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âPatrioticâ Stick Figure Drawing Troubles School
A 14-year-old New Jersey schoolboy â whose dad and stepdad are in the military â was suspended for five days because he drew a "patriotic" stick figure of a U.S Marine blowing away a Taliban fighter, officials said yesterday. "Heâs been punished for the drawing," said Tinton Falls school superintendent Leonard Kelpsh [aka "ASSHAT"]. "We felt it was highly inappropriate, and we took it very seriously." Scott Switzer, of Colts Neck, was sent home last week from Tinton Falls Middle School (search) after a teacher saw the image on a computer and described it to the principal. Scott, who turned 14 Tuesday and was headed back to school Wednesday, said he was unjustly disciplined for his sketch of "a war scene."
"Truth be told, itâs a Marine shooting a terrorist Taliban," he told The Post. "Itâs just a picture. What upsets me most is that the principal would dare say itâs not normal. To me, itâs patriotic." Kelpsh said the five-day punishment was appropriate, adding that he would not discuss Scottâs prior disciplinary record. But family members said the teenager had been involved in three "minor" incidents, including an earlier suspension. Scottâs stepmom, Kim Switzer, 36, told The Post her son suffers from attention deficit disorder.
| From what I've seen, that's usually educational shorthand for a kid who gets bored with lowest-common-denominator learning... |
The boy lives with his stepmom and father, who is serving as a Navy engineer aboard the USS Detroit in the Persian Gulf. Scottâs stepfather is in the Army. Scott said school officials may have been edgy because of an earlier incident in which other students had drawn a "very Columbine-ish" picture.
| How many kids at the school wear turbans? |
Officials said they were concerned because his drawing contained a reference to another student who they feared might have been a potential target. But a local psychologist who examined the teenager said the sketch was benign. "I donât attribute pathological significance to it," said Dr. Gloria Tillman, a psychologist who treated the boy for ADD. "I have to wonder what is expected of our children today when 1) our country is at war and 2) both his father and stepfather are out fighting the war." Scottâs mother said school officials described the drawing as "not the work of a normal mind."
| It's not a "normal" mind, asshat. Pop's off doing what the kid's thinking about. Y'think the two might be connected? The inability to guess at such a concept is probably not the work of a normal mind. |
Scott said he understood the schoolâs concern for student safety, but was offended by the principalâs comments. "Truth be told, Iâm more upset that heâd insinuate that Iâm mentally unstable," he said. "Iâm the class clown. Iâm not a bully."
Posted by: Yosemite Sam 2003-10-29 |
