Many 96.9 WTKK listeners have been emailing me on behalf of a 10-year-old suspended from a Winchendon, MA elementary school for five days after taking an empty shell casing to school. The casing--from a blank fired at a community Memorial Day ceremony--was given to the boy by a uniformed veteran. The kid didn't know it was against the rules. The mom didn't know. There was no potential harm (what--schoolkids suffering from a BRASS allergy?).

Why kick the kid out for five days?

“Massachusetts General Law gives principals absolute authority in their schools. She (Mrs. Peterson) has no obligation to notify anyone else because it is expected that she has enough authority under the Massachusetts Educational Reform Act to make these decisions,” said School Committee member Christine B. Philput.

OK, so the principal has the right to kick a kid out of school for any reason, no matter how dopey, and never has to even notify anyone else? She doesn't have to answer questions from, say, elected representatives of the citizens who PAY for the schools...and her salary?

Try treating your customers that way in the private sector, Mrs. Peterson.

Here's the contact info for Toy Town Elementary if you'd like to get involved to. Speak out! Speak up!

Remember: Guns don't kill people. Empty shell casings from blanks fired at Memorial Day services do.