to question the validity of the policy for being too vague – the tire iron example…
Olga, I believe that was in Delaware, but still stupid if it was in any state.
Sadly, parents have pushed the schools into this. As a recovering teacher I can tell you that leaving things open to common sense means interpretation which means cries of favoritism, racism, and every other kind of “-ism” you can think of. Of course, when you are calling the parents of students you are having trouble with they don’t return calls. Untill they get in trouble then it’s your fault for not having done anything about it. So what you get are these stupid “zero tolerance policies”
I wonder who the rat-fink ass-munch was that turned this kid in, how else would an administrator know he had a pocket knife at all if it was in his car unseen……
“Makes me wonder what these asshats would have done at my high school during deer season. Oh, and anyone with a Leatherman tool in your car’s tool kit, you’re also in violation.”
I swear half the trucks at my high school had gun racks. Even though school violence has been going down we still have some “do gooders” wanting to make decisions for everyone else.
Future Soldier? How the hell do you know what he’s gonna be when he grows up? Maybe a future gang-banger? 45 days may seem like a bit of an over reaction, unless you’re the parent of a kid who was stabbed by a pocket knife. Knives don’t belong in schools.
I’ve told this story many times through the years and always get crazy looks. When I went to high school, it was in the country in metro Detroit. We used to carry shotguns in the trunk because we would sometimes see pheasant on the way to school. If so, we were late for first hour. We never even once thought about taking those guns into school. Of course now where we used to hunt is all residential but back in the 70’s we saw nothing wrong with it. What has happened to this country?
Joe
How about following the link before you spew….John conveniently provided the link so you could see for yourself. He completed Army basic training and was planning on going to the Academy. He’s an Eagle Scout…..real close to a gang banger. He didn’t have the knife in school, it was in his car with bottled water and an MRE in case he got stranded in the middle of no-where, imagine an Eagle Scout actually being prepared, who’d a thunk it. He got 20 days suspension, not 45. The pocket knife was a gift from his Grandfather….the Chief of freaking police! and it’s NOT considered a weapon under state law, the school can just call it a weapon if they choose to. Amazing what you can learn by READING.
Tanker–you didn’t realy think our little troll Joe was going to use common sense or actually READ THE STORY, did ya?
Having worked in education I know what even a “little knife” in the hands of a “good kid” can do…..
Substitute lunch lady doesn’t count, Josephine.
Good one, Sparky….
Joe,
Having worked in education also I don’t know what a “little knife” in the hands of a “good kid” can do but I saw a kid stabbed with a compass….provided by the school. I saw a kid knocked unconscious by a book…..provided by the school. I saw another kid get his arm broken by a chair….provided by the school. Wait, these weren’t good kids. I guess I only saw a knife used to disect a worm.
I had an Eagle Scout as a student….he never once stabbed anybody……
Now that I think about it…
….having been on the internet I know what a “little” keyboard in the hands of a “good” troll can do….
In days of yore, this kid would have been the topic of an assembly, teaching preparedness, both for ones future, and for the nations future. Trolls like Joe would agree that while this knife with 2 inch blade, locked in a car, posed a much larger threat than say a Baseball bat in the athletic dept, or that stupid paperweight on the principals desk.
It is the mindset of those like Joe that punish good kids while letting the criminal sorts go free, lest we hurt their feelings. No different than the mentality that would ban guns from we law abiding citizens without doing a damned thing to get the guns of the criminal element. Political Correctness is killing this nation.
“Learned all I need to know about Islam on 9/11!”
Why is it usually the upper East coast that has these fits of madness?
As toothless dawg said, I’d LOVE to have them open THEIR car & have it searched for anything “that reasonably can be considered a weapon.” Hell, even the CAR ITSELF could be reasonably considered a weapon. Just look at what drunk and careless drivers do. Look over in the Middle East at all the (wait for it, wait for it . . . )CAR BOMBS.
Idiots all. I hope he and the parents fight it like hell.