Doug Bartlett, a veteran teacher with an upstanding record of 17 years, has filed a lawsuit against the school district of Chicago for suspending him without pay after giving a lesson on gardening tools to his second grade students.
The incident took place on August 8, 2011 at Washington Irving Elementary School.
Mr. Bartlett recently filed suit on April 17, 2013 saying that he suffered humiliation and embarrassment as a result of his reprimand.
The “hazardous” tools in question were pliers, screwdrivers and wrenches that only the teacher handled. The tools were kept in a locked toolbox high on a shelf out of reach before and after the gardening lesson.
The district says that Mr. Bartlett exhibited negligence in supervising the children and for “possessing, carrying, storing, or using a weapon”. He was subsequently suspended without pay for 4 days.
Mr. Bartlett’s lawsuit claims the suspension violated his Fourteenth Amendment right to due process as he asserts that there was never a full hearing on the incident. Further, he was disciplined without ever having the opportunity to plead his case.
According to the Rutherford Institute which is representing him, Mr. Bartlett is seeking damages and requesting the suspension be expunged from his teaching record.
It is important to have electronic records in order as the charge of possessing a “weapon”, in this case gardening tools, has the potential to prevent Mr. Bartlett from seeking employment elsewhere.
The incident is yet another example of an over the top reaction by school officials demonstrating poor judgment and a gross lack of common sense.
A related story occurred in the Fall of 2012 when the Vice Principal of a California school suspended a boy for bringing kombucha in his lunchbox. With no parent or guardian present at any time, the boy was interrogated in the school office by school administration and a police officer and was ultimately suspended for 5 days for “violating” the school’s drug and alcohol policy. No tests were ever performed on the beverage which is able to be legally purchased by minors at local stores.
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Teacher Who Showed Garden Tools to Second Grade Students is Suspended Without Pay
so dumb – things like that drive me crazy
So insane!
Wtf
What about pencils and scissors!!! People are so dumb…
Welcome to Chicago, or IL for that matter. Politics rule and teachers get shafted.
That’s ridiculous.
Next thing you know high school chemistry teachers will be suspended for teaching how to use chemicals, and biology teachers for using instruments for dissecting frogs or flowers.
I think they fear that the populace is catching on that we have been herded, and we are saying NO.
Drones, and now this? Sarah, I hope you’re just having an off week. I like this blog but I definitely don’t like the turn it’s taken lately. I would hate to unsubscribe, but I’m here for the food…
So stay for the food 😉
This article IS also about food. Did you miss the part near the end about the child suspended from school for 5 days for bringing kombucha in his lunchbox–“for ‘violating’ the school’s drug and alcohol policy”??
also the main body of the article was about gardening tools…they’re used to cultivate food
You must not be a long time reader here, Sarah. This blog frequently has articles like this interspersed with the food posts. I enjoy it all.
You poor thing! Isn’t it awful when you try to go about life all peaceful and everything and then someone just comes along and ruins it by bringing up a small bit of the horrible problems riddling the land! How dare they?! Why, the very nerve of such people! I don’t want to hear about unmanned drones killing innocent children! Why would I even want to know it happens?! My world is perfect and I only desire to know about the culinary world! Well, minus the inclusion of any mention of GMOs or factory farming, of course!! lol get real lady, this stuff is really happening!! How do you think it’ll ever stop unless people open their eyes and spread the word?!
“Why should we hear about body bags and deaths … I mean, it’s not relevant, so why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that …” (Former First Lady, Barbara Bush, Good Morning America, 18th March 2003)
Hi Sarah – let her unsubscribe, you have a right to running your blog as you wish – it is after all still a free speech country as far as I can tell.
I think Sarah appreciates feedback from her readers – you can’t have a great blog (like she does) without listening to your readers. I have read this blog near daily for years and usually enjoy the occasional posts about the politics of real food. Concerns about drone technology and this article today are at best tangentially related to real food and living a WAPF lifestyle, however. Just expressing my thoughts on the subject material.
it sort of sounds like you are threatening Sarah with unsubscribing. Also, if we can’t teach children about gardening, how will we have any food? Who will feed us when we are old and gray?
I found the article on Drones very informative and right on topic of an out of control nanny state government, first they came for the marijuana and then they came for the raw milk, and now we have Drones snooping into everything and Teachers suspended for showing gardening tools that the Nanny State says are weapons?
Sarah, “I don’t want to hear it” is the same intellectual laziness all the Germans who didn’t want to hear about the democide https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democide their government was engaged in.
Thanks Sarah Pope for sharing with your community very important information.
So leave already. If you want to stay inside your safe little bubble, no one’s stopping you.
Yup, it’s the old “I just want to stick my head in the sand” or please don’t give me any reality, I just can’t take it! Or, hey, don’t muddle up my information with the facts.
Oh, I’m sorry, I am not being nice but I just couldn’t resist. I’m sure she is a very nice, sweet person.
This is so crazy I have trouble believing it. But it comes from Sarah so I do believe it.
What kind of lesson do these kind of insane actions teach the children?
The schools need to calm down, step back, and use common sense.
Well Stan, Common sense isn’t so common anymore. I’ve been saying that for years. While they’re at it why don’t they just suspend all pens and pencils. A sharp pencil plunged into someones eye or ear is going to do a hell of a lot of damage. So by the schools logic pens and pencils are dangerous weapons. These idiots don’t realize that almost anything can be used as a weapon. Hitting someone with a garbage can, a chair, a light bulb, winging a piece of chalk at someone, hitting then with a book….it’s all about how you use it and the intent.
Paper should be banned as well! Think of all those paper cuts!!
These kinds of stories are why I am very apprehensive about sending my kids to school. They are still little, but I might just want to teach them at home to protect them from idiots (the administration, not the teacher).
PUBLIC school anyways. there are plenty of private schools that are even worse!
This isn’t about making them “safer”. It’s about total control of your kids and assuring they are dumbed down to the lowest possible level. When I was in school there was “shop” class. Kids learned how to use tools so they could be plumbers, carpenters etc. All gone now. Schools want your kids functionally illiterate with zero skills. Easier to control a dummy. Govts love compliance.
Oh my God! Gardening Tools? He gets punished for showing gardening tools? What is wrong with these people?
We really need some common sense in these schools. We are teaching children that unthinking obedience to arbitrary rules is the norm. And it should not be.
Are you kidding!!!!! Not only have we lost common sense with regard to schools, we lost common sense PERIOD!!! and I’m sorry to say that I truly believe that something much more terrible is happening to the people in this country. I’m sure many will think me a nut and I am not, I’m just a regular person with a regular family, married a long time, two grown kids, hard working, etc., but I sincerely believe that as we reject, deny, get rid of, and disrespect the name of God and His Son, Jesus Christ, we become more and more immoral, walk around blind and ignorant to all sense, and in the end, God is taking His hand of protection and His hand of blessing off of this country. We are falling apart, we are moving into more and more chaos which will lead us eventually into total destruction. We the people are voting in these same people who do not want God in our country, we are being hood-winked by their lies and we’re buying it. I can only hope and pray that the masses will wake up before it is too late and we’ve fallen so far that there is no turning back from the pit we are falling into. Don’t believe me? Read up on the rise and destruction of Hitler; see how the people were lulled into evil; see how very close the world was to being totally taken over by the evil; remember who we were then as a country – a strong power, Judeo Christian Nation, with God behind us to help us be the power that helped lead and overcome the evil. We are no longer that country, who then will be able to overcome the evil that is upon us?
Norway, the happiest country in the world, according to Forbes, only 66% believe in God. The second happiest, Denmark, is 75%. Sweden is 5th, and just 18% believe that there is a God, and only 17% say that religion is an important part of their daily life. And that just means that at a minimum, they believe in some kind of God, and are not necessarily Christians. They all rank among the top 6 in Legatum’s Personal Freedom index. God in the schools is not the answer to common sense or personal freedom.
What’s that got to do with the article? Athiests obsess over the Anti-God. Most of the Athiest movement is run by Satanists. In fact, many Satanists run Christian groups too. They are known as Anti-Christians or Anti-Christs.
Aside, schools really need to get their act together. As well, end the notion of “compulsory education.” Seriously, what are they really learning other than to be wards of the State?
Don’t confuse Satanism with atheism or agnosticism. Very different. Lack of belief or uncertainty about God does not then mean that you do believe in Satan.
Joe, you are an idiot. First of all, atheism is the rejection of theism. Believing in the devil is the same as believing in god, it’s just that you root for the other side. It’s still theism. But that’s irrelevant, because Satanism is NOT the belief in the devil.
Why is it that people like you are always the most ignorant? It’s a rhetorical question, by the way.
The official cult of satanism is the believe in one’s self. Satanists do not believe in either god or the devil. This is because the word ‘satan’ is Latin for opponent, not some mythical red dude with a pitch fork. No matter how much I may disagree with them – they tend to be arrogant, self-centered and ego maniacal – they’re still more rational than people like you.
“What’s that got to do with the article?”
Umm, Meg didn’t bring God into the discussion. Janet did. Though I believe in God, and not religion, I agree with Meg. Religion is not the answer. Blind obedience to “authority figures” is not an answer. If people choose to have faith, that’s great. Whatever works for you. The problem is with lack of virtue and morals. Religion does not have a monopoly on morality or virtue. ANYONE can be a good person, regardless of their faith. The problem in this country right now is that debauchery and stupidity are celebrated. We have a tyrant in office, but so-called “liberals” cheer him on. Bush was a tyrant too, and they all hated him, but now that we have a Democrat in office, it’s all of the sudden okay to trample on our civil liberties and waste trillions of dollars. The hypocrisy of both sides of the political spectrum is alarmingly. It’s this kind of blind obedience to the supposed 2 party system that has in the mess we’re in right now. Congress, as a whole, does not have our best interests at heart. There is no more system of checks and balances. People don’t care about the Constitution anymore, it’s not even taught in public schools. These are REAL problems. I couldn’t care less about the so-called “anti-Christ”. I have a deep respect for religion, though I don’t practice it, but it is not the solution to our current predicament. “God helps those who help themselves”, right? We have a duty to stand up for rights and to protect our Constitution for ourselves and for future generations. We need a new enlightenment. People are so dosed up and toxins from GMO’s, fluoride, hormones, pharmaceuticals, etc. and spend more time watching television than reading or learning their Constitution. We have no moral compass as a country anymore. Our president drone strikes civilians in other countries, and supposed anti-war/pacifist liberals cheer him on. There is a serious disease of hypocrisy and complacency right now in America. We need education, not religion. Religion can be part of it, for some people, but it is not the only answer.
You just said that in the two happiest countries in the world, 2/3 and then 3/4 of the people believe in God. That would make them the overwhelming majority. I’m not arguing for or against prayer in school but, your statistics are in contrast with your point. your argument makes no sense.
@ Meg
The Happy Planet Index on Wikipedia lists For the 2012 ranking, 151 countries were compared, and the best scoring country for the second time in a row was Costa Rica, followed by Vietnam, Colombia, Belize and El Salvador.
As you noticed except for Vietnam, Catholic Christian countries. Norway was 29th.
hi Greg,
the indexes use very different basis of comparison. The Happy Planet focuses more on ecological footprint whereas the traditional indices focus more on GDP, healthcare, and other factors. No wonder this index produces different results than all of the others that I have looked at.
BTW for those who have a strong belief in the military, Costa Rica has NO military. None. Just the police.
Greg,
Anyway, the point that I was probably trying to make and possibly not well, is that the practice of religion is not really a factor in whether or not the citizens of a particular place are happy or unhappy (because after all, all the talk of rights etc., is in the pursuit of happiness, however that is defined for you, correct?) It appears that religious folk do not have the market cornered on a happy life which is why those of us who are not religious resent it being pushed onto us (in the schools, or wherever). And if you don’t think it’s being ‘pushed’ you’ve never examined it from a different point of view.
Meg,
Maybe Americans aren’t the same as Scandinavians. Maybe we need God more than they do.
Maybe you do
Hey Meg,
They also report that “38% of all statistics are made up on the spot.”
Hey Janet,
I love your boldness for Jesus Christ. And, it is true that this nation has been blessed with God’s grace. I encourage you to trust in Him alone, not Americanism or even American-Christian ideals, but Him alone, His Word and His Spirit. Grace and peace to you as we trust in Him alone. – Blessed to be an American, but certainly not proud to be.
Within those stats are that less than 30% believe in God, and the remaining believe that there is ‘some type of God’ (could be anything from the Norse Gods to Allah) and I would hazard to say that someone supporting that weak of a statement probably doesn’t incoporate religion into their daily life. The idea that bringing God back into the schools will cure all ails is ridiculous.
Janet’s support of the ‘Judeo Christian Nation’ doesn’t exactly support the idea of religious freedom in the US either.
Meg, assuming your statistics are true, which came first? The chicken or the egg? Do you think maybe the lack of belief in a God comes from the suppression of learning about it in school? Do you see an agenda at all? If you think schools should be a place for learning and exploration, then why is God a forbidden subject or one that is treated with ridicule instead of open mindedness like any subject in school should be. Today they want kids to put condoms on bananas with open mindedness and be indoctrinated with all kinds of crap, but no discussions on God in school before the college level? If you are so liberal and tolerant, why no tolerance for this? That’s not logical (but they really don’t teach logic anymore either).
Rebecca,
Because if you bring God into school, you cannot keep the focus to Christianity, otherwise you would be violating others’ religious freedom, unless they were allowed to opt out (as I understand they typically are in sex ed classes). This actually shows a lot of tolerance, because you are only viewing it from the Christianity point of view whereas I (and most likely the policy makers) are viewing it from the perspective of ALL religions, and not even just the main ones. How many morning prayers would you potentially be required to recite in order to cover all religions and not infringe on people’s rights? How many courses would have to be offered to cover EACH religion? And at the expense of what – literacy?
Here here….excellent point….
Have you lived in Norway Meg?
No I have not, are you from there? Would you like to share your opinion?
You are certainly welcome to your belief; I for one beg to differ with you. First of all we are not Norway, Denmark or any other country; we are suppose to be a World Leader and have been for over 200 years AND that was accomplished by people settling this country when they left another country that was persecuting them for religious belief, predominately Christianity. Then as this country grew, our Founding Fathers were mostly Christians, and many were Pastors or Ministers as well. This is how we got our laws and Constitution – all based on God and Christian morals! You need to delve in more deeply to really understand where and how this country came into being and why; how we have been throwing out our Christian morals and ethics in the last 50 yrs, especially the last 20-25 yrs and open your eyes to the correlation between that downward slide of following and looking to God with where we are today AND where we are headed according to many, many well read people in many different areas of business and acumen in this country. Follow the facts and you’ll realize the truth.
I understand the facts, however you talk about ‘how it came into being and why’. You’re living in the past and when societies cling to the past and cannot adapt to the present, they die out and all empires eventually fall. If you want stay on top you have to figure out how to do that today, not how you did that 200 years ago.
Truth is timeless meg. It doesn’t matter if it came from 1000 years ago. Thank Jesus we have the truth in the King James Bible. People create their own problems and then blame God.
I am so sorry but you are truly showing your ignorance. I don’t think you have actually studied any ancient civilizations with that comment because it is practically the opposite of the truth of why ancient civilizations died out. Reverse what you said and there is the truth. I don’t even have time to do a write up on the Romans right now, just do some research. Did you know that homosexuality was widespread and accepted at the end of the Roman empire? That was a “change” from their original beliefs and it didn’t help them adapt. Their military became weak and they were conquered, never to rise again. Remind you of anything? Seriously! History just cycles over and over again and we are again in a cycle of decline and there are specific things that got us here, but some people refuse to see it and so we continue down…down. We have lost simple truths. The WAPF ideas are a simple truth about health that has been lost. Adapting hasn’t helped, it has hurt. It’s just made us sick off of corn syrup!
Yes, the Rome was eventually taken and the Empire fell. Why though? If they encountered forces more superior than theirs, was it because they clung to their tried and true methods and strategies which had worked in the past but eventually became predictable?
meg is a troll. ignore her. she obfuscates the issue that the school is calling a simple tool for gardening as a weapon. this is not the case since an object to be labeled as a weapon, like your hands, teeth, feet, phonebook, rolling pin etc must first be used in an act causing damage. This was not the case, yet this teachers suit is not such. It is for the districts violation of due process. They just said so, so it must be ok like the kings of old.
“meg is a troll”
Insults are the hallmark of a losing argument.
Well said, Anti-Beck
If Norwegians are so happy, then why is the suicide rate there so high?
How do you figure? According to the WHO, they are only the 35th highest on the list, Greenland is the highest by a huge margin.
But Meg, Norwegians are the happiest people in the world. If so, they should have the lowest suicide rate.
It’s not high, it’s relatively low
Janet makes some good points, agreed.
I am with Janet. There is no question pushing God out of the institutions of this country is the reason for all of our problems.
There is a God. It would take multiple more times more faith that all of creation you see, the complexity and how it works together, happened because of some bang or something and then evolved. It just did not happen.
Plus everyone knows there is a God because God shows Himself to everybody just like me and Janet and everyone else. He gives you the free-will to reject Him though because He loves you. There are no atheists. With consequences though as we are witnessing.
You do know that Hitler was a devout Christian, right? The Third Reich was a religious war. They believed they were god’s chosen people, and sought to cleanse the rest of the world of its impurity.
Religion breeds intolerance (denying equal rights to homosexuals and transgender people), hate (listen to Fox talk about Muslims; Muslim extremism; Crusades, the endless Israeli-Palestinian conflicts) and a sense of false superiority (I bet you believe YOUR religion is the “correct” one, and not Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, Ancient Greek/Roman, Taoism, Wicca, Shinto, etc.). It fractures communities and divides neighbors even more than political differences. It is the rejection of logic and embracement of blind and impregnable devotion, regardless of how ludicrous said teachings may seem at face value.
More religion in schools is most definitely NOT the answer.
If HItler called himself a Christian that just means he was a liar. He obviously wasn’t living and acting as a Christian.
I don’t think the majority of Christians are living and acting as Christians, maybe not to that extreme.
I’m sorry but you are very confused. Hitler CLAIMED to be a Christian to fool the masses, which worked! He was a master at deception and he was well known in the history books as a genius at deceiving through propaganda – sound familiar? He also has been quoted as saying, “tell the people the same lies long enough, and they’ll come to believe it” (and I could give you many present day examples of others doing that). Again I say, look into the history, the whole history, for taking one little thing you’ve heard and repeating it as the truth doesn’t bode well for you or work very well when debating a subject, nor does it tell the whole story. I Also disagree with you concerning religion breeding intolerance; history will reveal something entirely different to you if you read. The Third Reich was NOT about religion. Hitler was a maniacal sociopath, who was greedy for power & control and had some very strange ideas about killing anyone who was not “pure Aryan.” He wrote Mein Kampf which laid out his plans for transforming Germany into a society based on RACE; he hated the Jews because of race not religion . He targeted for extermination/ death any children or adults who were not perfect, who might have physical or developmental disabilities. Hitler also killed Jews, Poles, communists, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christians who were against his cruelty and policies (he actually killed a million and a half Christians), and trade unionists, among others, basically, anyone who dared get in his way; I can’t give you the whole history lesson here but you can read it for yourself, which I would suggest you do if you really want to understand; it is a fascinating story, though sad, and unfortunately. Yes, “religions” which are man-made institutions, can many times be flawed to the point of grievous actions and sin – this is because man is inherently sinful and ,therefore, when left to his own devices (does not obey God) can do very bad things. However, please note, I never said the word “religion”, I said “God and His Son, Jesus Christ” who is sinless and a God creator who gave us His laws, commandments and a perfect blue print for living righteously in everything we do. I will also say that actually there has been more evil and intolerance by men who are not believers or followers of God and His Word. Again, look at history and I challenge you to prove that Judeo Christianity has killed more people. It appears to me by your words that you seem to like to make assumptions and operate mostly on emotion, unfortunately, in order to have logical thought, make rational decisions, and have a good grasp of truth, you must operate more on knowledge of facts,( with only a dash of emotion). So, that being said let me set you straight on your emotional comments of me – i do not follow any “man-made religion”, I am a follower of Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, who loved us (you too) so much that He freely GAVE His life for us all; He was the perfect sacrifice – no sin. I live and do my very best to follow God’s Holy Word, the Bible, with his help I am able to do this most of the time, but not always because I too am a sinner, a human. What really fractures communities and divides neighbors is greed, selfishness, thoughtlessness, lack of love, compassion, immorality, lack of ethics, lack of responsibility,believing lies so being at odds with truth, etc.; and last but certainly not least is NOT FOLLOWING GOD’S INSTRUCTION for right living. These are all weaknesses of men/humans, not God.
In ending may I also tell you that I am respectful of whatever “religion or god” others may want to follow, as long as it does not keep me from following and obeying my Lord and Savior commands to me; encroach on or threaten me or my family. Like God, I would like that all could be saved and that none would perish and would be glad to speak with anyone about how to do that, but all have been given a choice, a free will to choose or reject the God Creator of all things and His Son who offers the free gift of eternal life and salvation by believing on Him. God teaches me to love all people no matter who they are and I do my best to do that but that doesn’t mean that He wants me to be a doormat or not have debates on important matters of God and men. I wish you sincere blessings and enlightenment of truth.
@Janet – I’m sorry, but there’s just too much text. I read the last part and agree that people are free to believe in whatever they choose. This is exactly why teaching a specific religion in school is a bad idea. You have made my point for me.
I also feel like I should clarify: I did not imply that Hitler was a monster BECAUSE of Christianity. Throughout history, there have been monsters from every religion, and quite a few that were atheists, too.
Nor am I saying that religion inherently teaches intolerance directly, it merely does so indirectly. People like to take advantage of holy teachings to further their own hatred and agenda (i.e. gay marriage and the Westboro “church”), the actual bible, while having a fair share of questionable content, especially the old testament (stoning women who cheat, barring multi-threaded clothes, calling shell-fish ‘abominations,’ etc.) generally teach kindness.
However, regardless of what the original intent was, the fact that it’s being used for nefarious purposes is still a problem.
Hitler counted himself as a Christian. Whether or not he understood what that meant is irrelevant. In future, you just might wanna go with a different example of evil, otherwise the irony is a little too strong.
Janet,
The flaw in your logic is that (for me at least and others who are not religious) God and the Bible are most likely a concept made up by man to control the masses and for the purpose of power/greed. So your faith from others’ perspective here is based on a human-made concept and human written book.
Nullify, I encourage you to read up a bit more on Hitler. He was not a Christian, and he correctly perceived that fascism can’t be reconciled with the teachings of Christ about mercy, love, the meek inheriting the kingdom of God, etc. To Hitler, Christianity was at best a way to weaken Germany, and at worst a Jewish plot. If he was Christian, one has to ask why he supported efforts to bring back pre-Christian Germanic paganism as well.
This is to the two above posters:
http://www.nobeliefs.com/Hitler1.htm
Not what you might call a reputable site, I grant you, but it does have links to his quotes, writings and even photographs.
Just because Hitler called himself a Christian, it didn’t necessarily made him one just like you can sit in your garage and make rumbling noises all day hut that doesn’t make you a car.
Btw don’t confuse being a believer(God, Christ, Buddha, Allah, etc. ) doesn’t make you Religious.
Also you must remember or realize that the bill of rights was written to prevent or stop the government from infringing on our liberties and rights and not to control the citizens.
I agree ho heartedly with Janet!!!
SIGH. The phrase is WHOLE-heartedly. Honestly. Ho is a derogatory slang against women. The intelligence of people of the board is questionable, at best.
oh, give us a break miss perfect! you’ve never made a typo mistake??? Wow, you must be a genius and super dextrous as well. On top of that, with txting and twitting and how we shorten and abbreviate our spelling, I’ll bet even you get confused sometimes; come on fess up.
Supports my point that we should spend more time and funding in school focusing on literacy and not on prayer and trying to make everyone from different religious groups happy.
Why do these issues always bring up religion as the answer and cure-all to these “problems”? Guess what, I’m just like you. Healthily adjusted and morally correct…I haven’t even received a speeding ticket! Guess what…I’m not Christian, I’m what you would call a Pagan. Bringing any one religion into the school system IS NOT going to resolve the issue. Slapping people upside the head would be much more efficient. Christians are not the only people with a moral compass authority. Understand that being American doesn’t mean being a Christian. Common Sense is Common Sense. Not Christian Sense. Not Buddhist Sense. And certainly not Satanist Sense.
James, what is your final authority for believing what you do is moral?
I agree WHOLE-heartedly with James. People who argue pro-Christian, God Blesses America nonsense don’t know enough about the distant history to actually make a fair comparison to “yesteryear”. Europe, America and Christians, all have a very checkered past.
Do you know about history? Most of the people I’ve spoken to readily believe the things they have heard without question and rehash whatever they have heard and affirm it as fact and then they accuse us Christians of “believing everything we hear”. Seems hypocritical of those accusers.
I know, I totally agree. I don’t understand why Christians always claim the moral authority. Pick up a history book for goodness sake!
I have to say that having god in our schools has absolutely nothing to do with it. What we are laking is common sense, respect and morals. That’s it. Stupidity is what’s wrong with our schools. Hitler was apparently raised catholic and look at what he did. The bible is rife with murder and rape. Should I mention the great flood? Please don’t spout that we need god!
I’m not really trying to be a devil’s advocate (maybe a little bit), but where do you think morals originated from? A group of apes got together and decided to not kill each other and to honor their mother and father? ha! Sorry to tell you but MORALS originate from God and the Bible. The Constitution of the United States was also based on morals from the Bible and so are most of the laws, the just laws anyway, of the land. So like it or not, God is involved. You have the freedom to worship who you want, or nothing at all. But it should be allowed in schools for those who are Christians to worship God as they will in public even. Muslims pray on a rug every day and no one would dream of telling one not to, just to put it in context, there is some serious discrimination going on here against Christians and it does cause problems with morals and how people behave. If that administration could exercise a little mercy, a characteristic of Christ, this problem wouldn’t have happened.
Creationism isn’t a fact, it’s a theory, along with evolution. If the Constitution was based on morals from a well written book that became popular, that’s fine. I never said it should not be allowed in schools, but if you allow one you must allow ALL (not just for Christians, but Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Pagan religions, Satanists). Do you see how the list goes on and on? Who decides what is a religion that is allowed to be practiced in school and what is not? With the limited amount of time children have in school, shouldn’t it be devoted to learning how to effectively read and write (and yes, garden), and leave the practicing of religion for your home and personal life?
A good Christian, or follower of any religion, doesn’t separate learning from their religion. Saying a prayer isn’t going to detract from any learning. Anyone should be able to say a prayer to who they want. I honestly woudn’t care if there was a 15 minute devotional time at school everyday and a prayer circle for Christians and another one for Wiccans. At least that is freedom being exercised and not a tight grip on everyone in the whole school system that makes expression a crime. The other symptom of that death grip on everyone is no common sense in a case like with this teacher. There is no room for anything but following the strict agenda that someone else set for us. You are trying to say that people believe there should only be a focus on Christians and only Christian activities allowed, that is not true. You are skewing the points to look extreme and try to discredit them that way.
You may not care if a group of Wiccans down the hall (ok maybe 1 or 2) have their own special group (complete with their own supersivor/teacher) for even a 15 minute devotional time, but I’m guessing that a lot of people would. Schools have enough trouble being funded for even the basics, and the funding implications of supporting all religions within the school system is enormous. I agree that learning and practicing a religion should go hand in hand, but there are other places to learn about it, places that don’t rely on meagre public funding.
Meg, evolution isn’t a ‘theory.’ It’s a ‘scientific theory.’ Those terms are completely different. You know what else is a scientific theory? Gravity. If evolution really was a theory in the scientific world, it would be called a hypothesis. It is a fact, from the flu virus adapting and changing its DNA structure every year, to the New Zealand Kiwi losing its wings after the separation of Australasia, to the arrival of the East-African Australopithecus, evolution is evident all around you.
Rebecca – I don’t want my kids singing mindless hymns in school. School is not the place for fairy tales, it is the place for learning. If you want to believe in Thor or whatever deity tickles your fancy, you are, of course, free to do so, on your own time. I will not sit back and allow my tax dollars to be wasted on inane morality tales filled with talking snakes and burning bushes. Do not shove your religion down our throats. You are no different from anyone else, nor do you possess any kind of special privilege. Just because you believe in something, doesn’t mean others do.
Would your attitude about religious singing not affecting school still apply is said institutions decided to sing Muslim prayers? I thought so.
Someone gets it! Actually a few of you get it.
Nullify, yes I agree, it is based on science, not like creationism, which is based on a book that someone wrote a long time ago. I don’t need convincing about evolution.
Nullify – Who said anything about anyone forcing your kids to sing “mindless hymns” in school? That’s what it sounded like your complaint was. Personally I think that kids in schools should be given 15 minutes to pray to their god of choice or meditate of they have no religion they adhere to. And it would give a child an opportunity to experience other religions. Sorry to see you as closed-minded about Christianity as you seem to believe that Christians are closed-minded to people who they perceive as sinners. And yes this includes kids of Muslim faith practicing their religion for that 15 minutes. If nothing else that 15 minute break would go a long way towards easing the stress these kids deal with at such an early age.
P.S. maybe we need another flood. If you understand the story of Noah’s ark you won’t be offended by this comment, you would just get on the ark.
God promised to never flood the Earth and destroy everyone and everything again. But, there is coming a day when He will say enough is enough and all evil will be cast out. Read Revelation in the Bible. Also for those that feel they can’t understand the Bible, try reading the Book by Jonathan Cahn, The Harbinger: the Ancient Mystery that holds the Secret of America’s Future. This is a fictional book wrapped around Bible prophesy and recent true American Historic happenings. In my opinion a road map to where we might be headed if we don’t change our ways quickly. It is a pretty quick, easy to understand, and the facts easily verifiable.
You are all stark staring raving mad! Showing 8 year olds gardening tools has nothing to do with God , Christ or Satan!!!!! At 8 my kids were growing things in the garden and helping me with woodwork and fixing the car. If an 8 year old reads the word “spanner” what are you going to say, “wait until you are older”? I would ask him to pass me the 13mm socket, and he would get it right!.
I had a very blunt hatchet, and my boys at 6 and 7 would happily whack away at a fallen log. They did not achieve anything except that they were copying Dad.
The USA is a mental asylum with the nutters raving around pretending to run things.
Agreed! This article is dealing with the idiocy of the zero tolerance rules that were put into place by those who lack common sense for those who lack common sense. THAT is really what is missing from schools and governing bodies – common sense.
Maybe he should bring condoms in next time. The administration will give him a big thumbs up.
I think the problem with this country is the rejection of science and the exaltation of ignorance.
Please spare us all the religious zealot rant… your fairy tales are irrelevant.
Who turned him in? Was an administrator just walking by his door/ Or what.