Drop the marker and step away from the desk!

Remember the days, where you messed up, and your parents would give you a much deserved whack on the bottom? Legally in most states you cannot do that to your own children anymore! The law can tell you that you are abusive, and The DSS could show up take your kids away, because you disciplined them.

I remember when I was a freshman in high school, and one day I was playing Frisbee at lunch, but I did not have a Frisbee, so I used a plate from the cafeteria. Things did not go well with my first throw, and as the plate made a left hand turn directly into the typing room window. I ran as fast as I could to my next class to avoid being caught and embarrassed, because I was foolish in my choice of outdoor equipment that day. What happened next was a rational, and reasonable response from the Dean of Students. When he approached me, and asked "Does this plate look familiar"? I responded in my typical sarcastic, yet funny way "I may have eaten off of that at lunch today". After he stopped laughing, he said "Is there something you want to tell me"? I then confessed, and apologized for my actions. I paid for the replacement of the glass myself. My parents made sure it came out of my earnings from my part time job. I was not suspended, but spent two days in detention after school. What is my point?

Alexa Gonzalez a 12 year old girl in New York wrote on her desk on 2/1/10. She wrote in green marker "I love my friends Abby & Faith" She also wrote "Lex was here 2/1/10". So what was her punishment for this action? Was it cleaning the desk? Was it detention? No! It was being handcuffed, arrested, and humiliated in front of her friends, and peers. The times are changing, and for those who do not believe me, read the article at the bottom of the page from CNN.

This girl is not the first this has happened to, and she will not be the last. If you ever thought that a "Police State" was not possible here in America, think again.

It is bad enough that some of the people educating our children, lack common sense, but those enforcing the laws, and protecting society from the real criminals are demonstrating the same lack of judgment. I would understand if she "Carved" a racially charged comment, or threatened to do harm to a student etc... into the desk with a knife she brought to school. I would then understand if she was removed, and evaluated by a trained "Child" psychologist. I put the word Child in quotes to point out the fact that she is in fact a child! She did not do any harm to herself or anyone else, she wrote on a desk!!!!! I'm sure the janitor has Ajax, or a Magic Eraser, that poor Alexa could have used, to spend 5 minutes cleaning off the desk! Instead she was humiliated, and what makes it worse is that nobody in the school system or police department feels they did anything wrong.

When I was a child, and did something worthy of a spanking, I learned my lesson by a spanking.
When a child does something worthy of a trip to the principles office, and ends up in jail, what lesson will they learn from that?

Don't Cheat on a test, or you might get shot!

Norm

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/18/new.york.doodle.arrest/index.html?hpt=C1