Welcome To Second Grade, Please Check Your Guns At The Door

I've been hearing about this story all day, so I decided to give my 15 cents.

Samuel Burgos, from Miramar, Florida, was expelled, and has missed nearly two years of school, for bringing a gun to Pembroke Pines Charter Elementary School West, in Broward County.  In an age following Columbine, it is easy to applaud this.  Good enough for him.  His parents should be ashamed.  But here's the catch.

The gun was a plastic toy.  It fires plastic beads.  And it remained in Samuel's book bag during the entire time he was in school, until it was discovered by school officials.  According to the boy, who was 7, at the time of the incident, he had been playing with it over the weekend, and in an attempt to hide it from his brother, he placed it in his book bag and simply forgot.  Sounds like a 7 year old to me.

I guess in a world where keeping our children safe has become a daily struggle, the school's zero tolerance policy for guns and the mandatory expulsion that goes along with that policy can be seen as clearly understandable.  But there's still a such thing as common sense.

I agree that the school should have punished the boy, because even accidentally, he should have never brought the toy to school.  But it's a TOY...I mean, come on.  I think this is a case where the system overstepped its bounds.  Kicking the boy out of school for a mistake that any 7 year old might easily make seems a bit extreme.  Now he's forced to be homeschooled by his parents (who are not teachers), and miss out on all of the very experiences that our society says are indispensable to a child.  The only option offered was sending him to an alternative school for "at risk" kids.  Sounds unfair.

I understand policy, and feel like policy should be enforced.  But as people, we sometimes err in our judgments, and policy can often be flawed.  These are the times when we correct our mistakes, and change the policy.  If policy is allowed to be rewritten, which is like giving it a second chance, shouldn't a 7 year old boy be allowed the same courtesy?  A hearing later this month will determine whether or not that is the case.

(The school has changed the mandatory expulsion part of its zero tolerance policy to only include firearms...but after Samuel was expelled.)

Maybe I'm just naive, but I think this punishment was entirely too harsh, and needs to be corrected.  Feel free to comment.

Much love,
Marcus

(P.S. --- check out the entire article on the story, as reported by CNN, here http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/10/06/toy.gun.expelled/index.html)

Day Gone By, In a Blur: Ode To Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2010

It was late, but as an insomniac, I'm up and remember things I didn't do, when it hit me.

This is a quick apology to the few loyal readers that I have.  I promised I wouldn't neglect this blog and I have pridefully attempted to keep that promise.  Shit happens.  But to make it up to you, here is Tuesday in a blur.

It's a fact I've yet to share, but I am a sports fanatic, and nothing brings this out more than football season.  Minnesota Vikings fan, since nearly forever, and loving my team in spite of the 1-3 record.  (I am considering a trip to Hattiesburg, MS, to find out where the hell Brett Favre left his mojo at...lol)

So in the spirit of football, I must say: Chicago Bears fans...do I really need to say a word?  All of the perfect insults have been buried in the new Giants stadium along with Jay Cutler's poise at quaterback.  I mean 10 sacks...damn.  I haven't seen such poor protection since James Toney tried to do MMA.

Which brings me to the Miami Dolphins fans...and yeah, they beat the Vikings, but by what some crazy turnovers and a good goal line stand...take away the long catch by Brandon Marshall and it wouldn't have been a game...but after Monday night...hmmm, let's see, these guys protect the ball like the cast of Jersey Shore protects their good reputations (if you've seen the show, do I need to explain?).  Four tunovers and a 31-7 second half.  I guess suddenly the name Chung means more than nightmares of an aweful 80s song.  But cheer up.  You might be able to convince Lebron to suit up and make some plays.

Here's a quick song, no doubt what the abovementioned fans are thinking of the Bears and Dolphins performances:

	The Pretty Reckless - Make Me Wanna Die .mp3
	Found at bee mp3 search engine

"Make Me Wanna Die" --- The Pretty Reckless

which, interestingly enough, is an awesome song.

But anyway...about to go count sheep or something...lol...have an awesome night.

I'm Sorry I Can't Focus On The Argument, But The Way You're Rolling Your Neck Is Giving Me Whiplash

This is a quick lesson/word of advice for all the fellas.  Lean in, and pay attention, because I will only say this once.

*** When a woman gets mad, there's absolutely nothing you can do. ***

You can't apologize enough, you can't talk your way out of it, you can't pluck the moon from the sky and hand it to her on a platter of roses.  There is nothing you can do.

Except perhaps admit that you are wrong, but surprise, surprise, this usually makes them madder.  They're irritated by anything you say, and the funny thing is, you might actually be right.  Guess what: It doesn't matter.  It seems like insanity to the rational, and even a bit of an eyebrow raiser to the truly insane.  The best thing to do is take it.  If it's small enough, or enough time passes, she'll eventually get over it.  Otherwise, it might be time to get a refund on those plane tickets for two.

So, fellas, heed my words.  In the eyes of an angry woman, you are always wrong.  So deal with it.  If you care about her, understand.  And the most important thing to do:  Until she stops being mad, try not to fuck up.

Much love,
Marcus