Thursday, June 25, 2009

Citizen B's Favorite News: Supreme Court Rules Strip-Searching 13-year-old Girl Unconstitutional

After six years, the United States Supreme Court has ruled that when school officials forced then 13-year-old Savana Redding to strip down to her underwear so they could search her underwear for suspected prescription drugs they violated her Fourth Amendment rights.

The two school officials (both women, by the way) insisted that a student told them Savana carried prescription strength drugs on her to school. The "prescription-strength drugs" they were referring to were prescription strength ibuprofen. In other words, these school officials were looking for some strong Advil.

Savana was told to strip down and shake out her underwear in search for the pills which were never found.

The Supreme Court ruled 8 to 1 (Justice Clarence Thomas found the search legal) that Savana's right to privacy was compromised and further violated by having school officials strip her down without a permit or suspicion that the "drugs" were harmful or dangerous to the school.

While the district strongly prohibits prescription and over-the-counter drugs in school, isn't this going a little too far? What are you going to do next, take away the inhaler from the asthmatic kid? Or maybe forbid the diabetic kid from having his insulin?

Furthermore, could it be legal for school officials (not police with a warrant) to strip search ANY student for any reason?

(I might also remind people that a former colleague of Justice Thomas named Anita Hill testified that he sexually harassed her at work. Two other female colleagues made the same complaints.)

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

No, My Face Is Not On Fire

So my Facebook status quoting Madeleine Kahn in Clue apparently didn't go over well.

Writing "flames FLAMES on the side of my face..." earned me several emails and messages asking if I had been burned. Was it acid? Was it an accident? Had I stayed in the sun too long?

While trying for the umpteenth time this morning to fix our satellite, I walked back to my office after receiving a signal only to find it had gone out again when I got back. A coworker and I had a good laugh, and I said "I'm so angry. SO angry..." And the thus the quoting begin. So I posted that as my status, as that was indeed my feeling at the time.

What's more when I clarified that I had not been burned, but was quoting the film, I was rebuked and chastised. How dare I worry them and cry fire when I had not been burnt.

I believe I have seen presidential death threats on status messages that received less attention. I have written "has a gran coat on and a cake on her head" and no one assumed that I was suddenly senile wearing a large coat and pastries.

Oddly enough, I've written this same message on my status before and received "haha, love that movie" and "I was so angry SO angry...breath...heaving breaths..."

Am I honest to God the only person in the world who has seen this movie?????