Keeping his eye on the news and offering commentaries and insights on what is happening in Oakland County, around the world, on the tube and in the news.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Labels: bullying
posted by Stephen Frye at
6:45 AM
Stephen Frye is online editor at The Oakland Press, overseeing the OP Book Stop blog and Frye on the News. He has covered the police and court beats for The Oakland Press before becoming the online editor. Look for his commentary on news coverage in general here with an eye towards judicial news, criminal cases and politics.
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2 Comments:
I'm not for bullying but I think this is a good example of something that should be left alone by politicians. I've been following this story and the problem I have with this is that the term bullying hasn't been clearly defined and once we have a vague state law in place instead of individual district policies, the door will be opened for some parents to sue their school district just because their child was called a name, and don't say that that won't happen because you know it will.
I feel for Mr. Elbing but his child was a victim of harassment, and harassment is already against the law. I have read the bill, and the sections of the MCL referenced in the bill, and my concern is that run-of-the-mill schoolyard tussling and occasional name calling (in person and on MySpace, Facebook, etc.) is going to be grouped in with criminal harassment and other activity that has nothing to do with schools but for some inexplicable reason has been put in this bill anyway. I don't think any reasonable person would agree that they are the same thing, but if I'm reading your coverage correctly, there are special interest groups up in Lansing right now trying to make the case that they are in fact the same thing, and I'm just not alright with that.
This is something that districts, and parents, should handle on their own. I'm growing very tired of the continuous effort on the part of some in our society to politicize our schools and our children.
I think you're right, William.
Local control over local issues is crucial and why not let schools handle some things instead of making a state law that will mandate policies and reactions that may not match the local problem.
Remember the young man who was suspended for including a knife in his traditional Scottish outfit that he wore to prom? It fell under the zero tolerance weapons law and the honor student almost could not graduate. They could spend countless hours creating a law that will require countless hours to repair.
I feel the texting ban could be the same. What's texting versus browsing on the internet? So is everything involving a phone off limits, including calling?
Thanks for the comment.
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