School Swastika Marker Appears Appropriate

[XLFD]

The headline screams "hate speech" at our school with an article that starts off with "White supremacist images of a swastika and Ku Klux Klan poster"; it quickly lets the reader of the City of Ludington Daily News (COLDNews) article emblazoned at the top of yesterday's page one know that this is serious stuff.  Read it for yourself:

It also saw a few clicks in the Facebook-triggered Mason County Press, where we additionally find out that:  

The action was technically not illegal, Ludington Police Chief Mark Barnett said. “It’s unfortunate that people feel they have to do something like this, but it is my understand that there were not any criminal violations. However, that it something that ultimately the prosecutor would need to decide. There is a possibility of civil litigation in a case such as this.”

“Please be advised that Ludington Area Schools takes matters such as these very seriously,” Kennedy said. “Ludington Area Schools will not tolerate this type of behavior, and the district reserves its right  to  prosecute  matters  such  as  these  to  the  fullest  extent  of  the  law.”

Be advised that due to the egregiousness of the horrific deed, the public has not been granted the right to review what the student actually posted, as I'm sure it would make the story less sensational and salacious.  And in the long run, that type of material is what funds corporate media, police agencies, and even public schools.

But was this such a horrible way for the student to express himself?  The student poked no fun at anybody, he made it so that a swastika and a KKK poster came up where normally other inoffensive school images would at the Google maps location of the school.  He reportedly did it because he thought it was funny, and seemed contrite when he was told by authorities that it wasn't taken that way.  The two articles are ripe with threats to the student's livelihood and property from some criminal charges the prosecutor might find or some civil charge the injured party (the school?!) may file against him. 

High school memories for me entail a long trip back in time, but it wasn't uncommon to have strict teachers called "Hitler" behind their backs and maybe see their picture in the yearbook defaced with a cheesy mustache and a swastika to complete the effect.  Even if the teacher caught your artwork, they at worst would reinforce the stereotype to your detriment with more and tougher school work. 

Nowadays, as our rights get slowly eroded by politicians and corporate journalists, we need to realize that even kids have freedom to express themselves, as do adults.  Here's a rendering of the Ludington police chief I offer illustrating the fact that I believe some of his policies and actions are Hitlerian.  He is a public figure, not an inanimate object like a school, yet I fear no repercussions because this is classic freedom of expression objecting to how he does his public job.  

Why should the student be liable for criminal or civil penalties for a simple computer prank, likely expressing his belief that the Ludington School administrators and/or teachers are like Nazis or Klansmen in running the school he is forced to go to?   The response by police and school authorities is epic, as it assuredly shows that the swastika school seems ready to pursue very rigid and fascist ways to discipline the boy.  "The district reserves its right  to  prosecute  matters  such  as  these  to  the  fullest  extent  of  the  law", said the superintendent of the swastika school, "We will not tolerate such behavior."  I'd say feel free to draw your own cheesy mustache on Superintendent Kennedy, but he already has one going, he's only missing the uniform:

It's possible you may want to draw a white pointy hat on his head if we ever learn that the student is not Caucasian.  It would definitely be insensitive on his part to tell a non-white student that he is not free to express his feelings of repression by white-dominated Ludington schools, it's potential lawsuit material against the school for violating basic civil rights if that's the case.  

Where might our class-comic student get his ideas that it was socially acceptable to utilize swastikas in making whatever statement he was trying to make?  The swastika image has ran rampant in our media over the last couple of years, with news companies showing Trump protesters (primarily) without negative context waving their swastikas around in order to show why Trump, his positions, and his ideals are like the National Socialist Party of Germany-- even when they most often go the opposite direction.  

These protesters and celebrities used the swastika to promote their views, without recourse.  In fact, they were summarily exemplified by the corporate media and other elites as proper and 'funny'.  Do you begin to see where our student may have learned to "hate"?  The aims of these protesters and celebrities are based on the same lack of tolerance and desire to destroy basic rights that the Ludington superintendent illustrates in his reaction.

The Trump protesters, when they weren't tearing down statues or doing other mischief that was rarely prosecuted, also were spreading the KKK's message.  They were trying to get laughs and attention too, and they got it from the media and celebrity pundits who liked to make a connection between Donald Trump and the Klan which just wasn't there, other than the KKK preferring his policies over Hillary Clinton's.  

The media, not wanting to be outdone did their own guilt by association on magazines, thinking it was clever and funny.  They never got disciplined, they were widely praised by celebrities and progressive politicians for their ingenuity in getting KKK images attached to a person.

So before we judge this student who supposedly used "hate speech" tactics and "white supremacist images" to be guilty of high crimes, let us judge what our society has devolved into itself, and who is behind the de-evolution.  Instead of getting the prosecutor involved, perhaps we should praise what may have been a very clever use of the school's computer to show how our school has transitioned away from a place where students can share their ideas freely, within reason.

[John Doe Jr]

True butt hurt. This is Freedom of expression most likely due to Oppression, which is clearly visible in this round up.

The only people allowed to do whatever they like without any accountability is Law Enforcement,Prosecutors,Judges and, Officials. The rest do as they are told or suffer the wrath,lol.

This kid should file a lawsuit.

[XLFD]

With all of the bullying I hear of going on at the school on the computer and in person, you would think the energies of administrators would be going towards those actual violations of school policy that have actual victims, where the consequences can be dire and final. 

Instead, let's make this minor victimless episode hit page one and sensationalize the headlines and the possible punishment to make an example of others who would show some initiative in computer science to make what was probably a "funny" statement about the swastika school.  

This could have been a great teaching moment for the new superintendent, instead it's just a bonehead move antagonized by the 'police state' mentality of our local school/police squad complex. 

[John Doe Jr]

Well, in his boring muted babble the Chief could have told the City Council and the Public where the damn money is that HE and his Cops stole from children but, instead he decided to tell everyone how gracious his thugs are for giving a lil bit of what they stole to poor kids. I guess the Chief believes it's ok to steal as long as you give a lil bit to the poor kids? The Chief continued to say his thugs even gave money out of their own pockets' I will believe that like,never... Now, theft is a crime! There are victims! One could even say it's a HATE crime against children!  Stealing is not freedom of expression!  What this kid did does not even come close in comparison to what the Chief, The City, Cops,Officials and the School does every day. Because the kid didn't break any LAWS!

[XLFD]

In misChief Barnett's three opportunities to directly address the missing $500 of Walmart GCs and $900+ of Meijer's GCs, that is the three times he has deigned to address the issue in any way, he has only used the same tact:  use gaslighting on the accuser, shine the best light on LPD, and totally ignore the unaccounted for money.  

You may have noticed I also commented on the stockpiling of surplus SWAC money from the program into the city budget which amounted to $2330.  All of that money had been given on the false premise that it would be used to make that Christmas a little nicer for needy families.  Instead it has been put into one or more of the city's bank accounts for a year, drawing interest for the city's general fund.  The money from that overpriced pie you brought last year, could have either went to purchasing those gift certificates that weren't used for those due and needy (just blue and greedy) or put into long term storage.  

I am working on a recap of that meeting.

[Willy]

Your a bad influence on me X. My mom says your going to get me in trouble if I stay on the forum.

[XLFD]

Perhaps she thinks that way from my last visit to your place on Halloween night, when I tried to make you push her out of the window after I reduced myself to ten inches tall and got on your shoulder.  You know that you didn't actually have to do it, right?  Just like I didn't have to send her a fancy 'get well' card either.  But I did, because it's good manners.  Why don't you follow my good influences?

[Willy]

Did you forget that my mom lives in the basement. If she went out the window she would have fallen up.

[stump]

I think the #1  problem was he used the computer that the school lends these kids now to do school work. What are the restrictions on other uses ?  I do not know and the student does know now posting unwanted items on the school page is one of them. So they took his [ their ] commuter away, now how is he going to do his school work?

[XLFD]

I did inspect the LASD acceptable use policy that students/parents sign each year, and could not find this in violation of any of the policies, not even when I went through the extended two dozen policies, I could find no clear violation, even with a liberal application.

I forgot to link to these policies in the article and invite the reader to discuss which one was actually broken.

Unless the student has other computer resources at home, he is likely to receive alternative assignments, just as he would have if his parents had never signed for him to use the IPad.  When cooler heads prevail, he'll probably get his IPad back.

[Willy]

First of all I'm not sure what the kid did. The school erased the evidence. How can I or anyone else make a judgement regarding this matter without seeing and analyzing the  incriminating material claimed to be the cause of this problem. C'mon school, police and any other authority involved. Release the propaganda produced by the student.