6 ms·

Why the fuck did anyone at that school even care what a 14 year old said? That is not normal behavior for adults. At that age I could've exclaimed something al

Why the fuck did anyone at that school even care what a 14 year old said? That is not normal behavior for adults. At that age I could've exclaimed something along those lines to my teacher's face and they'd just have laughed at me and asked me to calm down. If I pulled that at work I'd be asked whether everything is alright. Apparently nowadays the appropriate response to a child throwing a tantrum or having a mental breakdown is to have one as well.

Igelau 6y ago
That's what shocked me about this. I can't believe how doggedly the schoolboard pursued this up the chain. Being told "sorry you're upset that a teenager flipped the middle finger but you can't just kick her off cheer squad for it" is the point where anyone who isn't a lead-contaminated Boomer would just shrug and walk away.
- Igelau 6y ago
  D_wnv_te ratio here is a decent indicator of the proportion of readers who are out of touch with the experience of being a teenager in an environment run by administrators who are violently hellbent on making sure no one is allowed to do anything they did as teenagers. Either you get it or you don't, but I'm not sorry for using HN's "B-word". Before you click the button, do some introspection.
  - a1369209993 6y ago
    FWIW, I downvoted you for the grossly unjustified implication that this sort of unconscionable malfeasance on the part of school administrators is in any way "shocking", unbelieveable, or specific to "lead-contaminated Boomer"s, rather than a predictable result of putting small-minded fascistic pricks (of any generation) in that sort of position of authority.
    - Igelau 6y ago
      Noted. Next factor in: [1] the fascistic pricks of my generation (who are still most of today's fascistic pricks) happen to be what I said they were, and [2] I never said all Boomers were lead-contaminated or that this was historically unique to only them. Now we don't even disagree on semantics.
      - a1369209993 6y ago
        > Now we don't even disagree on semantics. Yes, we do. > > > That's what shocked me about this. I can't believe how doggedly the schoolboard pursued this We agree that it's bad, but it isn't surprising. > I never said [...] that this was historically unique to only [Boomers]. > > > (anyone who isn't [both] lead-contaminated [and a] Boomer)[superset] would just shrug and walk away. > > > (anyone who isn't a Boomer)[subset] would just shrug and walk away Yes, you did.
        Igelau 6y ago
        I can't even read your butchering of my words for all the bracketing. You call it implication born between my words, but I call it interpretation born between your ears. What it's confessing, I have no idea.
- KMag 6y ago
  I generally agree with your sentiment, but am disappointed by the ageist phrasing. Your statement would have been much more convincing without it.
  - Igelau 6y ago
    Ageist? I didn't say they all were, just the ones with this special kind of anti-youth aggression. You know, the ageist ones.
    - KMag 6y ago
      Without supporting justification, you literally said that only members of the baby boomer generation who also have lead poisoning would continue to act in such a shameful way after being rebuked. I'm not a Boomer, but I feel like sloppy reasoning and other prejudices should be resisted whenever they are encountered. Saying "only a boomer with lead poisoning would continue to act so shamefully" isn't conceptually different from saying "only a black person with lead poisoning would continue to act so shamefully". Does that make it more clear why that phrasing should be called out?
      - Igelau 6y ago
        > Does that make it more clear why that phrasing should be called out? You have successfully obscured the issue even further by introducing the irrelevant factor of race. > sloppy reasoning and other prejudices should be resisted whenever they are encountered Providing an excellent example in the process. If I seem as confused to you as you do to me, then maybe we have found some common ground.
        KMag 6y ago
        > You have successfully obscured the issue even further by introducing the irrelevant factor of race. I substituted one protected class for another, where it's more commonly seen as a necessary protected class. This is a pretty common device to illustrate bias in language. Are you arguing that it's fine to make your statement about a generation, but not about a race? If so, why?
kube-system 6y ago
In my experience, more than a few school administrators and staff take in loco parentis pretty seriously.
xenadu02 6y ago
Clearly you haven't dealt with many schools. Only when the stakes are so low can people afford to be so petty. Some school faculty and administration are incredibly petty and vindictive. Certainly not all but a lot. Grown adults absolutely pick favorites, bully students, talk down to them, and carry out petty beefs for any reason or no reason at all. Sometimes they hurt the children to get back at parents they don't like. Sometimes they (for whatever reason) seek validation from students and will participate in bullying of unpopular students. These can be trivial things, like accepting late work from some students but no others or grading one student's work more harshly. Other times they believe they are doing a student good by "teaching them a lesson" or expressing their disapproval of the student or family's lifestyle. I have absolutely no problem believing the school administration and coach were offended and rather than discussing it with the 14 year old they decided to prove who was boss by punishing her.
- abstractbarista 6y ago
  Reading this gave me flashbacks to high school. This is very sad but true. While I typically kept to myself and avoided their wrath, certain members of the administration were just horrible, and I could clearly see the mental toll it took on fellow students.
- screye 6y ago
  > "Academic politics is the most vicious and bitter form of politics, because the stakes are so low." Sayre's law makes a return
agloeregrets 6y ago
Casual reminder that this school is less than 30 minutes from the one that jailed a girl for a year and a half for making a fake myspace page lightly making fun of the principal. (As seen in the excellent doc: Kids For Cash) PA has some extreme deep south vibes in some areas that constitute an aggressive hatred and power addiction over younger people.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- teachrdan 6y ago
  They say that Pennsylvania is Philadelphia on one side, Pittsburgh on the other, and Kentucky in between.
  - guessbest 6y ago
    What does Kentucky have to do with the faculty?
    - teachrdan 6y ago
      Kentucky is understood to be less politically progressive than Philadelphia and Pitsburgh.
- milkytron 6y ago
  Growing up in PA I definitely experienced this. Some teachers were great, but I remember a particular few who would get noticeably upset, angered, and irritated when challenged or questioned by students. The worst case I experienced was when a gym teacher was teaching a "graduation course" which was required to be passed in order to graduate. We were the first year to have this class, and I was in the first semester, part of the guinea pig group. We had a semester long project and the teacher in charge would not approve my project because it did not involve raising money for charity (not a requirement on the rubric). Some students sold t-shirts, some organized 5k runs, others wrote children's books. We were encouraged to make money for a cause, but it was not required. I wanted to build an Android app since Android was recently released, and I wanted to make something anyone could use. The teacher repeatedly told me to go back to the drawing board, fabricating missed requirements that were not on the rubric. Only on the final day of project approvals did he say I needed to raise money, which was not a requirement (more like a suggestion or even trend). I never got the approval, so I shouldn't have passed, but he didn't bring it up the rest of the semester and never looked at my work afterwards. Final day presentations, the principal (awesome guy who knew nearly every student) watches and asks what I thought about the class and I told my experience. They got rid of that "graduation project" class the following year, and the next semester had all new teachers for it. Half of the kids didn't even donate the money they made. tl;dr - almost didn't graduate high school because a gym teacher wanted me to raise money as part of a project.

Igelau 6y ago

That's what shocked me about this. I can't believe how doggedly the schoolboard pursued this up the chain. Being told "sorry you're upset that a teenager flipped the middle finger but you can't just kick her off cheer squad for it" is the point where anyone who isn't a lead-contaminated Boomer would just shrug and walk away.

Igelau 6y ago
D_wnv_te ratio here is a decent indicator of the proportion of readers who are out of touch with the experience of being a teenager in an environment run by administrators who are violently hellbent on making sure no one is allowed to do anything they did as teenagers. Either you get it or you don't, but I'm not sorry for using HN's "B-word". Before you click the button, do some introspection.
- a1369209993 6y ago
  FWIW, I downvoted you for the grossly unjustified implication that this sort of unconscionable malfeasance on the part of school administrators is in any way "shocking", unbelieveable, or specific to "lead-contaminated Boomer"s, rather than a predictable result of putting small-minded fascistic pricks (of any generation) in that sort of position of authority.
  - Igelau 6y ago
    Noted. Next factor in: [1] the fascistic pricks of my generation (who are still most of today's fascistic pricks) happen to be what I said they were, and [2] I never said all Boomers were lead-contaminated or that this was historically unique to only them. Now we don't even disagree on semantics.
    - a1369209993 6y ago
      > Now we don't even disagree on semantics. Yes, we do. > > > That's what shocked me about this. I can't believe how doggedly the schoolboard pursued this We agree that it's bad, but it isn't surprising. > I never said [...] that this was historically unique to only [Boomers]. > > > (anyone who isn't [both] lead-contaminated [and a] Boomer)[superset] would just shrug and walk away. > > > (anyone who isn't a Boomer)[subset] would just shrug and walk away Yes, you did.
      - Igelau 6y ago
        I can't even read your butchering of my words for all the bracketing. You call it implication born between my words, but I call it interpretation born between your ears. What it's confessing, I have no idea.
KMag 6y ago
I generally agree with your sentiment, but am disappointed by the ageist phrasing. Your statement would have been much more convincing without it.
- Igelau 6y ago
  Ageist? I didn't say they all were, just the ones with this special kind of anti-youth aggression. You know, the ageist ones.
  - KMag 6y ago
    Without supporting justification, you literally said that only members of the baby boomer generation who also have lead poisoning would continue to act in such a shameful way after being rebuked. I'm not a Boomer, but I feel like sloppy reasoning and other prejudices should be resisted whenever they are encountered. Saying "only a boomer with lead poisoning would continue to act so shamefully" isn't conceptually different from saying "only a black person with lead poisoning would continue to act so shamefully". Does that make it more clear why that phrasing should be called out?
    - Igelau 6y ago
      > Does that make it more clear why that phrasing should be called out? You have successfully obscured the issue even further by introducing the irrelevant factor of race. > sloppy reasoning and other prejudices should be resisted whenever they are encountered Providing an excellent example in the process. If I seem as confused to you as you do to me, then maybe we have found some common ground.
      - KMag 6y ago
        > You have successfully obscured the issue even further by introducing the irrelevant factor of race. I substituted one protected class for another, where it's more commonly seen as a necessary protected class. This is a pretty common device to illustrate bias in language. Are you arguing that it's fine to make your statement about a generation, but not about a race? If so, why?

kube-system 6y ago

In my experience, more than a few school administrators and staff take in loco parentis pretty seriously.

xenadu02 6y ago

Clearly you haven't dealt with many schools. Only when the stakes are so low can people afford to be so petty. Some school faculty and administration are incredibly petty and vindictive. Certainly not all but a lot. Grown adults absolutely pick favorites, bully students, talk down to them, and carry out petty beefs for any reason or no reason at all. Sometimes they hurt the children to get back at parents they don't like. Sometimes they (for whatever reason) seek validation from students and will participate in bullying of unpopular students. These can be trivial things, like accepting late work from some students but no others or grading one student's work more harshly. Other times they believe they are doing a student good by "teaching them a lesson" or expressing their disapproval of the student or family's lifestyle. I have absolutely no problem believing the school administration and coach were offended and rather than discussing it with the 14 year old they decided to prove who was boss by punishing her.

abstractbarista 6y ago
Reading this gave me flashbacks to high school. This is very sad but true. While I typically kept to myself and avoided their wrath, certain members of the administration were just horrible, and I could clearly see the mental toll it took on fellow students.
screye 6y ago
> "Academic politics is the most vicious and bitter form of politics, because the stakes are so low." Sayre's law makes a return

agloeregrets 6y ago

Casual reminder that this school is less than 30 minutes from the one that jailed a girl for a year and a half for making a fake myspace page lightly making fun of the principal. (As seen in the excellent doc: Kids For Cash) PA has some extreme deep south vibes in some areas that constitute an aggressive hatred and power addiction over younger people.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
teachrdan 6y ago
They say that Pennsylvania is Philadelphia on one side, Pittsburgh on the other, and Kentucky in between.
- guessbest 6y ago
  What does Kentucky have to do with the faculty?
  - teachrdan 6y ago
    Kentucky is understood to be less politically progressive than Philadelphia and Pitsburgh.
milkytron 6y ago
Growing up in PA I definitely experienced this. Some teachers were great, but I remember a particular few who would get noticeably upset, angered, and irritated when challenged or questioned by students. The worst case I experienced was when a gym teacher was teaching a "graduation course" which was required to be passed in order to graduate. We were the first year to have this class, and I was in the first semester, part of the guinea pig group. We had a semester long project and the teacher in charge would not approve my project because it did not involve raising money for charity (not a requirement on the rubric). Some students sold t-shirts, some organized 5k runs, others wrote children's books. We were encouraged to make money for a cause, but it was not required. I wanted to build an Android app since Android was recently released, and I wanted to make something anyone could use. The teacher repeatedly told me to go back to the drawing board, fabricating missed requirements that were not on the rubric. Only on the final day of project approvals did he say I needed to raise money, which was not a requirement (more like a suggestion or even trend). I never got the approval, so I shouldn't have passed, but he didn't bring it up the rest of the semester and never looked at my work afterwards. Final day presentations, the principal (awesome guy who knew nearly every student) watches and asks what I thought about the class and I told my experience. They got rid of that "graduation project" class the following year, and the next semester had all new teachers for it. Half of the kids didn't even donate the money they made. tl;dr - almost didn't graduate high school because a gym teacher wanted me to raise money as part of a project.