Zero tolerance policy?

Question

What on earth is our world coming to? All of these news stories I've heard about the zero tolerance policy just show how completely insane we have become. I am a 16-year-old high school student, and of course I do not condone kids bringing weapons and drugs to school. Anyone who does that should be expelled. But seriously, a 10-year-old girl was arrested for bringing scissors to school! Another kid was expelled because he had been using a pocket knife outside of school and forgot to take it out of his pocket. Even kids who make honest mistakes like that and tell a school administrator right away after they realize they have a "weapon", they still get expelled. I cannot believe that people are so insane that they expel innocent people and ruin their lives because they simply did not remember that they had a "weapon". Does anyone else agree that we have gone completely out of our minds?

Answer 1

Blame the teachers Union.

In the 'olden days" a teacher would make a judgment call as to whether the knife Johnny brought to school was a 'weapon' or just a pocket knife for sharpening his quill pen.

Trouble with that, today, is that teachers, like ALL public employees, don't WANT to have to make a decision about anything.

If you do make a decision, someone might criticize you and say you were wrong. So it's SO MUCH easier - for the teachers - to just have a "zero tolerance" policy, and when a teacher expels a 5 year old for having a plastic Dixie knife with her to spread cheese on her crackers, the teacher can throw up her hands and say "Don't blame me, it's the zero tolerance policy!"

Richard

Answer 2

You are so right..! This 'zero tolerance' concept has been warped into mega madness, especially by the yo-yo's running the public school system. Many of these people are already on a power trip because they've wormed their way into positions of authority, and now are in pig heaven with the ZT thing. There are even a few schools where you can get suspended and/or expelled for so much as touching another student, so no more high 5's, handshakes, pats on the back, etc.,.

Answer 3

I totally agree with you. You sound like a very level headed young person. I do not feel intimidated by the young people in my community. I consider myself to be a pretty well balanced adult. However, that said, I also live very close to a local High School and am witness daily to the stupid, confrontational, abusive, childish, dangerous, inane acts that these young people see as "normal". Zero Tolerance is not aimed at you.... You represent (at the moment) the majority, but even eons ago when I was in school, bad kids "ruled". I understand your frustration, but please look at what those who are in "authority" have to deal with. One "bad apple" really can spoil it for the rest. Expulsion rarely ruins lives, the system is too soft for that. What ruins lives is when the wrongdoer cannot see it, how then can they blame others? As a society we have got many things wrong, but I do not think we have become competely insane.

Answer 4

The worst thing about Zero Tolerance is the way they have the police come and arrest a kid who is merely enthused about a crafts project at school (and happens to have a pair of scissors). They handcuff them and dragged them off in a state of trauma and book them and everything! Our culture has gone completely insane. Why are we making children pay for the sins of adults?

Answer 5

Here in America, people have gone "terrorist" nuts. I'm waiting for the day when a sharp pencil will be a borderline weapon, and it will happen! If a kid is intent on bringing a weapon to school, they will do it, no matter how watchful the parents are.
The argument has good points (no kids killed), but it has plenty of bad points, too, like loss of freedom.

Answer 6

yup, I agree, especially this scissor crap. They give you a pair of scissors in KINDERGARTEN! WTF> I am 15 BTW. I was lucky that my teacher was a good guy because I carry around a screwdriver. (it's what I do.) I lent it to my friend so he could try and pry open his locker. I could get expelled or suspended for having it but he just told me to put it away... Lucky break. If everything were zero tolerance we would have a problem. If a kid drinks underage once, they would be sent to Juvie no questions asked and it would ruin any future they had. It's not fair. I really think the generation before us is screwing things up.

Answer 7

No we have not gone out of our minds....Zero means Zero
I wind up arresting all sorts of fools on a regular basis, I have heard just about every excuse there is but I can tell you from many years of experience that the one that starts the excuse with "I was just" is the one that gets the cuffs. The school system has had to have a reason to adopt the policy and they make it extremely clear, I don't travel by air often but you can bet that I don't bring a weapon to the airport. I could see it now "I was just"

Answer 8

zero tolerance, meaning no gray area or exceptions. Sounds alot like Nazi Germany, doesn't it? when did we give up all understanding and compassion in the name of so called safety that doesn't exist. if some kid has a weapon and intends to use it, nobody will know about it untill someone has already been hurt. sadly most of these preventative measures do not prevent anything.they only cause inconvenience to people who would never commit thos types of crimes anyways.

Answer 9

This is a sign of two basic principles:

Laziness - because in a zero tolerance environment, you do not have to make decisions.

And Fear (of litigation) - because you know that if you make a decision that someone else happens to not like, they will sue your pants off.

And that laziness takes a second root with parents who don't want to have to make decisions about raising a child, so they make the schools do it.

Answer 10

try taking any of those items to an airport and see if there is a zero tolerance.

kids lives are not ruined because they are expelled form a school, they simply go to another school.