I'm a teacher, and I will be making the following announcement to all my classes

[SarasotaRepub]

That's going to be a tough one for DU to address.

Not at all, they just call the person saying it a racist and move on.

[Wibbins]

Any physical contact can be characterized as assault, and holding somebody down while you cut their hair qualifies.

I'm not saying that this should invalidate Romney's candidacy, or that it's even revelant to the election, only that 47 years ago, in high school, he participated in the bullying of another kid in a way which would have gotten him charged with assault today. I also am saying that if this is fair game, then I want the media to provide the same scrutiny to Obama's history, including his high school and college years, his travels to Pakistan, his associations with radicals throughout his life and his conduct as an adult. I don't expect it to happen, but I do expect us to get in the faces of the Washington Post's reps and demand to know why they aren't doing their due diligence.

They would blame anything bad things Obama did in the past on Bush

[noonwitch]

Well, technically, she's right. Today, that would be assault. In fact, it was back then, too, but I suspect that the haircut had more to do with the kid being a hippie than gay. As long as she doesn't mention a specific candidate, she's not actually doing anything wrong.

Given we're talking 1965, you are likely right about the haircut thing.


It should be mentioned, also, that Cranbrook School was founded by the Society of Friends. The Quakers were still running the school as recently as my college years, in the 80s. They were known for being lax about rules and discipline, but also known for being an excellent school for those who can afford the tuition. It still is a great school-they have a planetarium and a science museum that are open to the public, although I think the planetarium is mostly used for Friday night laser light shows to the sounds of Pink Floyd.


But I can totally see a school with an atmosphere of hippie vs preppie pranks, with the gentle Quakers that ran the place allowing the students to work things out on their own.

[Novaheart]

Doucher male pack hazing singles out the different, the non-conformist, and the least likely to fight back with any effectiveness.

The "presumed" gay part of this story is editorial bullshit. This was generic asshole behavior found in just about any setting where teenage (even adult) males are gathered from high school to church camp.

It is a non-story.

Something like this happened in Ocean City during the Firemen's Week back in the late 60's or early 70's. It was a black eye to the Baltimore City Fire Department at the time, and Ocean City did all the damage control that they could to prevent the Firemen's Week, which was already known for being unruly, from being viewed as a nonfamily friendly time in OC. It didn't work. Locals started avoiding Ocean City during firemen's week, continuing to this day.

[Odysseus]

Yes. This is certainly a man-bites-dog story. You never see one of those about Obama.

Not in the Washington Post, you don't. Or the NY Times. The only reference that the Times had to the dog eating was an OPED in which they justified it on cultural grounds (i.e., defended Obama). Meanwhile the Times referenced Romney's dog on top of the car story multiple times. Gail Collins alone repeated it several times per week since it broke.

Not at all, they just call the person saying it a racist and move on.

Remember, the definition of a racist is anyone winning an argument with a liberal.

They would blame anything bad things Obama did in the past on Bush

Of course. Obama knew, even then, that Bush would be elected in 2000, so he ensured that he would follow him and undo all of the wrongs committed by Republicans by getting into Ivy League schools and working his way up through the Chicago political machine, making deals, having his home bought for him by a local mobster, letting a domestic terrorist write his first autobiography and hanging with the most radical hateful people that he could find, just so that he'd be in the right place in the right time for the 2008 nomination. What an incredible genius!

Given we're talking 1965, you are likely right about the haircut thing.

That's my guess. Again, was it the right thing to do? Nope. Not by a longshot. But if everything that we did in high school can be dredged up as a means of discrediting us as adults, then the next president would have to have been locked away in his parents' basement and kept away from all earthly temptations and contacts, remained a virgin until middle-age, and never won a fight. Basically, we'd have to vet our presidents at the San Diego Comicon. No thanks.

It should be mentioned, also, that Cranbrook School was founded by the Society of Friends. The Quakers were still running the school as recently as my college years, in the 80s. They were known for being lax about rules and discipline, but also known for being an excellent school for those who can afford the tuition. It still is a great school-they have a planetarium and a science museum that are open to the public, although I think the planetarium is mostly used for Friday night laser light shows to the sounds of Pink Floyd.


But I can totally see a school with an atmosphere of hippie vs preppie pranks, with the gentle Quakers that ran the place allowing the students to work things out on their own.

Sadly, I can see it, too. A bunch of pacifist quakers letting kids beat the crap out of each other because they don't want to impose discipline.

[obx]

I'm a parent. I have made the following announcement to my kids. "If some dumb-assed teacher makes a statement like that to you, let me know. Teachers are not allowed to make back door political statements. We will get her fired." They thought it was a great idea.

[noonwitch]

That's my guess. Again, was it the right thing to do? Nope. Not by a longshot. But if everything that we did in high school can be dredged up as a means of discrediting us as adults, then the next president would have to have been locked away in his parents' basement and kept away from all earthly temptations and contacts, remained a virgin until middle-age, and never won a fight. Basically, we'd have to vet our presidents at the San Diego Comicon. No thanks.

LOL. No one wants the guy who used up valuable brain cells for the purpose of learning to speak the Klingon language as President. He'd probably show up to be sworn in wearing a USS Enterprise uniform.

There's a diagnosis for guys like that-it's called schizotypal personality disorder.

[Adam Wood]

Given we're talking 1965, you are likely right about the haircut thing.


It should be mentioned, also, that Cranbrook School was founded by the Society of Friends. The Quakers were still running the school as recently as my college years, in the 80s. They were known for being lax about rules and discipline, but also known for being an excellent school for those who can afford the tuition. It still is a great school-they have a planetarium and a science museum that are open to the public, although I think the planetarium is mostly used for Friday night laser light shows to the sounds of Pink Floyd.


But I can totally see a school with an atmosphere of hippie vs preppie pranks, with the gentle Quakers that ran the place allowing the students to work things out on their own.

That is the precise opposite of what the article says and also my own personal experience with high-end boarding schools. My experience exactly matches that described in the WaPo article: someone who commits an infraction of the rules usually disappears quickly and quietly.

[NJCardFan]

How did a self-described "mediocre" student get into Harvard?

Do you really want the answer?

[NJCardFan]

Truth be told, this is trash politics at it's worst. What do we know about the incident? Nothing. It stands to reason that it's possible that it was some kind of retaliation. Stupidity by any other name is still stupidity mind you but they're making this out as something bigger than what it is. And it plays into Romney's hands. If I were him, I'd get in front of the first camera I can find and say, "Really? This is what troubles you?"