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L.A. Science Teacher Suspended Over Student Science Fair Projects
An anonymous reader writes "A high school science teacher at Grand Arts High School in Los Angeles was suspended from the classroom in February, after two of his science fair students turned in projects deemed dangerous by the administrators. "One project was a marshmallow shooter — which uses air pressure to launch projectiles. The other was an AA battery-powered coil gun — which uses electromagnetism to launch small objects. Similar projects have been honored in past LA County Science Fairs and even demonstrated at the White House."
Imagine if these things fell into the hands of tairsts, or pediofiddlers? Someone could lose an eye.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
Suspending a teacher over such nonsense borders on drooling idiocy or insanity. Any decent science class unavoidably teaches students to build devices that might be used to do harm. If you teach a kid in chemistry class how not to make an explosion you are also telling him exactly how to create an explosion. That does not imply that teachers should not teach chemistry.
Then Chemistry labs.
Now this. Sigh.
Lets burn the lawyers offices down. Everyone is so freaking terrified of a lawsuit that nothing happens. We have to give everyone a medal for participating, not discipline kids who tell teachers to go f**ck themselves, can't teach controversial subjects requiring critical thinking skills, can't flunk them, etc.
We are not doing them any favors when they get out in the real world afraid to take risks or wonder why their boss fired them instead of giving a raise for participation?
http://saveie6.com/
I am lucky I grew up in the 80s I guess.
if you cross the streams.
This is part of the war on pretend violence which is really a war on boys who enjoy war and fighting fiction. It shouldn't surprise any man that if we give an assignment of write anything you want. That young men might write about what it would be like to be a sniper or hunt down a fish. But yet if they do that their must be something wrong with them.
Lets burn the lawyers offices down. Everyone is so freaking terrified of a lawsuit that nothing happens.
Its not fear of lawyers, its an anti-gun agenda. I'm not kidding, from the article:
... nerf ... airsoft ... a .22.
“supervising the building, research and development of imitation weapons.”
Things that look or function remotely similarly to a gun are not to be tolerated. If you let kids shoot marshmallows at stacked plastic cups they might have fun, take pride in their mastery of ballistic trajectories, and you never know where that might lead
imitation weapons ... again fear of a lawsuit from a disgruntled ambulance parent.
Anything that can use force can be a weapon. Ban pencils next!
http://saveie6.com/
Perhaps teaching kids that use of guns and violence in schools will not be tolerated is a good thing? Do we want to teach out kids how to use fake guns now, then careless use of real guns once in the real world? Schools need to keep zero tolerance on anything gun related if we want to see our crime rate go down (hint: Only a few countries have worse gun violence than the US... and they either have unstable governments, or no governments.)
The better thing is to actually educate children about the dangers of firearms, and how to tell the difference between real guns and toys/replicas/marshmellow shooters. I grew up playing with toy guns, but my grandfather had several real firearms that he kept in a wood and glass gun cabinet. I was taught that they were dangerous and to only touch them with my grandfather or father. Keeping children from getting exposure to guns other than in video games or on TV means that if they are over at their friend Timmy's house and find his dad's gun they start playing with it and blow little Timmy's head off. If the child knows what to do when they find a gun (don't touch it, leave the area, and find and tell the nearest adult) little Timmy gets to go to school the next day. Abolition won't stop gun violence or even get rid of guns (out of the 6 guns that I own only 3 have any documentation of me purchasing them, and one of those is a hunting rifle). But education will reduce gun deaths significantly.
The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
This is about office politics. The administration at his school has decided to make an example out of him, and they're using these science experiments as an excuse to make his life miserable. That's what this is really about. He doesn't toe the line, so someone with power has decided to exert their authority.
To make this about gun politics is as equally absurd as to say that we should stop kids from eating any food because there's an obesity epidemic. These science projects are no more related to actual firearms than the gas stove in your kitchen is related to a nuclear bomb. The only plausible explanation for this situation is that Schiller dared to butt heads with some administrator, and this is payback.
They should ban electricity in science fair projects. Electricity is highly dangerous. People die from electrocution every year, some of whom are not even enjoying capital punishment.
Fire the administrators immediately and vote the school board out of office.
what is next basic computer skills = hacking
time to suspended the tech teaches
Perhaps teaching kids that use of guns and violence in schools will not be tolerated is a good thing?
Perhaps you're a blithering idiot. Oh, wait: there's no question about that.
-jcr
The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
Gun safety is something every parent owes their children. Along with power tools, basic electrical wiring, plumbing, plant a grape vine, how to build a computer, tune an engine, build a computer and compile a Linux kernel.
This will do more to make students hate Political Correctness and despise authority than simply reading that those things are bad.
Good!
BTW the Hippies were right, and now the rest of the country is discovering the Establishment DOES suck, even when run (perhaps) by former hippies.
Good.
http://spiritplumber.deviantar... This is a SLIGHT fictionalization of what happened to me when faced with a derpy administrator -- the dates and names have been changes but you can probably guess my age by the stuff referenced in. Ultimately, teachers and administrators operate in loco parentis; the parents have to get mad.
Liberty - Security - Laziness - Pick any two.
I approve of this decision. Someone finally thought of the children; just think how many lives were saved! Science is dangerous, and definitely has no place in our schools. Clearly, the children that built these have some severe mental problems, and all right-thinking people know their parents must be fat, conservative tea-baggers. The kind of violence exhibited by these devices cannot be tolerated. This is exactly why children should not be allowed to think for themselves in school; they are too unpredictable.
I'm glad we were able to stop these domestic terrorists before they killed anyone.
It's not society this time. The sickness here is all in the government schools.
But remember this: even though government schools do a bad job of teaching children in poor neighborhoods, we can't have non-government schools. Because poor kids wouldn't get a good education with non-government schools.
Sigh do not bring politics in this.
As someone who has worked in the school district I can tell you administrators need to make up good reasons to get rid of bad teachers and this is one of them and yes lawsuits prevent both administrators and staff from doing their jobs.
If the teacher said you can use this as a weapon. Then yes that would be very bad and inappropriate. If it is used to teach expansion of gas in a chemical reaction then that is a different matter.
I guess we will find out. Administrators have a reputation of being clueless. More likely they are puppets of the lawyers of school districts and need to do things like this to get rid of a few tenured bad apples.
http://saveie6.com/
After shutting down all science projects that involve projectiles, we need to move against other deadly militaristic skills.
1) stop all activities that train for grenade throwing.
For example, one so-called sport has a group of five taking turns attempting to throw a projectile through a 'hoop', where it should be obvious to anyone that this is training terrorists to hurl molotov cocktails through the windows of our leaders homes as well as elementary schools.
2) stop all activities that train for Hoplite style of battles.
For example, one so-called sport has a groups of eleven engaging in pushing and shoving to get a ball to a goal behind the group.
This is clearly military practice to train for close quarters combat without firearms. No doubt their plan is to disrupt the police who may be engaged in clearing streets from deranged people such as the occupy Wall Street protestors.
3) debate clubs. Why do we need debate clubs except to train people to delude and confuse the populace? The government licensed media should provide all the news and opinions we need.
Anything that can use force can be a weapon. Ban pencils next!
I have a minor scar on my forearm that was caused by a pencil in high school. Yes, seriously.
cheek += tongue;
It really is unfortunate that they didn't ban pencils way back then, because then I wouldn't have been stabbed by the pencil-wielding psychopath.
cheek -= tongue;
Captcha: armament - how appropriate.
Pens and pencils should be banned, replaced with keyboards and swipe screens.
Are you nuts? Have you seen what someone can do with a keyboard? http://youtu.be/XH7CXtxOflI?t=...
At least with swipe screens their arms will be too tired to hit anyone with!
I feel like a survivalist stating this, but I think it is good to teach kids some skills that are not dependent on electricity, if only how not to be completely helpless during a power outage or a disaster:
One example is basic usage and care of a generator. It is surprising how few people don't get that there is a difference between a Harbor Freight special (which is an ET800 clone of a Yamaha model made in the early 19702), versus a Honda, Yamaha, or other quality generator with an inverter (or at the minimum active voltage regulation) that puts out clean power.
Another example, something simple as planting a garden or raising chickens. Skills that may not be needed all the time, but if something does happen, are worth having.
... it is about tje progressive anti-gun stance ...
Progressives are *not* anti-gun, neither are environmentalists, etc. Ex. Teddy Roosevelt was known to be a fan of target shooting and hunting.
Call it what it is, the radical left. Don't let the radical left redefine and despoil the term "progressive" and they did "liberal".
... it's a stupid policy created by people that don't own guns ...
There is nothing wrong with not owning guns. Its a personal choice, OK for some, not for others.
However creating policy and regulations when you are completely ignorant and misinformed about firearms, that is something else. Some non-owners are quite well informed and not hysterical. Some owners are quite ignorant and in dire need of instructions and education.
The problem with this theory is that it sets bad policy that persists and that can affect good teachers at a later date.
Buying assault weapons without background checks: YES.
You mean assualt rifles? Sure, you can buy them illegally without a background check from the local gunrunner/gang member for a couple grand. Or spend about $20k on the gun and a couple k on the tax stamp and Class III license. Oh, wait, you meant the scary black guns with the pistol grips and plastic furniture. Because something like this is perfectly fine, but add a Tapco stock to it and you might as well be carry the next cloest thing to a nuke the way some poeple act.
The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
And which side does society stand on? Polls show they are agaisn't the teachers for failing our children.
It is why they call it work. You may have a passion to help kids but in the end only your results matter no different than any other job out there.
http://saveie6.com/
Schiller, 43, also was the teachers union representative on the campus and had been dealing with disagreements with administrators over updating the employment agreement under which the faculty works. His suspension, with pay, removed him from those discussions.
cite
Its not about safety, its about removing the union rep from negotiations at the expensive of his students who are preparing for their AP exams.
The article mentioned he was a head of the union who prevented the firings of several teachers.
It was a political ploy
http://saveie6.com/
Tsar Vladimir has a couple million soldiers with automatic weapons firing 5.45x39 rounds, I think those would be more effective than marshmallows.
"An Illinois federal court has ruled that Chicago school officials did not violate the rights of a second-grade teacher who was charged with possessing weapons on school grounds after he displayed garden-variety tools such as wrenches, pliers and screwdrivers in his classroom as part of his second grade teaching curriculum that required a “tool discussion.”"
http://www.prisonplanet.com/fe...
That's another arm of the anti-gun agenda: make it a 'health' issue (because that presumes a zero-tolerance for acceptable risk.) It should be an evaluation of risk issue just like owning a swimming-pool, trampoline, or automobile. Honestly, I would prefer getting the anti-gun lecture from my life insurance agent since he is trained to make those evaluations of risk.
I completely agree that leaving kids ignorant will not help. Hollywood teaches kids every incorrect way to handle a weapon as long as it looks cool. And people don't die as long as they are needed in the sequel.
Comments as rude, insulting and assholish as yours are why we are afraid that people like you own guns.
"We will always err on the side of protecting students."
Emphasis on "err".
Science is all about firing a drunk pig out of a cannon just to see what happens.
The zero-tolerance stance used in school administration is the bigger concern. It deadens the entire concept of teaching common sense in kids, and enforces robotic black and white thinking if it disagrees with the ideologues in charge of the school. IMHO the exact opposite reason we send our kids to school.
Whatever happened to "hey billy, this isn't the right place for playing cops and robbers on the school playground, please save that for when you go home." Instead kids are suspended for minor mistakes which presented no actual danger.
I want to look up the list of countries who are worse off in terms of gun violence, can you post a link?
> Things that look or function remotely similarly to a gun are not to be tolerated. If you let kids shoot marshmallows at stacked plastic cups they might have fun, take pride in their mastery of ballistic trajectories, and you never know where that might lead ... nerf ... airsoft ... a .22.
Clearly it is the result of too many people watching Ghostbusters in the 80s.
We need to ban dangerous marshmellow-based violence from our television and movie-screens.
No, it's not anti gun propaganda. I'm from a country where guns are banned and people are wholeheartedly against guns, but we aren't fucking stupid! We enjoy science and experiments like these are allowed; but under proper supervision.
This smells a lot like someone wanting an excuse for firing this particular teacher.
"The tairsts are trying to git nukalar weapons. We must make sure their missionification is not completificated."
Table-ized A.I.
Better not let them play any ball games either, just to be sure. And no contact sports either.
The reason western europe and canada is compared to USA, rather than say mexico and russia, is because they are the one which ressemble much the cultural, economical environment but also far more important political environment of the USA. Mexico and russia may fullfil one or two of those, but not all 3.
C. Sagan : A demon haunted world:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345409469/
visit randi.org
Classic example of a case in point....
"I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
Oh, hell yes!
Teaching basic gun safety to children is one of the best ways to ensure they don't do something stupid like accidently shoot someone the first time they touch a gun.
Note that, once upon a time (when I was a kid), it wasn't unusual at all to give a kid (for values of kid > about 10 years old) a .22 and teach him to shoot. Certainly that was true in my extended family. And I can't think of a single one of us who ever shot someone, accidently or on purpose....
"I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
Progressives are *not* anti-gun, neither are environmentalists
THIS IS NOT TRUE. They are absolutely anti-gun and anyone claiming otherwise, isn't paying attention. Teddy Roosevelt has almost nothing in common with today's Democrats and their progressive/environmental constituency. The fact that you try to tie the two together only further proves the point.
Some non-owners are quite well informed and not hysterical.
Where are these people? We need their help bringing intelligence into this conversation. Unfortunately, I fear they are scared to speak up, lest they be tarred by the anti-gun proponents who revel in intimidation tactics.
In all seriousness, it would be nice to hear from non-gun owners who aren't hysterical and who do know the difference between a magazine and a bullet. They would be a welcome breath of fresh air into an otherwise tired debate.
Actually, the correct analogy is that there are over a trillion bras.
Clearly, there is a link between bras and breast cancer.
We should outlaw Bras! Mod up to outlaw Bras!
When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
After they get that MFA in post modern Lesbian Marxist theater they're still going to be working the espresso machine for all the foreign scientists who go to school here.
The article mentioned he was a head of the union who prevented the firings of several teachers. It was a political ploy
So it serves two agendas. This makes it no less of an anti-gun.
Progressives are *not* anti-gun, neither are environmentalists THIS IS NOT TRUE. They are absolutely anti-gun and anyone claiming otherwise, isn't paying attention. Teddy Roosevelt has almost nothing in common with today's Democrats and their progressive/environmental constituency. The fact that you try to tie the two together only further proves the point.
No. My point is that the radical left is trying to rebrand themselves and usurp a nice sounding existing label. These modern democrats are PINO, progressive in name only.
By all means, let's keep kids from exploring science in an interesting way. I made a Van DeGraff generator in HS for a science project that would draw a one foot spark and light up flourescent tubes in the ceiling in the 70's as a way of exploring static electricity. I'm sure today it wouldn't be allowed in a science fair. Safety culture has become so oppressive that many kids just avoid science and technology altogether. If you haven't shocked yourself silly messing around by High School, you're a wimp.
Organization? You must be joking..
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.
If you read the previous comments, it's mentioned that this particular teacher was a thorn in the administration's side, being a union representative that wasn't rolling over for whatever management's flavor of koolaid was this week. I think it was absolutely an excuse to get rid of an obstacle, especially since he's no longer in charge of those negotiations because of this. People are always looking for grand conspiracies to take their guns away, when the truth is much less insidious. I guess they'll take any excuse they can to beat that drum...
In the 2010 edition of his (well researched) book "More Guns, Less Crime" , John Lott, Jr analyzes gun and crime statistics, public policy, gun control laws, etc. and draws a very distinct conclusion that (legal) gun ownership has no more of an effect in crime, including homicides, than any other type of weapon. He also asserts that gun ownership is actually a deterrent to violent crime. Asserting that just because 300 million people own 150 million guns (or visa-versa, take your pick) is spurious at best. One has to analyze the actual data as Mr. Lott has done in three separate editions of his book. However, the mass media does little justice to the facts in this case. Thanks to the blindly bias groups like the Brady Campaign, the general public (like is often the case) is sorely misled on the truth.
"Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities." - Voltaire
Wasp air pistol..
Star Trek transporters are just 3d printers.
I'd bet it was an anti-union move, an excuse to get rid of an inconvenient person in negotiations. That is normally done by anti-union right-wingers.
"When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes