[6 year old Zachary Christie]’s offense? Taking a camping utensil that can serve as a knife, fork and spoon to school. He was so excited about recently joining the Cub Scouts that he wanted to use it at lunch. School officials concluded that he had violated their zero-tolerance policy on weapons, and Zachary now faces 45 days in the district’s reform school.
[…]
Spurred in part by the Columbine and Virginia Tech shootings, many school districts around the country adopted zero-tolerance policies on the possession of weapons on school grounds. More recently, there has been growing debate over whether the policies have gone too far.
[…]
Critics contend that zero-tolerance policies like those in the Christina district have led to sharp increases in suspensions and expulsions, often putting children on the streets or in other places where their behavior only worsens, and that the policies undermine the ability of school officials to use common sense in handling minor infractions.For Delaware, Zachary’s case is especially frustrating because last year state lawmakers tried to make disciplinary rules more flexible by giving local boards authority to, “on a case-by-case basis, modify the terms of the expulsion.” The law was introduced after a third-grade girl was expelled for a year because her grandmother had sent a birthday cake to school, along with a knife to cut it. The teacher called the principal — but not before using the knife to cut and serve the cake.
I truly fear for our youth today. They have such an uphill battle to normal it’s almost comical.
I just remembered that for my daughters 6th birthday I brought in a cookie cake to her kindergarten class with a cake knife (the wedge shaped serving things). It never crossed my mind that I could have gotten her expelled. Maybe because it is a private Catholic school they are a little more open minded?
Think, or you’re just and idiot.
Gee, now isn’t that obvious.
Some school teachers and principals think, others don’t. Public or private, there are idiots in both.
Out of control? You kidding me? Why isn’t this future Ramon Salcito sitting on death row?
The schools are afraid that Mom and Dad will sue if their precious snowflake is punished for bringing an Uzi to class while somebody else’s kid got away with bringing in a spork. You can thank our current American culture for that, I guess.
I have to do this where I work – enforce rules when I’d like to use judgement – because we get threatened with nuisance lawsuits.
Today is the Canadian Thanksgiving day. The thing they are most thankful for is that they aren’t Americans.
Zero tolerance is a cowards, but job saving way out. Let a white little first grader off for his pocket knife, then expel a black child for carrying a pen knife and bring criminal charges. See why school board members and administrator don’t want to get near these decisions. A person can take a two inch sharp pen knife and sever the external carotid, Unless the victim is on an OR table prepped with a dozen units of blood, they’re going to die. Even then there would likely be lasting damage.
Andy Taylor and Mayberry never existed. It was a double standard then, and the talking head press didn’t cover such things.
Mommy, I’m six.
Please pack me a macroon
They’ve put me away
For a runcible spoon.
… and these people are teaching our children.
When I was about 12, I took my Scout knife to school. I don’t remember what I did, but I ended up in the principal’s office about it. I’ll never forget what he did….
He asked me if I had my Tote’n Chip. I did, and I handed it over. He cut off two corners and told me to leave the knife at home from now on.
End of story. Although I did carry the knife once in a while when I got to high school.
And you would think that school is a place of thinking, har!!!!
Common sense? Hell, that went out a long time ago.
I’m surprised they didn’t Taze the little bastard when they caught him with his Cub Scout “device” and throw him in the slammer.
Gah, I hate zero tolerance laws. If they didn’t have those laws I totally would have murdered everyone in my high school, but they didn’t allow me to bring a gun so i couldn’t. If only i didn’t care about laws.
The result of law makers trying to win the votes of their conservative constituents that fear everything. There comes a point where the laws applied are insane.
Actually, the Boy Scouts just banned pocket knives too! Not kidding.
Sick society, isn’t it?
But, we can teach fourth graders all about transgenders and condoms.
Faxon, that’s not quite right. The UK Scouts have some new knife rules, but BSA has not banned anything.
And I even went too far saying there are new rules in the UK…here’s the Scout knife story.
#10 What was the significance in cutting off the corners of the tote n’ chip?
#18…each torn corner represents a violation of the knife handling rules. If all four corners are gone, the card is invalid and you have to earn it all over again before you can walk around carrying a blade.
The card is not official BSA, there are no formal rules on its need or use…councils and troops handle them different ways.
Yeah, this is getting out of hand. We really need zero tolerance on zero tolerance. Yeah.
#18, To earn the Toten Chip a Scout must pass lessons on knife safety. Then they are awarded a Toten Chip card that entitles them to use their pocket knives. If a Scout violets one of the tenets of the training, a corner is cut off, lose all 4 corners and you have to pass the requirements again.
#18, To earn the Toten Chip a Scout must pass lessons on knife safety. Then they are awarded a Toten Chip card that entitles them to use their pocket knives. If a Scout violates one of the tenets of the training, a corner is cut off, lose all 4 corners and you have to pass the requirements again.
#10 Wow! Perchance was the Principal a ScoutMaster? What a great way to handle such a situation. Very wise. (takes me back)
Yep, that sounds like Delaware to me, filled with idiots.
”Spurred in part by the Columbine and Virginia Tech shootings…”
Yeah SHOOTINGS, not knives; rather Swiss army knives little with 2 inch blades. I’m sure kids in school get stabbed daily around the world, but since we are so desensitized by it all, we never hear about it.
# 11
Oh far from it. Kids aren’t even told WHAT to think anymore fearing the politically correct now. Kids aren’t taught what to think anymore, and were never taught how to think. Only thing left they teach is “tolerance,” even though the jocks and bullies ignore that. So we wonder why kids end up psychopaths and shoot up a school, and then it’s blamed it on video games like “Doom.”
Put morons in control
What do you expect
Anal retentive beyond belief
#22 Thinker…he must have been a Scoutmaster or assistant. At the time I though he was an ass, but what do 12-year olds know?
I be in jail if this were true back in my days. That’s when spanking was still in effect. I can handle spanking 🙂
Kids who act bad aren’t necessarily bad kids. Case in point, myself hahaha
the school is preparing this boy for the future. He is well on the road to his first step into manhood, the TSA anal cavity search!