I have to post this piece of stupidity..........

[Grandpa Shooter]

http://www.kpho.com/news/23628568/detail.html

There are tons of things to be said about this article, but you folks already know what I think.  How about you?

Boy Suspended For 'Thinking' About Knife
5-Year-Old Kicked Out, Then Let Back In
Pat McReynolds
Reporter, KPHO.com

POSTED: 8:54 pm MST May 20, 2010
UPDATED: 8:46 am MST May 21, 2010

QUEEN CREEK, Ariz. -- A kindergartner was suspended for intending to bring a knife to school. But before the day was done, and after CBS 5 News called, the principal had a change of heart.

Josh Bejerano, 5, showed CBS 5 News the bush where he and his friends found a pocket knife Thursday morning on their way to school.

"It was in that bush right by that house," said Josh.

The kindergartner briefly put the knife in his backpack, but thought better of it and put it down.

"It was a bad idea bringing the knife. It could hurt somebody," said Josh.

The small knife remained in the park, well off of school grounds.

But when the other boys started talking about it at Harmon Elementary, Josh was called into the principal's office, and ultimately suspended.

"The principal told me that he was suspended for his intent to bring the knife to school. He didn't actually bring it to school," said Marc Bejerano, Josh's Father.

"I was angry. I couldn't understand why he was suspended. He didn't do anything wrong," said Brandi Pack, Josh's mother.

Josh said he felt "bad 'cause I got suspended."

CBS 5 News called Principal Chris Lineberry, who referred the station to the superintendent. But shortly after CBS 5 News started to investigate, the principal reversed his decision, and told Josh's parents he would be allowed back to school on Friday, the last day of the year. It was also his kindergarten graduation.

But Josh's parents still weren't satisfied.

"He said he refused to apologize. He would not apologize at all," said Bejerano.

But while CBS 5 News was in the middle of an interview with Pack, another phone call came from the school to Pack's phone. It was the principal again.

"He said he wanted to apologize. He said if he knew that tomorrow was Josh's kindergarten graduation, he wouldn't have suspended him from school," said Pack.

It appears on this day, both the principal and the student learned a lesson.

Josh said next time he finds a knife, he will simply, "Leave it alone."

Copyright 2010 by KPHO.com. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[KD5NRH]

"He said he wanted to apologize. He said if he knew that tomorrow was Josh's kindergarten graduation, he wouldn't have suspended him from school," said Pack.

Aside from all the other stupid in this story, the principal claims he had no clue that kindergarten graduation was coming up?

[griz]

Silly me, I thought only adults could commit thought crimes.

[BrokenPaw]

I think that if that principle is married, and has ever even looked at another woman and found her attractive, he should be stoned in the town square as a pre-adulterer.  And if he's not married, then he should be stoned as a pre-fornicator.

 

How stupid can people be?  The kid had a thought, and (at age five) thought better of it, make the right decision, and did the right thing.  And the principal suspended him. 

Wow.  Just...wow.

[Tallpine]

Where the heck is Queen Creek?  (or is it Queer Creek  )

What about all the kids who though about cutting their meat with a knife at supper last night?  Is the principal going to suspend all of them, too...? 


When I was in school in AZ in the 1960s, most of the boys and some of the girls carried pocket knives to school every day, from about 3rd grade on.

[Fly320s]

"He said he wanted to apologize. He said if he knew that tomorrow was Josh's kindergarten graduation, he wouldn't have suspended him from school," said Pack.

So, he is not aplogizing for the stupid decision of suspending the kid, he is apologizing for interupting the kid's graduation.  If this though crime had occured earlier in the year, then the suspension would have been continued.

That principal has to be one of the dumbest creatures on this planet.

[HankB]

Could say a lot, but I'll make it short: it's just as well the kid wasn't mine, because Principal Chris Lineberry would likely be in a full body cast, and I'd likely be in jail.  

[Marnoot]

Right, because felony assault is an appropriate response to an inappropriate kindergarten suspension.

[AJ Dual]

Right, because felony assault is an appropriate response to an inappropriate kindergarten suspension.

Roofing adhesive and the contents of a few feather pillows is better.

Although in seriousness, what exactly prompted the whole zero-tolerance idea in the first place? How many true miscreants and delinquents with guns/drugs/knives were getting off the hook because they pointed out good kids with drawings of guns/tylenol/butter knives?

[makattak]

I just have to highlight this once more.

This boy was punished for doing the prescribed thing. (I can't write "right thing" because it should be right for a boy to find a pocket knife and put it in his backpack. Attempting to find the owner would make it even more right.)

He's been punished for even cosidering not doing the prescribed thing. Thank you, Big Brother.

[230RN]

From Tallpine:

When I was in school in AZ in the 1960s, most of the boys and some of the girls carried pocket knives to school every day, from about 3rd grade on.

And from AJ Dual:

Although in seriousness, what exactly prompted the whole zero-tolerance idea in the first place? How many true miscreants and delinquents with guns/drugs/knives were getting off the hook because they pointed out good kids with drawings of guns/tylenol/butter knives?

This all came about because of all the kids being slaughtered in school after some kids lost in games of mumblety-peg.  Didn't you know?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mumblety-peg

Terry, 230RN

[HankB]

Right, because felony assault is an appropriate response to an inappropriate kindergarten suspension.

For abusing a child and saddling him with a trumped up weapons violation record that will follow him around the rest of his school days . . .

Actually, a lawsuit against the principal as an individual would be better, especially if it can be shown that school "zero tolerance" rules do NOT include punishments for touching a pocket knife away from school and off school grounds . . .

[BrokenPaw]

Is it normal for a 5-year-old to be going to school without some sort of adult supervision?  The article mentions that Josh and "his friends" found the knife, but it says nothing about the ages of the other kids.

I live in an area where busing is the norm, but parents around here with young kids like that tend to wait with the kids until the bus comes.

Something about this situation strikes me as odd (other than the whole Principal-is-an-idiot part). 

I know that when I was a kid, one of my friends had a 2-years-younger brother, Scott, who would always tag along with us.  Whenever their parents came down on the older brother for something, he'd blame Scott for it.  And he'd prep Scott beforehand, too, so Scott would admit to...whatever it was.  I never really understood why Scott kept letting it happen.

Anyway, I wonder if Josh was the youngest kid in the group, and some of the older kids put the idea into his head of taking the knife to school.  Either way, good on him for thinking through action and consequence.  That's something that some kids 10 years older than he still can't do.

[Marnoot]

For abusing a child and saddling him with a trumped up weapons violation record that will follow him around the rest of his school days . . .

Don't see how this qualifies as child abuse, though the weapons-violation record could definitely be an issue (and something worth suing over) if that's how it was recorded in the records.

[gunsmith]

Where the heck is Queen Creek?  (or is it Queer Creek  )

What about all the kids who though about cutting their meat with a knife at supper last night?  Is the principal going to suspend all of them, too...? 


When I was in school in AZ in the 1960s, most of the boys and some of the girls carried pocket knives to school every day, from about 3rd grade on.

Heck, even kids in NYC carried knives without ppl getting their undies twisted up

[RoadKingLarry]

It appears on this day, both the principal and the student learned a lesson.

The principal (might have) learned that in the age of instantaneous commnications stupidity can sometimes be embarrassing.

The student (probably) learned that the people in charge of providing his education are a bunch of booger eating morons.

[MechAg94]

Right, because felony assault is an appropriate response to an inappropriate kindergarten suspension.

Because sometimes, stupid should hurt.   

[Grandpa Shooter]

Where the heck is Queen Creek?  (or is it Queer Creek  )

Out past Chandler in the San Tans.  A bedroom community for the upwardly mobile 30 somethings.

Is it normal for a 5-year-old to be going to school without some sort of adult supervision?  The article mentions that Josh and "his friends" found the knife, but it says nothing about the ages of the other kids.

I live in an area where busing is the norm, but parents around here with young kids like that tend to wait with the kids until the bus comes.

In these suburban communities, they have decentralized the schools in favor of community schools so that most of the kids are within walking distance of their school.  I agree that the whole thing was stupid, especially the lack of judgement by the principal.

[Tallpine]

In these suburban communities, they have decentralized the schools in favor of community schools so that most of the kids are within walking distance of their school.

It was that way in my days. 

I lived in a little John F. Long subdivision that covered 3/4 of a square mile.  The elementary school was right in the middle of the mile by mile (section) block.  The other 1/4 section was still in farmland, as were all the entire sections for miles around.  The crop dusters (converted WW2 planes) used to make their sharp turns right above our house.  My walk or bike ride to school was maybe 4 or 5 short blocks.

Now all the farmland is gone, and that neighborhood is a barrio :(  My old grade school has razor wire on the top of the fence, which surrounds absolutely everything including the parking lot.  Used to be we could go to the schoolyard to play on weekends if we wanted.  No more - the school looks like a medium security prison.

[Hawkmoon]

Right, because felony assault is an appropriate response to an inappropriate kindergarten suspension.

It probably is, in fact. It's just unfortunate that it's illegal.

Stupid is supposed to hurt, but school administrators seem to have STUPID almost locked up, and they rarely feel any hurt as a result. They need to start feeling some hurt.

[Waitone]

Stupid should hurt but can't because we've eliminated the consequences.  People as stupid as the principal should be prohibited from breeding.  The human gene pool can not continually turn out such idiocy without some sort of darwinian correction. 

I weep for my children.

[Jamisjockey]

Okay between the threats for bodily harm and the "queer" comments....



Frankly, I'm ashamed at some of ya'll.