Pubdate: Sun, 10 Feb 2002 Source: Hendersonville Times-News (NC) Copyright: 2002 Hendersonville Newspaper Corporation Contact: http://www.hendersonvillenews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/793 Author: K.A. McCoy Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) SEARCHES BY DOGS A BIT OF OVERKILL To The Editor: My son came home Jan. 30 and told me the drug dogs were in school that day. I asked him if this was the first time and he said no, they do this every month or so. I was appalled. This is middle school! One minute we teach our children about their civil rights and then in the next minute show them that those rights don't mean crap. Yes, drugs in school are a problem, but they're not new. There were plenty of drugs in school when I was there (30-plus years ago). Are we going in the right direction? When my child can be searched without legal, or better yet, parental supervision, we're headed for trouble. A menstruating girl can't take a Midol or a student take an aspirin for a simple headache without fear of suspension. Any prescribed medication has to be dispensed from the office. Heck, children get detention now for a burp. Something's wrong with this picture. I am not condoning drug use by any means, but to use my father's favorite phrase, "There's a difference between scratching your butt and tearing it all to pieces." Well, guess what, friends and neighbors? Hitler even knew to go to the children first. Are we slowly becoming a police state and silently convincing our children this is OK? Next it will be you and I, and by then it will be too late because our kids will be in charge. When are we, as parents, going to start taking responsibility for teaching our children about life and quit expecting someone else to do it for us? Leave scholastics to the schools. Everything else should be taken care of at home! Don't the powers that be have enough control already? K.A. McCOY, Horse Shoe - --- MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager