Posted on 12/02/2004 3:56:16 PM PST by reportgirl73
GRAND ISLAND, N.Y. (AP) - An elementary school bus driver was fired after sharing a statistic she had read about embryonic stem cell research with students, then encouraging them to tell their parents about it.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
Rus, this is your neck of the woods...
I hope she sues them into the stone age...
It's my wife, I was just posting it..
NY-style "tolerance"...
who is your wife..?
Wow! AP picked it up, they called my wife this morning..
Kewl!!
I wonder if she would've been fired had she said something in support of embyronic stem cell "research"?
she is the one that got fired!
Probably not, she is mrs mayor..
OMG! I saw the name and did not even connect! I hope you guys make a mint off the law suit
Perhaps they should quibble with Mr. Gibson, not the lowly school bus driver. Or prove Mr. Gibson wrong.
http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20041202/1063213.asp
GRAND ISLAND SCHOOLS
Bus driver loses job for discussing political issue with pupils
By EMMA D. SAPONG
News Northtowns Bureau
12/2/2004
School bus driver Julianne Thompson decided to shared what she considered interesting information on stem cell research with elementary pupils and encouraged them to pass it on to their parents.
They did, and days later Thompson, 42, was fired as a substitute school bus driver for the Grand Island Central School District.
She said she was told that her behavior was inappropriate and offered no further explanation.
A district official said he couldn't comment on Thompson's employment history with the district but said district policy doesn't allow discussion of political issues with students while employees are on duty.
Thompson said the bus conversation occurred with second- through fifth-graders on Nov. 1.
She said she only stated facts she considered age-appropriate and didn't share her opinions. The children were receptive and asked questions.
Thompson also said it was not uncommon for her to hand out "factoids" to pupils while transporting them.
But on Nov. 8, a district official told her that parents were upset about the discussion, and Thompson was let go.
Thompson said district officials also accused her of operating an unruly bus, which she denies.
"In the midst of all the misplaced outrage, is the story of the sad and disturbing success of a fraudulent social "conscience' that devalues life in favor of demonstrably failed science, wasting billions of dollars in the process, and one that pretends to champion tolerance, but punishes reasonable discourse," she said.
Thompson, who has been with the district for 21/2 years, said she is puzzled by her firing and is consulting lawyers.
She said she read an interview where actor/producer Mel Gibson explained that more than 20 years of embryonic stem cell research had not cured any diseases but more than 300,000 cures had been found with adult stem cells.
She was floored by the information, which she thought was pertinent and warranted a discussion with the pupils, who could share it with their parents. "It's an important issue that everyone should know about," she said.
But Superintendent Thomas Ramming said employees are not allowed to have such conversations with students.
e-mail: esapong@buffnews.com
Wouldn't do this to a teacher, academic freedom and all!
my wife had a perfect record as a driver, there were never any problems before this, except it is a union shop and she had a Bush sign in our car..
What a shame! Your wife was stating the positive truth about stem cell research and school bus authorities had to fire her! Hope you sue the whole bunch of idiots and WIN!
If she handed out colored condoms, they'd be hailing her as a model employee.
Not in my country. Not anymore.
Death to the thought police.
Well - honestly - didn't anyone tell her that politicians and O'Reilly and the old major media were the only people allowed to discuss topics -
Isn't that what we got from the election - ? McCain wanted to control outside voices - and the major media and O'Reilly agreed -
Citizens are being told they don't have a say anymore - on this issue and the immigration and the security issue - only the powerful people have a right to speak - if you believe the PC crowd and media - and some of the corrupt leaders in the Senate and House -
More BS from the NAZI's of Free Speech. Good luck and God be with you. Remember God only put on you what you are able to handle.
I wish you well, but I can't think of a good reason to discuss this with elementary school-aged kids.
Just curious - if you had a child riding a school bus and the driver was "sharing" liberal/left wing stuff (for instance, pro-abortion or F911 conspiracy-theory material), what would you think?
We are supposed to believe that none of the teachers at that school ever interject their politics into the classroom?
I think you just may be on to something there.
Thanks for the additional info. It certainly explains a lot to me. The article made her out to be some kind of placard waving zealot.
Contact the Rutherford Institute, American Center for Law and Justice and Pacific Justice Institute. These groups are the conservative version of the ACLU and one might be able to really help. Godspeed. And may freedom of expression in the workplace prevail! You wife was providing 'balance' to the Planned Parenthood propaganda in the textbooks, no doubt....
Sue the hell out of them. Free speech should be free for everyone.
Sounds familiar.
Parents are a real pain in the @ss.
I hope the driver stands up for herself.
Were they afraid to give her a chance to defend herself, because they didn't want to get into a "difficult" debate that they might lose?
What kind of standard is that? Everything is arguably a political issue except what day it is.
Saying that you dislike the beggars at the intersections is arguably a political issue. Mentioning that you attend a Christian church is arguably a political issue.
I can see a prohibition against campaigning for a party or candidate, but such a broad prohibition against talking about something which could possibly be construed as a "political issue" is insane.
If the assertion is correct, I don't see why this statement of dry fact is controversial among reasonable people.
Although I dare say we all know why its controversial to the Left.
I just came to the same conclusion as you.
We are supposed to hand over the "nuanced" effort of political debate to the politicians
I read and reread this statement and still cannot connect political and religious with embryonic stem cells.
I for one consider embryonic stem cell research murder. Not a religious or political statement.
I hope you sue and take them to the the cleaners. Then get the heck out of Dodge. NY is a lost cause. What happened to free speech?
I would recommend you get this into the blogosphere - get some air time for this story. If nothing else comes of it, it will hold up to the public the TRUTH that embryonic stem cell research has produced ZERO results.
see that'sthe problem with all of it, tell the truth and get fired, tell the lying liberal line and get rewarded..
It's a sad sad state of affairs..
The liberals are using their control of cities, counties, and school districts to create a clear distinction between first-class and second-class citizens. Central to this attempt is the use of their power over public employment and public contracting. Anyone who clearly doesn't think their way is in jeopardy, losing work and/or income.
We must fight fire with fire. We're up against a vicious enemy, and the sooner we recognize this the better. It would be nice to hear President Bush speak out on some of these cases. Not "presidential," I know, but we're well past the point of making such fine distinctions. Aren't we?
Best of luck to you and your wife. Be sure to get the nastiest lawyer you you can afford.
I had a high school teacher 20 years ago that was an early version of today's extreme left. I thought he had a right to an opinion then, even though I thought his ideas were ridiculous.
People seem to think that elementary age students are raised in sound proof, window less cells. They aren't, they're exposed to all sorts of information from school, television, radio, written media and their friends. The stem cell research subject is mild compared to some of the questions I've had to discuss with my children over the last 16 years.
Freedom of speech means freedom for people we disagree with, but that doesn't mean we give up our own freedom for theirs. That's something both the left and the right should keep in mind.;
Absolutley!
The worst part is that Grand Island used to be a great place to live, now the liberals are coming in and having their way..
Frikin rino's run the island now just like the state..
BTTT
We have a case according to a well known Buffalo Attorney..
no names..
Here is the article she wrote to the papers and the schools.
Casualties of the Culture War
by Julianne Thompson
A few weeks ago, I read an interview with Mel Gibson, wherein he explained that in 23 years of embryonic stem cell research, we haven't found a single cure for any disease - ever. Not one life has been saved. But in using adult stem cells, we've found over 300,000 cures. I was stunned, and as a schoolbus driver, I shared it with my students. I did not express an opinion, I shared a scientific fact, and I encouraged the students to share it with their parents. They did, and after some apparently uninformed discussion, a couple of parents brought their twisted rendition to the Grand Island School District, and demanded my dismissal. It would seem they needed to strengthen their case, so they then fabricated a lie about lack of control, and students standing while the bus is in motion, which simply doesn't happen on my schoolbus. Without warning, and after two and a half years of spotless service, the school district submitted to their infantile demands, and promptly fired me.
Boy, did I learn my lesson. I learned that free speech is definitely not free, that education stops at the schoolbus door, and that either political correctness, or the irrational rantings of a tiny, vocal minority supersedes reason, facts and truth. The strongest language that was used to justify my dismissal was "inappropriate". I then asked, reasonably enough, "What was inappropriate about it?", but have yet to receive a response.
If millions of people in California voted on it by referendum, why is it off-limits to speak about it with students? And if such facts were provided the students by their health or science teacher, would anyone care? I have learned since then, that the use of embryonic stem cells causes only cancers, cysts and tumors.
In the midst of all the misplaced outrage, is the story of the sad and disturbing success of a fraudulent social "conscience" that devalues life in favor of demonstrably failed science, wasting billions of dollars in the process, and one that pretends to champion tolerance, but punishes reasonable discourse. Memo to the Schools: Submitting to terrorist demands rewards ignorance, and utilizes a most ineffective conflict resolution technique.
Whether it's the sheer joy gained from pilfering one's meager sustenance, or just a post-election tantrum, those parents, and the educators and administrators who should know better, are the real victims in this culture war. To be continually and easily bamboozled by liberalism's ideological nonsense is not a level of discernment (or lack thereof) that should be admired, aspired to or encouraged.
Our children, sadly, may be the biggest casualties of all. How can we expect them to grow into rational, objective adults, if we ourselves refuse to tolerate logic, or dissent from our own narrow view? How can we expect honesty, when we use lies to sweeten our case against those we oppose? The school district, in enabling the minority, has sent a message that those who stamp their feet the loudest win, and has paved the way for an irresponsible, amoral, ill-bred and disobedient generation. Sounds like anarchy.
As one of the responsible citizens of Grand Island, with a hefty tax burden and a stake in the future, I encourage you to stamp your feet. Loudly.
or how about support for gay marriage. These people are unbelievable. School districts are secular communists.
Absolutley!
I hate to say it but...maybe that is why she is a BUS DRIVER.
Perhaps you'd like to offer one....?
~Mrs. Mayor~
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