A student of uncommon courage

[Guest Guest]

I understand that. It's not like I put 100% of the blame on the kids; the stuff above does make a difference in altering the mindset itself. If someone's brought up that way, they are indeed much less likely to be willing to 'make waves,' even if they do agree with Matthew. Still, there's strength in numbers, and it really should have been encouraged in this case, when it was just so incredibly obvious how in the wrong Mr. P. was.

Oh no, you misunderstand. I did not say that with the slightest bit of sarcasm; I'm well aware that his popularity was most likely a primary reason he was both not spoken against before, and not this time either, except for one student.

Yes it is, but no matter how much I know, care about, or even love someone, I will not defend their lying. So, I can't say I'd be acting any differently even if I was a close friend of Paskiewicz's and I found out this all happened.

That's most likely true--doesn't make it right, though (not saying that you think it does).

I'm guessing they could have been better educated on the Consitution too--at least then they'd know that Paszkiewicz was doing something he wasn't supposed to, and would know why, too.

Definitely--but just as definitely it's not just the kids that need that lesson. If you were at the February meeting, you would see that the vast majority of Paszkiewicz's supporters were, regardless of their ages, of the mindset that Matthew wasn't simply pointing out inappropriate teaching, but was trying to do one or more of the following:

1) Attack Christianity

2) Destroy Paszkiewicz's career

3) Promote an "atheistic agenda" (usually paired with #1)

It has been very frustrating for me personally to see this kind of knee-jerk reaction that really has zero to do with the actual issue.

It's good to talk to someone who's actually using their head once in a while--thanks.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thank you Matthew LaClair or should I say Stife767. I guess you were there first hand at Mr. Paszkiewicz's class so you could speak firsthand of what the students thought of him. Why do you think no one else backed poor Matthew? The teacher was and still is a good one and no matter whatever slander you and your fat daddy did, it didn't solve anything, except get yourself a little scholarship money.

[Guest Hanover]

Do you know why kids didn't join the fight right behind Matthew and take on the big bad school system that Kearny has in place. Try the fact the he didn't stand for the pledge of allegiance, and made it known! Or hanging anti-flad symbols on his locker.

If you don't support the war, that is one thing. But perhaps Matthews didn't realize that the pledge he should have been saying gave him this opportunity the speak so freely. He was free to tape Mr. P, and he was free to take it to media outlets that THEY chose! You know why? Becuase this is the US of A, and the least it deserves is a 15 second reminder a day about what we are greatful for, and all the men and women who have died in wars to ensure our freedom.

The only solice I can take out of this situation is that everybody has forgotten about it, except the 12 people who read this thread and this site. Paul now how a great pulpet the preach on, that being Kearny On The Web. HAHA i Love it. He adds new post daily in his lawyer lingo and get his jollies from it. Talk about satisfying. When noone else cares, he still does.

I read the Harrison section usually, and just browsed through here and read this hilarious thread. I think, instead of retiring matthews jersey, you know if he was a sports standout, that the school should retire his T-shirt that he wore on the day of the recording! HAHA, Paul, what do you say. I'll bet CNN, and the Times, and Alan Colmes would be there right!

It's a joke, and instead of being the bigger person, and being happy with the attention that he recieved nationally, he still needs to fill his desire for publicity, even if it is KOTW.

Paul, being so educated, none of this should bother you. Who cares what us minions say on this stupid site. Walk away from this site with the little dignity you have left.

[Guest a proud american]

I came of draft age the year after the draft ended. A lottery was instituted by birth date, and my lottery number was 41 out of 365. Though I did not support the war, I registered for the draft and carried my card. I was not drafted and did not volunteer to serve. Like many young men my age, I was not eager to be cannon fodder in an unjust war and a hopeless military venture that could not succeed. By that time, most of us believed that the war was not in our country's best interests, and that our service would have accomplished nothing. By the time I was of age to serve, all of that was obvious. Nixon had already been in office for three years, having claimed (falsely) to have a secret plan to end the war. What happened to many of the veterans who returned from that war, having fought bravely in the sincere belief that their service was needed, was wrong; but so was sending still more young men (almost exclusively men at that time) to give their lives for a unsalvageable mistake. It was an abysmal failure by our leadership and in particular Lyndon Johnson, a Democrat, but unfortunately people in power today, most especially Dick Cheney, still have not learned the lessons of that tragic mistake.

Unlike the two chicken hawks currently in the White House, I was not a hypocrite. Unlike them, I did not support the war and then do everything possible to avoid serving in it. Had I done that, I would have had the integrity to appreciate that it disqualified me for public service on the national level. It is absolutely shocking that Bush and Cheney were allowed to attain positions of high national office, let alone the presidency and vice-presidency, with that history. It is understandable that those who oppose a war like the one in Viet Nam, which was questionable at best on many levels, would prefer not to serve and act accordingly, at least within the law. Supporting the war and then insisting that others fight it is a disqualifying character flaw: an act of cowardice and betrayal, and a clear signal that such individuals think themselves better than everyone else. It tells you that such individuals do not care about their country, but only about themselves.

It is absolutely shocking that the American people overlooked this, considering especially how obvious and how basic it is. We and the world are now paying the price for the callousness of these two cowardly and utterly unpatriotic men, whose only concern, obviously, is for themselves and those in their inner circle. Historians will look back in disbelief that the American people allowed to happen. This is strong language, I know, but history will not look kindly on these two, or on those of us who allowed this to happen.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

When I first joined the Army in 69, I did so because of loyalty to both my country and to my family. My father never served in the military during ww2 but many of my uncles did. I believe that since he did not serve he couldn't fully understand what they went through. So when I was old enough I decided to join so that atleast he could say his son served. When I was sent to Vietnam like most of the soldiers I went because thats what soldiers do. I didn't question orders but followed them. What was happening back in the states meant little to me since I was happy just to make it through another day. When I returned home I could see in my fathers eyes that he was proud and the way he acted was all the approval I needed.

Whether or not you served in the military atleast you are honest in your feelings. You didn't hide in Alabama or continue to get deferments because you had other things to do. I find it very sad that the likes of Hannity and Rush and Coultergeist are such big supporters of this war and criticize those who don't agree with them. What military did they serve in?

When the towers were hit, someone asked me why I wasn't more upset and I told them that you don't get upset you get even and when the time came, then they would be facing real anger. Bin Laden screwed with the wrong country and would pay the price. And of course we now know the rest of the story.

Imagine what we could have done if we had sent 170,000 troops to Afghanistan. But what do we do? Attack a country who was no real threat to us, and had nothing to do with 9/11.

And we have a President who says last year he doesn't think about Bin Laden all that much. But he does love to talk about al-queda in Iraq. Of course they weren't in Iraq until we invaded. And what we'll get from the right is its all Clintons fault.

So let the ones who support this war keep living in a dream world. Except, that eventually we are going to have to face reality and that is we created the biggest foreign relations blunder since the bay of pigs, do not have enough troops to sustain the mission were lied to in the beginning can't meet our recruiting goals without offering large bonuses, creating more debt and where will the Veterans go for treatment, the VA? They are having trouble just taking care of patients now because of under funding. And train the Iraqi soldiers? We can take a person off of the streets and in four months have them in combat. The iraqis have had four years and all we keep hearing is they need more time.

The only real solution is the one that that we either don't or won't understand. There is no military solution to winning. Whether we stay there days, months or years the end result is going to be the same. At the end of all of this there will be sectarian violence and only after that is completed will Iraq be stabilized. And at the end we aren't going to have the kind of Government we wanted in the first place.

[Guest Paul]

Do you know why kids didn't join the fight right behind Matthew and take on the big bad school system that Kearny has in place. Try the fact the he didn't stand for the pledge of allegiance, and made it known! Or hanging anti-flad symbols on his locker.

If you don't support the war, that is one thing. But perhaps Matthews didn't realize that the pledge he should have been saying gave him this opportunity the speak so freely. He was free to tape Mr. P, and he was free to take it to media outlets that THEY chose! You know why? Becuase this is the US of A, and the least it deserves is a 15 second reminder a day about what we are greatful for, and all the men and women who have died in wars to ensure our freedom.

The only solice I can take out of this situation is that everybody has forgotten about it, except the 12 people who read this thread and this site. Paul now how a great pulpet the preach on, that being Kearny On The Web. HAHA i Love it. He adds new post daily in his lawyer lingo and get his jollies from it. Talk about satisfying. When noone else cares, he still does.

I read the Harrison section usually, and just browsed through here and read this hilarious thread. I think, instead of retiring matthews jersey, you know if he was a sports standout, that the school should retire his T-shirt that he wore on the day of the recording! HAHA, Paul, what do you say. I'll bet CNN, and the Times, and Alan Colmes would be there right!

It's a joke, and instead of being the bigger person, and being happy with the attention that he recieved nationally, he still needs to fill his desire for publicity, even if it is KOTW.

Paul, being so educated, none of this should bother you. Who cares what us minions say on this stupid site. Walk away from this site with the little dignity you have left.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It wouldn't matter to me at all, except that you get to vote. So what you think matters because we're all part of the same community, state, nation and world. You keep assuming I stay here because it's personal to me. Maybe that's the only reason you do things, but it's not my reason.

You wanted me to walk away last December. I didn't go then, and I'm not going now. When I go, if I go, it will be on my terms, not yours, and I'll be the one to worry or not worry about what people think of me, especially people like you who want me to stop for reasons that have nothing to do with whether I'm making a fool of myself. If you didn't care about what I'm writing, you wouldn't have posted, and you certainly wouldn't have been so vicious. We're under your skin, but unfortunately we haven't yet made our way into your brain; maybe no one can, but I'm going to try.

I don't think you understand the difference between true patriotism and superficial displays of patriotism. Matthew does.

You also don't understand the value of ritual in patriotism. The way the Pledge is done, it isn't just fifteen seconds of freely expressing Love of country. It's fifteen seconds every day at the same time along with everyone else, and if you don't do it you're glared at and called names. That's no longer voluntary, and that removes all its meaning. Mainly now, the Pledge is just an excuse for people to have something to do every day that allows them to claim they're patriotic, even if they don't vote, don't participate in public life, don't pay attention to the issues and don't care about anything more than the price of gas going into their SUV during a war for oil.

Patriotism is like Love. It means nothing if it's forced, and the way you're doing it, the attitude you're bringing to it, you're effectively forcing people to participate; no doubt you would if you could. The proof of that is in your own vicious response. You expect everyone to say your words when you want them to. You demand it. You even insist on shoving "under God" on people who don't believe it. You can't demand Love, and because patriotism is Love of country, you can't demand it. This isn't rocket science, it's as obvious as can be, but you can't see it because you have your eyes and especially your mind closed.

And you sure as hell don't understand freedom. You can't say that the Pledge makes us free (what a ridiculous argument), and then force it on people as you would obviously do. The Pledge doesn't make us free. People like Matthew make us free. That is why he is about to receive the Thomas Jefferson Student Activist award. That is why people all over the world have called him a hero. Some one suggested I google Matthew's name; I did that long ago. You try it, and see what you come up with. Some people get it. Most people get it. You don't get it. You think patriotism is about reciting a few words. We think it's about doing something to stand up for what freedom really is about.

Finally, you don't understand what telling truth is either, apparently. What "anti-flag" symbol do you claim Matthew hung on his locker? It never happened. If you think it did, please describe what you saw.

[Bern]

Do you know why kids didn't join the fight right behind Matthew and take on the big bad school system that Kearny has in place. Try the fact the he didn't stand for the pledge of allegiance, and made it known! Or hanging anti-flad symbols on his locker.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

His dissent proves he's a real true blue American. Not a follow the crowd or never question authority individual. That kind built our country.

If you read this Web site, you would realize the flag controversy was heavily debated a few months ago.

I hope you don't believe that refusal to salute the flag is unpatriotic. This country is founded on the belief that people have the right to express their beliefs without prejudice. If anything is un-American, it is questioning or disregarding that basic principle.

[Bern]

Unlike the two chicken hawks currently in the White House, I was not a hypocrite. Unlike them, I did not support the war and then do everything possible to avoid serving in it. Had I done that, I would have had the integrity to appreciate that it disqualified me for public service on the national level.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I don't think so.

Had you done what the current crew did, you would not have integrity. Its not possible for that kind of individual to have integrity.

Had you done that, you would have run for office wrapped in and waving the flag.

[Strife767]

First of all you ignorant turd, Matthew never walked into any battle.  He never even crawled into one because daddy made sure he had security around him 24/7 as soon as he entered the school property.

So it's not a battle if someone comes in well-armed?

Also, the recorder and stuff was 100% Matthew's idea.

What Matthew did was sneaky and underhanded

Yeah, how dare he record evidence of his teacher doing wrong? How dare he not just put his word against his teacher's, knowing the teacher's word is usually valued more, and then be ignored because Paszkiewicz would have gotten away with his blatant lies at the meeting? How dare he gather evidence to support his claims? Who does he think he is?!

[Strife767]

Do you know why kids didn't join the fight right behind Matthew and take on the big bad school system that Kearny has in place. Try the fact the he didn't stand for the pledge of allegiance, and made it known!

No excuse. Defending a liar is defending a liar; even if Dahmer says 2+2=4, he's still right. Stop trying to change the subject--we all know you have no real argument and need to degenerate into ad hominem, but you really don't have to make it THAT obvious.

Or hanging anti-flad symbols on his locker.

Such as? Can you substantiate this assertion?

If you don't support the war, that is one thing. But perhaps Matthews didn't realize that the pledge he should have been saying gave him this opportunity the speak so freely.

What? You seriously think the pledge itself imparts any kind of power unto its citizens? How brainwashed can you be?

You can recite the pledge all day every day until you die, but with that attitude you will never be half the patriot Matthew is.

[Strife767]

When I first joined the Army in 69, I did so because of loyalty to both my country and to my family. My father never served in the military during ww2 but many of my uncles did. I believe that since he did not serve he couldn't fully understand what they went through. So when I was old enough I decided to join so that atleast he could say his son served. When I was sent to Vietnam like most of the soldiers I went because thats what soldiers do. I didn't question orders but followed them. What was happening back in the states meant little to me since I was happy just to make it through another day. When I returned home I could see in my fathers eyes that he was proud and the way he acted was all the approval I needed.

Whether or not you served in the military atleast you are honest in your feelings. You didn't hide in Alabama or continue to get deferments because you had other things to do. I find it very sad that the likes of Hannity and Rush and Coultergeist are such big supporters of this war and criticize those who don't agree with them. What military did they serve in?

When the towers were hit, someone asked me why I wasn't more upset and I told them that  you don't get upset you get even and when the time came, then they would be facing real anger. Bin Laden screwed with the wrong country and would pay the price. And of course we now know the rest of the story.

Imagine what we could have done if we had sent 170,000 troops to Afghanistan. But what do we do? Attack a country who was no real threat to us, and had nothing to do with 9/11.

And we have a President who says last year he doesn't think about Bin Laden all that much. But he does love to talk about al-queda in Iraq. Of course they weren't in Iraq until we invaded. And what we'll get from the right is its all Clintons fault.

So let the ones who support this war keep living in a dream world. Except, that eventually we are going to have to face reality and that is we created the biggest foreign relations blunder since the bay of pigs, do not have enough troops to sustain the mission were lied to in the beginning can't meet our recruiting goals without offering large bonuses, creating more debt and where will the Veterans go for treatment, the VA? They are having trouble just taking care of patients now because of under funding. And train the Iraqi soldiers? We can take a person off of the streets and in four months have them in combat. The iraqis have had four years and all we keep hearing is they need more time.

The only real solution is the one that that we either don't or won't understand. There is no military solution to winning. Whether we stay there days, months or years the end result is going to be the same. At the end of all of this there will be sectarian violence and only after that is completed will Iraq be stabilized. And at the end we aren't going to have the kind of Government we wanted in the first place.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well said.

[Guest Paul]

I don't think so.

Had you done what the current crew did, you would not have integrity. Its not possible for that kind of individual to have integrity.

Had you done that, you would have run for office wrapped in and waving the flag.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Good point. The only hope in a case like that is that people can change. Tragically, Bush and Cheney never did.

[Guest Paul]

So it's not a battle if someone comes in well-armed?

Also, the recorder and stuff was 100% Matthew's idea.

Yeah, how dare he record evidence of his teacher doing wrong? How dare he not just put his word against his teacher's, knowing the teacher's word is usually valued more, and then be ignored because Paszkiewicz would have gotten away with his blatant lies at the meeting? How dare he gather evidence to support his claims? Who does he think he is?!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Exactly. How dare he out-think and outmaneuver the teacher. How dare he stop him from getting away with abusing young minds. How dare he challenge those minds to think in a way they've apparently never been asked to think before, and obviously don't wish to think. How dare he have a different idea, and horror of horrors, use that idea to beat the odds and challenge the assumptions of nearly everyone else in that building. How dare he stand up to power. How dare he face down the administration, the Board of Education and his classmates. How dare he challenge the educational system to keep its promises.

The least he could do is have the decency to lose. How dare he win.

"And after it rains there's a rainbow,

And all of the colors are black.

It's not that the colors aren't there.

It's just imagination they lack."

--- Paul Simon, "My Little Town"

[Guest Patriot]

When I first joined the Army in 69, I did so because of loyalty to both my country and to my family. My father never served in the military during ww2 but many of my uncles did. I believe that since he did not serve he couldn't fully understand what they went through. So when I was old enough I decided to join so that atleast he could say his son served. When I was sent to Vietnam like most of the soldiers I went because thats what soldiers do. I didn't question orders but followed them. What was happening back in the states meant little to me since I was happy just to make it through another day. When I returned home I could see in my fathers eyes that he was proud and the way he acted was all the approval I needed.

Whether or not you served in the military atleast you are honest in your feelings. You didn't hide in Alabama or continue to get deferments because you had other things to do. I find it very sad that the likes of Hannity and Rush and Coultergeist are such big supporters of this war and criticize those who don't agree with them. What military did they serve in?

When the towers were hit, someone asked me why I wasn't more upset and I told them that  you don't get upset you get even and when the time came, then they would be facing real anger. Bin Laden screwed with the wrong country and would pay the price. And of course we now know the rest of the story.

Imagine what we could have done if we had sent 170,000 troops to Afghanistan. But what do we do? Attack a country who was no real threat to us, and had nothing to do with 9/11.

And we have a President who says last year he doesn't think about Bin Laden all that much. But he does love to talk about al-queda in Iraq. Of course they weren't in Iraq until we invaded. And what we'll get from the right is its all Clintons fault.

So let the ones who support this war keep living in a dream world. Except, that eventually we are going to have to face reality and that is we created the biggest foreign relations blunder since the bay of pigs, do not have enough troops to sustain the mission were lied to in the beginning can't meet our recruiting goals without offering large bonuses, creating more debt and where will the Veterans go for treatment, the VA? They are having trouble just taking care of patients now because of under funding. And train the Iraqi soldiers? We can take a person off of the streets and in four months have them in combat. The iraqis have had four years and all we keep hearing is they need more time.

The only real solution is the one that that we either don't or won't understand. There is no military solution to winning. Whether we stay there days, months or years the end result is going to be the same. At the end of all of this there will be sectarian violence and only after that is completed will Iraq be stabilized. And at the end we aren't going to have the kind of Government we wanted in the first place.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You're entitled to your opinion, no matter how wrong it may be.

[Guest The Mayor]

"I sent the first news release to 300 news organizations" ???  These are the

  words of a truly Loony Left wacko.  What kind of a father would be so desperate

  to  promote the actions of his son that he would "market" him. It wasn't good

  enough that the local BOE reacted, he wanted the world to know what a heroic

  son he had and he was his daddy. Truly pathetic.

  promote a son

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Al Gore should investigate Paul, I think all his hot air is the cause of

global warming.

[Strife767]

You're entitled to your opinion, no matter how wrong it may be.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Death by irony overdose?

[Guest Guest]

I read the Harrison section usually, and just browsed through here and read this hilarious thread. I think, instead of retiring matthews jersey, you know if he was a sports standout, that the school should retire his T-shirt that he wore on the day of the recording! HAHA, Paul, what do you say. I'll bet CNN, and the Times, and Alan Colmes would be there right!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Matthew wasn't playing a game. He did a man's work in a way that most men don't have the courage to do. Obviously you don't like the outcome, but that's the truth, which makes you all the angrier.

[Guest Guest]

His dissent proves he's a real true blue American. Not a follow the crowd or never question authority individual. That kind built our country.

If you read this Web site, you would realize the flag controversy was heavily debated a few months ago.

I hope you don't believe that refusal to salute the flag is unpatriotic. This country is founded on the belief that people have the right to express their beliefs without prejudice. If anything is un-American, it is questioning or disregarding that basic principle.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thank you Mrs. LaClair for being ** ******* ** *** ****. When you do talk, it does show your complete ignorance to what it means to be an American.

KOTW Note: The above post was edited for content.

[Guest Guest]

Yes, he specifically admitted in the October 10th meeting that what he did in Matthew's class is no different than what he had been doing for the previous fourteen years. Game, set, match --- either way you look at it, just as you say.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

OK for everybody that has not been to this website before, here is your scorecard:

Paul = "Paul LaClair" , and now responding sometimes as his alter ego "Tom"

Strife767 = "Matthew LaClair" responds to it being bitter.

Bern = "Mrs. LaClair" backs it with a different tilt

And then Matthew posts as "Matthew LaClair" to try to act smart.

This site is a family get together. Does anyone else not understand ?

[Guest a proud american]

You're entitled to your opinion, no matter how wrong it may be.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

With all due respect, everything I said is the truth and I am sorry if the truth sometimes hurts.

[Guest Paul]

OK for everybody that has not been to this website before, here is your scorecard:

Paul = "Paul LaClair" , and now responding sometimes as his alter ego "Tom"

Strife767 = "Matthew LaClair" responds to it being bitter.

Bern = "Mrs. LaClair" backs it with a different tilt

And then Matthew posts as "Matthew LaClair" to try to act smart. 

This site is a family get together.  Does anyone else not understand ?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Understand what? It's not true.

I know you people are close-minded, but are you so close-minded that the only way you can explain the outpouring of support for my son from all over the world is to imagine some nefarious motive or family connection behind it all? How, then, do you explain the four hundred posts of support Matthew received from all over the world last December when this story hit the NY Times? How do you explain a well-known, prominent, highly respected head of a major financial house offering Matthew a summer internship because he was impressed by what he did? How do you explain the numerous, nationally-known organizations that have publicly backed him, and continue to back him? How do you explain why one of the world's major law firms, named for a former Republican presidential candidate, has put three of its lawyers on Matthew's case for free? How do explain why all the press coverage was strongly in Matthew's favor --- you can't explain that by a supposed liberal bias in the media, because there is a conservative press, too, and you can't explain its silence.

So because you can't explain it, you make things up and you call names. That's the truth of what's going on here. Prove me wrong if you can. But you never do. All you keep doing is saying what you want to believe, even though you know you can't support it with any facts. There's a word for that. It's called lying.

Shame on you.

[Strife767]

OK for everybody that has not been to this website before, here is your scorecard:

Paul = "Paul LaClair" , and now responding sometimes as his alter ego "Tom"

Strife767 = "Matthew LaClair" responds to it being bitter.

Bern = "Mrs. LaClair" backs it with a different tilt

And then Matthew posts as "Matthew LaClair" to try to act smart. 

This site is a family get together.  Does anyone else not understand ?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Apparently you don't understand that randomly accusing people of being LaClair family members doesn't make it so. That may be how things work in your fantasy world, but not in reality. Reality is not shaped by your beliefs. Deal with it.

[Guest Paul]

Thank you Mrs. LaClair for being ** ******* ** *** ****. When you do talk, it does show your complete ignorance to what it means to be an American.

KOTW Note: The above post was edited for content.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

So enlighten us if you can, on what you think it means to be an American. Don't just criticize others and call names, which then have to be removed by a moderator who hardly ever removes anything. Set Bern straight, and be specific, because when a person is as confused as you think Bern is, you have an opportunity to present that person with new information and help him or her become a better citizen. So don't make nasty remarks. When you do that, you only give the impression that you have nothing of value to offer. Since that can't be true, fill this forum with your wisdom. Tell us where Bern went wrong, and what you think being a good American means in light of Bern's remarks. We'll all be waiting to gain the benefit of your wisdom.

By the way, Bern is not Mrs. LaClair. Bern and I have never met. My only acquaintance with and knowledge of Bern is through this forum.

[Guest 2smart4u]

OK for everybody that has not been to this website before, here is your scorecard:

Paul = "Paul LaClair" , and now responding sometimes as his alter ego "Tom"

Strife767 = "Matthew LaClair" responds to it being bitter.

Bern = "Mrs. LaClair" backs it with a different tilt

And then Matthew posts as "Matthew LaClair" to try to act smart. 

This site is a family get together.  Does anyone else not understand ?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The family that does Kool-aid together stays together.

[Guest Guest]

Exactly. How dare he out-think and outmaneuver the teacher. How dare he stop him from getting away with abusing young minds. How dare he challenge those minds to think in a way they've apparently never been asked to think before, and obviously don't wish to think. How dare he have a different idea, and horror of horrors, use that idea to beat the odds and challenge the assumptions of nearly everyone else in that building. How dare he stand up to power. How dare he face down the administration, the Board of Education and his classmates. How dare he challenge the educational system to keep its promises.

The least he could do is have the decency to lose. How dare he win.

"And after it rains there's a rainbow,

And all of the colors are black.

It's not that the colors aren't there.

It's just imagination they lack."

  ---  Paul Simon, "My Little Town"

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I would hardly call secretly recording a teacher, who was well known to go off on religious tangents, out-thinking. I do give Matthew credit for fueling the converstaion. You really need to check the definition of what a hero is, especially at a time when men and women your son's age are sacrificing so much.

[Guest Paul]

I would hardly call secretly recording a teacher, who was well known to go off on religious tangents, out-thinking.  I do give Matthew credit for fueling the converstaion.  You really need to check the definition of what a hero is, especially at a time when men and women your son's age are sacrificing so much.

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Those who put their lives on the line in military service are heroes.

Those who risk their safety to stand up for what is right here at home are also heroes. The mere fact that the behavior was well-known only enhances the quality of Matthew's actions, because that says that according to the culture in our schools and in town, the intent was to allow it. Matthew did something about it, no easy task when everyone around him was trying to look the other way. It's far harder to overcome intent than it is to prove a fact, as the inane posts from people who still support Paszkiewicz demonstrate. And while taking a direct physical risk is in its way the greater sacrifice, standing up against one's peers is psychologically harder.

As for out-thinking: Paszkiewicz thought he would get away with denying the truth. He thought the students in his class would support him, and that would carry the day. He thought the administrators would side with him, which they would have done had Matthew not recorded. At every turn, Matthew foiled Paszkiewicz's plans. By any reasonable standard, that's out-thinking.

[Guest Guest]

Those who put their lives on the line in military service are heroes.

Those who risk their safety to stand up for what is right here at home are also heroes. The mere fact that the behavior was well-known only enhances the quality of Matthew's actions, because that says that according to the culture in our schools and in town, the intent was to allow it. Matthew did something about it, no easy task when everyone around him was trying to look the other way. It's far harder to overcome intent than it is to prove a fact, as the inane posts from people who still support Paszkiewicz demonstrate.

As for out-thinking: Paszkiewicz thought he would get away with denying the truth. He thought the students in his class would support him, and that would carry the day. He thought the administrators would side with him, which they would have done had Matthew not recorded. At every turn, Matthew foiled Paszkiewicz's plans. By any reasonable standard, that's out-thinking.

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Paul please.