Ms. Sandra Farley’s son attends the school I teach at. I’m using her name because it appears in a local newspaper story (note, the story is Friday, Sept 7th…I don’t know how long the link will last).
Ms. Farley’s son was home sick from a bout with E. Coli.
The son’s math teacher put together a homework packet to send home to him while he recovers from said sickness.
The memo form that the math teacher uses to communicate the assignment has a little humorous cartoon figure of a hooded guy with a hatchett that says “Do This Or Die”.
Said math teacher has used the same form for…oh about 15 years now. 99.9999999% of the populace will recognize that the little logo is a small attempt at humor…not necessarily a bad thing when sending home homework.
You can see this coming right?
Ms. Farley apparently occupies the extreme shallow end of the gene pool when it comes to cognitive ability.
She was shocked and offended that such a logo would appear on a homework memo being sent home. So, did Ms. Farley call the math teacher? Nope.
Did Ms. Farley call the principal? Nope.
Did Ms. Farley call the superintendent of the district? Well yes…AFTER calling the newspaper with her tale of woe and anguish.
Apparently, according to the article, "Ms. Farley thinks such logos are a bad idea in an era when sensitivity levels at schools are high and many are worried about school violence. "
Apparently Ms. Farley doesn’t have enough working synapses in her cerebral cortex to give a chipmunk a woody.
Apparently the Rock Island Argus newspaper was really starving for news this day, because they ran this story on the FRONT page of the local section, with a big color photo of poor Ms. Farley holding the offending logo, with an appropriately sad looking son on the couch.
Education: what an honorable profession. :rolleyes:
IMHO, all of this type of crap started with people being able to sue McDonald’s for hot coffee… People have since that day been crying about everything, and unfortunately, they are listened to.
We are a society no longer required to use our heads to get through life, we no longer have to hold any level of common sense to exist.
Sad really, and I feel for the people who will suffer because of her overreaction. I also feel for the son, who will be sufering unknowingly well into adulthood for having a parent like this.
In fairness to Mrs. Farley, the kid was in the hospital. Like many good mothers, she may have thought that her son was in actual danger of, uh, well, dying.
She was right to bring it to the attention of the school, and they are right to remind the teacher not to forget to remove the logo when death is an actual possibility. Good manners, and all.
I blame the newspaper. This was not a news story. This was a thanksgiving table story for the family.
She called the newspaper first…then called the Supe…who contacted the principal…who contacted the original teacher…who got back with Ms Farley
If she had a legitimate concern, common sense dictates that she contact the teacher/principal first to see if her issues can be addressed.
Apparently she doesn’t think the logo should be on anyones homework (not just her sick son)…
"Ms. Farley thinks such logos are a bad idea in an era when sensitivity levels at schools are high and many are worried about school violence. "
What starts out as a possible bothersome logo for a sick child…that could have been resolved civily, escalates, by Ms. Farley’s choice, into a newspaper story about school violence.
Um, yeah, I agree with you beagledave. If she had an issue (even if it is due to the bug living in her ass), she should’ve approached the teacher first. Newspaper. What the hell?
Are you going to write an editorial to the newspaper that printed the story, chastising them for feeding the flame, as it were?
Although I’m sure most of the readers will either pass over the story or pay it no mind, instead allowing their beloved canaries to poop all over it.
My apologies as well for the almost hijacking.
As far as the OP, if I was the mother I would have thought the best strategy would have been to go directly to the teacher, express the discomfort and problem with the sticker, and find out exactly what the meaning behind it was (of course most of us would have easily seen the attempt at humor behind it).
What she did was irrational. However I guess a parent with a child who has to be hospitalized might not be thinking in the most rational way.
You know, the nice things about assholes is that they don’t tend to leave you in any doubt whether they’re assholes.
That’s why, if you’ve found something offensive, the best strategy is to confront the person who offended you (not his supervisor, not the local media) and give him a chance to explain.
If he’s not an asshole, he’ll be considerate and apologize, and that’s the end of the story.
If he’s an asshole, he’ll leave no doubt that he’s an asshole. That’s when you go over his head, and, if that doesn’t get results, call Newscopter Nine (if you’re the sort of person who lets mimeographed memos bug you that much.)
