Student Stripped Of Title, Suspended Over Contraband Candy Purchase
As some schools districts whore themselves out to corporate sponsors in a desperate attempt to raise funds (hey, we sympathize with them, but it's still whoring), others are enforcing a zero-tolerance policy against unwelcome intrusions. In New Haven, Connecticut, the school district banned candy sales in 2003 "as part of a districtwide school wellness policy," and when an 8th grade honors student was caught buying a bag of Skittles from a classmate two weeks ago, he was stripped of his title as class Vice President and suspended for a day.
Reports CNN, "He says he didn't realize his candy purchase was against the rules -- although he did notice the student selling the Skittles on February 26 was being secretive."
New Haven sounds sort of like that little town in Footloose, only against candy instead of dancing. Also, candy will make you chubby and give you Ren and Stimpy teeth, whereas we know from television that dancing will bring you fame and make you live forever.
(Thanks to MissBrooke!)
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Comments:
This is just dumb..
Gotta love it. New Haven is full of crime and "troubled" students (aka thugs) yet they go after this kid for breaking a little-known rule.
Wanna bet it is part of some dopey "zero-tolerance" feel-good PC policy ?
This is ridiculous. A kid gets suspended over what, 50 cents? Over candy?
If I were that kid's parent, I'd be pissed and demand to have a little talk with the local school board over it.
Can we add an "Excessive" tag for posts like these?
If a kid brings his lunch, will the mother be prosecuted for baking cookies?
I'm a champion for good nutrition and I applaud schools who remove candy vending machines, but this is absurd.
So are candy SALES prohibited or is having candy prohibited too. If he is not the one who sold it then why punish him for buying it? Either way its stupid.
I'm in CT and this is just STUPID. He's in 8th grade!!! He's a kid!!! They better turn around their punishment unless they would like tons of complaints (which they're probably already getting)
Meanwhile, a kid forks over $30 for dime bad in the bathroom and no one notices.
and so the world turns
Could the kid "trade" an apple for the skittles, then buy the apple back for $0.50?
Now the sale of candy such as the one mentioned in the story is subject to the 6% sales tax in CT so perhaps the school is trying to make sure the transaction was recognized and reported accordingly. (Okay, back to work. I have tax returns to finish by Monday's deadline for corp returns and extentions)
Zero-Tolerance at its (ugly) best
fuck you connecticut
Stories like this make me not want to have kids. Too many idiots in power.
I wonder what happens if you commit a real crime...
So what happened to the kid that was selling them? Maybe it was a sting operation and the seller was a narc for the principal.
So zero-tolerance means no common sense? All rules and laws should have a clause that says if it's stupid to enforce, then don't.
LOL, its kind of odd the school sthat have drug deals go on needs principals like that.
Schools are so awesome! Where else in the world are you expected to learn how to live in a free society while learning under a police state.
I hope they get their asses handed to them over this.
When I was in elementary school I made quite a bit of proffit selling candy to my classmates until the school crushed my thriving business while still in it's infancy.
I'm guessing the punishment wouldn't have been as severe if the kid was a bully and simply took the candy under threat of violence.
As a parent, I am totally appalled. If my kid has the money to buy candy, let him. It is up to ME as a parent to teach him healthy eating habits, not the fucking school. When is everyone going to fucking realize that it all starts in the fucking home!?>!?!?!?!?
@kc2idf: I just finished my taxes. Which free society were you referring to? I'd like to live there.
@BloggyMcBlogBlog: And that is better than having to call a press conference to tell the world that you paid for a hooker.
I'd rather have a bag of Skittles than be class vice president, personally.
Geez. When I was a kid in grade 8 I beat the (older) school bully to a pulp after he tried his crap on me. He spent almost a month out of school.
Not only did I not receive any punishment I was congratulated by several teachers.
My how times have changed.
When candy is outlawed, only outlaws will have candy.
I'm not surprised. I went to high school in new haven country, and soda is banned as well. (part of the same ridiculous wellness initiative) Needless to say, we had enterprising kids selling soda out of their backpacks. Nobody got into trouble, however.
When candy is outlawed, only outlaws will have candy. Someone had to throw out the cliche, might as well have been me. This story is just asinine. I mean, let's ban candy, or the sale of candy at school. That'll learn the kids.
I heard tale of another class VP and honor student who got busted buying illegal sweets while in school. Than young man grew up to be Governor Elliot Spitzer. And now you know, the rest of the story.
My money-making business in school was to buy my week's worth of lunch tickets every Monday, then turn around and sell them at a 50% mark-up to kids who wanted to eat twice.
When candy is outlawed, only outlaws will have candy. Someone had to throw out the cliche, might as well have been me. This story is just asinine. I mean, let's ban candy, or the sale of candy at school. That'll learn the kids.
I heard tale of another class VP and honor student who got busted buying illegal sweets while in school. Than young man grew up to be Governor Elliot Spitzer. And now you know, the rest of the story.
My money-making business in school was to buy my week's worth of lunch tickets every Monday, then turn around and sell them at a 50% mark-up to kids who wanted to eat twice.
When I was in elementary school, I would take the little glass rocks out of the bottom of our fish tank at home and sell them to the kids at school as various minerals and gems for a dime or so.
What a wonderful thing to teach our children that corporations own us and control what we can and cannot do. I for one welcome the opportunity to outsource my common sense and free will to someone that has only their best interests in mind.
Damn candy dealers are destroying our communities...
SKittles, look like little pills of meth to me!
When I was in highschool, the cheerleading squad would sell Krispy Kreme donuts outside the cafeteria to raise money for [I don't really know or care]. You got cheerleaders *and* donuts!
We also had coke machines in most buildings, and the student government sold icecream bars during lunch period. So shove it!
@chucklebuck: I was thinking the same thing- in 10 years, he'll look back on that as the best thing that ever happened to him.
Nobody likes the class president, but everyone loves a martyr. If he plays his cards right, he can probably get to second base with some chick who never would have talked to him before.
Why do other school programs continue to sell candy and miscellaneous junk food as part of fund raisers if it's a wellness issue? I'm looking at you NJ and Connecticut.
Connecticut is the same state that almost sent a substitute teacher to prison after a student triggered a spyware-laden school computer to display some pornographic popups. They take protecting the children seriously there.
Want some meth? coke? crack? Skittles?
Finally they've stopped focusing on the minor issues like bad education, drugs and alcohol and moved on to the serious ones.
Education is full of these administrative type of do-gooders who think they know what is best for everyone.
Given that this is a place of education, wouldn't it be better to educate young Johnny on the ills of junk food instead of creating international headlines?
this is kind of funny. new haven's a ghetto with yale in the center of it. you think they'd worry more about actual crime instead involving guns, knives, robbery and that sort of thing instead of contraband skittles.
idiots.
Who cares weather your children are educated or not, thank goodness the schools are there to make sure they don't get fat.
Skittles: the new crack.
hey kid, wanna taste the rainbow?
I think I skipped school for over a week and I didn't get suspension. I know I got in a fight and I got lunch detail. We sold M & Ms and Krispy Kreme donuts in class for fund raisers. :p
Candy is a gateway snack to harder snacks... like cocaine..
One long time troubled student was quoted: "I dont like doing cocaine... I just love the way it smells!"
When I was in elementary school I got in trouble for selling my Halloween candy. It resulted in the principal calling my mother at work and telling her I was soliciting.