Sometimes I think we have gone stark, raving mad. Our judges do sloppy work that lets loose admitted pedophiles to walk the streets, Nicole Richie spends little more than one hour in jail for a DUI charge, major league caps blatantly featuring colors and symbols for some of America’s deadliest street gangs are being sold in stores, and then school officials suspend a little boy for drawing a gun.
EDIT: 8/24/7 2:00 pm PDT To further emphasize the dichotomy of these events, is the breaking news that the pedophile Jack McClellan just arrived for court in Los Angeles–naked. Yet, this perverted man, who has said if it weren’t against the law, he would have sex with a 3-year old, continues to roam around, while a child is suspended for drawing a picture of a gun.
MESA, Ariz., Aug. 23, 2007
This drawing by the 13-year-old son of Paula Mosteller led his school to suspend him for five days. (KPHO)
Ray Parker
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 23, 2007 12:00 AMAfter an eighth-grader was suspended for drawing a picture of a gun on an assignment paper, angry parents are questioning whether the Chandler Unified School District went too far with its zero-tolerance policy.
The Payne Junior High eighth-grader, along with another student, was suspended Monday for five days for the drawing. Parents Paula and Ben Mosteller were able to get the suspension reduced to three days after meeting with school officials.
The uproar over the drawing, which the student turned in with a school assignment and contended was just a doodle, cuts to the question of what constitutes a “threat.”
It is close to impossible to disconnect boys from an attraction to guns. When I was a child I lived in the city of Springfield, Mo. and my little brother wandered around the neighborhood with a BB gun. Seems a bit dangerous now, as I think about it, for it was a highly populated area, but I don’t recall there ever to be any problems with such activity. Anyway, I remember his coming in and frequently telling my mom, “I almost got a bird. Think I hit his tail feathers.”
When our two older sons came of the age when most little boys have toy guns, I recall being ambivalent about the subject. While we certainly did not want to encourage violence in our sons, we knew if they didn’t have cap guns or water pistols, they would still tear around the yards, and with their fingers point and shoot as they played out what seemed to be harmless games of “cowboys and indians.” I believe that when children of my era, and possibly of my children’s young years, played these games, they really didn’t envision actually shooting an indian person or a cowboy person. I may be wrong…really would like to hear from young men who played these games…or young women, if as a girl you played such games. I can’t recall being involved in “gun” battles, myself.
On a BBC site this morning, I came across an interesting article about WWII board games produced in England. The games are quite rare and are being auctioned off. You might want to take a look.
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Shirley Buxton 
17 replies on “Danger by Gun Drawing”
Larry, it is just so sad. I really do feel for our young people, who are having much of their innocent childhood times taken away from them.
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BTW, I still carry a small pocket knife
…. except to airports, cruise ships, bus terminals, train stations, courthouses, police stations, post offices, government offices and, of course, SCHOOLS.
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The idea that a sketch of a gun is a threat is totally ridiculous. All this hoopla is about nothing!
All I see here are school authorities creating fear and stifling the creativity of every student in this school. Now they dare not sketch, question or talk about anything that might be considered a “threat”, real or imagined. There is no harm in what he did nor should he suffer any consequences for it. An apology by the school administrators would be in order but, of course, they will never do that.
When I was his age, I sketched whatever came to mind… cars, boats, planes, guns, knives, bows & arrows, soldiers, tanks, etc. Many of my toys at home were cowboy and war toys and my idols were Roy Rogers, General Douglas McArthur and General Patton. Kids carrying a pocket knife were of no concern to anyone. Now, 50 years later, I’ve never used a gun or knife in any way that would be a threat to anyone.
Terrorism has been around us through the ages under different labels but, today, we’re allowing it to destroy the fabric of our free society to a point where we have become the terrorists to our own children.
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Karen, very sad indeed. We must have God…He is our only answer.
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This post reminded me of an ad in the paper yesterday for school supplies. One of the items advertised was a bullet-proof backpack!! It’s the day and age we are living in, but it is so sad that a child would need such a thing to attend school.
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You’re welcome, Sandi.
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I just wanted to stop by and thank you for your encouraging comments on my blog. I needed to hear your wisdom sooo badly! I do have friends that would NEVER choose to squander time in some of the ways I do, and it leaves one feeling quite like a Mary in a world of Marthas…. (((((HUGS))))) sandi
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Good evening Anna and Rochelle. I sincerely appreciate your concern, and your taking the time to comment here.
May we be ever vigilant and courageous enough to point out these inequities in our system, while understanding, of course, this system–this world–will never stand. Only God and His Word will endure. I choose to stand with Him!
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Okay. Speechless here. I mean. Really? You have got to be kidding me! Surely this could have been handled differently. I guess the focus of our conversation is not the drawing. It is the flaws we have in the system. It is important to remember who we are fighting, not flesh and blood…
I agree, I think we have a responsibility to do what we can to fix a broken system to the best of our abilities. Even though we know this system will fail because it doesn’t have God at its core. But isn’t it wonderful to be in a fight in which we know the outcome! We win!!
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Ammendment 1 of the US Constitution: Freedom of Religion, Press, Expression. All the liberals and homosexuals are hollering about their right to express themselves yet the public school system will expel a child from school for his freedom of expression. He broke no law, carried no firearm onto school property, threatened not a single soul, but simply did what little boys do and we want to punish him. GET REAL!!!
That is what I seriously call a twisted mentality! Let an admitted, arrested pedophile run free and that is called his freedom of expression and he committed no wrong? GET REAL!!
I guarantee you if that child had drawn some perverted picture, it would not have been as big of an issue because the ACLU would have been on that like a fly on a pancake hollering about how he was just exploring his sexuality.
You are right Sis. Buxton, this nation has lost it’s mind. Why? Because we are a nation void of God’s judgement. A nation that would rather champion filth and perversion, and poo poo a child’s innocence. A nation that has bought into humanism and socialism until they are living a life of nihilism and narcissism. It’s sad but almost humorous because for being so educated they are so blind the don’t even realize they are a puppet simply fulfilling the prophecy of the Bible. (or won’t admit it to save their life)
Romans 8:21-22 “21Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,”
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Helen, Jack McClellan was told not to go near children. He was detained for being on UCLA campus near the pre-school facility. When he was seen there and questioned, he claimed to be ignorant of the school’s presence. Later in the day, however, he returned to the same place and was at that point arrested. Indeed, he did break a law. I believe it also is against the law to be nude in public. (Some places of exception exist, but he was not there.) Jack McClellan is a perverted law breaker and should not be on the streets.
As far as I can tell, the young man did not break any rules. From the school handbook is this regulation: “possession or threatening use of any weapon, real or simulated, is strictly prohibited.” I hardly think a drawing of a gun and handing it in with an assignment is either a real or simulated gun.
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I don’t get it. A man says he would “have sex with a three year old if it weren’t against the law,” but breaks no law. A boy breaks a shcool rule and his parents side with him What? And you have sided with the boy. This is like saying, “which is worse drinking or smoking?” Like you have to choose.
The man is guilty of nothing. He’s just weird. So why shouldn’t he walk around? He knows the law, and if he breaks it, he knows he’ll be punished. (Would I want my child near him? Oh, no!)
The boy does something he shouldn’t, and his parents refuse to allow the school to teach him a lesson. The one they teach instead is, “you don’t have to obey the rules, because we’ll side with you. ” This is strange love. The boy may likely find more trouble in life than the man.
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You go, Jolene.
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Sis. Buxton I love the way you keep me on my toes. You are right, we just can’t just sit by and do nothing. Though we do know that the world is headed for a downward plunge, we also know that it is now time to gird up our loins and to fight fire (hell) with fire (the power of the Holy Ghost) as never before.
I appreciate you!
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Thank you, Jolene, for this well thought out comment. What you speak is truth, and perhaps there is nothing we can do about the downward plunge of our society, but we can’t just sit by and watch this without doing something…pitiful, though our efforts be.
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ooops typo there but you get my drift 🙂
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I don’t know Sis buxton but that the world hasn’t gone mad. We are warned that it is going to happen. 2 Tim 3:1 “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come .
2 Tim 3: 13 “Evil men and seducers will grow worse and worse,…”
“Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;”
(Isa 5:20 NKJ)
I’m afraid the only thing we can do is fasten our seatbelt in the Holy Ghost and get ready for the ride of our life reaching out to those we pass by on the way trying to lead them into the straight and narrow so they too can escape what is headed this way. Our only hope is in Him.
deceiving [speaking lies easily and convincingly] and being deceived.”
(2 Tim 3:1, 13)
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