Texas School Suspends Student for Answering Call in Class From Dad in Iraq

I couldn't have said it better myself, JediMiller.

What makes his father any more important than any of the other kids' fathers?

F

Originally posted by UK Wizard
reply to post by jedimiller

 

If I may, have you ever taken a phone call at work from a family or friend?

Many people work jobs where they are not allowed to take telephone calls. Generally only white collar workers have unfettered access to the telephone. Why should a school child have this access?

reply to post by pavlovsdog


This isn't little Timmy whose father thought he'd call him for a chit chat from his office job, this is little Timmy whose father is out in a warzone who Timmy might never get to see again should the worst happen.

You are missing the point, we have been in Iraq for approx 20200 days. In that time there have been approx 4000 American soldiers killed. That is about 5 per day. We have about 150000 troops in Iraq currently. What are the odds that this soldier will die in the time that he might wait for little Johnny to get our of school?

Again, it's not like it used to be. The odds are very good that Little Johnny heard from his father within the last week, when you consider telephone, email, blogging etc.....

I can see merit in this father calling his son and disrupting school in this scenario..... Father has been deployed as part of a recon team in the desert - far away from any military base. Living in a tent for quite some time. Totally cut off from the outside world. Fathers detail finally gets to come back to the base where telephones are available, however they are only 'in base' for less than 6-8 hours before being sent back out into a situation that father knows the odds are very low that he will return from.

Frankly, if this soldier had been away from a phone or other means of communication for a long period of time when he returned to base, his opportunity to make phone calls would be wide ranged. He could have certainly waited a few hours to call his child.

Originally posted by jedimiller
if they want to help the country so much, why is it that on TV I always see them crying and complaining about being at war? they joined because they wanted easy money and got put to work. That's bush for you, he builds up the military, pays these kids to shoot innocent iraqis and that's where the money is a waste.

And for doing a paid job that has been around human existence as long as the sex trade, you would prefer to see them as second class citizens to be forced to do manual labor - how did it go, pay the soldiers to paint fences, etc.

This man has every right to be given the same respect as any Police officer or any Garbage man.

How dare you denigrate Soldiers for opting INTO a job that they know will likely have them put their lives on the line, knowing that not only are they doing so to protect the freedoms of their country, but knowing also that they may be sent off to garbage wars in places like Iraq.

It's easier to put on a star wars dvd and watch the jedi's fighting the storm troopers, I guess, and to not comprehend that you're enjoying a WAR STORY, but one where you're entirely safe from the reality of war.

When I read about your tales of you traveling around the universe with the aliens to the green planets somewhere beyond our galaxy, I thought you were just a harmless and imaginative guy.

But after reading your ignorant ill informed diatribe here, you just come off as someone incapable of social understanding or empathy.

Just came back from break!
Bloodcircle, let's not make this thread about me (Stay on topic). Ok? If you disagree, there's an ignore button somewhere down the line on your profile. Thanks.

Originally posted by jedimiller

Originally posted by rcwj75
I'm sure the soldiers will gladly come home to do that as long as you keep your job flippin burgers, don't move out of your mommy & daddy's house, make sure your Star Wars collection is up to date, and you finally throw away that sticky picture of Princess Leia you have to keep by the bedside!

Personal attacks are not welcome here rcwj75. Read the TOS. deny ignorace friend. I will now report your post to the mods.

[edit on 13-4-2008 by jedimiller]

hopefully someday if not already you have children and they join the military and have to go off to war, then we will see if you support troops or not.
either way i am sure you enjoy the freedoms that you have that others have died for.

Originally posted by jedimiller
Just came back from break!
Bloodcircle, let's not make this thread about me (Stay on topic). Ok? If you disagree, there's an ignore button somewhere down the line on your profile. Thanks.

I deny ignorance, I don't Ignore it.

But this thread is now pointless as you've turned it into an anti-soldier propaganda agenda as opposed to the immoral school policy I started reading it as.

So, be my guest.

At this rate, ATS' motto will have to be changed from "deny ignorance" to "ignore jedimiller"...

Seriously Jedi, I shan't even deal with your views for their total lack of coherence and logic. Kudos on making the jump from my list of foes (people who I disagree with but can tolerate) to my ignore list (people who are not even worth disliking).

On topic: This kid's father is serving his country in a hostile environment and should have been allowed to call his son at any point of time.

As the father is expected to make the ultimate sacrifice (death) for his country, the least his country could do would be to let him talk to his son.

What if the father had been on his deathbed, wounded by an IED... would he still not have been allowed to talk to his son just because of some ridiculous no-cellphones rule?

For the people saying that "rules are rules", you clearly are the textbook definition of "sheeple". Rules are made to better society, but all rules are man made and therefore liable to being inappropriate at times. This was one of those times.

So yes, while I believe in rules bettering society, there are ALWAYS exceptions to the rule... its never a case of black and white.

I dont see the big deal. He had to know he was going to get in trouble. He did it anyway (justified or not) So he got punished. You know what they say . "If you cant do the time don't do the crime"

If they don't punish him EVERYONE thats talking to there g/f brother ect . NOT at war. Will just say there talking to there cousin "Tim" in Iraq ..
So i think they are well within there bounds to do this . If they don't like it theres "pay school" and "home school"
You guys are the "If you don't like our country leave" crowd . Why don't that apply here ?


I agree that bio-killing machines shouldn't get special treatment . It will just get exploited ....






[edit on 13-4-2008 by d11_m_na_c05]

Originally posted by jedimiller

Originally posted by greeneyedleo
So, you dont support the troops....and rules are rules. Have a little sympathy for a child who probably hasnt seen their father in a year...and said he was going through a very hard time.

if he called during school hours here, it'd say it was 3 am in Iraq. And why should I support the troops if I don't support the war. Sorry greeneyed. But I don't support any level of the war, that includes the troop and his family. They are getting paid by the government to kill and all the money from our taxes go to them. but that's not the topic. it's about no cellphones in class, common sense nowadays.

Wow what an utterly ignorant comment. I never knew that the reason I joined the forces was to kill people

reply to post by dodgygeeza


Naw most of you guys see it as a "perk" ... Kinda like getting free doughnuts for being a cop.

You may not join for that reason . But you know it may come and your A-ok it seems. And not one of you can even tell us what "your" fighting for . lol


[edit on 13-4-2008 by d11_m_na_c05]

Originally posted by jedimiller
Just came back from break!
Bloodcircle, let's not make this thread about me (Stay on topic). Ok? If you disagree, there's an ignore button somewhere down the line on your profile. Thanks.

"stay on topic...Stay on topic..use the force luke" Heard that one somewhere else before.

this thread is a disgrace and it has been warped into personal agendas and a blatent attempt to get people riled up. Rules are rules and are merely a guideline in our society. You can not expect to pass a law banning cell phones usage in class and not be willing to make an exception to that rule for unforseen circumstances. If this kid had been texting or talking to friends that would be a totally differant situation. to which i am sure was the original purpose of creating this rule in the first place. I'm not a laywer but I may have stayed in a Holiday Inn Express last night, and from my understanding regarding law, INTENT has quite a lot to do with the rule of law. Is there not a case in the supreme court right now regarding Guns and the original INTENT of the second amendment? What if a psycho came into the kids school and started shooting it up. Without cell phones or communication far more people would be killed becuase of timing. I have kids, I'm sure Jedi does not and can not comprehend the love that is produced from having such a relationship. My kids are too young to have cell phones but when they are old enough you can better believe that I am going to use this technology to keep up with them, not only to ensure their safety but also to reinforce my love for them. Being an intelligent being I am also going to make the judgement call and use my wisdom (which this thread is lacking) as to when I will use that technology. I know my kids schedule and if I feel it is important enough to interrupt him/her during class I will do so. I'm sure this father did this as well. How do you know his father wasn't about to go on a mission that could end his life. Perhaps he wanted one last chance to express his love to his son before this mission. How many people in history wish they could have had that moment. That one last possible contact.

Perhaps what Jedi is saying is that A rule or a law should be followed 100% of the time with no thought, emotion, or exception. This is NWO thinking and leaves me to believe that Jedi has succombed to the dark side of the force and expects us all to behave like good little sheeple and follow the letter of the law to the "T". As an example think of this, Our laws state that it is Illegal to murder someone does that mean if someone is shooting up a college we should not have the right to kill that person? or perhaps your driving down the highway doing the speed limit and you see an accident coming and the only way to avoid it is to speed up and make evasive manuevers. Hence you have just broken the law by trying to save your butt. Following the letter of the law to the "T" takes away a humans right to thought, expression and free will. We might as well be robots.

This is absolutely nuts. regardless of your views on the war the kids father is on the other side of the world and probably has very little contact with him. I think the Childs need of parental contact and love far exceeds the the few minutes of indoctrination he was getting from class. Again I say this thread has turned into a blatent attempt to get people riled up and to loose focus of the important issues. It's like CNN airing 5 hours of Brittany Spears coverage instead of focusing on the real news. I think we should all heed Jedi's advice and use the "Ignore" button.



[edit on 13-4-2008 by photobug]

reply to post by photobug


If his "dad" wasn't "at war" he would have 2 parents. Hows that for a solution?

Like i said . Give an inch and a mile you will lose. If its ok for this kid then it becomes ok for everyone . Will you have to prove there in Iraq? If so how?

What do we do to confirm there not talking to there g/f or anyone else. Or ordering some dope in 3rd hour?
Screw teaching they can just be phone operators for the soldiers. Isn't teaching hard enough without having to regulate cell phones too?

"Hey my dealers in Iraq"


[edit on 13-4-2008 by d11_m_na_c05]

There's people here arguing with a sociofascist. Wasted keystrokes.

Just like all the other insane reports to come from schools, this is the result of a zero-tolerance policy. Children are being conditioned to believe that under no circumstances do they disobey their government masters or disrespect their "authority."

If you have kids and you value their individuality, get them OUT of public schools.

reply to post by apc


What kind of policy do you think would work in this situation ? Just let it go and turn a blind eye? Regulate it . Say only in history class?
Just wondering what you think could be a useful solution..

The personal comments stop NOW

Jedi is expressing an opinion. You may not like that, and if you don't, then attack the opinion with reason and logic and NOT with personal sniping.

I realise that this is a heated subject, but ATS has these ATS : Terms and Conditions for a reason.

If I was the son and my father called me from Iraq then I'd say screw the rules at this school and answer my phone. I would then take what ever punishment the school gives me for breaking the rules. But I wouldn't care because my father means more to me then a suspension from school. The schools can have their policies and there should be no exceptions, but if I was a child and my father called me from Iraq and I didn't answer the phone because of a school policy and he was killed later then I would be more devastated about that than the suspension.

Also I don't agree with Jedi but he has a right to say and feel the way he feels. I'm just glad there's only one jedimiller. Our soldiers died in wars that were right to fight in and wrong to fight in, but either way they died for our rights to free speech along with many other reasons. Jedi you don't know why people join the military and just because you may know a few that join for the money doesn't account for the hundreds and thousand of others who may join for many other reasons.
I edit just to say one last thing. GO TROOPS!!

[edit on 4/13/2008 by Solarskye]

reply to post by d11_m_na_c05

Taking calls in class is indeed disruptive to the rest of the class and should not be permitted. But if a student receives an urgent call they should be allowed to simply stand up and walk out into the hallway without fear of recourse. If the teacher wishes to know who it was, they are free to ask after class rather than disrupt class further by dispensing punishment for daring to act as an individual.

I went to a private high school and this is how we handled it. If a student received a call it was understood that if it was important enough to take they were to leave the room. Because students were trusted to make responsible decisions rather than some unfounded assumption that they're talking to drug dealers, they behaved in a more responsible manner.

Public schools are always the ones with these asinine policies. They're also the schools cranking out the dropouts. Correlation?

reply to post by apc


So your saying its ok for the "rich responsible" (private schooled) cause there only doing it for the "right reasons"..?
But what about the ones who are going to exploit this ? How do you regulate and differentiate?
Heck I'm only saying this cause i know i would use this stuff to get away with anything i could at 12-17. You cant expect the kids to regulate them selfs.
Should we just hire operators for the schools to screen calls for them ?

"Public schools are always the ones with these asinine policies. They're also the schools cranking out the dropouts. Correlation?"

Didn't bush go to Harvard or some crap? If he is what "private schools" are cranking out . Were (our kids) better off with public schools.



[edit on 13-4-2008 by d11_m_na_c05]

Originally posted by d11_m_na_c05
reply to post by photobug

 

If his "dad" wasn't "at war" he would have 2 parents. Hows that for a solution?

Like i said . Give an inch and a mile you will lose. If its ok for this kid then it becomes ok for everyone . Will you have to prove there in Iraq? If so how?

What do we do to confirm there not talking to there g/f or anyone else. Or ordering some dope in 3rd hour?
Screw teaching they can just be phone operators for the soldiers. Isn't teaching hard enough without having to regulate cell phones too?

"Hey my dealers in Iraq"


[edit on 13-4-2008 by d11_m_na_c05]

What if what if what if. I don't live my life based on What if's and neither should you. Sure two parents at home is an ideal situation but the world does not follow a cookie cutter and the military is not the only place of employment that seperates children from their fathers. The fact that this kid has two parents, even if one is away, is still far better than those with deadbeat dads or moms. your argument of having two parents is totally off the issue and is another attempt to confuse the issue at hand.

How can you prove he was in Iraq? What kind of question is that. Have you ever heard of caller ID, Call logs etc. I'm sure that since this issue was dropped the parents were able to prove that he was indeed talking to his dad in Iraq.

I understand the resonings behind banning cell phone use in class. This incident could have been handled entirely differantly for a much better outcome. Do you really think the kid would blatently take a phone call in class if it was just a friend or perhaps your dealer. The school jumped the gun on this without thought and I'm sure the principal was only doing what you would have done. The rule is no cell phone usage you broke that rule and thus are suspended. This is sheeple type talk here. Obey your masters without any of your own thought, interpretation, or God given intelligence. The proper way to handle this would have been for the principal to explain the rule and then offer the student a chance to prove he was talking to his Father in Iraq. Hey if the kids lying suspend him and give him more time for lying but if hes telling the truth the issue should have been dropped. I don't think there would be any difficulty in proving the validity of the phone call especially in today day and age when they can trace your cell calls.

"Screw teaching, isnt their job hard enough already" Another attempt to confuse the issue. No one is debating whether a teachers job is hard or not. In answer to your question I think a Teachers job is made even harder having to deal with all this political crap. Our government tells teachers what they can teach and what they can not. Our Government tells the teachers how they should behave and how they should handle certain situations. The govenrment has taken away teaching from teachers and turned them into indoctrinators.

It reminds me of the argument about "why does God allow people do do this" It's becasue God understands that a level of resoning and free will is nessesary in life. All I am saying here is that this is not a black or white issue and should have been treated that way. God gave us a brain and the reasoning and logic to make good decisions. The school clearly did make a good decision in this case. In fact they made no decision at all!! They were only following their programming and that my friend is the problem.

Originally posted by apc
There's people here arguing with a sociofascist. Wasted keystrokes.

Just like all the other insane reports to come from schools, this is the result of a zero-tolerance policy. Children are being conditioned to believe that under no circumstances do they disobey their government masters or disrespect their "authority."

If you have kids and you value their individuality, get them OUT of public schools.

Excelent point very well said. My point exactly.