Q: When do principles cost too much?

A: when they’re the wrong principles and the money could be spent educating students instead.

USA Today/Ganette is reporting that The Easton, PA school district is appealing a federal appeals court decision that allowed two girls to wear bracelets that say, “I (heart) Boobies”.  The bracelets are part of a breast cancer awareness campaign.  Easton’s argument is that the bracelets are lewd.

I grew up in a town that had a track record of going to the Supreme Court for stupid reasons.  The first case involved trying to claim that English as a Second Language Teachers weren’t actually teachers, despite their qualifications and the fact that they were in fact teaching.  They lost.  In a separate case, they went to the Supreme Court over having searched a girl’s locker and having had her arrested.  The Court dismissed the notion that they were entitled to act in loca parentis, under the theory that few parents would have their children arrested.  Both of these cases cost the tax payers millions of dollars.

Easton, PA is not a rich town.  The district does okay with what they have (about the middle of the pack in PA).  Still, their money is being wasted by a case of very questionable merit, where even a positive result will not help a single student.  So why sue?  Because the superintendent wanted to be the ultimate source of authority in his district for what is and is not appropriate for students to wear.  Guess what?  He’s a public servant, applying the rules of our society.  He doesn’t get the final say.  And he’s wasting a lot of money finding out.  Oh and their lawyer story claims that the appeal will cost $2,000-$3,000.  Horse hockey!

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