Pubdate: Sun, 26 Sep 1999 Source: Orange County Register (CA) Copyright: 1999 The Orange County Register Contact: http://www.ocregister.com/ Author: Maryls G. Stapelbroek ACCEPTING CONSEQUENCES BUILDS CHARACTER To the editor: The Tustin School Board president's comments regarding the inflexibility of zero tolerance rules disappointed me. She indicated she wanted to be able to "weigh mitigating factors such as telling the truth." She picked a poor example to make her case. When we question our children about a possible misdeed, we expect a truthful answer. If they made a bad choice, there will be a consequence. If we find out they lied about the situation, there will be two consequences - one for the mistake and one for lying. Honesty is not a pawn to be brokered in the hopes of leniency. Being honest about our mistakes and accepting the consequences are a mark of character. One of the greatest lessons I can teach my children is that integrity is its own regard, or it's not integrity at all. MARLYS G. STAPELBROEK North Tustin - --- MAP posted-by: manemez j lovitto