The worst part of this is being so damned used to the school-cop cartel that my first reaction was mere relief that the kid’s not dead, in traction or having brain surgery to repair the bleed from the cracked skull.
My second was getting pissed at the gross markup on that (very heavily subsidized) half-pint carton of milk that currently runs $0.22 wholesale. 16 cups in a gallon, at $0.65 each, means $10 a gallon milk. (Which I recall usually being warm and halfway to sour, but maybe that was just my crappy, central small city, on the southern border school. No, wait, that was true at all of them, in the upscale suburbs and the inner cities.) Just give the kids cups and a self-serve milk machine and stop rationing it. Worst case, they drink more milk; it’ll still be cheaper to stock a 5 gallon bag a day.
Yeah. The word “uppity” has application here. That cop and the admin are in my “prayers”. Justice comes in some uncomfortable forms.
I’m mostly thinking the economics of the program – there are so many places within the systems of providing food to large groups where rationing and pre-packing makes the system inefficient (costly) and thus makes openings for abuse. Stepping away from those points of control and pushing towards a commons system trends to be cheaper, and both takes away those opportunities for abuse (which is often a reason Admin opposes them – they like being judgmental martinets) while subtly signalling that the group is trusted. Trusting tweens with their own food turns out to be cheaper and better for their social and emotional development – and means this doesn’t happen.
But I’m a gooey, squishy, thrifty democratic socialist who has actually studied adolescent development, so what can I possibly know?
I’m 26. I act like a smartass most of the time. Until a cop wants to chat. Then I’m a fucking marine. “Sir yes sir”
You know those guys can kill you anytime, in broad daylight with witnesses, and all they’ll get for it is paid vacation.
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again. In my daily interactions, I’m not scared of gang members, crazy street people, or creepers who are eyeballing me. Who I’m really scared of are the police. Because they can do literally anything to harm me for no reason, up to and including murder, and they’ll be rewarded for it.
this is a thing? the most we have are fire drills, in good years even with the involement of a fire department (without it the break lasts 15 minutes or so, if it’s a larger drill one can skip a whole lesson!)
Ethnic stereotyping? Check.
Doubling down rather than admit error? Check.
School blindly backing the cop, no matter how much in the wrong he is? Check.
Chances that the school will settle out of court? High.
Probable cost to taxpayers? High.
Chances of consequences for cop and/or school administration? Null.
I’ve taught my kids to always when faced with a authoritarian figure (like a police officer) to remain calm and cooperate. Keep eye contact. Try not to be nervous or anxious. Do your best to remain passive and in control of your person, because ultimately that is the only thing you have control over…yourself.
But in the end, they are still kids. Albeit teenagers now, but still children. They won’t be perfect. They won’t conform perfectly to how we expect them to behave or act in a given situation. And most of all…THEY WILL MAKE MISTAKES.
If in a court of law we do not hold a child fully accountable for their actions due to immaturity and a reasonable expectation of mental development…then why do we expect it in day to day life? Moreover, if this grown adult police officer CAN be held accountable for a “mistake” or error in judgment in a court of law if he let’s say “Had one too many drinks one night and got behind the wheel and killed someone” (vehicular manslaughter)…then why can we not hold him accountable for over reacting in this situation as well?
This goes back to the entire issue surrounding the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman case. Despite the numerous layers and grey areas within that mess the immutable base fact is that a grown adult with a gun shot and killed an unarmed child. Nothing more needs to be said beyond that to know that he IS culpable and wholly responsible for his actions.
It amazes and astounds me that we have adults running around losing control of themselves, their words, their actions, their thoughts; and seem careless as to how they affect others! And then act as if it was the other party who “made them do it”! NO! YOU MADE YOURSELF DO IT!
Me: I see teenager swipe a carton of milk, approach said teenager "Is there any reason you didn’t pay for that?"
Kid: "Yes sir, its free for me for my lunch program."
Me: Ok. Enjoy your milk.
No, no, no. Eye contact is one of the triggers that makes authority figures attack. Apparently the “dehumanizing stare” of a child can injure a LEO, and they will defend themselves.
See also: cops (and I’m willing to extrapolate to pretty much any generic white person in authority) see black youth as 4.5 years older than they actually are. Which explains so so so much…
Unfortunately, it is. Teachers lock the door, turn off lights, and shut the blinds while students remain quiet and sit under the windows (out of gun’s reach). High school students are never silent during the drill, but I can verify that during a real lock down they are eerily compliant and quiet.
We also have an earthquake drill once a year that takes place in October and since evacuation route is same as fire, no need to have an additional fire drill.
