Austinist: I Am So Popular: Don't Shoot, Shoot, Shoot That Thing At Me

Scooby

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 08:20:23 -0600

You do that to your "good friends"? I wouldn't admit it, either.

hisgoalinlifewas

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 00:33:28 -0600

This comment was quite hilarious... "No 17 year old boy, especially a rock and roller, is scared of a bullet casing in a hall, even if he's been raised by the most neurotic and frightened woman in the world. How likely is it that he was the only one who saw the casing, and the only one who left school. He's lying to you. Wise up." 1. I'm 22 and have been playing "rock and roll" in touring bands since I was 16, and I'd be scared shitless to find ammunition at my school if I was attending one. No matter what kind of music you listen to, how often you go to class, who your mother is, or what kind of lifestyle you live, none of that is going to help you when a bullet is headed your direction. Should we all just turn blind to it and pretend that it's all kosher, for lack of a better term? 2. Let me share a story in regards to the "how likely is it that he was the only one that saw the casing" nonsense. When I was a junior in high school, a good friend of mine got on the bus and started showing off his gun to myself and another friend of ours. It was his Dad's, he had no intention of using it, kept the bullets and gun completely separated, he simply brought it as part of a bet. By the time we made it to school, five people in our group of friends had seen it aside from myself. The first thing I did upon arriving to school was go and tell someone that a real good friend of mine had a gun and ammunition at school (and yes, it was an incredibly difficult thing to do, knowing he'd be expelled and go to jail). After his speedy arrest, the six of us that saw it and knew about it were called into the office, guess how many aside from me admitted that they saw it... zero. 3. "He turned the bullet in to the school cop and principal..." I don't know about you, but usually when I turn something into someone, it actually exists, and is not a figment of my fucked up imagination. Cheers.

wizardowl

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:52:41 -0600

I have a son, also 17, also raised by a single mother, who also goes to McCallum. I must confess that I am one of the most over-protective mothers in existence. Because of all the padding I made him wear the first time I let him go to skate camp he looked like the Stay-Puft marshmallow man. I hate that kids don’t wear seatbelts on schoolbuses. And I would be the first one to pull him out of school if I felt he was in danger. On April 9, he did in fact bring me the letter about the gun. Certainly I am concerned. But based on the contents of the letter, it seemed to me that the situation had been handled appropriately. A couple of questions about your post come to mind. Finding a bullet, while alarming, seems slightly -slightly- less concerning than an actual gun. Did your son ditch on that day as well? You said had he called you from school you would have signed him out, so why didn’t he? When taking the time to turn in the bullet and express his concerns about safety, did he also mention to school officials that he was going to leave? These are all questions I would have asked my own son, whom I love dearly but who’s tendencies I know all too well. Your son sounds totally cool, and I am in no way downplaying the seriousness of safety in school. But you mentioned yourself he has street smarts and I think it’s just possible he used them here to take advantage of a hot button issue.

seth

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 09:40:00 -0600

Spike is a colorful character and I welcome the content she brings to the Austinist. Her crazed ravings in this piece have actually inspired and motivated me to ride my bicycle down to the post office this morning where I mailed a hardcopy of the following letter: Pascal D. Forgione, Jr. Austin Independent School District 1111 W. 6th Street Austin, TX 78703 4/15/2008 Dear Dr. Forgione, I know you're busy right now trying to decide what to do with the students TEA wants to evict from Pierce Middle School. On top of that, we've got newspaper headlines focused on the Akins teacher trying to marry one of his students. In these trying times for Austin's school system, I wanted to draw your attention to an Austin educator applying solid judgement to an issue that threatens schools nationwide. A few weeks ago, apparently, a student found a bullet in one of McCallum's hallways and turned it over to the administration. Then on April 9th, AISD police confiscated a gun from a McCallum student. The shadow cast on our schools by the events in Columbine nine years ago might have motivated some principals to take drastic action after the bullet was found. Perhaps they would have locked the campus down to search backpacks and lockers. Instead, Michael Garrison maintained order at his school and chose to investigate the potential threat in a less obtrusive manner. The fact that a gun was later confiscated without a disruptive search of students or the campus is a testament to Garrison's calm, rational approach to ensuring the safety of McCallum's students. In the note Michael Garrison sent home informing parents of the gun incident, he encourages children to alert school staff whenever they witness an action that threatens campus security. This strategy engages students as a necessary component to making their own schools safe, which is a great lesson for them to carry past graduation and into our community. It's also preferable to treating kids like criminals with the installation of metal detectors or policies that require an invasive search at the drop of a hat. A high school is a complex beast that requires strong leadership to function properly. A book of procedures cannot provide solutions to the myriad of unique challenges created by students, teachers, and parents. That's why we depend on principals to resist the temptation to be driven by hysterics and instead employ level-headed, rational judgement when dealing with these challenges. Principal Michael Garrison's handling of the bullet and gun incidents at McCallum High School exemplifies this type of leadership and deserves the commendation of our city. Cordially, Seth Johnson

spikegillespie

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 23:05:26 -0600

good lord even i, with all my experience at being extremely popular, had no idea that being so popular could be so... well... exciting! thank you all for the comments. and that *was* a damn good article on wrestling if i do say so for myself. stay tuned next thursday when i am planning to take down that homo, jesus, advocate the slaughter of baby penguins, and demand you people take your naps before commenting and kiss my popular white ass in apology or i am going to stop inviting you to my parties. and god help me if i decide to bust out that story about what happened on the elevator, seth.

meatpillow

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 21:40:05 -0600

Don't take it personally, Seth. Spike does this to everyone who directs anything toward her which has any whiff of criticism. She'll twist your statements, she'll change your arguments, and then she'll attack you for things you never said to begin with. She's kinda crazy like that. Her real name is Spitey McSpiteful. So far, Spike has posted twelve "I Am so Popular" articles, and half of them have trashed someone: her first ex-husband, her second ex-husband, her ex-boyfriend George, her ex-boyfriends in general, her ex-husband's children, her father, her siblings, a judge, a music teacher, and, now, a high school principal. That’s what she does. That’s her shtick. It's kind of strange. She mixes up extremes. For the times she isn't saying something bad about someone, she is effusively praising people and name-dropping. There is no medium ground. I think she does that to add believability to her criticisms, as if to say, “You must believe me when I criticize people, because surely you see how enthusiastically I praise people I am not criticizing them.” I think she peppers her writings with self-deprecatory remarks for similar reasons. Well, okay. To be fair, she didn’t name drop or criticize her ex-husbands in the wrestling article, and THAT was a decent article. It was funny, it was informative and it wasn’t mean. See how I did that? I dropped in a little bit of praise at the end of my comments so that my previous criticisms would be more believable.

mdahmus

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:20:36 -0600

Spike's written about this at her own blog - with an, um, different perspective. Seth is a pig she's wrasslin' with and got herself muddy by doing so (and an aside: everybody who's ever deployed that analogy in my experience has not thought they were the pig, interestingly enough, yet many to most of them really were), and forgot to mention the rest of us. For the record, Spike, since your blog's on moderation now and you may never post the comment, I'm the father of a 4-year-old; step-father of a 14-year-old (who, BTW, took and enjoyed a writing class from you one summer); and I like your stuff enough to have even linked you from my own crackplog. And you're still wrong.

LoudMouth

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:48:51 -0600

It seems like you'd be more familiar with the teen need to rebel, even against your unbelievably leniant parents that swear they;ll let you smoke pot or drink or have sex in the house. Even if you tell them it's ok for them to drop out of school because you'll support them forever and don't really care if they're actually able to support themselves because you got by as a 20-somthing ok... in the 70s. Even if you buy them the razor blades and watch as they cut themselves or harm others, kids are going to want to pull the wool over your eyes because they are children and that's what they are programmed to do no matter how much you think you're buddy-buddy with your teenager, he's still going to be suspicious of you and hide things and want to trick you. You go ahead and deny it though, tell yourself that you're real hep to the workings of the teen brain if that comforts you. You're good at that.

emster

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:47:09 -0600

I have to go with TEAM SETH on this one.

mdahmus

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:35:12 -0600

Ha ha, very funny. He found an excuse he should have known was bullshit, but that he knew you'd fall for. That'll teach me to try to be a little bit nice.

spikegillespie

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:25:16 -0600

it was *not* a "really good excuse" it was a fucking awesome excuse! finally, you're starting to get the picture.

mdahmus

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:22:18 -0600

"if" he wants to be a part of the school. Huh. He's playing you. How? Really? You can't even conceive of the how? How about he felt like he'd found a real good excuse for a half-day off school? Has it entered your consciousness that many people other than Seth have said the same thing here? Are we all automatons or something?

spikegillespie

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 13:06:09 -0600

seth, you suggest in one of your posts that i spend "so much time" talking about henry's truancy. it was a single paragraph in the opening of my piece. you suggest my son "played me." for the record, he did not ask me to contact the principal to get his absence dismissed. he merely informed me that he left school upon finding a bullet. calling the principal was my choice, a choice i stand by as a concerned parent. and the point of the phone call was to ask about protocol, which i clearly stated. the principal said he uses gut instinct. i suggested gut instinct was not a good idea when it comes to loaded guns, just as it's not a good idea when it comes to claiming there are weapons of mass destruction lurking around and that a war must be started because someone "feels" that a war is important. as a parent, i want to know what *policy* is. if there is no policy, i'd like there to be a policy. i did not say there absolutely must be lockdown. in fact, i said i don't know *what* the solution is. i find it alarming that there is no policy given how many school shootings there have been. an actual gun was found later. a piece of paper was sent home to parents noting this. how many teenagers do you think dutifully handed this paper to their parents? i'm really curious how many parents know about the gun. i'm really bummed out at how complacent a lot of people seem to be about loaded guns. i think it's bullshit for a principal to send a note encouraging dialogue when, a week prior, my son tried to start a dialogue with him and he was cut off. then i tried a dialogue and i was cut off. i do not call this an "excellent job." not even close. if i wanted AISD to admonish the principal, i'd set up a meeting with the superintendent. what i want is to not have legitimate concerns dismissed. some people have posted comments here making sweeping generalizations about teenagers. in one breath you want kids to have respect. in another you say the kid played me. i repeat: do you know my son? you do not. i do. and again i ask-- how is he playing me? as for henry's truancy, i again refer you to the original piece i wrote on the topic. i have always stressed to my son that no matter what bullshit happens at school, if he wants to be part of the school, he is welcome to disagree with policy in discussion, but he must go along with it in order to be part of that school. thus, though i think it's a steaming load of shit that his absence will not be excused, i will not say, take legal action to have it dismissed. the principal, despite my disagreement with him, gets the final say. if the judge wants to hear about the absence, henry can tell him why. if he doesn't want to hear it and fines henry, henry will pay the fine from money he earned at his job. if that happens henry learns more lessons. i'm worried what those lessons will be, but whatever.

seth

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 12:23:55 -0600

Spike, Whoah! Who's the character assassin here? My comments regarding you and your story have been nothing but civil and at times complimentary. You've mischaracterized my comments likening me to a pig, accused me of encouraging you to beat your child, and called me a teenager basher. This type of exaggeration is precisely why you're not being taken seriously by the McCallum principal. You're a self-described headache inducer, which makes me wonder why you don't recognize your own lack of credibility in this crusade to legitimize your son's bullet-related absence. I have made these comments to show you the perspective of people outside this situation. You love your son (please don't argue my ability to make this judgement) and clearly are concerned about the consequences of his mistake(s). So you've jumped into this media bully pulpit to rally readers to condemn the principal's decision. Perhaps you were hoping that your article would make such a big stink that AISD would admonish the principal and then you could bring that into your June court date to persuade the judge to excuse Henry's continued truancy. Given the information you've presented us, I'm not rallied. The flag issue you mentioned is easy for me to support you on because you don't have a vested interest. With this, the readers, the principal, and AISD aren't taking you seriously because you're trying to protect your son. Even if you didn't have this self-interest in the issue, your case against the principal is impossible to support. You advocate full-on backpack & locker searches of an entire school based on the finding of a bullet. That's an unreasonable excuse to discard students' fourth amendment rights. Should the same search be conducted when a syringe is found on campus? How about rolling papers? Absolutely not. These kids deserve to be treated with the same level of respect that you show Henry. The McCallum principal has done an excellent job handling this situation. He's made judgment calls in favor of the children's privacy when warranted. AISD police confiscated a gun on his campus without violence and without Columbine-inspired hysterics. Thankfully, he's got a cool head on his shoulders and refuses to be rattled by parents like Spike. Seth

spikegillespie

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 09:11:51 -0600

You know, Seth, part of me feels like an idiot for wasting time I will never get back responding, once again, to your bait. On the other hand, of course a mother wants to clarify when a character assassination of her son is occurring. And so, despite the fact I do believe in the wisdom of "Never wrestle with the pigs-- you both get dirty and the pigs love it..." I'm going to wrestle with you a little bit more. I'm not sure if you read the original post about Henry's truancy. In that, I discussed how kids *can* play the system and yes, my son figured out he could miss a hell of a lot of school, still get great grades, and make up for a ton of absences with just a couple of Saturday school sessions. What he didn't count on-- despite my warnings to him-- was that the *state* might step in and take action against him. That's what happened. And so he got to learn a lesson. For people who think Henry is "pulling one over on me," that's ridiculous. He has nothing to pull over on me. If he wants to drop out of school, that's his choice. If he wants to leave for the day, that's also his choice. He knows his choices come with consequences-- a hefty fine, the possibility of not getting into college, etc. But I know from my own experience as a teenager and I know from being a high school teacher-- which I was for years-- that not only can you not force the hand of a teenager, but that if you try, you risk totally pushing that teenager in the other direction. I raised my son to be independent and make good choices. He does that most of the time. Sometimes he slips up. I can tell from your posts that you have never slipped up and that you are perfect and always have been and that any children you have will also be perfect. Congratulations, that must feel terrific. Getting back to pulling one over on me-- Henry could've called me and I would've signed him out. I'm fine with that and he knows it. Sounds like a pretty fucking elaborate scheme for him to bring a bullet to school, pretend to have found it, *and* involve both the cops *and* the principal. So let's see, in order to cut two class periods, he called as much attention to himself as possible? That makes perfect sense. I'm such a fool, you're right. Thanks for pointing out what an asshole my kid is and for explaining how he played me. I think I'm going to beat the hell out of him after school today, unless he cuts class, in which case I'll be able to beat him early in the day and get it over with. What I had mistakenly thought was that, since he had listened to the judge, and since he has shown up every single day on time since he spoke to the judge (and no, I don't think he deserves an award for this) that he wanted me to be certain to know he *had* missed class. You want to know why I spent time talking about his truancy when the issue was the gun? A couple of reasons-- one: transparency. If I hadn't mentioned the truancy then someone might have judged me for that. I could've skipped it and, since everyone seems to be so focused on that point, perhaps I should have. I also used it as a jumping off point in the piece. So shoot me. I wonder-- if Henry had a pristine attendance record and *then* found a bullet, would that make it okay for him to leave school in your book? The bigger point is this: *after* a bullet was found, a *gun* was found. A GUN, Seth. Not a water pistol. Not a fucking slingshot. A GUN. A gun, in the hands of a shooter, has the capacity to KILL someone. It is not okay to have guns in schools. It is not okay for a principal to use "gut instinct" to decide if school is safe or not. There needs to be policy in place for when this happens. Do I like the idea of metal detectors and lock downs? Absolutely not. So what *is* the solution? I have no idea. Hopefully, when you have your perfect, genius children, one of them will be able to solve this great puzzle. In the meanwhile, getting back to your initial post, you claim to have known me enough at Vignette to be able to judge me. I have no idea who the fuck you are, I wouldn't know you if I tripped over you, and I have no recollection of you whatsoever. I'm glad you've found an enjoyable pastime bashing teenagers. Very productive use of time.

seth

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 01:12:02 -0600

You know, Rachel, I thought it was odd for Spike to spend so much time talking about Henry's truancy in this piece, also. If the real matter was the bullet and the gun, then why did we need to know all this drama about her son ditching school 53 times?!? As a public school teacher, do you consider that many absences a problem? Or do you ignore it because there's some kind of context that explains why he doesn't come to class like the rest of the students? I can't believe people are expecting a highschool to shut down because a kid hands the principal a bullet and claims it was found in the hallway. A $15 box of .22 shells could really disrupt an entire semester. Don't like to shower in gym class? Just drop a bullet on the floor so the school gets shut down and searched. Didn't study for a Math test? "Holy crap! I just found a bullet in the hallway! Looks like we gotta let everyone out of school again!" The principal at McCallum made the right call. Hopefully, Henry will kick ass on his grades so he can prove the absences haven't impacted his learning when they return to court in June. The judge ain't going to fall for these bullet shenanigans. Seth

rachelk

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 10:17:26 -0600

Anyone else think it is a waste of time to dissect the "henry truancy" issue when the real point is about a public school principal ignoring evidence of possible guns at his school? As a public school teacher, I am very concerned that days after a live ammo round was found and turned in, a gun and other weapons was found on a student.

seth

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:01:11 -0600

Spike, I'm not condemning your parenting or calling your kid out as a delinquent. You threw all this out on the internet and I'm commenting on the credibility of the case you've presented. It may not have been conscious on Henry's part, but he took advantage of an opportunity he knew would push your buttons and drag you into defending his skipping out on school. Sure, he called you 'immediately' after leaving school. He could have called you immediately before and expressed his concerns and asked you to come down there to check him out of school. The tactic he chose gets him what he wanted without giving the parent an opportunity to disagree. Johnny made a good point. What was the response of other students who knew about the bullet? If the chronically-absent student is the only one freaked out and then disappears from campus, you have to recognize that third-party observers are going to be skeptical. This includes the McCallum principle who perpetually has to deal with irate parents. I think you misinterpreted my earlier comments. Henry doesn't sound like a bad kid, per se. He could very well be a gifted child who is bored with public school. I was mainly calling bullshit on your "hey, look at how awful the school has behaved!" cries while rationalizing away the problem that's unresolved: Henry's truancy. I think beneath it all, you understand this. Otherwise, you wouldn't have exposed all this backstory. If your point was really about McCallum's handling of this gun confiscation after a bullet was found, why would your courtroom visits be relevant? On the one hand, it seems as if you've brought us this drama to get affirmation of your perspective in this debate. But I wonder if you're really expressing frustration over your son's antics. Seth

mdahmus

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:27:50 -0600

You were played. Kids, especially teenage males, bring stupid shit to campus all the time - doesn't mean there was ever a shooting, ever even a thought of a shooting, whatever.

Trancereducer

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 11:40:54 -0600

It was a live round, not a casing. I know Henry. He's a no-bullshit kind of kid.

JohnnyBGoode

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 10:24:35 -0600

No 17 year old boy, especially a rock and roller, is scared of a bullet casing in a hall, even if he's been raised by the most neurotic and frightened woman in the world. How likely is it that he was the only one who saw the casing, and the only one who left school. He's lying to you. Wise up.

Lord Stompo

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:41:23 -0600

So, um, what about the other 53 times your precious little snowflake ditched school? You know, the reason he has to go to court for truancy? Face it, lady, you're getting played like tabletop Ms. Pac-Man at the Back Room.

LizBennette

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:01:29 -0600

I used to be a student at McCallum, not too long ago actually. It was during Mike Garrison's second year as principle that the entire school went into lock down for almost an hour. Apparently an arrest warrant being served to an armed man, 5 blocks away. Based on his previous behavior, it seems as though he should have taken the same cautious behavior, particularly since a bullet was actually found on campus. If something had happened, and it was due in part to his negligence, he would be in serious trouble. Bad choice on Garrison's part.

spikegillespie

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 08:15:25 -0600

Seth, Have you met my son? Working with me at Vignette-- I was there for about five months-- doesn't, I don't think, qualify you to make a decision one way or the other as to my intelligence. As it happens, my son called me IMMEDIATELY upon leaving school. He wasn't playing me. I fully support his decision to leave first and call once he's off of the premises. If you ever do have children, I'd be really interested to hear how that works out for you, particularly when those children reach the teenage years. There's another post that discusses my son's absences, his reasons for them, and his realization that if he wants to be part of the public school system, which he does, why he needed to change his behavior. Which he has. It always amuses the hell out of me when non-parents create an imaginary scenario in which the children they don't have are perfect (by their parents' definition) and just breeze through life. For the record, my son has had a job since he was fourteen-- in fact he's with the same employer. He's kind and compassionate. He does volunteer work. He has street smarts. And he is tremendously gifted. He doesn't give me shit. So, unless and until you meet him, get to know him, and can make an assessment based on true facts, I suggest you keep your piehole shut.

seth

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 03:17:34 -0600

Spike, It sounds like you are looking for a sanity check on this, so here it is. I don't have children, but I'd say you need to take charge of your son. He called you AFTER he made the decision to bail from school. That's what I'd do, too, if I wanted to pull some shit and then try to trick my mom into not getting pissed. The real issue isn't whether there was a bullet in your son's school. It's why the hell are you and your son going to court regarding his inability to attend class? You're a smart lady (I know because I used to work with you at Vignette). Stop pointing fingers at other shit to distract yourself from the problem that needs to be addressed. You're getting played by your son. Phone calls are for asking permission. Not for informing the parent after-the-fact. Seth

batlady

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 17:17:09 -0600

Wow. That is alarming.