Going Too Far

The following items are on the news.  

They have to relate to rejects from the "gene" pool (i.e. school officials) that were NOT flushed.

Pacoima, CA.A nine year old student was threatened with suspension when a sub. teacher found some snapshots in the boy's bookbag.

The photos were of the student and his brother shooting at a range under the supervision of their aunt, a certified police firearms instructor.  

A school official told the boy's mother that he had "extremely disturbing and offensive photographs" and threatened to call the police to question the boy and said that he would face suspension.  

District officials decided not to suspend the student after discussion with the parents.

Four New Jersey kindergarten students were suspended for playing cops and robbers, pointing their fingers at each other and shouting "bang, bang."

A Wisconsin third grader was suspended for having a key chain with a small replica of a gun.

A 11 year old Georgia girl was suspended because a chain attached to a wallet depicting the Tweety Bird cartoon character was too long and might possibly be used as a weapon.

Three grammar students in Colorado were suspended for possessing a weapon -- a water pistol.

A 13 year old in Arizona built a rocket -- fueled by three match heads -- out of a potato chip canister.  He was suspended for a year for having a "weapon".The school also reported him to the police.

In Michigan, a third grader was suspended for showing his classmates a gun-shaped medallion, slightly larger than a charm for a necklace that he had found in a snowbank.

In Maryland, a school suspended a 9 year old after he drew a picture of a gun on a piece of paper.

In Colorado, a 6 year old was suspended for violating the school's anti drug policy after a teacher saw him share a lemon drop candy with a friend.

The school also called an ambulance for the lemon-drop eating friend.

Three cheers for the American Bar Association's (ABA) decision to oppose zero tolerance policies which allow kids to be kicked out of school for possession of "drugs" like lemon drops and Kool-Aid and for "weapons" like fingers and rubber bands.

"Finally, some sanity about America's zero tolerance nonsense," said Steve Dasbach, the party's national director.

"In a country where students can be expelled for sniffing Kool-Air, for sharing candy, and for brandishing potato chip canisters, the ABA has interjected a note of common sense. "

On Monday, the leadership of the ABA voted to recommend an end to zero-tolerance policies in the nation's 14,000 school districts.

The 400,000 member lawyer's organization, which held its winter meeting in San Diego, said such policies are a misguided "one size fits all solution to all of the problems schools confront" and have "redefined students at criminals."

Note: What else has been defined... is a total lack of common sense on the part of legislators and school personnel.