I wasn't planning a post for today, but I heard something on the radio that made me angry. I have to vent.
It appears the Fort Worth Independent School District is prohibiting students from exchanging gifts or "personal holiday messages" during class, but they are still (yep, this is a quote) "allowed to say Merry Christmas." Allowed. They won't get in trouble for making a traditional greeting of good will. Wow.
Now, I'm a Christian, and the demonization of Christianity in general and Christmas specifically irks me, but that's not the point of this post. My point is that word "allowed." Why are we at the point that students have to be "allowed" to say anything? Granted we don't want them cursing each other out in the halls, we already have ways of dealing with those situations. I may detest the idea of "verbal assault," but laws against it exist already- why add more?
So, I'll delve into how we got to the point that children must be "allowed" to say "Merry Christmas."
It's because we don't treat school children as humans, let alone American Citizens. Think about it, school children have no Rights. No Rights of free speech, assembly, or self defense; no protections against unreasonable searches or seizures, or self-incrimination. No Rights. And yet, every year, parents are outraged- outraged, I say- at the additional creep of Statism in our schools. We not only don't raise a fuss when some random search of lockers occurs, we defend the School's (the Government's) right to do so because someone might possibly have something illicit in their locker. Maybe. On the other hand, if a cop were ever to try to search your home, just because, you'd probably be on the phone to the ACLU (or some less scummy lawyer) before the cop had gotten all the way into your house. We defend the school's right to suspend (or expel) kids for taking a pocket-knife to school, but (Conservatives, at least) decry and bemoan any restrictions on gun ownership, and most restrictions on where we can carry. We don't bat an eye when a kid is suspended for refusing to talk about an incident (say: a fight) at school, but scream "I plead the 5th" ourselves.
If you want Christmas back in the classroom, you have to realize the root of the problem: our children are people- they're even US Citizens, and the same protections all citizens have against the government should apply to them, too. If you won't fight that fight, you have no ideological or philosophical grounds to complain about "Christ being kicked out of the classroom."
It's funny you should mention this. My daughter's high school got searched for drugs this week. However, what they did was bring drug-sniffing dogs through, instead of searching random lockers or whatever. I totally get what you're saying, but there's also the idea of voluntary association. Does that apply here? For example, at my husband's former employer, the rule was that employees could not even bring firearms into the parking lot, in their cars. Since my husband was a CCL holder, they took away one of his rights. Would you say the company should be sued for denying my husband that right, or that my husband should find another job, because their parking lot, their rules?
ReplyDeleteThere's a distinct difference between a public school, and a private employer. The public school is an arm of the government, and should be held to the same standards we hold the rest of the government. A private employer is... private. They get to set their own rules (within the law, of course).
ReplyDeleteI would say the same applies to a private school- since a parent voluntarily elects to send their child to a private school, they must abide by that schools rules.
And before anyone says, "But homeschool!" Note that, in a perfect world, I would agree with you. But the moment that Government not only made school available at tax-payer expense, but made "some form" of schooling mandatory, some kids will have no viable alternative except to attend government schools.
Well, when my husband worked for the government, he had to go through a metal detector, and couldn't even bring fingernail clippers in, much less a pocket knife. :)
ReplyDeleteAgain- the difference there being choice. He could have worked for some other employer or, indeed, not worked at all. It is illegal for kids not to go to school.
ReplyDeleteIn your husband's case, it quits being a "government/governed" relationship and becomes a routine "employer/employee" relationship.
Fort Worth has been in decline for a while now. They used to have some pride in being better than dallas but that's like being smarter than Megaton McCain.
ReplyDeleteBob Saget!
AllenG,
ReplyDeleteFollowed you from AoSHQ, where I'm a dedicated lurker. Excellent start for your blog, I'll keep checking in!