Pasco County Schools reaches agreement

[Ricordo]

overly medicate

Danger.

I did a small paper (unpublished) regarding that issue in the context of legal systems. My conclusion was that what was categorized as mental illness could be mainly referred to bio-chemistry. In simple terms, some people have a bit of this, some more of that, some less.

The problem with that is that it all depends on what is considered normal. And what is abnormal. Ye olde premise that conduct is enhanced rationality, behaviour is diminished rationality. But who decides what is what? And for what purpose.

In my paper, the conclusion was reached that when a human's complete bio-chemical spectrum is defined and generalized, legal systems could disappear. And then more.

That's dangerous. Be forced to take a targeted substance each morning and you will be "normal".



EDIT: Btw, regarding that small paper --- ©
For all I know, someone can try to make it the basis of a book/movie.

[Ricordo]

I posted the following in another forum. Under my scenario, fun stuff like it would never happen.

"It's like coming to a complete stop at stop sign in a US military base. Technically, a full stop in a fraction of a second which allows a passenger to safely exit the vehicle. Some guys can do that.

That doesn't necessarily means that the MPs will not stop you. But it helps the situation a lot if you are an officer and the state police outside the base seized your driver's license and gave you a ticket for "reckless driving".

EDIT: And after showing your documentation, they stand at attention and salute.
It's a crazy world out there. My best wishes to all MPs."

[Ricordo]

Forgot. Don't want any misunderstanding, as I later posted there.

"Fwiw, my family group worked at double arm's length. Which basically meant that Plan A, Plan B, or Plan C had to be executed flawlessly. But we each had a little white card with nothing printed on it that could be inserted somewhere in the middle of nowhere. Fun times. Decades later, if there would be a chance encounter with a family member the first thing out of the mouth would be, "I thought you were dead". That close. I was the Benjamin of that family. RIP."

[Ricordo]

Fwiw. Word of caution about lab tests and human bio-chemistry.

A different result can be obtained if some lab tests are performed one (1), two (2), three (3), or five (5) days after collection. It happened to me recently. And this is the big deal --- the lab report could very well state that it was optimally performed one (1) day after collection.

As a lawyer who has handled medical malpractice cases, I can assure you that that report could be wrong, intentionally or not. In doubt? Ask a friend who owns a lab.

[Ricordo]

Pros and cons of double arm's length work.

Pro:
You're kidding, right?

Con:
This one probably hurts the most. Old friends you will be able to partake of sparingly. Months, at times a year or more.

Your best new long-term relationships will last 2, 3, or 4 months. Violet eyes (Elizabeth Taylor had her eyes), I remember.

It is not a resume-filler.

You will be encouraged/required to take a regular job. Pretty soon you run out of excuses - there's just so many relatives you can "kill-off".

Better have your personal code up-to-par. You will do things you will not be particularly proud of.

There is actually a thing that can be called healthy paranoia. Strive not to confuse it.

[This space intentionally left blank]

Never forget:
“Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person; having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but to pour them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, knowing that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and then, with a breath of kindness, blow the rest away.”

[Chigger]

Sorry but I'm not one to believe that the schools are responsible for dealing with mentally unstable kids. Neither are the police.

They have certain jobs to do and baby sitting is not one of them.

[Ricordo]

I couldn't agree with you more, Chigger. The red herring is "responsible".

But this is how it works. Federal funding is dependent on establishing programs in school catered to Special Needs children. It is an obligation and a requirement. In practice, the rooms allotted for that do not compare to the classrooms for the other children. See to believe. And that's only the start. Comply with the minimum requirements and you get the funds. For a classroom it's an enclosed space with seats and a writing board. To the point where the enclosed space can be located in the loading zone for the school. Again, see to believe.

I was invited to give a lecture in one of those spaces about my current profession. I'll never forget what happened with a dear child that raised her hand to ask me a question. Autistic, one of The Lord's preferred. But when I addressed her, she remained silent. And I stood there waiting for her question. For quite some time. Mind you, autism refers a broad spectrum. Huge. And they all have triggers.

I made the mistake, after waiting for about 2 or 3 minutes to divert my attention from her and that was her trigger. I should have asked her for permission to answer a question from a classmate. And that was it, lecture over. That was many years ago and I still remember it vividly. See the fine line?

SROs in particular are in a tight spot. Initially, they react intuitively to those situations. It's not that they start that job having received previous training. My best wishes to all of them.

Thank you for your comment, Sir.

[Ricordo]

And btw, the questions those children asked from me were sharp.

Almost all conditions were there, including IQs below 60. Sharp. Very pleasingly impressed.

[Miami_JBT]

Sorry but I'm not one to believe that the schools are responsible for dealing with mentally unstable kids. Neither are the police.

They have certain jobs to do and baby sitting is not one of them.

It isn't babysitting. As a former SRO and as a parent. Society has entrusted certain institutions to keep kids safe and to educate them. Not to cast them as if they're trash. Dumping a kid on police because he or she is "acting out" when it very well could be caused by something else isn't the right thing to do. A lot of kids come from bad homes, couple that with emotional abuse and being treated like shit by the schools. No wonder some become bad apples. It is all levels of screwed up.

When I was an SRO, there were certain kids who at the start of the year were troubled kids. By the end of the year, I was able to make a positive impact in their lives that they got better grades, felt better about themselves, did better, etc.... I made sure to make school feel welcoming for them even if their home lives were crap.

One of the schools I worked, was for troubled teenagers. It was the last place for 'em before the Miami-Dade School system bumped 'em. Some of those kids I helped went to do good things. A number enlisted and served, others went to college, others started businesses. But they all thanked me because I wouldn't give up on them.

The elementary schools I worked were the hardest. Because some staff wanted me to cuff and stuff a special ed seven year old for having a bad day. No, sorry... a little kid who's having a bad day at school because of trouble at home, doesn't result in being arrested and carted off to juvenile detention. That results in taking the kid aside, talking to the kid, feeling him out, getting the kid to express himself and what the troubles are, etc....

Little kids are still figuring out how to express and manage emotions and feelings. School is one of the places where they should have an environment on how to learn on how to do that.

A good school just doesn't teach education. It teaches a kid on how to function and deal with issues. Interacting with society, dealing with stressors, dealing with emotions, etc....

[Ricordo]

Sir.

If you are ever in the Tampa area, it would be my honor and great pleasure to invite you and your wife (?) for lunch or dinner with me, my wife, and daughter.

And I say this with all due respect and admiration. Those kids you helped, all 357 or perhaps more and counting, are going to be some of the people you will meet in Heaven. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Five_ ... _in_Heaven

EDIT: Fwiw, I served as counsel for a FOP affiliate in 1987-1988. Yes, anything and almost everything, from 1st degree murder to traffic violations. Nothing involving violence, in all its forms, against women or children. Never have, never will.