How much is too much?

[cannon_fodder]

The "no tolerance" policy is the easy way out for the schools. They don't have to deal with problems that arise under it, just administer the rule.  And of course, that approach doesn't work well - particularly with children.

I'm OK with the policy with items that are obviously weapons:  firearms, a k-bar, or even brass knuckles.  There is NO reason a child would bring those items to school but to feel cool, intimidate someone, or cause trouble.   Furthermore, those items pose an actual danger.  

But to apply the standard to small pocket knives (as in the present case), shell casing (a student brought a spent cartridge his dad brought back from Iraq), historical artifacts (civil war bayonet, which was turned in to the teacher before school to show for show-and-tell), or even props (pick your Halloween story) is stupid.  Should pocket knives be brought to school?  No.  Mostly because I don't want to draw the line between a utility pocket knife and a weapon.  But do most students who bring a pocket knife to school do so to stab someone?  No.   In those instances the school would have to consider the child and find an appropriate remedy.

On the other items it are no-brainers.  If a kid brings a shell casing to school (an item which can cause less harm than a rock from the parking lot), who cares?  A live round is a problem - but even then it's stupidity not a threat to someones life warranting draconian measures.   Historical artifacts and props should be handles in much the same way - if a parent wants to bring in a civil war sword or a similar items to be left in the central office and shown . . . for God's sake let them.  Has anyone ever broken into a principals office, stolen a sword, and gone on a killing spree?

Then we have the problem of cars:  what's left in your car is the same as bringing it into school. Just recently a kid was suspended for having a pocket knife in his car at his high school. What good does that do?  Again, I understand under a blanket policy weapons in cars can be as dangerous as weapons in the hands - but at the same time I make sure to keep a multi-tool in all my vehicles and use my vehicle as a storage place.  A tackle box, a hunting kit, or even a roadside kit can result in expulsion.  

But hey, a metal baseball bat, a scalpel, various chemicals, sharpened pencils, and a million other things that can be used as weapons are just fine (my school had archery, and a trap-shooting team).  But that fork . . . you're outta here!

Whats worse, is the reaction the "zero tolerance" has to matters of expression.  Threats are treated the same as reality.  Making a threat to someone should not be taken lightly, but it shouldn't be punished as an overt act either (how great would it have been in the Columbine idiots made open threats and the problem was dealt with?).  There have been instances in which a student is instructed to right down his feelings to his guidance counselor and those notes then result in a suspension because they included ill-wishes to bullies (my little cousin).    Drawing a picture can get you in trouble.  Sheer stupidity .

The policy is out of control.  I tell my son in VERY clear terms not to being anything to school that anyone could possibly construe as possibly being associated with a weapon.  Toys or otherwise.  There is little or no evidence that the "zero tolerance" policy has done anything to increase safety at school.  It is a well intentioned but fruitless concept that largely punishes kids in a draconian way for being careless.

Let please move back to common sense.

[custosnox]

+1 cf

When I was in middle school I got jumped by several guys, the next day I thought I would take out insurance to make sure it didn't happen again and stuck a kbar in my bag.  I got expelled for the rest of the year.  I had a bit of a history of being a trouble maker.  So do I think that this was justified.  Oh yeah.  My son was in the 2nd or 3rd grade and someone had given him a pocket knife.  He apparantly took to keeping it with him and had taken it to school.  He didn't have a history of problems other then not doing his school work, yet he got suspended for 5 days.  Do I agree with that? Not so much.  However, it was only 5 days and so not much to really cause a flap over.  These blanket policies don't allow for individual situations. 

OK, so we change the policy to  everyone who brings a knife to school and gets caught simply gets it taken away.  You are OK with that applying to everyone, including known gang members? What if a hardened gang member takes this same swiss army style knife to school, gets busted and says that he took it there to eat lunch; it now has a precedent, so there can be no punishment. You guys are just fine with that right?

You originally tried to compare this to TSA, so I pointed out one of the big differances