Posted on 05/14/2008 4:58:40 AM PDT by ButThreeLeftsDo
Brandt Dahl wasn't exactly aiming for the Student of the Year Award when he refused to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance last week at Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton Junior High near Moorhead. But I suspect the eighth-grader may have had a little more swagger in his step after publicly setting school administrators there back on their heels.
If Brandt's infraction had been a smart-alecky spitball, his one-day, in-school suspension -- one of four meted out to errant students -- might not have been viewed in some quarters as Dilworth's equivalent of Abu Ghraib. But in recent decades, the slightest school pressure to honor our flag has inspired a rescue mission from a legal heavyweight -- the ACLU.
Last week, the ACLU of Minnesota demanded that the district cease and desist from requiring students to stand during the pledge -- students have not been required to recite it -- and warned that the district could be liable for attorney's fees and costs.
The MCLU informed school officials that "staff involved in violating students' rights should face discipline." It also recommended "remedial steps," including a potential formal apology to the disciplined students.
(Excerpt) Read more at startribune.com ...
Background story.....http://www.startribune.com/nation/18800444.html
The ACLU is the enemy of America.
There is an easy solution to this. Students should NOT have to stand and recite the pledge, but one of the purposes of school is education in civics. Students should have the alternative of sitting and writing the pledge on paper while the rest of the class stands and recites it. They do not have to mean it. They only need to prove they know it (each day.)
Uh...standing is a measure of respect for your fellow students...sorta like taking your hat off in a Church...you just do it whether you are a believer or a guest.
Small potatoes. School admins shouldn’t pick fights they can’t win. Concentrate on educating students rather than controlling political attitudes.
An interesting side note: Fox Cable’s Steve Ducey reoported this morning that the Bloomberg Wisconson school board voted two days ago to stop a young US Marine from wearing his dress blues to his HS graduation.
There had been no rule prior to this that would have prevented this.
The teacher should have just ignored it. That’s what my dad did to me when I was “being stupid”.
The school board should be embarrassed. They had the chance to show “love of country” among the students and they blew it.
This isn't asking too much of the students. However, after this I would amend this policy to say......"all students are required to stand; those who prefer not to participate are required to stand in the hall during the pledge (not as a punishment, but to allow those who respect the flag to express their respect while not offending those who don't) but are not required to recite the pledge
Besides, when the teachers get into a hissy, the disrespectful behavior becomes twice as cool. When the admin cracks down, pushes a confrontation, and the student wins, the disrespectful behavior goes off the chart in coolness factor.
Hopefully, the individual exercising their rights will get the last word.
I agree. I sent this to drudge, I posted it here but with no source to link to I think the mods pulled.
Not on Fox News website yet.
He is just following the lead of President Obama.
Once I give my word one time, it is enough. If a make a pledge today, does it lose meaning overnight? I only took my wedding vows once. Why should anyone have to make a pledge everyday?
And soldiers should only have to salute their superiors once in a lifetime.....
Right?
I have to agree with you. This kid is an attention whore who wanted to be disruptive, and making a federal case out of this is giving him exactly what he wanted.
We get you Obama.
When one has to resort to name calling, it means they’ve lost.
Stand up and be counted with those you emulate.
Still name calling. Ouch!
Nice try. I guess you equate law breaking with an exercise of the first amendment right to free speech, but I don’t. Rules that violate the constitution are not legal.
Sorry, you don’t have a right to yell “fire” in a crowded theater and schools do have a right to regulate behavior.
Your analogies have been wrong so far. No one is yelling fire; not even close. The only fire is in your brain because you despise the behavior. You're just spouting cliches hoping something will stick and so far you're 0 for 3.
Governmental force to have a person display partiotism or respect is the very thing the constitution prohibits.
Both of you have very good ideas!
When you're on the side of government forcing patriotism instead of exercising rights, you should take a step back and check yourself out.
When or if this goes to court, let’s see the kid (and his attorneys, for that matter) remain seated as the judge enters the court room. And maybe for good measure they can wear hats and keep them on.
Standing during the pledge is not an endorsement of the pledge, it is, as was stated above, just plain good manners, and schools should be able to teach good manners. This is no different than requiring children (at least they used to do this when I was in school) to dance with each other (touching and everything!) to songs that we would never have chosen to listen to. There was no choice about whether to participate, but dancing with an ugly girl didn’t mean that you liked her (the converse is not true, if you got to dance with the pretty girls, it was assumed that you DID like them).
Students don’t have to endorse the views, but they need to respect others who do, and standing is simply a showing of respect to others and simple good manners.
This is just dumb. Standing is not a profession of any faith and can’t possbily be covered by the 1A. Kids can be ordered to show respect, and that’s what standing is.
I can see some people whose religious beliefs do not allow them to profess allegiance to anyone but God not being forced to say anything. But for atheists all you have to do is recite the proper pre-1954 version of the Pledge, which doesn’t include “under God.”
Now that's just wrong. It is effectively a punishment -- banished from the classroom, easily singled-out to be the subject of ridicule by your fellow students.
The Bush and flag ones are clearly political expression, most definitely covered by the 1A. The flag one especially has meaning because, although it is used in an inappropriate manner, the upside-down flag is an indicator of distress.
The beer one can be considered obscene and is purposely demeaning of female students.
Actually, I favor uniforms.
Actually it’s you who gave up because your position is indefensible.
That is not tantamount to allowing everyone to say what they want on a t-shirt and walk around school taunting everyone with it, or using profanity or making sexual or slanderous remarks.
Your inability to delineate that and then accuse me of having no defense is both puzzling and a weak attempt.
How is that different than being the only three sitting during the pledge? They are still subject to being the subject of ridicule by fellow students. At least they wouldn't be disrupting the rest of the class.
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