Pubdate: Wed, 28 Mar 2007 Source: State Press, The (AZ Edu) Copyright: 2007 ASU Web Devil Contact: http://www.asuwebdevil.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3961 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) DUDE, TAKE A CHILL PILL Overzealous hunt for drugs in school distracts from important things We all have those friends who just can't seem to get over high school. Lately, it seems those friends have all gotten jobs with the media - and the stories they're telling are getting a little disturbing. There are two specific subjects that have us worried, and they're both related to that subject that sends shivers of fear up and down school officials' spines - drugs. Every time we start to think that things might've changed since the days of "Reefer Madness," we get stories like the "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" Supreme Court case and the recent New York Times article detailing the rising tide of schools using random drug testing. In case you've missed what might be the funniest case ever to come before the Supreme Court, the "Bong Hits" case revolves around high school student Joseph Frederick, who had the brilliant idea to get on television by holding a banner that read "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" during the Olympic Torch's trip through his town. School officials suspended him, arguing his actions disrupted the school's mission, despite the fact that it occurred off campus. Setting aside the blatant free speech issues, does the school's reasoning even make sense? How is unfurling an attention-seeking banner off campus more disruptive than suspending that student and taking the case all the way to the Supreme Court? Then there's the trend toward random drug testing. According to the Times article, random drug testing has found a home in nearly 1,000 school districts across the United States. The testing isn't just used on athletes - it's been authorized for use on anyone participating in extracurricular activities. Again, eschewing the endless debate about whether a school even has the right to invade a students' privacy by subjecting them to urine tests, common sense is squarely against the policies. We always hear about how our teachers and schools need more money. We hear about a lack of after school programs because of a shortage of funds. And then we hear that schools and local governments are OK with spending the money necessary to randomly drug test their students? Are we becoming so obsessed with preventing teen drug use that we're losing sight of what's really important? The desire of school officials to maintain an educational atmosphere at their high schools is admirable. But their willingness to destroy any trust a student may have in authority by tramping all over those students' rights is deplorable. It's high time for all these officials to mellow, man. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman