talk about website closes school

[Thain]

Two boys talking about a gun website in the bathroom shuts down a school the next day, even though the teachers knew there was no problem... and people ask me why I homeschool.

Its not the teachers, its not the curriculum, its not even the other students... it the bliss-ninny, paranoid, media-slave parents.

See original here.

School closed by rumor of gun threat
By ANNE GLEASON, Staff Writer

Friday, February 9, 2007

A conversation about a weapons Web site between two boys in a restroom at Biddeford High School grew into a much larger incident after a concerned but misinformed parent contacted a television news department about a possible gun threat.

Superintendent Sarah-Jane Poli decided to have the high school closed on Thursday, not because of perceived threats but "because there was so much misinformation out there."

Poli said a student overheard the conversation about the weapons Web site around 2 p.m. Wednesday and told a teacher and a student resource officer about the talk.

"I'm happy the student came to a teacher," Poli said. "We're always telling students to tell us."

However, when information spread between students and parents about the incident, one parent contacted a TV station about a possible gun threat, Poli said.

"Rather than calling us, rather than calling the police department, they just called Channel 13," Poli said.

The story generated enough concern in the community that Poli said she and the police chief decided that the school should close on Thursday.
The police department and the school fielded numerous calls from concerned residents.

Channel 13, WGME in Portland, contacted Poli before airing the story.
According to WGME's story on the school closing, as posted on the station's Web site, Poli said she had requested extra security for the school on Thursday.

Sports team practices were held on Thursday, and Poli said classes will resume today. Teachers at the high school spent Thursday reviewing communication protocols and safety procedures, Poli said.

The school will send a letter home with all students today explaining the situation.

Joanne Fisk, spokeswoman for the Biddeford Police Department, said police have spoken with the two students who discussed the Web site and determined that no threats were made.

"A couple of parents became concerned enough that they called Channel 13," Fisk said. "Unfortunately, it made the community very uneasy."
The incident comes just three months after a 16-year-old sophomore boy was found stabbed in one of the high school's restrooms.

School officials locked down the building for about an hour on Nov. 7, confining students and teachers to their rooms, while police investigated the stabbing, which proved to be self-inflicted.

The next day, 150 parents attended a meeting to hear more about the incident from school officials.

Also in November, Brunswick High School closed for a day after a student overheard another student talking about guns in school. The comments were determined not to be a direct threat, but school officials called them "inappropriate," given past incidents of school violence around the country.

[i[Staff Writer Anne Gleason can be contacted at 282-8229 or at:[/i[
[email protected]

 

[geekWithA.45]

It's not so much the parents, as the institutional willingness to accomodate the insane.

There have always been, and always will be unbalanced parents of bad judgement.

The difference between now and then, is that the unbalanced parents were marginalized, rather than allowed to set the agenda.

A healthy society would take those innapropriate parents out back of the woodshed to teach them the error of their ways.

Our society will likely kowtow to them.

Note that the _school_ is already covering for the ONE parent by distributing responsibility to "a couple of parents".

Vishnu forbid that one alarmist should be taken to task for her own idiocy.


Boys talk to each other.

Boys talk about guns.

Boys are likely to talk about guns, in school.

The assertion that this is sufficient to cause a "code red" is lunacy. Absolute lunacy.

 

[Heavy Metal Hero]

I remember a couple of years ago when I was a senior in highschool I was looking at some informational websites at school (wikipedia, world guns, etc.) involving firearms. I was then told by a teacher (not my own) to shut it down. When I asked, "Why? This is educational." The teacher responded, "I don't want people getting the wrong idea."

I refused to shut it off and was shortly thereafter written up for detention. The next day, however, I was called to the guidance counciler regarding a possible threat to the school. Apparently the teacher (who i later found out was a substitute) told the principal I was on anti-government websites and websites teaching me how to "make" guns. Lucky for me, the principal liked me and I had my history teacher back me up.

Now that I look back at this, I find it very disgusting.

 

[Lupinus]

contacted a television news department

Ok so you think someone is going to be going Columbine on your kids class and you call.....the news station?

There is really, actually, truly nothing I can say to that it doesn't say for itself.

 

[MattC]

A student is stabbed in a bathroom, and the other students have to stay put for an hour before things return to normal. Two kids are talking about a firearm website, and the principals plans to bring in extra security and some parents get the school closed for a whole day. What the heck is that?

Absolute lunacy.

Oh, right, the lunacy thing again.

Some people believe the word "gun" to have a mythic power to brings death and terror on those who hear it... Sounds to me like someone should run a news story making fun of the parents who called, and publicly revealing the ridiculousness in an attempt ot diminish that myth.

 

[geekWithA.45]

Yeah, that she called the news is telling.

If you _seriously_ thought there was a threat, would you send your kid to school? What does the attendence sheet say?

She was grandstanding, to set the agenda.

Our baseline American values include, whether she likes it or not, freedom of speech, freedom of association, and the right of arms.

Apperently, she's not in favor of any of them.

Since when does a society allow a member who does not share in the baseline values of that society to set the agenda?

 

[Pilgrim]

The sky is falling!

 

[HiroProX]

...I am so going to homeschool mine.

I'm afraid of the kiddo contracting stupidity from the public school staff.

 

[MrTwigg]

What's next ?

Thought crimes ? !

This happened in MAINE ???? *** !

 

[Zrex]

.

 

[longeyes]

The school closed.

Now if they can just KEEP it closed.

 

[2TransAms]

Let's close the school for good, no doubt these same teenage boys are talking about sex which will no doubt lead to rape!

This parent (parents?) has forced his or her own agenda on the whole school and inconvenienced everyone. If there was a threat,you call the police. Instead they call the news to give themselves some publicity. They should be fined.

 

[longeyes]

the meek have inherited the earth

We have entire communities that need "counseling." What is wrong with these people? It's amazing they have the guts to get out of bed in the morning and go to work.

 

[Lupinus]

This happened in MAINE ???? ***

MA transplants

happens all the time, these guys spread easier then pluage

 

[Robert Hairless]

I dunno. I think that if the school system in Maine were really concerned with the welfare of the childen it would close until they could be freed of all unhealthy and threatening influences. No one yet has recognized the potential danger should terrorists arm themselves with the rocks in Maine. A well-coordinated band of terrorist could wipe out whole schools with those rocks. This is a serious problem that requires immediate attention.

Maryland has the right idea: it suspended 28 kindergarten children last year for sexual offenses, 15 of which were for sexual harrassment. Five-year-old boys seem to suffer from sexual depravity in Maryland. I wonder how many depraved little boys terrorize the schools of Maine with talk about their pee pees.

Oh the horror, the horror. Will it never cease?

 

[Zedicus]

Zero Tollerance = Zero Brains:banghead:

 

[Joey_the_Wolf]

I was actually on the way over here to post a topic about this, but I see some one already beat me to it.

What have we come to when simply talking about a WEBSITE gets someone in trouble. A website? About GUNS?! Obviously those kids were going to shoot up the school, because we all know that even talking about those evil death machines causes people to snap and go insane... Heh. Someone must have really been drinking the far left cool aid...

Any word as to what website it was? I wonder if it was The High Road

 

[PILMAN]

I'm at work, skimmed the article. Did the students get suspended over it?

 

[ptmmatssc]

Missed the news the last few days , so missed this . It's sad that this has happened in MY state . For the most part we don't see to much "insanity" up here . But , we have had a lot more people from "away" bringing in "thier" ideas, "morals", and big cityness . Guess we'll have to start checking people out on the border

 

[beretta9]

Now I'll bet they will have Casper the Friendly Ghost saying "gun" instead of "boo" to scare people.

 

[Erebus]

The comments were determined not to be a direct threat, but school officials called them "inappropriate,"

And they will likely make them an offence and in the future talking about guns or related material may receive a punishment. They are actually using their distaste for one constitutional right to infringe on another.

Disgusting

 

[LkWinnipesaukee]

I talk about guns with my friends --almost everyday-- in school...
All of my friends and my teachers know I'm into guns...no problem, and I live in MA.


Stupid, stupid parents...

 

[The Deer Hunter]

The sky is falling!

I got a good laugh out of that


Its really a hard call on the authority's part, when they hear anything about a gun threat they will do something about it. I never think someone should taddle on someone else about really anything but gun threats are a serious problem and i understand that if anyone gets wind of someone planning to shoot other students there should be immediat action.

The parent did the complete wrong thing by calling the news channel, they shoud have contacted the local police.

new title: "misinformer attentions seeking parents who most likely are going to sue someone because they dont have a reason to get wellfare anymore and are too lazy to work saved the day about a misunderstood conversation about weapons on from a student save the day from terrorists who plan on destroying the school and killing everyone from the outside to inside with parasitic launching nuklear machine guns".

 

[Hazzard]

Guns In School

Maybe I am just old, but has anyone else here actually fired a gun in a school?

Zrex.. We didn't have a rifle range in school, but we did have archery in gym class. The school would provide a bow, but we were encouraged to bring our own if we hunted. I took the old whitetail hunter many times to high school. We also had many conversations about guns. Not just amongst ourselves, but with teachers and staff as well as they were also hunters. I don't seem to recall that anyone was traumatized or required counseling as a result. Times have changed so much.

 

[beretta9]

The Principle at my school held hunter education classes in a classroom at the school. He brought 5 or 6 different types of guns to school to show us how they work, and let us handle them. Times have sure changed for the worse.