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Post by tridlette on Mar 3, 2004 16:41:30 GMT -5
Our high school was under lock down today following a drug related gang war. Details are still scarce... but according to the Boy Scouts in my troop that I have spoken with and one police officer that stopped to say hello, 30 kids were arrested by 8 a.m. Windows broken in the building by fists, knife fights and at lunch a teen reportedly was dropped to the ground within seconds of pulling a gun out. The first police officer on the scene was supposedly taken to the hospital with injuries sustained by trying to break up the fight. I have heard that several teachers were injured, the entire school was searched by drug sniffing dogs, and over 50 kids were eventually arrested. Even though my oldest is still a half year away from the high school, I THANK GOD he broke his leg last weekend, and I decided to let him stay home to make up all his missing homework assignments (a months' worth  ) I knew where he was at during the mess, but I was so scared for his friends that are older. I don't want him to go back to any school in the district, and from what I have heard since 1 p.m., I am in good company. We don't live in "the city". We are in a suburb 30 miles from Philadelphia... next door to Valley Forge! I knew we had drugs in town, I just never expected to see our high school surrounded by police cars and helicopters. No child was allowed to even leave a classroom to use a toilet after the lunch time fights broke out. One of the boys told me that on the bus ride home, the kids were comparing stories, and there were at least 17 different classrooms that had fights break out in the them after lunch. I need to vent. I don't know how to react, how to allow my children to go into that environment, and how to discuss the issues with my 4th grader. I don't know if this is typical stuff these days, I grew up in rural New England and we never had anything like this. I am scared. Thank you for being here for me. Laurie |
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Post by mskris on Mar 3, 2004 16:49:54 GMT -5
Wow, Laurie - aren't you in Montgomery Co.?? I thought they had a great school district.
I tell you, though, it can happen anywhere. The Bucks co. Courier Times is currently running a series on kids and drugs in this area. I'm shocked at how many upscale, suburban, well-educated kids are involved in things like heroin, not to mention household product abuse!!
It scares the heck out of me, and my oldest is only 8!! I also found that sometimes the more affluent communities have more problems, just because of the "ready cash" these kids seem to possess.
What to do? I don't know. I'd love to send my kids to the Friends schools, but I can't afford it! If by chance we managed tuition for that, forget college! So I don't have any answers for you, but much sympathy.
This is all new to me, too. I grew up in a NYC suburb (in NJ) which was affluent, but never saw anything so much as a joint until my folks moved to FL (I was 16 at the time). Liquor/beer was the thing in my day...
but then again, I'm old - LOL.
I guess we just have to be proactive about talking to our kids and hope they don't get caught in the cross-fire.
Kris
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Post by jdmom on Mar 3, 2004 18:01:09 GMT -5
OMG! I bet there were a lot of panicked parents in your community! It's so sad that our children have to live and grow in these times. The best we can do is to just keep them informed.
I live in a small town and that is one of the resons. I have cousins my age who grew up in Tulsa, and let me tell you, those girls were wild! I know that these days, it could just as easy happen in a small town as anywhere else, though. We do not have gangs, but there is not much to do in a small town and kids get bored and experiment with drugs. Every boy hunts and owns guns. All it would take is one ticked off high redneck to bring his gun to school...
The only thing we can do is educate our children and keep the communication lines open. Right now Jarrett is only 7, but he will talk to me about anything. Raising a boy is new to me, as I have no brother and most of my cousins were girls, but I try to keep a straight serious face about some of the subjects he brings up, because I know that these silly conversations that we have now will hopefully lead him to be more likely to talk to me about the more serious ones in the future.
I have to admit that my first reaction if something like that happened around here would be to jerk him out of the public schools so fast his head would spin. As a single mom, I can't afford it, but I'd make it work somehow, even if I had to work 2 jobs. However, are the private schools any better? As Laurie said the wealthier kids have more access to money for drugs. It's just a scary world.
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Post by Honeysmom on Mar 3, 2004 19:41:32 GMT -5
Wow, that would sacre the hell out of me too. I cannot beleive that this stuff really happens. Drinking was big in my day, but honestly I never even saw a joint until I was out of High school. The drinking in my class was totally out of control though. In fact, over 1/2 of my class was permanetly suspended from sports for drinking, and that took 6 underage fines from the police, not to mention all the times that only the parents caught them. I was such a dork, I thought I was cool having my first drink on graduation night, and it was a wine cooler!!! ;D
IMHO, the private schools (not all, but some) are sometimes worse. I went to pubilc HS and so did my sister, my borther was 3 years behind her and he went to private. He saw everything under the sun. It seems that many of the parents have more money and then so do the kids. My brother said if he wanted he could have any drug anytime he wanted. Of course, he told mom and dad this after HS.
I don't know what I would do about this. I would be honest with your little guy. No sense in not having him prepared, I have a sneaking suspicion that this is not going to get better. In fact, my BIL said that last year kids in his class (7th grade) were regular weed smokers! This just give me one more reason to buy that big lock for the door. Telling them not to do drugs is one thing, but gang wars....I am not ready to be a mother.
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MomA
Member
Posts: 58
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Post by MomA on Mar 3, 2004 20:09:35 GMT -5
Laurie, that's so scary! One of the reasons I originally thought I'd homeschool my son (changed my mind for various reasons and am glad I did...but...). I ran to KYW's site after I read this, so I know what you're talking about, though you have a lot more detail than they're reporting.
My 1st grader's in Abington School District. We don't see many things around here like that, but I know and have seen enough of the Jr. High and High School kids that I know it could happen here. Could happen anywhere.
It's a blessing your son was home today.
And I'm glad to be in a position to homeschool if things like that start happening here.
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Post by Jorgy on Mar 3, 2004 21:29:06 GMT -5
Good Lord! That is very scary! I hate to tell you guys thouh, I am in a small town in Wisc. It is well known knowledge that ther is no where you can go to get away from drugs. You don't think your town has a problem? Talk to the people in ayour local ER or police station. A couple years ago we had 3 different gangs in our little town. Most people don't even know about this. I would be terrified to send my kids to a school that has had a lock down. I'm scared enough to send mine to our local public school! Sue
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Post by rosyred45 on Mar 4, 2004 8:04:18 GMT -5
I'm gonna either start watching the news more or stop watching it all together.  Being in our small town, we send off the kids to a neighboring town for high school (9th to 12th grades). There are 4 districts that sent to the HS I went to, so of course, it was town against town, or the rednecks/motor heads/metal heads against the preppies. Although most of everything was dealt with w/out weapons, and if anybody was packin, everyone knew it, but "didn't know nuthin" There was ALWAYS something going on where I went. I don't know if I even want to send my kids there any more. The district favors the kids from the area, and has a prejiduce against anyone that isn't. I'm talking with sports, drama, atrs, everything. It was like that when MY DAD went there, so I know that much won't change for my kids. I'm realizing more and more that there are drugs and such around here, although they keep a tight profile on it since we are so small and everyone is related somehow or another, so you'll get sniched eventually. Not necessarily any GANG activity, but our boys are a proud bunch. All of them. I don't care if they are 100 yrs old, they all stick together for the town. Almost LittleHouse on the Prarie stick together. They might not get along most of the time, but watch out when they do, heads are rolling. Tridlette, y'all can move over here, it's not that far away, and we have cheaper gas WITHOUT having to pump it. Kaiti |
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Post by finnmom on Mar 4, 2004 15:17:36 GMT -5
Tridlette I´am so sorry for you, clad that your son was at home save, but so sorry for the other´s. that´s totally afful! I know drug´s are spredding really fast, there is hardly no place where you wouldnt find those, it´s such a tough world  I´am so sorry, I hope you´ll hang in there! )))))))HUGS(((((((( Marja |
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Post by Linda on Mar 4, 2004 20:00:49 GMT -5
I wish I had some answers but I don't. It is really getting scary...doesn't matter where you live either. I live in the city and sad to say,to some extent I am becoming immune to it.
In the nearby suburbs....The town had a meeting with parents because so many kids in middle and High School were stealing pills from there parents,friends and getting high off them,1 student died and several overdosed...seems there choice of pills were vicadin,,,muscle relaxers.It really is everywhere.
Try to be not to scared and keep the lines of communications open with your kids and talk talk talk to them.
Things happen in elementary school too...but sometimes I long for those days.
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Post by sierra on Mar 4, 2004 20:01:05 GMT -5
Tridlette I'm so glad your son was home. I feel so sorry for all the innocent kids who got scared half to death today. I even feel sorry for the kids whose parents are so clueless they can get away with taking weapons and drugs to school.
Let me just pose this question. Do you think your kid(s) could go to school with a weapon in their backpack without you suspecting? Do you think your kid(s) could drink without you suspecting? Do you think your kid(s) could do drugs without you suspecting?
Do you know their friends? Do you know where they are after school?
Good!
We get no choice but to be up to our necks in our kids lives because they have adhd and they'd find themselves at school in their underwear with no backpack and no lunch money if we didn't keep track of every dang thing every dang day.
See, there's a silver lining. Since we have to do backpack inspection at least twice a day and gather up homework left from one end of the house to the other our kids don't have nearly the opportunity to get themselves in trouble that kids who can fly under their parent's radar screen have.
Our kids may get into trouble over impulsive behavior. But taking weapons to school isn't impulse. It takes a lot of planning. It also takes a very blind parental eye.
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Post by rosyred45 on Mar 5, 2004 7:15:43 GMT -5
I agree with Sierra, since we do have to keep such tabs on the kids, they might do impulsive things, but having to think things out isn't one of my son's better qualities. (A blessing of sorts.)
I still haven't seen it on Channel 6 news though, and we have had the news on since 5 thins morning. I guess it's just one of those things, like Linda said, people get immune to.
I think that if some of these kids that are involved in gangs had a supportive family, there would be a lot less activity of this type going on. It's just a shame to see some good kids go bad and innocent children turn ugly.
Kaiti
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Post by camismom on Mar 5, 2004 8:47:11 GMT -5
Laurie,
What a scary situation. I can only imagine how you must feel about sending your child there in the future. Unfortunately, like others have said, it happens everywhere. I saw gang activity quite a bit when I worked in a MIDDLE school. It is scary, and makes you want to give up anything you can to keep your kids home, but sometimes (most of the time) it just can't be done. In that case, all we can do is inform and educate our kids to the best of our ability, teach them the right decisions to make and why they are right, and pray! They may have taken prayer out of the schools, but they can't take it away from the parents!
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Post by tridlette on Mar 5, 2004 8:56:25 GMT -5
Thanks to all of you for listening to my whining. When I read the paper, only 22 got arrested. There was a 20 second blurb on Channel 5 Wednesday night at 6, one of the boys said he saw it on Fox. KYW had something on for about an hour, I never heard it... but DH did. Thursday was a quiet day... I never heard or saw the news helicopters... so I assume nothing happened. As an off shoot to what happened at the high school, I got a note home from the elementary principal last night. Apparently at dismissal there on Wednesday, some of the riled up teens caused quite a disturbance behind the school where parents pick up the car riders. My little one rides the bus, so he missed it, but the trouble makers behind the school got arrested too! I talked with Shaun about the whole thing, and he just re-itereated his desire to home school next year. My oldest said he would consider it if I made it possible for him to still see his friends just as often! When Michael was home Tuesday and Wednesday resting his foot, (it swelled up a lot from being on it all day at school on Monday), he completed ALL of his back homework assignments since Christmas break! Dad was so pleased that the work was done, and so upset about the school fights, he didn't even yell at me for letting the kid "skip" 2 days of school! Maybe, just maybe, he will agree to letting these two join their brother homeschooling! So, for now, the kids are back to "normal" and I am hoping that Dad will see the light. Kaiti, if it didn't cost so dang much to cross the bridges between NJ and PA I would have moved into your neighborhood 4 years ago! The commuter penalty  keeps DH here. Enjoy the warm weather again today! Laurie |
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Post by adhdtimes4 on Mar 5, 2004 9:07:36 GMT -5
Tridlette - you aren't whining! These are horrible, frightening events happening right near your kids. I hope that the crack down by authorities helps to stop the problems, and I pray you and your family come to the perfect solution for your kids. I went to a really rough highschool, and I know you can survive, but being afraid to go into the bathroom without being assaulted is no fun. My heart hurts for you.
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Post by rosyred45 on Mar 5, 2004 9:09:38 GMT -5
Jeez, how many taxes do you have?  Understandable though  What's not understandable, do these kids have no cooth? Morals? Anything? I guess just growing up where I did and how I did, makes me appreciate things alot more than I used to. I too wish for the good old days. Kaiti |
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