Published: February 05, 2010
Op-Ed Contributor
Fourth-Grader Busted for Bringing a 2-Inch Plastic Gun to School
By Robert Paul Reyes
"An irate Staten Island mom blasted a grade school principal Wednesday for treating her son like a pint-sized Plaxico Burress after he brought a 2-inch-long toy gun to school.
"This principal is a bully and a coward, and needs to be held accountable," said Laura Timoney, 44, after her teary fourth-grader was nearly suspended for playing with the tiny toy at lunch." Read more
It was lunch time and little Patrick, 9, placed his 2-inch plastic gun in the hand of a plastic police officer. All of a sudden Patrick is yanked into the principal's office to give an account for his thuggish behavior. Everybody knows that if a fourth-grader plays with a 2-inch plastic gun, that he will be toting a sawed-off shotgun when he's in high school.
The principal acted like Barney Fife on crack, and he should be ashamed of himself. Patrick may need counseling to get over his frightening ordeal. I've heard of students suspended for brandishing a plastic butter knife, but this principal takes "zero tolerance" to a whole new level.
A 2-inch plastic gun can be lethal, if the little kid puts it in his mouth and chokes on it. But it's not a danger to anyone else, and it doesn't demonstrate any criminal tendencies on the part of the little tyke.
"After a meeting between the principal and the parents, the boy was spared any disciplinary action. City school officials said Patrick agreed to leave the 'gun' at home." NYDailyNews.Com
The mother should sue the school district, this zero tolerance tomfoolery will only end when parents take action against schools who throw commonsense out the window.
Follow Robert Paul Reyes on Twitter: http://twitter.com/robertpaulreyes
Robert Paul Reyes is a NewsBlaze writer on Politics, Pop Culture and Pointless Pontificating. Contact him by writing to NewsBlaze.
* The views of Opinion writers do not necessarily reflect the views of NewsBlaze
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