Another case of "zero tolerance" = zero brains

[TexDotCom]

Unsurprisingly, this comes out of New York state:

"A fourth grade New Dorp boy faced the prospect of suspension after the principal at his South Beach school saw him playing with an action figure carrying a toy machine gun."

Full story: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35222830/?gt1=43001

[John112709]

So i take it that New York is one of the more strict states when it comes to guns. Toy guns

[The Annoyed Man]

That's dumber than a bag of hammers.

[gemini]

"Zero Tolerance" has gone WAYYYYYYYY too far in replacing everyday "common sense".
This story is so stupid it's almost unbelieveable. But, you have to remember it is NY, where stupid
seems to be the norm.

[Keith B]

I have seen this a lot within our education system and even government. Being smart doesn't mean you have common sense and reasoning skills. Too many highly educated people may know how to build a rocket that will take you to the moon, but they don't have the sense God gave a goose to get in out of the rain. I have seen this in our company around the R&D and Labs folks many times. You can tell who they are cause they are the ones walking down the hall talking to their shoes.

[thankGod]

"Zero Tolerance" has gone WAYYYYYYYY too far in replacing everyday "common sense".
This story is so stupid it's almost unbelieveable. But, you have to remember it is NY, where stupid
seems to be the norm.

This happens all around Texas also.

I wholeheartedly agree with the topic title

Another case of "zero tolerance" = zero brains

[Charles L. Cotton]

I knew when the whole "zero tolerance" movement got started years ago that we wouldn't like the end result. It's nothing more than an excuse for a lack of judgment and discernment, or the means to a political end.

Chas.

[TexDotCom]

Sadly, I think it also provides one heck of an effective way for people in authoritative positions to avoid liability, real or perceived, that comes along with actually making a decision. It's an easy way to "pass the buck" and avoid personal responsibility. And it's asinine, to say the least.

[7075-T7]

I have seen this in our company around the R&D and Labs folks many times. You can tell who they are cause they are the ones walking down the hall talking to their shoes.

Heyyyyy. Don't be mean to the R&D folks, we cant help but talk to our shoes.

[Oldgringo]

It's more widespread than you may know.

Four or five years ago when our grandson was in kindergarten, he was sent to the principal's office because another little kid said that Joey was making gun signs (finger thumb extended). His mother was called to the school. The school people told his mother that he may need counseling. Joey who has no guns, toy or otherwise, in his house wasn't even aware of what he was doing.

This was in Helena, Alabama which is a suburb of Birmingham.

[joe817]

I knew when the whole "zero tolerance" movement got started years ago that we wouldn't like the end result. It's nothing more than an excuse for a lack of judgment and discernment, or the means to a political end.

Chas.

Bold highlight is my emphasis, and that is a disturbing thought, and a thought that may have justifiable merit.

[Excaliber]

Another reason for the zero tolerance policies in schools is that it provides a way to create data on incidents where action was taken supposedly to prevent violence. The idea is that this can help build a defense against potential liability in a major violent incident when victims assert that the school had done nothing to prevent or mitigate it.

In short, it's a way to make it look like you're doing something useful when you're only pretending to do so.

This makes sense to folks who have none - sense, that is.

[bdickens]

I knew when the whole "zero tolerance" movement got started years ago that we wouldn't like the end result. It's nothing more than an excuse for a lack of judgment and discernment, or the means to a political end.

Chas.

Are you a mind reader? That's exactly what I was thinking almost to the word!

[Abraham]

Guess a pulling of the pin on an imaginary hand grenade and throwing it would be frowned too...

[GrayGhost]

"03Lightningrocks"

I am not the least bit surprised. Look at where this happened. The home base of the Socialist movement. The message they want to instill in young minds is clear. Guns are bad...any guns...toys guns...water guns..... the word guns..the very thought of guns must be stifled at all costs. It won't be long before drawing a picture of a gun in New York will be grounds for re-education. It seems nuts to normal folks, but perfectly acceptable to Liberals....oops...sorry... they are now called progressives.

This was posted on another thread on the same subject. I cannot agree more with compatriot 03Lightningrocks, except that I would think that drawing the picture would already have the student in the office for re-education. The only thing that might be left for the future is quoting the 2nd Amendment and ending up in the re-education envioronment, but that's likely not to far away either.