News of Day

[Rudy]

I could also see that maybe they just felt a bit left out that a big deal was being made about a holiday that they can't participate in and they decided that they wanted to show their own national pride (in a positive way) by wearing the shirts so they'd have something on that day as well.

Considering one of the students was half Mexican, i think you can leave that option out. I do agree on the lack of details though. In case they were suspended due to their attitude towards the principal, rather than the fact they were wearing the US colors, then the story would be deceiving, but that is not exactly something from the media these days.

Oh, and DPX, the balcony ain't so bad .
(did i just say that? )

[Collector]

Not to mention that we don't know the history of the situation, like have there been incidents with these kids in the past, has there been ongoing racial tensions in school, how has the principal dealt with such issues before, etc. Often when these kind of stories end up in the news they are presented with a spin to give the appearance desired.

[Rudy]

Just a quick correction to my previous post: ...but that is not exactly something new from the media these days.

[Jules]

All of that to say "I have no opinion." My wife could be a politician!

DPX, the appropriate word is, diplomat...with traits of a balanced Libra.

No worries, Tawm. We're all entitled to our opinions.

Perhaps the VP didn't have ill intentions like my response had seemed to be, but if the kids didn't want to turn their shirts inside-out, the VP wasn't right in telling them to go home or face suspension... unless the kids were acting disruptive, which wasn't reported by the media.

Like Maia touched on, there could be a lot of unsaid factors in this case. Maybe the VP had a bad day. Maybe the kids were being stubborn brats. The bottom line, void of all preconceptions, is that the VP should've stopped after the kids refused to reverse their shirts. The media will view the story how they please, but in this case we have enough black and white, concrete evidence regardless of intentions. But unfortunately, emotions and preconcieved intentions aren't valid evidence if they'd ever take this to court. ...even though we can most likely safely assume a lot from them.

I'm very interested in seeing how this case turns out.

[DeadPoolX]

Not to mention that we don't know the history of the situation, like have there been incidents with these kids in the past, has there been ongoing racial tensions in school, how has the principal dealt with such issues before, etc. Often when these kind of stories end up in the news they are presented with a spin to give the appearance desired.

I have to admit that's a VERY good point. I hadn't considered that and if there have been previous problems, I can see why the principal might have taken preemptive action.

[Datadog]

Racial tensions - that's what I was thinking of! Just couldn't place the term. I kept thinking that if a bunch of white kids showed up on a Mexican holiday sporting US colors, they could unintentionally (or intentionally) be sending out the message that they want the Mexicans to go home.

[DeadPoolX]

Racial tensions - that's what I was thinking of! Just couldn't place the term. I kept thinking that if a bunch of white kids showed up on a Mexican holiday sporting US colors, they could unintentionally (or intentionally) be sending out the message that they want the Mexicans to go home.

Well, if they're Mexican-Americans, they are home. That makes the entire situation so aggravating. Unless they immigrated from Mexico, they are American. Because of that, they should not see the American flag and its colors as offensive in any way.

Yes, they have Mexican heritage. So what? Everyone in North America has an ancestor and heritage from somewhere else. That doesn't make them special.

Unfortunately, special interest groups have made certain segments of society believe they are more important than others and somehow "deserve" special treatment. Any claim to the contrary is met with harsh cries of "racism." The ironic part of that is by demanding special treatment, they are taking part in an act of racism themselves.

[therogue]

Figured to better bring back an existing thread.

I've been watching the news coming out of Egypt, Suez looks like a warzone. Cairo's streets are filled with people. Apparantly the army has just been ordered on to the streets to help surpress the protests and a presidential curfew has just started. Its extremely unlikely that the protests will have the same effect as in Tunesia but all the same its an incredible and frightening thing to see the anger of the people finally spill over.

Shocking though is the difference in coverage for the protests in Iran a while back and now the protests in Egypt. Yes, the story is big news in the international media but few politicians are talking about it. Also, how scary is it that the Egyptian government has basically cut the internet of the country and has shut down almost all cell phone networks. Still, it can't be escaped, these days, the revolution will indeed be televised

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12303564

http://english.aljazeera.net/watch_now/ (live stream)