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Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car?

Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car?

  • Yes. The rule against weapons on campus needs to be enforced! What sort of message does that send?

    Votes: 1 2.6%

  • He should have gotten less time since it wasn't a very deadly weapon and his intent was not violent

    Votes: 2 5.3%

  • I'm not sure about this one...

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • He should have had a warning.

    Votes: 4 10.5%

  • What is wrong with school official these days? Seriously, this is ridiculous!

    Votes: 31 81.6%
  • Total voters
    38
MyOwnDrum

MyOwnDrum

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New York Eagle Scout Suspended From School for 20 Days for Keeping Pocketknife in Car - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com

A 17-year-old Eagle Scout in upstate New York has been barred from stepping foot on school grounds for 20 days — for keeping a 2-inch pocketknife locked in a survival kit in his car.

Matthew Whalen, a senior at Lansingburgh Senior High School, says he follows the Boy Scout motto and is always prepared, stocking his car with a sleeping bag, water, a ready-to-eat meal — and the knife, which was given to him by his grandfather, a police chief in a nearby town.

But Lansingburgh High has a zero-tolerance policy, and when school officials discovered that Whalen kept his knife locked in his car, he says, they suspended him for five days — and then tacked on an additional 15 after a hearin
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Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

20 days is definitely too harsh. For a 2'' knife I would think only 1 or 2 days would be necessary.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

I think the school is in the wrong here. Zero-tolerance means that there can be absolutely no exceptions. Zero-tolerance does NOT mean that the punishment must be extremely severe.

5 days suspension was more than adequate.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

It's ridiculous for him to be punished AT ALL. "Zero tolerance" just means "zero discretion in applying common sense." If it was really such a big deal, just confiscate the knife or tell him not to bring it anymore.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Kandahar said:
It's ridiculous for him to be punished AT ALL. "Zero tolerance" just means "zero discretion in applying common sense." If it was really such a big deal, just confiscate the knife or tell him not to bring it anymore.
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I agree with this. You see these types of cases and you wonder why school officials don't understand critical thinking. You saw some of this with girls taking a Midol because of menstrual cramps and getting hard time because of the anti-drug policy.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

It's fairly ridiculous. But then again, on the whole, so are we.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Isn't the point of High School to teach the young and prepare them for life?

What would have happened in the adult world? Let's say that you were going through a screening for the airport or some other 'weapon free zone'. You didn't know the exact rules or didn't remember that you had this lethal weapon in your possession.

What would happen? Would they prosecute you?
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

MyOwnDrum said:
New York Eagle Scout Suspended From School for 20 Days for Keeping Pocketknife in Car - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News - FOXNews.com
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Mixed feelings about this. On one hand, a 17 year old should understand that zero tolerance policy means zero tolerance. However, I also think zero tolerance is nothing more than a fail safe to keep school administrators from doing their jobs and actually administrating their schools. Instead of actually making a damned decision and being held accountable for that decision, they get to point to a zero tolerance "policy" and say "derrr, there's nothing we can do".

It's kind of ridiculous.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

jallman said:
Mixed feelings about this. On one hand, a 17 year old should understand that zero tolerance policy means zero tolerance. However, I also think zero tolerance is nothing more than a fail safe to keep school administrators from doing their jobs and actually administrating their schools. Instead of actually making a damned decision and being held accountable for that decision, they get to point to a zero tolerance "policy" and say "derrr, there's nothing we can do".

It's kind of ridiculous.
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Well let's say this kid gets a free pass, and then some gang member gets in trouble for having a knife in his car, and says "well he had one too!"
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

the makeout hobo said:
Well let's say this kid gets a free pass, and then some gang member gets in trouble for having a knife in his car, and says "well he had one too!"
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If the circumstances are the same, why should ANYONE be suspended for 20 days for having a knife in their car?
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Kandahar said:
If the circumstances are the same, why should ANYONE be suspended for 20 days for having a knife in their car?
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Do you think a high school kid should be allowed to bring weapons onto school campus? The gang member might get in a fight and find the guy he fought with after school and stab him.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

the makeout hobo said:
Do you think a high school kid should be allowed to bring weapons onto school campus?
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I certainly don't think they should be allowed to carry weapons around with them to class, no. If the weapons are in the car, I guess it would depend on the weapon and why they have it. A pocketknife is hardly something to get to worked up about...especially when the kid seems like he had a legitimate reason for having it.

the makeout hobo said:
The gang member might get in a fight and find the guy he fought with after school and stab him.
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And the art student with scissors in his car might get in a fight after school and stab someone. A baseball player with a bat in his car might get in a fight after school and club someone.
 
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Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Kandahar said:
I certainly don't think they should be allowed to carry them around with them, no. If the weapons are in the car, I guess it would depend on the circumstances. A pocketknife is hardly something to get to worked up about.
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I agree 2' might be a bit small to worry about.


And the art student with scissors in his car might get in a fight after school and stab someone. A baseball player with a bat in his car might get in a fight after school and club someone.
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You obviously never went to a school in a gang infested area. My high school never had out of control baseball players or art students. Gang violence, we had more than enough of that.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

He wasn't carrying the weapon on his person. It was locked away in a secure location. The suspension was out of line.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

the makeout hobo said:
You obviously never went to a school in a gang infested area. My high school never had out of control baseball players or art students. Gang violence, we had more than enough of that.
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OK...but this kid wasn't a gangster, he was an Eagle Scout.

And wasn't your question why a gang member couldn't say the same thing if THEY got caught with a knife? What makes the scissors or baseball bat any different then? :confused:
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Kandahar said:
OK...but this kid wasn't a gangster, he was an Eagle Scout.
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Yes, but under most situations, the school can't apply different standards to different students. If they said "well yes, but it was ok because he was an Eagle Scout", they could potentially get in trouble.

And wasn't your question why a gang member couldn't say the same thing if THEY got caught with a knife? What makes the scissors or baseball bat any different then? :confused:
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Show me the last time a baseball player or art student used their respective tools as weapons.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

the makeout hobo said:
Yes, but under most situations, the school can't apply different standards to different students. If they said "well yes, but it was ok because he was an Eagle Scout", they could potentially get in trouble.
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And this is exactly the problem with Zero Tolerance policies.

the makeout hobo said:
Show me the last time a baseball player or art student used their respective tools as weapons.
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Show me the last time an Eagle Scout used his pocketknife as a weapon. Didn't you just say that they couldn't apply different standards to different people? :confused:
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Kandahar said:
And this is exactly the problem with these stupid Zero Tolerance policies.
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Yes, but I'm sure the possible law suit is worse.

Show me the last time an Eagle Scout used his pocketknife as a weapon. Didn't you just say that they couldn't apply different standards to different people? :confused:
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And if the gang member (who of course, you can't prove is actually a Norteno) says "he brought one too?"
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

the makeout hobo said:
Yes, but I'm sure the possible law suit is worse.



And if the gang member (who of course, you can't prove is actually a Norteno) says "he brought one too?"
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So why couldn't the same reasoning be applied to the scissors or baseball bat? :confused:
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Kandahar said:
So why couldn't the same reasoning be applied to the scissors or baseball bat? :confused:
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Scissors and baseball bats are very rarely used as weapons. People get stabbed at or around school comparatively often.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Kandahar said:
So why couldn't the same reasoning be applied to the scissors or baseball bat? :confused:
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And fork, don't forget about the fork.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

the makeout hobo said:
Well let's say this kid gets a free pass, and then some gang member gets in trouble for having a knife in his car, and says "well he had one too!"
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I think that got covered under 'administrators should have discretion to make decisions case by case'.
 
Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

the makeout hobo said:
Scissors and baseball bats are very rarely used as weapons. People get stabbed at or around school comparatively often.
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With pocketknives? :confused:

So your definition of a "weapon" is based on how often something is USED as a weapon near the school? Should students be allowed to carry grenade launchers to school (assuming they're legal)? I bet those aren't used as weapons near the school very often.
 
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Re: Should this Eagle Scout have been suspended for keeping 2" pocketknife in his car

Kandahar said:
With pocketknives? :confused:

So your definition of a "weapon" is based on how often something is USED as a weapon near the school? Should students be allowed to carry grenade launchers to school (assuming they're legal)? I bet those aren't used as weapons near the school very often.
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No, but they're illegal, so i don't think it'd be an issue. And I said earlier, I think a 2-inch blade is too small to matter. And what do you think administrators should use as decision criteria?
 
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