Taylor Pugh, 4, likes his hair long. It hurts if he has to have it braided. So his parents are taking a principled stand against the Mesquite school board. But must we drag Hitler into any debate these days?
Delton Pugh again said he thought the district as was being unreasonable. “This isn’t Nazi Germany,” he said.
23 comments
Oh please. Man up and be a father.
1. The kid’s hair looks really bad. The only statement the parents are making here is that they have bad taste. Or no taste. And are obstinate.
2. Follow the rules, Pugh boy. You don’t have to like them but they’re in place for a reason. Learning to follow rules makes it a whole lot easier to get along in life.
3. Mesquite ISD should just adopt a uniform only policy so kids can go buy their khaki pants, white shirts and blue sweatshirts at Target. And maybe blue pony tail holders so Pugh boy Jr. can put his hair up.
To be fair, he could have been referring to any number of Nazis. I agree that Hitler is entirely unoriginal, but I give mad props to a correctly dropped Leni Riefenstahl reference. It means you’ve been watching the History Channel.
and I don;t like having to wear pants. But the law says I must…
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-nopants_11met.ART0.State.Edition1.4bbe253.html
“A Dallas Area Rapid Transit police cruiser was parked and waiting in front of Union Station. On the platform, an officer warned people that taking their pants off was against the law.
“It’s considered disorderly conduct. You can go to jail or you can be cited,” he said.”
When the MISD can connect the dots of this kid’s story to their own students dying from cheese overdose, hallway drug deals and low test scores, then have at it. Otherwise, drop it, move on and prioritize your educational goals.
Watching this story on the news taught me one simple lesson: I can call that kid’s father if I am looking for some meth. IJS.
Agree on all points D Girl, especially #1. Poor kid doesn’t stand a chance a just being a normal kid.
The “as was” typo in that sentence is more offensive and concerning than Mr. Pugh’s Nazi Germany comment. Let the kid have long hair, the kid’s education should be more important.
Godwin’s Law claims another victory. Kudos to you, Mesquite Reprobate Father.
@DMB, you are exactly right, kids have to express themselves and if they want their hair long just think of the alternatives. He’ll get tired of long hair. Would you rather have piercings everywhere, tatoos everywhere, meth everywhere?? I worked at a very prestigious private school here in Dallas and on my first day I was shocked at the hair styles of the kids and when I asked how could they allow green hair, spiked hair, you get the picture, they simply said “this is a very unintrusive way kids can express themselves, as long as it’s clean eventually their peers will always let them know and at least they aren’t doing drugs”. Pick your battles MISD leave this 4th grader be.
So GMOM, why have rules at all… No guns in school, well, we have the right to bear arm? Not saying that the rule is right or wrong, but it is a rule.
On another note, the mom on TV said, “His hair makes him who he is”… What? Ok, maybe she is right, it makes him the kid who sits in the library instead of in his class.
GMOM – He’s 4 years old, not in 4th grade. This kid doesn’t know squat about expressing himself, he’s barely out of diapers. I think this more about parents wanting to thumb their noses at the rule. That school you taught at must not have a dress code. This school does. Parents and students should follow it.
@DM – Seriously? Isn’t that what MISD is trying to do? Concentrate on education? It’s the parents who are shifting the focus from the classroom to a 4-yr old’s haircut. He’s 4, for crying out loud. Teach him that rules matter, to respect the teacher and his classmates, and that his whims and desires are not always paramount. Man, do I hope MISD doesn’t cave on this.
@Keith, I think there’s a big difference between “rules” that protect us from getting shot, and “rules” that were put into place simply because an old person doesn’t like long hair.
Stupid rules are stupid. And just because something is a rule, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s right.
All that being said, both parents AND school administrators need to learn when to pick their battles. And sometimes a parent needs to man up and tell their brat “I don’t CARE if you like long hair, I’m the parent and I say it gets cut!”
And GMOM, his parents might get tired of that stringy, gross long hair but then there will be another rule they feel entitled to break. And then another. And another. And then junior might decide he really wants that car your driving or the girl who turned him down for a date. And he takes the car or rapes the girl because he never learned to follow the rules. I’m not suggesting that having long hair leads to a life of crime, but a person who doesn’t learn to obey and follow established rules ends up breaking them. And laws are rules.
I think we have Mesquite’s first entry into the running for the 2010 Darwin Awards.
Sammy, the parent’s have a choice if they think the rules are stupid-go enroll their kid in another school district or deal with the cost of private school. I’d wager the issue would soon be dropped if the “father” (term used very loosely) figured out how much money he would be out of pocket in that scenario.
@WT I’m not advocating ‘the breaking of rules’ here. I’m advocating common sense. What is happening in the press right now? Mesquite ISD is pitching that random rules are more important than a child’s education. The story has gone national and further seals opinions people have about out of touch governments and administrations. (they’re last moment in the sun was to seize t-shirts in a mall). They could have ’seized’ this moment in the sun with some rather ‘educational’ response to a very simple problem. This is just the tip of the iceberg of what is wrong with modern, public education: equating hair style as a gateway behavior for bringing a gun to school.
OK, I give, first the school which I worked has uniforms and skirt length rules, lots of rules. I did not see this on TV, if the kid is 4 I don’t see a problem. Tackle him, throw him to the ground and cut his hair, he’s 4, problem solved. He’s 4, he’s not in day care? He’s really in “school”? If the parents are low rent then I would assume the Dad has long hair at least a mullet and the Mom likes long hair on her men. Sounds like the parents don’t respect rules and 4 year olds probably don’t understand rules, so I’m pretty sure the kid won’t respect rules when he learns what “rules” are. Not far from the TREE falls the mullet. Better?
My favorite was when the Mom said on the news this morning: “I don’t see a justificated reason. . .” Huh?
If Craig James was the daddy of this little kid, he could just get the teacher and principal fired.
I actually feel sorry for that little kid. He has a rotten set of parents and is being taught that rules don’t apply to him. That kid is going rough time in the years to come.
A school district needs to set an ovearll atmosphere and dress code is one aspect of that. While he is 4 and we might say “what is the big deal”, where is a school district supposed to draw the line? 4th grade, 8th grade?
Enforcing the code at all grade levels is the right way to go.
I find it unlikely this kid actually cares about his hair. This is all about the parents.
Reading thru these responses tickles me. And by tickle, I mean makes me want to go kick something.
@GMOM. MISD is not “picking battles” here, the father-shaped object is. Ostensibly, this rule has been just fine for, I dunno, maybe eons. Suddenly, the FSO decides that Hitler was a bad guy therefore MISD must be too because, they both like rules and stuff. Good Lord.
@Sammy….so you really think the rule exists because old guys don’t like long hair. Really? Are you gonna stick with that? Heads Up! Owww My Balls is on at 7:00 again tonight!
@DM Burrows…nobody but the strawmen are equating grooming rules with bringing handguns to school. Weird, really.
BTW…how is it a “random” rule? Seems pretty clear cut to me and exists within a consistent framework of other grooming requirements.
Lastly, the little dude is 4. He has about zero self-awareness beyond what can he do to score that candy bar. The parent shaped objects are largely what is wrong with modern edumacation. And that’s justificated!
/Meth