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       #Post#: 4308--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: Zyngaru Date: March 10, 2018, 2:07 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote]Mr. P tells me that he also received an earthshaking
       lecture on the fact that he's going to be on 3 April, at which
       point he could go to jail for something like this.
       [/quote]
       Mr. P tells me that he also received an earthshaking lecture on
       the fact that he's going to be   (                   )  on 3
       April, at which point he could go to jail for something like
       this.
       I think you were going to put  ( 18 ) in that hole?
       #Post#: 4309--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: db105 Date: March 10, 2018, 3:04 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       :o  Be careful.
       Jack, the action hero!  ;D I have this image of the BCA students
       as kind of goodie-goodie boys. I don't know why, because I know
       that many of them are there because they had some behavior
       problems, but the discipline is so strict that one doesn't
       expect punches flying around.
       You were not there for the paddling, right? So you didn't know
       if any clothes were removed. What about David? Did you have the
       chance to speak to him? I wonder what kind of car incident
       caused the fight.
       #Post#: 4310--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: Jack Date: March 10, 2018, 3:28 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=db105 link=topic=388.msg4309#msg4309
       date=1520715881]
       :o  Be careful.
       Jack, the action hero!  ;D I have this image of the BCA students
       as kind of goodie-goodie boys. I don't know why, because I know
       that many of them are there because they had some behavior
       problems, but the discipline is so strict that one doesn't
       expect punches flying around.
       You were not there for the paddling, right? So you didn't know
       if any clothes were removed. What about David? Did you have the
       chance to speak to him? I wonder what kind of car incident
       caused the fight.
       [/quote]
       If the parents are called in, it's almost definitely going to be
       bare.  While Mr. P is younger than me, he still did middle
       school in the 80s, when boys still wore briefs, so we've
       discussed the trends now.  I simply asked which he wore (boxer
       briefs) and if he had to be told to take them down further (no -
       he got them to mid thigh).
       No, one doesn't expect actual fights, but sometimes hot tempers
       win out.
       Zyngaru - You were right about what went in the missing spot,
       and I've corrected it.  Thanks also to Adric, who caught that
       and another mistake - both of which have been repaired.
       #Post#: 4471--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: Jack Date: March 18, 2018, 3:28 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       It was pointed out to me that I never shared part two - the
       follow up to the fight that happened a couple of days before
       Spring Break started.
       It was the end of my day.  I'd finished my third period, talked
       to the kids as they left, gathered my stuff, and was leaving.  I
       go by the office to check out and check for any paperwork in my
       cubby.  When I walked into the office, David was already there,
       just starting around the desk to the area where the private
       offices are.  Mr. P opened his door right then.
       "Come in, David.  Oh, Mr. Wells, do you have time to join us?"
       I only needed to do grocery shopping before heading home, so I
       had plenty of time, and my curiosity had been roused.
       When we entered the office, Mr. P indicated that David's father
       was on speaker phone.
       "Come around here please, both of you."
       We walked around behind his desk, as he'd indicated.
       "David, your father isn't able to leave work to come in, so I
       want you to watch this video clip and tell your father what it
       shows."
       He started a clip playing and we watched as two cars nearly
       collided as one failed to wait their turn at the stop sign.
       "Um, it's me and Chris almost wrecking this morning, but I
       stopped in time."
       "It looks like you went out of turn at the stop sign to me.
       Would you say that's true?"
       David looked a the phone like he could see his dad, but he
       agreed.
       "And that is from this morning?"
       David nodded, then added, "Yes, sir."
       "Good.  Now, let's fast forward a few seconds while Chris pulls
       through and... What's that in your hand?"
       David muttered something that I couldn't understand.  His father
       asked him to repeat it.
       "It's my phone," he admitted aloud.
       "You were using your phone while you were driving?" his dad
       asked.
       "Yes, sir," David answered miserably.
       "And that's why  you rolled through the stop sign?"
       "No!" David protested.
       "You are already in deep trouble, David Robert.  Don't add lying
       to it."
       "Dad, I didn't!"
       "Fine, you just went out of turn at the stop sign coincidentally
       when you were using your phone, is that right?"
       "Yes, sir," David answered sounding defeated.
       "(David's dad)," Mr. P said, "We can't keep you from allowing
       David to drive to school, but parking is a privilege, not a
       right, and it's exactly for reasons like this that safe and
       careful driving is required to maintain parking privileges.
       Fortunately a wreck didn't happen, and no one was seriously hurt
       during the fight, but we can't allow behavior like this."
       "(Mr. P), I'm sorry I can't come in, but I understand what
       you're saying.  It's like I already told you, David's mother and
       I both have to leave for work early, and him being able to drive
       has made things much easier.  Believe me, it's going to be a
       while before he has a chance to use his phone anywhere again,
       much less behind the wheel, and he won't be driving anyplace
       except school."
       "Dad," David protested.
       "I remember when you paddled him for skipping at the start of
       the year.  I can't come in now, but I do authorize Mr. Wells to
       stand in for me, so you can paddle David bare - both for the
       driving incident and for his part in the fight."
       I was watching David as he protested again, and I'm pretty sure
       he was barely managing to hold back tears at that point.  When
       he complained, his dad told him he'd be lucky if he didn't get
       it again at home, along with the grounding.  David sobbed then.
       "David," Mr. P addressed him, "you can say you didn't get out of
       turn at the stop sign because you were on your phone, but that's
       hard for the rest of us to believe.  I see three offenses here,
       but I still can't blame you for the fight.  However, your
       behavior was the spark that set it off, agreed?"
       David nodded reluctantly.
       "However, that still leaves us with not yielding at the stop
       sign, and using your phone while driving in a school zone.  That
       could have gotten you a very expensive ticket.  Instead... Mr.
       Wells, eight swats?"
       I only had to consider it a second.  That was going to be very
       sore, but it wasn't the harshest I'd seen given, and while he
       might not have meant to nearly cause a wreck, it was his very
       deliberate choice that set it all off.
       "Sounds fair," I replied.
       David groaned.
       Mr. P did explain that, even with his father's permission, he
       could still refuse, which would lead to him spending the rest of
       the day in ISS, and a parent having to come to pick him up.
       He chose the licks.
       He stepped up to the desk, dropped his trousers, then his
       briefs.  I didn't get a great look when he bent down, but he
       doesn't look especially hairy, and he's a bit on the lean side,
       though he is maybe a bit longer than a normal, soft hang.
       Pretty cute.
       The licks were slow and firm, and he only managed to take the
       first two quietly.  He was crying by the fifth one, but it was
       pretty soft, never a harsh, broken crying.  Like most boys, he
       was much less worried about his modesty when he stood up, and he
       lifted his shirt to enjoy a good rub before fixing his clothes,
       which is when I did get a pretty good look, before going around
       to check the damage and sign Mr. P's paperwork.
       David was in class Friday, but he was obviously pretty
       uncomfortable.  I did talk to him and his dad once over the
       vacation, when they called to ask about the reading assignment
       the boys are doing.  Because he was grounded from all
       electronics for the week, he ended up doing quite a bit of
       reading, and while his dad had been mad at him, he was happy to
       drive him into Barnes and Nobles and pick up a couple of new
       books I'd suggested (and assured him weren't on the reading
       list).
       #Post#: 4479--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: db105 Date: March 18, 2018, 6:57 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Thanks for the account.
       I'm guessing that the threat of more CP at home was just a
       threat. It seems that between the paddling and the grounding it
       should be enough to get the message.
       #Post#: 4480--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: Adric Date: March 18, 2018, 6:58 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       I thought this part was interesting because, at the end, both
       David and Chris were paddled.  David got eight licks and Chris
       got "a long and thorough session with the mesquite paddle".
       There was a fight, and a thorough analysis of all the
       circumstances found blame on both sides.  David's father agreed,
       saying, "you can paddle David bare - both for the driving
       incident and for his part in the fight."  Then Mr. P said,
       "However, your behavior was the spark that set (the fight) off,
       agreed?"  David nodded reluctantly.
       So my point is this:
       [quote author=Jack link=topic=388.msg4307#msg4307
       date=1520708728]
       It's common to punish both kids involved in a fight equally.
       Part of the reason for this is probably to avoid arguments about
       who's fault it was and who started it.  In this case, not only
       did we have independent witnesses, but while being questioned,
       Chris pretty much admitted what happened.[/quote]
       It may have appeared initially that Chris shouldered all the
       blame, but in the final analysis there was enough blame for both
       to justify the parental consultation and the paddle for both
       boys.
       When I was in school we were all told very clearly that both
       participants in a fight would be paddled and that we could
       forget about blaming the fight on the other boy or saying, "He
       started it!"  I can remember that sounding very unfair, but it
       does give both participants a reason to do whatever they can to
       keep an argument from progressing to a fight.  I'm not sure if
       the school administrators consistently followed that policy, but
       they certainly made it clear that it was the policy.  If you got
       in a fight, you got paddled.  Period.
       The circumstances of this particular fight between David and
       Chris seem to support that policy.  That could be called a
       coincidence, but I think that in many cases it is a difficult
       judgment call to determine at exactly what point a heated
       argument devolves into a fight.  I suspect that in many cases
       each boy feels certain that the other boy caused the fight and
       he was only defending himself.  In such a case it would seem
       unjust to spank one boy and let the other go free based on the
       difficult judgment of who touched the other first or who threw
       the first punch.
       There was a fight - you participated - you get the consequences.
       It's a simple message, easy for any boy to comprehend, if not
       to accept.
       #Post#: 4488--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: Jack Date: March 19, 2018, 4:26 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       I understand what you're saying, Adric, but I disagree with you
       - both in general, and in this case in particular.
       In general, what you're saying is really just 'group
       responsibility', which most everyone here claims to be against.
       Let me give you an example.  I was in a fight in sixth grade,
       where my neighbor ran up behind, knocked me down, then tried to
       kick me.  When I got up and tried to find out what was going on,
       he swung.
       Once in the office, he claimed that he'd been playing King of
       the Mountain, and I'd pushed him too hard.  Later it occurred to
       me that we had two 'friends' in common who liked to provoke
       things.  I think they'd been by where he was playing, and they
       probably made u p some story, possibly even pushing him
       themselves.
       Neither one of us got paddled on that occasion, but the point
       is, he ran up and attacked me from behind, because of something
       he'd been told happened.  How is that in any way fair that we
       were both treated the same?
       In this case, Chris had the option of moving on and forgetting
       about it.  I rarely drive into Dallas without someone doing
       something crazy, but I can't follow that person until they stop,
       then start a fight.  Not once, much less every time.  I'm with
       Mr. P in that while David had done multiple things wrong,
       starting a fight over it (especially having to track him down
       later to do it), made the fight all Chris' fault, so he's the
       one who deserved to be punished.
       If you read Caleb's school trouble, I punished Caleb, not
       because he started the fight, but because he had multiple
       opportunists to avoid it, and he didn't.   I do believe that it
       takes two to tango, but I also believe a person has a right to
       defend themselves if they're being assaulted, and saying both
       parties will always be punished just smacks of laziness and zero
       tolerance to me.
       #Post#: 4833--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: squarecutter Date: April 1, 2018, 9:05 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       Just worried for the independent witnesses with Chris clearly
       sounding like a bit of a toughie. No worries about retribution
       later?
       #Post#: 4836--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: Jack Date: April 1, 2018, 2:03 pm
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       [quote author=squarecutter link=topic=388.msg4833#msg4833
       date=1522591539]
       Just worried for the independent witnesses with Chris clearly
       sounding like a bit of a toughie. No worries about retribution
       later?
       [/quote]
       I'm not sure I saw Chris so much as a toughie as just pissed
       off.  If I'd nearly had a wreck because someone was watching
       their phone instead of the road, I would have been upset as
       well.  We'll probably never know for sure, because it really
       came down to how much effort Chris put into tracking David down,
       and what his intent was once he found them.
       However, if you look back, I had both the fighers facing the
       walls, and I had those who'd seen it start raise their hands,
       then I talked to them later, so Chris has no idea who, if
       anyone, said anything.
       #Post#: 5004--------------------------------------------------
       Re: School Trouble
       By: Jack Date: April 9, 2018, 4:30 am
       ---------------------------------------------------------
       This actually happened two weeks ago on my birthday.  Things
       were busy, and I wasn't able to complete it.  Rather than
       writing it in a file, I kept a page here open, and when my
       computer re-started, it dumped it.  I'm going to do it again,
       but this will be the shorter version.
       Roger Brown was a kid I had in a couple of my seminars the last
       couple of years - one on comics and one on sci-fi/fantasy, if I
       remember correctly.  He's in 9th grade now.  The past couple of
       years, he was small and cute.  Today, he's tall, awkward, and
       has more than a couple of pimples, with braces to top off the
       entire mess.  He's still cute(ish), but in a pretty geeky way.
       I was leaving a bit late on that day.  I had a lunch date and
       time to kill, so I made sure everything was set up for the next
       day.  As I was walking to the office, I passed Roger, who didn't
       have a hall pass.  I stopped to check, and not only did he have
       a good excuse, but he was about 15 minutes late for class and
       going the wrong direction.  Since he was obviously trying to
       come up with an answer, I thought we could settle it in the
       office.  Of course, he walked along like we were going to his
       execution (which we both knew we probably were, since both of us
       must have been pretty sure he was going to get the hot seat).
       Mr. P was busy, but only with paper work, so he assured us right
       in.
       While age and growth seem to have helped with the issue, Roger
       attends BCA because of ADHD issues, along with a couple of other
       things (I know he used to have anxiety issues).  While Mr. P
       tries to take those things into consideration, Roger's been a
       student since he was 9, and he's made quite a few trips to the
       office in those five years, including a couple where his father
       was called.  And yes, that apparently had the same result it
       does when I'm called in.
       Roger was basically admitting he'd screwed up and begging to
       just be paddled and sent back to class.  Mr. P wanted to know
       why he was out of class, and what he'd been doing, and was
       intending to call Roger's dad if answers weren't forthcoming.
       The thing is, while you could see that Roger was really
       stressed, it also became obvious to me (who was standing back
       and observing), that he was pretty embarrassed.  I interrupted
       to ask Roger if he'd been sick.  I know some boys can be very
       embarrassed by bodily functions, and I thought maybe he'd had a
       stomach problem, or even just a problematic, or even just messy,
       bowel movement.
       He said no to that, but admitted he was embarrassed.  He asked
       if he could please not say it in front of 'everyone'.  Mr. P
       went to make some copies, and Roger explained to me while we
       were alone.
       When Mr. P returned, I told him that Roger hadn't been up to
       anything notorious, and I thought he'd already learned his
       lesson, and we could let him off with a firm, but cursory,
       reminder of what happens when we don't follow the rules.  Mr. P
       took my lead.  While Roger was lowering his pants and getting
       into position, I selected the 8th grade paddle (Roger is
       awkward, geeky, and skinny!), and Mr. P and I negotiated five
       swats (I would have gone for four, but I've turned down the VP
       role).  He was wearing Hanes boxers in a plaid pattern - can't
       even remember the colors now, just that it was one of the packs
       you always see in the boys department right now.
       For the record, there is a huge difference between four swats
       and five.  Consider this
       [center]
  HTML https://s17.postimg.org/9qobs32lb/10x10.gif[/center]
       Center a boy's rear on the graph, with the vertical line lining
       up with the crack, and the horizontal cutting across the fullest
       slope of the bottom.  His back would be above the graph and his
       legs below it.  Now, a four swat paddling, using an oval paddle
       like Mr. P prefers, you place one swat in each quadrant.  Of
       course, especially depending on which paddle and the size of the
       bottom, there's going to be some overlap, but mostly each swat
       smacks fresh territory.  With five, where do you put the fifth
       swat?
       I put it right in the center, right in the middle of the area
       that's already sore and tender.
       Roger took it pretty well.  I might not have thought this was
       the crime of the century, but he'd definitely broken school
       rules, and he really was getting off lightly.  He was quiet for
       the first two, yelped for the third and fourth, and howled at
       the last one.  He wasn't sobbing (much - there might have been a
       hitched breath or two), but he did have to swipe at his eyes
       before rubbing his rear and pulling his pants into place.
       "Mr. Wells thought you deserved some consideration this time,
       Roger, but I'm about to text your teacher and let him know
       you're on the way.  If you don't go straight there, you'll be
       back here and in ISS until your father arrives, understand?"
       "Yes, sir.  I will.  I'm really sorry."
       He was also stumbling over his words trying to make himself
       clear while tucking in his shirt, but he got it done and got
       gone.
       "So, what was it?" Mr. P asked after the boy was gone.
       "I thought it was private," I said jokingly.
       "No, I let him tell you privately," he responded, clearly
       waiting for his answer.
       "Well, you have to understand that sometimes his parents check
       his phone - often when he's not right there.  Last night, one of
       them must have taken it into the living room, then forgot to put
       it back.  When one of them heard his alarm, it had apparently
       rang and snoozed several times, so when they woke him, he was
       running pretty late."
       "What does that have to do with skipping class?"
       "Well, he had time to clean up and eat and still get here on
       time, but there were other things he wasn't able to take care
       of," I said suggestively.
       Mr. P is usually pretty quick on the uptake, but he must have
       been a bit dense that morning.  He just stared at me.
       "He was late for class, because he was too distracted to
       concentrate."
       He still stared.
       "He was in the boys' room, masturbating."
       Mr. P looked shocked.
       "And you thought we should let him off easy for that?" he
       demanded.
       "C'mon," I replied.  "it's a natural impulse, not something
       dirty.  You're the one who talks about how our society
       criminalizes things and how we need to be honest.  He was
       distracted, and he took care of it.  He was also punished for
       doing it at a time he shouldn't have - he'll learn, or you'll
       have a chance to make a bigger deal about it."
       "I guess you're right," he answered, though a bit grudgingly.
       I'm pretty sure he was more upset at me agreeing that it was
       even slightly okay to skip school for that than that Roger had
       done it.  He still doesn't quite understand that, no matter how
       strict I can be, I still see things from the boy's point of view
       more often than not.
       *****************************************************
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