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Originally posted by yournamehere
So what would you teach him? - I get what I want - Fuck everyone else.?
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No. I would teach the kid to stand up for what he thinks is right, and to not be intimidated because people don't approve of your appearance, opinions, ethnicity, etc. Again, there are more important things than blue hair to stand up for, but it's a good place to start. And I would teach the other kids that
different is not bad.
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I'm all for individuality and personal rights, but the right to swing my arm ends at your nose. <i>That's</i> what's not being taught here by the parents.
I just feel that the cumulative rights of the classmates outweigh the rights of one student. If that makes me a "Stepford conformist whiner," so be it. I've been called worse . . . . . . . .
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I guess where we disagree is about the "rights" of the classmates. I don't think it's their
right to insist that another person's free expression doesn't offend them, or their aesthetic sensibilities. If this were a high school student wearing an upopular political t-shirt (from whatever side of the political spectrum; and again, assuming that it doesn't violate dress code), would your opinion be different?
The "where my nose begins" argument is all fine and good when it comes to property rights (zoning laws, convenances), health considerations (smoking bans), business practices (environmental regulation), etc., but I'm not willing to let that argument extend into issues of personal expression and "taste" for lack of a better term. I'm surprised that you would be. It's this kind of "offend no-one" thinking that has led to the ridiculous PC culture we live in and that hardly anybody thinks is a good thing.