Readers — You know what goes together better than peanut butter and jelly? (Or peanut butter and chocolate, for that matter?) Fear and money. Which explains why I think these newbulletproof whiteboards may sweep the nation. If I were a venture capitalist, I’d be looking around for any other common school item I could retool as a weapon or defense mechanism. Bullet proof glass for windows (I know that’s already happening). Silent alarms for the teacher’s desk (ditto). Maybe a stapler that shoots darts, or chalk that’s actually a container of pepper spray, or smoke bombs disguised as an shiny…
Author: lskenazy
Readers — This morning we launch a sweeping movement to embolden parents across the country to say, “Enough!” when it comes to adding excessive and expensive layers of security (often just security theater) at their children’s schools. Across the country, schools are locking doors that weren’t locked before, even though, at Sandy Hook, the door WAS locked. They are hiring guards, even though, at Sandy Hook, the gunman blasted anyone who got in his way. They are implementing voodoo-esque defenses, like making parents call 24 hours in advance of a visit to the school, or forcing parents to forfeit their…
Hi Readers — This note had me shaking, a reminder that when we give our kids more and more freedom, we have to remember that lessons go with it…and so does the possibility that we didn’t cover the very lesson they’ll need. My advice? Lots of lessons (particularly about being around water), not less freedom. – Lenore . Dear Free-Range Kids: My Free-Range Kid got herself into some trouble yesterday, and I thought it was something your readers might want to hear about. My daughter is 10 years old and in 5th grade. She has been walking to school for…
Hey Readers — A Canadian policeman wants to create what sounds like a horrible Sandy Hook memorial complete with life-size statues of the murder victims, and ship it off to Newtown. As he told The Star Phoenix, “This could be us saying we care.” I don’t question his sincerity or intentions. I do question how this could possibly help anyone anywhere with anything. (Except if he hires an otherwise unemployed sculptor.) In fact, I find the dedication of time and money to a gesture like this actually disturbing. It reminds me of the days after 9/11, when communities around…
Hi Folks — How I appreciate this Wake County, NC, mom trying to fight the outrageously expensive security theater her school district is considering. As this WRAL article explains: The Wake County Board of Education is expected to vote Tuesday on a proposal to put one unarmed security guard at each elementary school in the district. If approved, the measure would cost $835,000 for three months or nearly $2.4 million for a year for a contract with AlliedBarton Security Services. The company already provides security for some of the schools in the district. Wake County Public School System is the…
Hi Folks — Here’s yet another sign of the times: A news story about a Rhode Island school bus driver whose bus stalled in the snow. After a while the kids — a dozen middle school students — asked if they could just walk the 1.5 miles to school. Readers: He said yes! Readers: He didn’t lose a one! They all made it to school alive, if you can imagine that! Can you? Probably not, if you watch a lot of TV. Nonetheless, they did survive. I just hope we can say the same about the bus driver. — L.
Readers — Next time you are at a restaurant, please remember that a lot of people have touched the menu before you, which means it is harboring germs. So wash your hands when you’re done with it, and make sure it never touches your plate or your utensils. Also, do not touch the ketchup bottle with your bare hands. Others have done exactly that before you, which only means more germs. So what should you do? Just ask the waitress bring you a fresh bottle — a new one, from someplace else (I guess someplace germ-free, like a centrifuge). Or…
Hi Readers — Here’s a story that elicits at least three reactions from me. An Air Canada plane, delayed because of weather, came back to its gate at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport at 2 a.m., whereupon it disgorged its passengers with a $10 food voucher and instructions to come back in the morning. Thus a 13-year-old on board found himself spending the night at the airport, by himself. The plane ended up leaving at 10 a.m. the next day. Now, my first reaction is: You’d think Air Canada would try to give its passengers lodging. I understand that bad weather…
Hi Readers — Another day, another dose of wacky overreaction. Luckily, this one comes pre-analyzed by a reader named Kim, who describes herself as the “mom of a 5-year-old girl who is determined to raise her to be even more Free-Range and self-confident than I was as a kid.” A noble goal — and, as you’ll see — a lovely write up of a ridiculous event. – L. Dear Free-Range Kids: I was going to mention this article in a brief comment in response to your post about the grandfather who was falsely reported as a pedophile, but the further…
Hi Readers! I had this piece on CNN.com yesterday and I’m happy to say that there are about 600 comments so far, many of them agreeing that simply making schools more inaccessible, bureaucratic and paranoid does not actually make them any safer! – L