Zero Tolerance

Discussion in 'Debate Corner' started by Sara, Oct 16, 2010.

  1. Sara Tea Drinker

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    Lately there's been massive debate on the press about the schools policy on banning anything that seems to pose a danger to students and/or teachers. Toy guns, key chains, plastic knives, etc...

    Being a person in high school during Columbine, I understand where the policy is coming from. Even though not in the state that the tragedy happened, my school had bomb scares for at least a year afterward. Whether or not its tied to the tragedy, who knows. But plastic knives, I don't see a problem, a Muslim girl wearing her scarf as her religion dictates it, I don't see a problem. Real knives, guns and other such weapons, yes I do see as problems.

    I see why it would be a problem, but imagining most kids who stab anyone with a plastic knife in the eye, or a girl who kills someone with her scarf, now it's getting beyond anything I can imagine. Something in my POV needs to change about the laws.

    Thoughts?
     
  2. KeybladeSpirit [ENvTuber] [pngTuber]

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    I fully agree. If they're going to ban all that stuff, then they should ban pencils and pens too, not to mention hot water and soda cans. It's ridiculous what people will ban for our "safety."
     
  3. Scarred Nobody Where is the justice?

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    Adults seem to pervert some things a little too far. Like the story with the Death Notes (which is based of the manga). They seem to believe this notebook as something to be taken seriously. It's something people have been doing for ages, saying they want to kill someone when they no that they cannot even harm another human being. It's kind of bad here because there's so much gang violence at the schools and stuff. But, gangs are all talk anyway. There's no one someone can kill someone with a plastic knfie, let alone cut someone. It's all so screwed up.
     
  4. Mixt The dude that does the thing

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    Well here's the thing. There is a value scale in place with these policies. One that you see everywhere and always stirs controversy to a degree, or at least discontent. Security vs. Conveinence/Privacy/Liberties... The fact of the matter is that we could make systems where crime becomes reduced to next to nothing. Set up cameras everywhere, search anyone you like without needing a reson, give everyone GPS chips, confinscate anything you think could be a weapon, etc. But we don't do this because people like to have secrets, they don't want to be stopped at security checks everywhere, the like having scarves for reasons other than choking people, on and on. But most everyone recognizes that danger exists, so we can't go without security either. So where do we draw the line in the middle? Everyone has a slightly different opinion here so no matter how you answer that question someone will think you are wrong.

    Looking at public schools there are several parties considered in the decision. The students, the administration, the parents, and the general public being major players off hand. In this situation you'll notice that most of the people considered in the decision are not directly effected by it, meaning that the scale is scewed since people defending the policy have to deal more with people outside than inside. And what looks better on paper; taking too many security measures or not enough? The fact of the matter is, what the students want plays a very small role.

    The muslim girl you mentioned has a good case though. She isn't doing anything illegal and her religion requires her to wear it, so forbidding her from wearing it goes against the freedom of religion. Plastic knives on the other hand...
     
  5. Sara Tea Drinker

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    You bring up a good point mixt. I think mostly today, *advanced apologies to whoever is a parent out there* they're very worried about their children. Children playing in the street could be kidnapped from a random person driving down the street or hit by a car, kids can get killed by walking down the street, or anything like the sort. I remember a few years ago a mother was shopping and her nine year old son begged her to let him go home on the subway by himself because he was bored. It was on the other side of New York. She gave him the money, money for a phone call, she said kids lose cell phones as the reason she didn't give him one, and a map.

    The kid came back thrilled and fine and her being an editor, she wrote an article about it. The reaction in my POV is like she took her kid and beat him to death in public and then wrote an article about it. She ended up on the news networks and other shows for letting him do so. They believed that she was an irresponsible parent for allowing her kid to do such a thing. Even now as a full adult, my mom throws a fit if I try and take a walk outside at night, and if there's gangs in my neighborhood, I haven't seen any. I think parents are getting to the point where they smother their kids to the point where they go crazy if there's nothing but zero tolerance at the schools, they will make it that way.

    Schools are also afraid of being sued. With the sue happy nation we have now, the schools are trying to cover their own rears and I think in at least a few cases, it doesn't matter who gets stepped on along the way.

    It's really sad if you think about it.
     
  6. Peace and War Bianca, you minx!

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    It's true what mixt brought up. We can either become a Big Brother society or allow people to make their own decisions. Both have ups and many downs, that is why these debates still rage on, because there is no one set rule that defines the haromny of everything, but many smaller ones that create order and chaos in equal measure. The balance of too soft or too harsh a rule won't be reached, but the preference for the institution and the place allows us to manipulate the most effective stratergy.
    Unless the girl with a head scarf has clear and violent intentions no rule should demand her to remove the symbolism of her faith. Unless serious case studies of harm from plastic knives come to the world then why ban them? Allowing that balance is whats crucial, the problem is we all have different perceptions on that very same balance. This is why we have democracy, it allows the majority to rule.

    And before people continue to discuss whether a knife or a scarf can be deadly, the answers is of course. But then again anything and everything is deadly. The scarf to strangle you, the plastic knife to blind and choke you, the ground to throw you on, a fist to punch, or clench or suffocate with. As humans we can make weapons out of everything and anything we have. With enough grass I could kill someone in one minute, quicker if use my hands to help it along. These hands we are given are both tools and weapons in themselves, the power to create and destroy. But this all goes back to the orginal debate of guns don't kill people, people kill people. It is our desire to hurt that kills people, our undisciplined nature causes harm. Unless we learn restraint and self-order, then anything around us is deadly even if you try to take it away.
    A surprising fact is that it is easier to hurt someone in a padded cell then a regular one. Thought you might be interested.