Kids On School Bus Chant 'Assassinate Obama'

I do not care what side of the political aisle a person is, this type of behavior is unacceptable, from an adult or from children as was the case of Idaho children, on a school bus, chanting "Assassinate Obama."

Video below is of the KIKD News report, via YouTube.

I have read a couple reports about this and haven't seen anyone that can pinpoint who started the chant, but from the accounts, whoever started it, got the other kids chanting the same sick theme.

Whoolery and his wife couldn't believe it when their second and third graders got off the bus last week and told them what other students were saying.

"They just hadn't heard anything like this before," said Whoolery. "They were chanting on the bus, 'Assassinate Obama. Assassinate Obama.' Then adding in a name sometimes of a classmate on the bus, 'Assassinate Obama and Kate.'"

The Whoolery's explained to their kids what assassinate means then contacted the school about what was happening.

"I think the thing that struck us was just like, 'Where did they get the word and why would they put that word and that person together?'" said Whoolery.

It's not that the Whoolery's are big Obama fans they just don't like people joking about a serious matter concerning any leader of the country.

Whichever kid started it, they heard it somewhere, from someone that obviously did know what the word assassinate means.

The Madison County School District has sent out an email to all teachers, principals, and bus drivers making it clear that children should immediately be told this type of language is unacceptable, but it brings a more chilling issue.

Children not knowing what it means, chanting that, is bad enough, but the thought process of whoever taught those children to say it, makes for dangerous individuals.

Anyone that reads this blog knows I am not a fan of Barack Obama, but no elected official should ever be threatened with assassination.

I can hear people now saying, but they are children, this isn't a threat.

Granted.

The fact remains, the children learned it somewhere and since this was one bus full of children, it should not be too difficult to find out who started the "chant" and work backwards to figure out who that child heard those words from and do a little investigating to make sure that person isn't a threat to Obama, or part of a group that could be considered a threat.

I would say the same thing if McCain had won the election or if this was chanted about Bush.

Wrong is wrong.

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Texas Teachers May Become First In Nation To Carry Guns In School Legally

Teachers in the Harrold Independent School District, in the state of Texas, may become the first to be allowed to carry guns for protection in school.

Chron.com reports that Trustees for the Harrold Independent School District approved a policy change last October which would allow the teachers in their tiny school district to carry guns at school, for protection.

The community is a 30 minute drive from the Sheriff's office and the district's single campus is only 500 feet from the U.S. 587, which is a heavily trafficked highway and this leaves the schools' teachers and students unprotected.

The 110-student district is 150 miles northwest of Fort Worth on the eastern end of Wilbarger County, near the Oklahoma border.

According to Superintendent David Thweatt, officials discussed and researched a number of policies before approving the one that will allow teachers to arm themselves in this tiny community's school and this policy is but one of those security measures approved to help prevent a school shooting.

Thweatt tells the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, "When the federal government started making schools gun-free zones, that's when all of these shootings started. Why would you put it out there that a group of people can't defend themselves? That's like saying 'sic 'em' to a dog," he continues on to say, "The naysayers think (a shooting) won't happen here. If something were to happen here, I'd much rather be calling a parent to tell them that their child is OK because we were able to protect them."

Texas law prevents guns on a school campus unless "pursuant to the written regulations or written authorization of the institution."

In order for the teachers to obtain permission to carry a firearm on the campus, they must:

-Have a Texas license to carry a concealed handgun;

-Must be authorized to carry by the district;

-Must receive training in crisis management and hostile situations;

-Have to use ammunition that is designed to minimize the risk of ricochet in school halls.

No details were provided by Thweatt on the number of teachers or staff that would be carrying a gun, to prevent students or potential attackers from being informed of those figures.

This policy approved last October will allow for these staff members and faculty to be carrying as of the opening of school later this month.

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California Teacher Arrested In Online Sex Sting

A Santa Jose, California, high school teacher was arrested on Tuesday after he allegedly solicited sexual favors from a Santa Cruz police detective posing as a 13 year-old girl.

As CBS5.com reports, 37 year-old James Barany who is a high school teacher, was arrested on Tuesday at 4:15 pm, after allegedly initiating an online chat room conversation with a Detective that was posing as a 13 year-old girl.

Barany, who is a music teacher at William C. Overfelt High School in San Jose, arranged to meet the "girl" he believed to be 13 years old, at a location in Santa Cruz, which is where he was arrested.

According to the district attorney's office, formal charges will be filed against Barany this week.

After being arrested the police notified the Santa Clara County school officials, who immediately put Barany on administrative leave until an investigation can be conducted.

Superintendent Bob Nunez said the district procedure when teachers are arrested is to put them on paid administrative leave until an employment investigation can be performed. Barany originally resigned following his arrest, but today asked that his resignation be reconsidered.

The employment investigation begins after the criminal case has been filed because the district doesn't want to "taint any of the witnesses or evidence," Nunez said.

ABC reports that detectives are investigating to discover whether Barany had contact with any other children and according to the Internet chat room conversation that led to his arrest he was planning on "committing lewd acts with a teenager."

Zach Friend with the Santa Cruz police stated, "It's disturbing to think anybody of his age and position of authority would say the things he said to a 13-year-old girl."

Barany was not the only teacher accused of soliciting sex with a 13-year-old girl, as an Ontario, Oregon social studies teacher was also caught in a sting similar to the one that Barany was arrested for, reported Seattlepi.com.

Joseph Garner was charged with online sexual corruption of a child after a three-month investigation touched off by a private organization that identifies sexual predators on the Web.

These arrests come on the heels of two new bills that have been approved in California by the State Assembly, that are geared to close loopholes in California's teacher licensing laws that allow teachers that have been accused and/or convicted of serious crimes, to remain in the classroom.

The Daily News reports that this legislation, sponsored by Sen. Bob Margett, R-Arcadia, and Sen. Jack Scott, D-Pasadena and were "prompted" by an Associated Press investigation last year, into sexual misconduct by teachers, will "allow the state to revoke licenses from teachers who plead no contest to certain sex crimes or drug offenses or have had their licenses revoked in another state."

Both bills passed the Senate and State Assembly and are awaiting Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's signature to become law, but he has refused to sign any legislation until the state budget has been passed.

Both bills were also sponsored by the state credentialing commission after the AP published the results of their seven-month investigation, and both bills were opposed by the California Teachers Association.

An analysis by the California Teacher Credentialing Commission following AP's report found that about two-thirds of the educators who face revocation or other serious action are convicted following a plea of no contest to a serious offense.

That triggered a discretionary review by the commission rather than the mandatory loss of teachers' licenses, a process that can sometimes take two or three years.

According to the current law, the results of misconduct accusations are sealed after one year by credentialing commission which hinders schools abilities to confirm a teachers' complete background, if they later learn that teacher lied on their applications.

One of the bills, the one sponsored by Margett, would keep those records open and available for five years instead of one.

The other bill that was approved by the State Assembly, the one sponsored by Scott, would "automatically suspend teachers' credentials if they have had their license revoked in another state for misconduct."

Scott's bill would also require the credentialing commission to automatically revoke a teachers' license if a prior criminal conviction had limited their contact with children.

The exact wording in that bill is:

The commission also would be required to revoke the credential of a holder when it receives notice that the ability of the holder to associate with minors has been limited as a term or condition of probation or sentencing resulting from a criminal conviction in this state, another state, or the United States, or the holder has been ordered to surrender a credential or certification document as a term or condition of probation or sentencing resulting from a criminal conviction in this state, another state, or the United States, except as specified. The person whose credential is so revoked would be prohibited from applying for reinstatement of the credential until the terms or conditions imposed by the conviction are lifted.

Margett's legislation can be found here (9 page PDF file)

Scott's legislation can be found here (8 page PDF file)

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Mixed Reactions To Taser Policy For Uniontown Schools

In Uniontown Area, Pennsylvania, there is a discussion going on about a taser plan being set up which would allow the use of tasers to be used in the Uniontown schools. The plans are receiving mixed reviews.

The Uniontown school officials have announced their intent to draft a taser policy for their police officers at the schools. This policy will potentially be discussed at their August 18, 2008 meeting and could be implemented as soon as next month.

Reactions to these reports are mixed, with the school's director of security asserting that giving this option to the officers of the district would be giving them " the safest possible conditions for children, staff and visitors than as a weapon "directed at the students."

The ACLU, via their attorney, says he cannot envision a need to use tasers in a school setting. They also believe that using tasers would be asking for trouble.

At a public meeting on Wednesday night, concerned parents and residents questioned the need for tasers as consultants called tasers an "useful extra tool" to be used instead of a firearm in gaining control of certain situations.

Ken Trump, a former school security director who heads National School Safety and Security Services, said a device like a Taser -- which delivers a powerful electric shock to incapacitate a person -- potentially can be helpful if an adult non-student intruder threatens harm to himself or others.

"I think parents need to realize they're not zapping kids for not having a hall pass," Trump said.

The high profile cases of deaths occurring after the use of a taser, and abuses of the use of the weapon that incapacitates a suspect, by authorities, that make spectacular headlines is also discussed in the article.

Ken Trump, a former school security director who heads National School Safety and Security Services, addresses those concerns by saying "The key is conservative use. I think we can say, if we can break up a fight in the hallway in a traditional way, then what's the point (of a Taser)?"

The article goes on to discuss the high profile cases, specifying last months headlines where a 17-year-old Winnipeg boy with a knife became the youngest Canadian to die after being zapped.

Another example was the recent in the Charlotte area which prosecutors said last month that the officers involved with a 17 year-old boys death would not be prosecuted after they zapped the suspect when he advanced on officers.

However, medical studies have shown that exposure to a conducted-energy device, or CED, like a Taser, is safe in the "vast majority of cases," according to a June report by the National Institute of Justice.

One of the three district school police officers that would have the ability to use tasers, should the need arise, is Don Homer, who is a 30-year law enforcement veteran and has been certified to use a Taser for eight years and is currently Uniontown's director of security and he states, "Probably the majority of my concern is protecting staff and students from something that could happen from outside the school. You want to be prepared. If you're not, it's too late."

The Southmoreland school director, Ken Alt, who worked in the state prison system, believes that his district would not necessarily follow Uniontown's lead in implemented a taser policy, but he does state that he thinks it could be useful. He also states one major point that many have said in recent discussions about tasers with the statement, "I think if the guy's trained and qualified it's definitely a plus. You never know anymore. Common sense is the biggest thing."

The common sense issue is one that continues to be debated, especially after a recent event where a man died after being tasered 9 times.

Some might argue that common sense is the biggest issue in regards to the use of tasers, yet what kind of test can you give law enforcement officials that will determine if they have an appropriate amount of common sense?

[Update] Here are Uniontwon's crime statistics.

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Teacher Accused Of Branding Kids With A Cross

John Freshwater, a science teacher for Mount Vernon Middle School has been fired after allegations came about that he had used a "electrostatic device" to burn the religious symbols onto the arms of multiple students last December.

From Mercury News:

"Freshwater told investigators the marks were X's, not crosses. But all of the students interviewed in the investigation reported being branded with crosses," the paper says. "The investigation report includes a photo of one student's arm with a long vertical line and a short horizontal line running through it."

The Dispatch says parents had complained for years that Freshwater taught intelligent design and discredited evolution in his Mount Vernon, Ohio, classroom. Now they're suing the school district in federal court.

Unbelievable.

It is reported also that the district's director of of teaching and learning, Lynda Weston, told investigations that she had been dealing with complaints about Freshwater for "much of her 11-year term at the district".

Unacceptable that they allowed this man to continue teaching children.

Students Banned From Commencement Ceremony For Flying Confederate Flag

(This Flag flies proudly over a cemetery in eastern Kentucky. The south may not have won this civil war, but these men died fighting for what they believed in, so this flag is in honor of them.)

Three students have been banned from their commencement ceremony because they flew a Confederate flag in a public high school parking lot.

The confederate flag has been a controversial symbol to many. Some believe it represents racism and others believe it is a symbol that represents a time of rebellion against the government and the soldiers that fought for that cause.

The students names are Dan Fredlin, Justin Thompson and Joey Snyder and they were suspended from their last day of school and banned from their diploma ceremony at the John F. Kennedy High School in Bloomington, Minnesota after arriving to their last day of school with the Confederate flags attached to their cars. One of the teens had the flag attached to a 20-foot flagpole on his truck.

According to Rick Kaufman who is a spokesman for the Bloomington Public School district, "We believe flying the Confederate flag on campus may violate district rules against discrimination. We believe — and have communicated with students — that the Confederate flag represents hatred, bigotry, intolerance, slavery, civil rights issues and discrimination."

Kaufman also stated, "At one time, the Confederate flag was seen as a symbol of pride. But it's been sullied by the Ku Klux Klan and other hate groups, much like the Nazi symbol was exploited by the S.S. That used to by a Hindu symbol of peace and love."

In an interview with ABC News, Thompson, was also reprimanded last year for brandishing a flag on his truck at Kennedy, said racism had nothing to do with the decision to fly the flag again on the last day of high school. To them, he said, it was more of an anti-authoritarian taunt.

"We look at it as kind of like a rebel thing," he said. "Anyone who knows us knows we're the farthest thing from racists."

The schools decision was protested by about 100 student, some of which were black, who all gathered and chanted, "Let them walk!", wearing T-shirts that said the same.

Justin Thompson criticized the school's decision, saying the principal was uneducated on the flag's history and biased by the hate it has come to represent for some.

Thompson reports to Army infantry training at Fort Benning in Georgia in July and will most likely being heading to Iraq.

One female friend of the three suspended and banned students, Kellie Rezac, not only helped orchestrate the protest but also claims that their was a double standard at play because she says "I 've had two Rebel flags on my truck for five months, and no one's ever said anything to me."

Should the school have gone to that extreme about an incident that many believe was simply a little rebellious behavior and was there a double standard in letting Rezac have two Confederate flags attached to her car for five months and not doing or saying anything, yet keeping these three teenage boys from attending their own commencement ceremony?

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Teacher Arrested And Charged With Molesting Five Students

Thomas Beltran, a teacher at Lincoln Middle School in Santa Monica, CA., was arrested and charged with molesting 5 female students. The District Attorney's Office announced he is being charged with 14 counts, eight being lewd acts on a child.

The Los Angeles District Attorney's Office made the announcement Tuesday that Beltran was being charged with 14 counted, eight of them being lewd acts on a child and he was arraigned on Tuesday afternoon, where he plead not guilty.

Deputy District Attorney Robin Sax Katzenstein, who is assigned to the case, told the court she had videotape showing Beltran molesting a girl in his classroom.

His not guilty plea is unrealistic since the prosecutor, Katzenstein, told the court they have a video of the suspect molesting a girl in his classroom.

Judge Keith Schwartz raised Beltran's bail to $3.3 million at the prosecutor's request. If convicted, Beltran, 60, faces up to life in prison, according to the District Attorney's Office.

Beltran was arrested and booked at the Santa Monica jail and held on statutory $1.1 million bail, on Saturday, and had been teaching English as a second language at the time of his arrested and had worked at Lincoln Middle School for two decades.

An interesting aspect of this case stems from something the school officials told a group of concerned parents at a last minute meeting set up so that Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, law enforcement and the Santa Monica school's officials outline the facts and offer support, where Tristan Komlos, the Lincoln school principal, told everybody, "We are in a state of shock, dismay and confusion but we wanted to give you this information. We want to come together as stakeholders in the [Lincoln Middle School] community to best support our students and each other in this difficult situation."

The reason that is interesting is because further research shows that in 2006 there was a complaint leveled against Beltran, which was never fully examined.

The president of Santa Monica's school board said Thursday that a "breakdown in communication" prevented the board from fully examining a 2006 complaint against a teacher who was charged this week with molesting five of his female students.

Oscar de la Torre, president of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District board, said he and other board members learned about the 2006 complaint only this week after Lincoln Middle School teacher Thomas Arthur Beltran, 60, was arrested. De la Torre said then-Principal Kathy Scott, who reported the allegations to police, is no longer with the district.

Also according to De la Torre, "There was a transition in leadership, and I think the communication [channels] suffered a breakdown. The school board was never alerted to the allegations in 2006."

There is no mention of the 2006 complaint in Beltran's personnel file.

The previous complaint didn't provide enough evidence to be prosecuted, although the child was removed from Beltran's class and at the time Beltran said his actions were "misinterpreted" and he was warned not to touch female students.

The Los Angeles County district attorney's office says that police are also questioning at least five other students who claimed that Beltran sexually molested them, some of those allegations go back to 1998.

According to court documents, the alleged abuse of the students took place between Dec. 1, 2004, and April 30 of this year. Police said that at least one incident was recorded on a videotape that was discovered during the investigation. Police will be contacting former students of Beltran as far back as possible, but the statute of limitations allows charges to be filed only in incidents since May 1998, said Santa Monica Police Lt. Darrell Lowe.

The school district is discussing policy changes to make sure that reports get fully investigated by the school board in the future.

The Santa Monica's police press release can be found here and in it we see one of the complainants is a 12 year old girl that told police she had been molested by Beltran.

This is an ongoing investigation and anyone with additional information is encouraged to call the Santa Monica Police Department Detectives at (310) 458-8451 (M – F, 8 AM – 5 PM) or the Communications Center at (310) 458-8491 (during non-business hours). Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may call the SMPD Detectives Tip Line at (310) 458-8449 or the WeTip hotline at 1-800-78-CRIME (27463).

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Groups Clash Over 'Day of Silence' Event in US Schools

Education

The national 'Day of Silence' scheduled for today and Friday, to support gay and lesbian students, is causing some major controversy with groups and parents protesting the event.

According to the Day of Silence website, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender/Transsexual (LGBT) event this year is being held in memory of Lawrence King, a California 8th-grader who was shot and killed Feb. 12 by a classmate because of his sexual orientation and gender expression.

Students at schools across the country vow to be silent for day, some wearing shirts with the words "Hello, I am Silent" and others simply refusing to participate in portions of classes that require them to speak.

This has parents and other groups questioning if schools, that are meant to educate the children, are the appropriate place for this type of event.

A prominent anti-gay-rights activist last week called for 1,000 "prayer warriors" to protest in front of the school Friday morning and school staff has been fielding calls and email from concerned parents that are concerned about students taking a silent vow in support of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth at some schools.

A local church took out a full-page ad in Wednesday's Snoqualmie Valley Record in support of the school's Gay Straight Alliance (GSA), which is sponsoring the Day of Silence. The ad was meant to counter one by the Rev. Ken Hutcherson, pastor of Antioch Bible Church in Redmond, inviting residents to join his protest and declaring: "It's time for moral people to be unashamed and take a stand."

The day of silence is not a school-sanctioned event, although many schools participate.

A group of parents for students that attend the Desert Ridge High School in Arizona, sent out a letter which, in part, states, "These organizations are trying to ensure that anything less than endorsement of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender lifestyles will not be tolerated in our schools or by our students. They want to modify school policies to include language which would remove the rights of those opposed to these lifestyles including the right to state our moral, religious, or even just personal belief that this is wrong. They do not feel anyone with an opinion or belief different from theirs should be able to express that opinion or belief."

You can read the whole letter here.

That group of parents are allowing their children to stay home from school Friday to protest National Day of Silence. One parent is even inviting students to his house for swimming and pizza.

One parent, Randy Bellino, thinks his son, Jake, "should be learning about math and science, not gay and lesbian rights." He is the parent inviting students over to swim and eat pizza.

Another parent, Gail Fox, in Houston's Pershing Middle School, who has a daughter, CeCe White, that is helping organize the event because her best friend is gay, supports her daughters involvement saying, "She has an opinion, and I think that's a great thing."

The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network has registered five participating schools in Katy, at least two in the Clear Creek school district and more than 20 in the Houston area. The organization estimates that more than 6,000 schools and several hundred thousand kids will keep silent Friday.

In response to the massive amounts of communication from groups and parents about the day of silence, the superintendent of Katy's school district, Alton Frailey, made it clear to the teachers in his district that although his schools were not officially asked to participate, if they were asked, "my answer is no."

He also sent out a districtwide e-mail on the subject, saying, "The degree of exposure and political posturing currently being generated is bringing more attention to this particular subject than is necessary", and in that email he instructed teachers to not make exceptions for students taking vows of silence.

One mother of an elementary school student in Katy, Lori Wilson, said she started receiving forwarded emails back in March, about the silent protest and she is one of the parents that has emailed the school's administrators.

"It's sad because we can't have a day of silence for prayer, but we can have a day of silence for that," she said.

This is but a small sample of what is going on around the country in schools.

One thing is clear, no matter what side of the issue people are on, all can agree that there won't be much scholastic education going on in the schools from one end of the country to the other, on Thursday and Friday.

According to Wikipedia, these days of silence have been going on annually since 1996.

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Elementary School Evacuated When 8 Yr. Old Brings A Grenade For Show and Tell

Education

The Ezra Baker School, an elementary school in Dennis, Massachusetts, evacuated about 400 students from pre-K through third grade after an 8 year old boy brought a grenade to school for show and tell.

The excited little boy told his teacher upon arriving that he had a grenade in his backpack but not to worry because it was a toy.

In reality it was a WW II grenade, which after the authorities were called, the school evacuated and and fire fighters and police rushed to the scene, was discovered to be a hollowed out grenade of World War II/Korean War vintage and not a danger to anyone.

The grenade was taken by the police to be given to the state police bomb squad as a precaution, according to Dennis Police Capt. William Monahan, who said, "With something like this you don’t want to be wrong. It could be a case where the explosive was removed, but the charge remained.”

The police say it is just an innocent mistake on the part of the child who "who hopefully won’t get into too much trouble with his mom.”

The school principal, Kevin Depin, says they are treating this seriously but fairly and concludes with, "We have to strongly emphasize with all our students that this is not something you want to bring to school.”

From the school's website we see that Mr. Depin has also issued a letter (1 page PDF) to all parents of the school:

April 9, 2008

Dear Families of the Ezra H. Baker School:

This call is to alert you to a situation that occurred at our school this morning.
A student brought what appeared to be a hollowed out grenade to school in his backpack.
He told his teacher, who alerted me immediately. I removed the backpack from the
building, and called local fire and police who responded immediately. Students were
evacuated to the rear of the building as a precaution.

Authorities determined that there was no danger. Students reentered the building and
carried on with their day. Please know that we will deal with this infraction fairly but
strongly. Please remember to check your child’s backpack before he/she leaves for
school.

As always, thank you for your help and support.

Poor kid never got his show and tell day.

Can you just imagine the teachers reaction upon seeing that grenade?

H/T Detention Slip

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Texas Student Attacked Because Of Her History Project on Illegal Immigration

Education and Crime

[MAJOR UPDATE!]The 13 year old faked the whole attack and caused the injuries to herself and she was caught on tape!!!!!!

The girl now faces disciplinary action from the school and will be charged with filing a false police report, AISD superintendent Fred Hayes said during a news conference today. [End Update]

A 13 year old girl was attacked in school after presenting her history assignment, which was to make a protest sign for or against an issue, and she chose Illegal Immigration as her issue.

Melanie Bowers, 13, participated in a history assignment handed out by her teacher, in which she chose the subject of illegal immigration, creating a sign that said, "If you love our nation, stop illegal immigration."

According to Melanie that sign somehow got passed around during the lunch break and angered some Latino students, one of which jumped on her back and put her in a choke hold and then slammed her face into the brick wall.

She also alleges that a group of boys threatened to rape and kill her.

After Melanie the incident to school officials what had occurred, they ordered her back to class, and told her could not call her parents.

Her parents deem this unacceptable, saying, "They handled this wrong, you know, they put a child back in danger. It was a very racially motivated crime."

After the incident, Mr. Bowers said his daughter told him she attempted to use an office phone to call him. Hayes said Assistant Principal Mark Castleberry looked her over and “did not see anything wrong with her.” Castleberry did not allow her to use the phone, and she eventually used her cell phone to inform her parents she had been attacked.

A statement issued from the Athens Independent School District, the school in which this attack happened, given to KLTV 7, they confirm that an incident happened, saying, "We have a camera system in the building. We are collecting other information and statements from witnesses and this is all the information we have at this time."

J.R. Bowers, Melanie's father, told reporters, "It never should have happened in the first place. The whole assignment was a silly assignment and they should have contacted us immediately after it happened," he concludes with, "I won't be happy until the kids that did this are out of school."

In an interview given to the Associated Press, Mr. Bowers says they are keeping their daughter out of school because they are scared for her safety.

Police are reviewing security video from Athens Middle School.

H/T MM.

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Anonymous Shooting Threat Sparks Increased Security at Western Illinois University

A note left in a payment drop box at an off campus apartment complex, threatens that a shooting would occur at Western Illinois University, which in turn sparked heightened security and students have been informed they don't have to attend classes.

A worker at the off campus apartment complex found the note early Wednesday morning, notified authorities via the safety office at the school at 8:15 am, who in turn posted a news release on the University's website by 9:30am and activated Western's Emergency Alert System by (;45 am, which sends out e-mails and text messages and calls cell phones of the students.

That alert message informed the students of the threat and directed them to go to the University's website for more information.

Police patrols have been increased on the Western Illinois University campus and University officials are working with the Macomb police to find whoever is responsible for the threat.

Common areas of residential halls, which usually are not locked during the daytime, have been secured so only residents with keys can enter, although the school itself is not on lockdown.

According to the Western Illinois University website, students who wish to remain in their residence halls and apartments will not be penalized for missing classes today (March 26). Faculty and staff who wish to be absent should contact their supervisors.

The University's president, Al Goldfarb, says, "While this is an anonymous off-campus threat, it is imperative that we take all necessary precautions to ensure the safety of our students, staff and faculty."

Some students have decided not to attend classes because of fears stemming from the recent Northern Illinois University shooting that occurred on Valentines day, February 14, 2008, which killed five people and wounded 18 before turning the gun on himself.

One student, Evan Crum, who is a senior at WIU said he would not be stepping foot on campus, "I'm not going to class. I'm not taking any chances. Not after what happened at Northern."

Crum learned of the threat through the University's Alert System.

According to Crum, the majority of the students he had spoken with will also not be attending classes on Wednesday and he says, "Some people are going to class, but a lot aren't because of what's going on right now, what happened at Northern Illinois. A lot of people are really nervous."

Illinois State Police, the Macomb Police Department and the McDonough County sheriff's office are all working to increase security at the school and any unusual or suspicious activity should be reported immediately to the Office of Public Safety by calling 911 from any campus phone or 309-298-1949.

Some people think that University aged students should have weapons to defend themselves and every time there is a shooting threat or a school shooting, that argument gains traction.

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Thought and Modern Man

In the generations following the New Deal era of the FDR administration, and the free love culture of the flower child generation, we find ourselves today in a situation in which thought, reason, and rationality have found themselves having been replaced by feelings and emotions. Rational thought is no longer taken into account when one is dealing with the situations that face modern society, what has become more important than the reason behind what motivates the individual is not the thought process of the individuals mind, but the feelings that the individual experienced while in the process of performing an act, be it for the benefit or detriment of self or others.

Our society is driven now by feelings, speed, and convenience than by reason or thought. In our quest for convenience, we have made for ourselves, as a society, a culture of drones who work in jobs that require no thought, no reasoning skills, only the ability to press a few buttons with not words, but pictures upon them when ringing up a sale at a fast food restaurant. And somehow, the order the customer places invariably winds up to be incorrect even with the ease and convenience of having the job all but done for the workers running the machinery. It is only in the higher quality and higher caliber restaurants that one can find the service that is both well planned and the waitresses and waiters seem to take pride in their ability to remember a customers order with few mistakes, and the chefs able to complete an order on time without it not being prepared in a manner not to the customers ultimate satisfaction.

We have taken this fast food industry approach in regards to our fuel and transportation needs, as well. The garage with the attendant who is there to fill the gas tank of the customer, check the air in the tires, wash the windows, and check the oil is rarely to be found anymore amongst the quick marts, 7-11’s, mini marts, and such. Even the major fuel distributors in large cities have abandoned the full service gas station in favor of the convenience store, a place where the customer can fuel up their car, pick up a soft drink, a snack from the deli, a pack of cigarettes if (gods help them should the politically correct elitists see them) the customer happens to need a fresh pack. But woe unto the traveler who has a fan belt or radiator hose to break or rupture while on their journey, for the gas station is no longer an option, the driver will have to find an automotive specialist to do the repair work, after scheduling an appointment and having to wait for the wrong part to be sent, returned, and the right part to arrive. And please, don’t expect the staff at these stores to be happy to see the customer come in and do business; after all, someone owes them these jobs, but that doesn’t mean that there should be any work involved, or at least that seems to be the attitude of a great many.

Yet we love our modern conveniences, and rightly so. Technology has brought about such marvels as high definition television, high speed digital communications, and a great deal of other things for modern people to use for their personal enjoyment. It has improved modern medicine to the point where it is no longer a Stone Age practice of divination, but a science. Technology has also enabled the world of production to increase it’s output to a point unheard of during the industrial revolution, and has eased the workday of the modern factory worker considerably from the conditions of early factories, making the speed and efficiency of modern production a thing that modern industrialists should view with pride and a sense of accomplishment when running a line to produce their products. Yet government regulations have so choked the production industry, and taxation has so struck the profits of such industries, that corporations have begun to move their manufacturing outside of US borders in order to find cheaper labor, therefore insuring that the stockholders and owners of these companies can insure their profits, profits that are the expected right for the fruits of one’s labor.

Our government, while not exactly going to the same measures as the government in Atlas Shrugged, has, in the past century or so, managed to become something strikingly similar TO the government that exists in Atlas. The number of regulations and standards that exist today are enough to discourage the would-be ambitions of modern inventors from developing new products and then manufacturing them. What research IS done today is done by existing companies within their laboratories, but with contracts signed by the developers that any product of the researchers mind belongs to the company, a company that would just as soon pay a gifted chimpanzee, in many cases, as to pay for the worth of man’s mind, thus discouraging the brightest of researchers and developers to fall to a point of mediocrity, for they rest in the knowledge that their best efforts will be rewarded the same as the most ludicrous of others who surround them.

The root of this crisis of thought, this lacking of ideas and reason, can be traced to our public education system, in which competition for grades has become a thing of the past, but an atmosphere of making a student feel good even though he or she is not capable or willing to produce the same level of work as a student who gives entire devotion and dedication to study and success. The earliest examples of this are to be found in the elementary years, where children are taught that there are no differences in any of us, individualism is not important but is dangerous, and it is more important to do something for the benefit of everyone than to ever do something strictly because it is what the individual desires to do. Individualism is also broken down and destroyed in the middle and high school years with the introduction of the school uniform.

The ideal of rugged American individualism is in danger of becoming a thing of the past; however, we have not gotten to the point yet where the American people, and indeed, the people of the world, are beyond hope. The political system of the 1900’s needs to be revamped and retooled, as a large government is a thing of waste and a burden to the public for which it strives (pretends) to work. This is not the call for revolutionary activity, and I speak not with the fervor or vehemence of the extremist militia, but merely as a thinking man who sees that this could be accomplished by taking the existing system and returning it closer to a form of government as existed in the days before the administration of Woodrow Wilson, after which time a great many things have been introduced as legislation that are in direct violation of the wording, meaning, and spirit of the United States Constitution. It is time to abandon the notion Lincoln forwarded in the Gettysburg Address that all men are created equal, Lincoln was a racist, and all men are not created equally, for we each are created with our own unique gifts and talents. The application of these talents, or lack of application, is what identifies us as either productive citizens or as a burden to others.

The greatest sin to be committed by man is the sin of failing to think.

The Government of the United States has become, as was foretold in Atlas Shrugged, the welfare state, a term used by critics of today’s government. This term is not used loosely, however, when one considers farm subsidies, corporate subsidies, and the general welfare program itself, which is overrun with abuses that go unchecked by social workers whose caseloads are so full that they often cannot put a face to a name when filing their reports to the larger cogs of the wheels of a government that has overstepped it’s authority and purpose in its attempt to become both mother and father to the generations of welfare recipients who are stuck in a cycle of poverty that is supposed to be a temporary state, but winds up binding its members with regulations so stringent that the incentive to work is all but killed out of those who are able bodied and willing to do so, with threats of loss of benefits to those who make an amount that the government deems too much in any given month. This is not a system that is designed to help people, it is a system designed to make a generation dependent upon the government for support and livelihood.

So often in the news today, especially during election years, politicians running for office moan and decry the state of the government systems, and promise to do something for change, while offering no solutions, no remedies, no repeals of the over reaching fingers of the government and it’s numerous agencies which, while in theory are established to serve the common good, are nothing more than machinery that is fed by the tax system, robbing the individual of his or her income by imposing a tax system that is unfair and inequitable, in the name of fairness to all. The individual is better judge of what his income is spent on than the federal government, yet the politicians that are elected, while paying lip service to tax reform to their constituency, seldom do more than token efforts to maintain the status quo rather than to do what common sense and reason deem the only logical choice of action: the elimination of redundant government programs, the elimination of government waste, and the reduction or elimination of the income tax system.

With these thoughts in mind, I close this offering of the thoughts of my mind, after years of seeing these things come to pass, and having only recently discovered Ayn Rand’s works and her incredible vision.


17OCT2002

Postscript: It’s been roughly five years since I first set these thoughts down as “record.” I find myself, in reviewing them, considering a few things in retrospect. I haven’t changed my mind on anything that was said that evening these years gone by now when I first wrote this piece; if anything, I’m more convinced in rereading over it now that I’m correct in my observations. At the time of the original writing, I was “teaching” history and government classes at a juvenile justice facility. Since that time, I’ve walked away from the public education system in absolute dismay at the overwhelming apathy of school administrations that are more interested in the bottom line (money) than in the education of our children and in ensuring that students have learned to THINK.

Mind you, I’m in no way, shape, or fashion opposed to making money. I’ve stated fairly recently to those I work with that I’m VERY mercenary in regards to my work, and will go where I can make more money when and if the opportunity presents itself. However, as John Galt made clear in the book Atlas Shrugged, my mind IS my own, and I will use it as I see fit, rather than being forced to use it without proper recompense for the fruits of my thought and my labor.

“Who is John Galt,” Rand asks in her novel. The man who set out to stop the engine of the world, and succeeded. If things continue on the course that we currently travel, as a nation, as a people, I think that WUA may very well see the answer to a question asked the other day of “Where is OUR John Galt?” As one who DID as John Galt did, one who walked away from a system that had no appreciation for my intellect or talent, one who walked away from a system that strives to squelch independent thought, I can truthfully say there was more than a little John Galt in me when I left the public education system. A move which opened the floodgates in the system where I worked and saw several others walk away as well, choosing to take employment where their minds and talents WERE better appreciated and recompensed.

"I swear by my life and my love of it that I will never live for the sake of
another man, nor ask another man to live for mine."

Check out my Random Thoughts, as well...

Once and Always an American Fighting Man

2JUL2007

What did you learn in school today, Sally?

I'm going to start this out with three quotes, three little statements, made by a historical figure not too long ago, historically speaking. While reading what follows the quotes, I want you to keep firmly in mind each quote, and at the end, I'll tell you who said them. No fair peeking ahead, either, it spoils the surprise...

"Demoralize the enemy from within by surprise, terror, sabotage, assassination. This is the war of the future."

"How fortunate for governments that the people they administer don't think."

"Universal education is the most corroding and disintegrating poison that liberalism has ever invented for its own destruction."

I think, personally, that that last one is the most poignant in regards to what we're going to discuss here today. As I've mentioned before, I was a teacher for a time, circumstances led me back down the path of communications contracting. I fit in well with my colleagues in education, that is to say, I fit in as well as any square peg ever fits into a round hole. Most of the people that I met were, suffice to say, quite liberal, many very left leaning, and mostly democrats. And I have to say, many of them were (are) very snobbish (read elitist)...

I'll let ya'll decide from here.

Banning Legos
And building a world where “all structures will be standard sizes.”

By John J. Miller

Perhaps you’ve heard about the schools that have banned tag. Or dodgeball. Or stories about pigs. If so, you won’t be surprised to hear that the Hilltop Children’s Center in Seattle has banned Legos.

A pair of teachers at the center, which provides afterschool activities for elementary-school kids, recently described their policy in a Rethinking Schools cover story called “Why We Banned Legos.”

It has something to do with “social justice learning.”

My vision of social justice for children of elementary-school age is as follows: If you’re tagged, you’re it; if the ball hits you, you’re out; and pig stories are fun, especially when told over microwaveable hot dogs.

But I try to keep an open mind, so I read the article on why Hilltop banned Legos.

As most aficionados know, Legos are made by a Danish company. The company name comes from the Danish phrase leg godt, which means play well. “Lego became a national treasure and one of the strongest brands in the toy industry,” wrote The Economist last year. “Its colorful bricks are sold in over 130 countries: everyone on earth has, on average, 52 of them.”

"NO, little Johnny, you can't build any more castles, because didn't you know that Knights and Chivarly are not sensitive concepts to people who don't believe in what Knights stand for?"

Here's one the dinosaur media isn't covering at all...

Hostage drill at NJ school features mock 'Christian terrorists'

The head of a national, Texas-based pro-family group says a recent hostage drill at a New Jersey high school, which portrayed conservative Christians as terrorists, is reflective of a dangerous philosophy that has become prevalent in many parts of America, where it is having negative effects on education.

A local paper reports that a drill at Burlington Township High School in New Jersey involved police portraying mock gunmen, described as "members of a right-wing fundamentalist group called the 'New Crusaders' who don't believe in the separation of church and state." The fake gunmen were said to have been "seeking justice because the daughter of one [member] had been expelled for praying before class."

Historian and constitutional expert David Barton is president of WallBuilders, a national pro-family organization that distributes historical, legal, and statistical information and helps citizens become active in their local schools and communities. He says the stereotyping used in the high school's drill is an accurate indicator of what is being taught in public schools in the Northeast region of the country.

Commentary on my thoughts on THAT one after THIS one, which in my mind, as a historian, is tantamount to heresy and sacrilege...

Teachers drop the Holocaust to avoid offending Muslims
By LAURA CLARK

Schools are dropping the Holocaust from history lessons to avoid offending Muslim pupils, a Government backed study has revealed.

It found some teachers are reluctant to cover the atrocity for fear of upsetting students whose beliefs include Holocaust denial.

There is also resistance to tackling the 11th century Crusades - where Christians fought Muslim armies for control of Jerusalem - because lessons often contradict what is taught in local mosques.

The findings have prompted claims that some schools are using history 'as a vehicle for promoting political correctness'.

Yes, by all means, let's not offend the Muslims. By the way, have you heard the one about the priest, the rabbi, and the Southern Baptist preacher...

Are our schools trying to instill liberal values on our children? Are they subtly brainwashing our children? Are they teaching them things that go against what the children's families believe? Here's one more, just in case those past three aren't enough evidence of what's going on in our schools today...

District gags 14-year-olds after 'gay' indoctrination
'Confidentiality' promise requires students 'not to tell their parents'

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Officials at Deerfield High School in Deerfield, Ill., have ordered their 14-year-old freshman class into a "gay" indoctrination seminar, after having them sign a confidentiality agreement promising not to tell their parents.

"This is unbelievable," said Matt Barber, policy director for cultural issues for Concerned Women for America. "It's not enough that students at Deerfield High are being exposed to improper and offensive material relative to unhealthy and high-risk homosexual behavior, but they've essentially been told by teachers to lie to their parents about it."

In what CWA called a "shocking and brazen act of government abuse of parental rights," the school's officials required the 14-year-olds to attend a "Gay Straight Alliance Network" panel discussion led by "gay" and "lesbian" upperclassmen during a "freshman advisory" class which "secretively featured inappropriate discussions of a sexual nature in promotion of high-risk homosexual behaviors."

FIND OUT what your kids are being taught in school. There is NO LEGALLY BINDING DOCUMENT that a child under the age of eighteen can sign that will hold them to a non-disclosure agreement. Take the cue of the atheist, call your school board's hand on brainwashing our children. If it is a clear cut violation of your constitutional rights and your beliefs as Christians or Jews, or if you THINK it is, contact the ACLJ, NOT the ACLU. They are leading the fight in the courts to oppose the ACLU in their attempts to undermine the American structure.

Oh, and those three quotes at the beginning of this posting? Those were the words of a man who used hatred and mistrust as his tools to rise to power and become one of the most dangerous men who ever lived, one who was responsible for the deaths of millions. Some considered him to be a madman, I'm not so sure. The insane generally don't rise to lead their nation and to inspire a following that nearly conquers an entire continent, the driven do that.

Who said those things?

You know him as Adolf Hitler...

Nuff said? I think so.

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man

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