Abbie Hoffman Moment

Another School Uses Bullies Against Disabled Child

A twelve year old boy with Aspergers Syndrome, a form of autism, is hospitalized with a cracked skull now, because his classmates at Liberty Middle School in Liberty Missouri thought that beating him up in the cafeteria was a good example of social skills. A bigger kid took the boy's backpack and moved it away from his seat, during lunch. After all, why not? Who is an autistic child to argue with a big, athletic, monster whose behavior is reinforced by a school that does nothing to stop constant assaults by the same bully? After all, in unified school districts, each school can pretty much do as it pleases, and bullies are a great way to get rid of disabled students.

The administration of the public school in Frankfort, Kansas attempted the same with a disabled child in the same grade as the child who was injured at Liberty Middle School. The principal waited until the state and federal "enrollment dollars" came in for each student, then encouraged some bigger boys, two grades ahead of the disabled child, to beat him up in a shower stall in the boys locker room. No teacher was present at the time. Afterward, the principal, Dean Dalinghaus, called the boy's parents and lied, blaming the boy!  He was actually planning to expel the victim, because he doesn't like autistic children. The truth came out when one of the bullies bragged about the incident to the disabled child's older sister. Dean Dalinghaus almost crapped himself when he found out that the Americans With Disabilities Act is a real thing.

At Liberty Middle School, there have been other incidents involving the same bully and the same victim. In the past, the school has ignored all of it. This time, the victim spent four days in the hospital with serious injuries, so ignoring it and telling the parent that her child is not as important as a football player was not an option. Because of that, Liberty Middle School is "investigating the incident". So are police: the bully is currently in juvenile detention. Frankfort, on the other hand, did not bother to take any action against bullying.

In Case You Slept Through Church On Sunday

ACLU Writes Cease And Desist Letter To My Old School

Yesterday, I noticed this article on Yahoo News, about a high school student in Maryland who was sanctioned for refusing to recite the Pledge of Allegience at school. Because I went to high school in Maryland, I read the article. In order to find out more, I clicked on this link. When I noticed the words, "Montgomery County", I became a bit more interested, because I lived in Montgomery County as a child. Then, I noticed that the school was the very school from which I graduated. My jaw dropped in shock, because back in my day, anyone who said the Pledge of Allegience would have been suspected of indulging in hallucinagens. Not that anyone was disloyal, or ungrateful for where we lived, but no one at my high school forced anyone to recite anything that even remotely resembled a religious prayer or chant. Apparently, my old school has changed, and not for the better.

The biggest complaint most well educated people have with the Pledge of Allegience is the "One nation under 'God' " part. While I agree with the offense thereby taken, the reason I taught my own children not to recite it has to do with the ending of it........"with liberty, and justice for all". To me, that part of the Pledge is nothing short of a giant sham and lie, as we do not have, support, or even attempt liberty and justice for ALL in this country. Why pretend that we do? We are still a great country, but I do not see the need to encourage my children to believe that we have attained a level of greatness and benevolence that we actually have not attained......so my children do not have to recite the Pledge of Allegience at any school they attend.

The student who was punished and publicly humiliated in Maryland got the American Civil Liberties Union involved in her case, and they have written the school a "cease and desist" letter. The administrator and faculty would be wise to heed it. While we are on the subject of constitutional rights, here is another disturbing case, from Florida. The father of a fourth grader found the beginnings of an essay in the little boy's backpack. The teacher had assigned an essay on this subject:

 

And to that, Benjamin Franklin had this to say: “He who would trade liberty for some temporary security, deserves neither liberty nor security.”

 

That little boy is now home schooled. Thank the Gods his father was paying attention. Hopefully, more parents will open their eyes.