Of Captains and Ships (and stowaway scapegoats)

I have read many times in the wake of the whole fake gunmen story that the captain goes down with the ship. That is code for Don Bartch , the assistant principal on the trip, needs to get fired.

I understand the thinking and I agree with the thinking. I agree with the thinking when it is applicable. It applies in situations when the ship must go down. This is not one of those situations.

There is no need for a ship to sink for this situation. Oh sure, people are still all ticked off about the Virginia Tech thing, and they should be. They are mad because they did not get proper justice for the wacko that killed all the people at VT. They are mad because the killer took his own life and there was no sense that justice could be placed upon him. There is a bulging and unrequited hatred pent up in America and lots of people are looking someone to take it out on. Taking it out on Don Bartch because of a poorly reported and highly sensationalized story is just too easy.

The ship does not have to sink. Any psychological damage done, which is minimal and highly exaggerated by the media, will be healed. I was a school teacher and I have seen first hand what happens in schools and seen what (some) teachers do and are not get fired for that cause more damage than this incidnet has caused. Most teachers are terrific, but there are some real pieces of crap out there that hurt children's feeling on a day by day and hour by hour basis, but they keep their jobs. Why? Because they are not pinned down by the media. This situation is with good teachers and an administrator who saw a prank going too far and ended it. They attended to the kid's feelings. They showed their care and concern. Did that get reported?

People who say that the captain needs to go down with his ship in this situation are simply looking for a ship to go down rather than weighing the facts of the story as they are, not as they are reported by the media.

When Scary Stories Go Bad

***This is an update on the fake gunmen story in Murfreesboro***

It was a scary story run amuck that got the whole fake gunmen incident going. Apparently the teacher who thought up the story was a pretty good story teller.

Sitting out at a camping trip and telling stories is a tradition that goes back who knows how long? Kids getting scared by ghost stories and evil of all kinds is part of the tradition. Stories of these kinds give the sense of ambivolent fear that says, "that could never happen, but I am not going back to my cabin alone."

Had there been no Virginia Tech story, there would be no Fall Creek Falls camping trip story. period. The national zeitgeist was such that people really do kill people with guns. Columbine, Jonesboro, and Red lake had all worn off - but Virginia Tech had not.

When you are in the situation like this, there is a point when the situation crosses the line and then there is the point when you recognize that it is crossing the line. The teacher took it too far. True to his character, Bartch is being truthful and is not hanging anyone out to dry.

I hope that the two week suspension is the extent of the punishment (too much in my opinion). If the one or two parents who are out for blood demand his head on a platter and they get it, then the school district administration is gutless and no place anyone would want to work for.

I think that if they ask for Bartch's resignation, the enrtire faculty ought to join Bartch with their resignations as well. Yes, I think that he is that important to the school. If they fire him, then good luck trying to get someone in that position with half the character of Bartch.

All a firing would do is satisfy (or not) a few gripers and appease the ignorant outcries in the media. It would be a short term fix. But then finding a new assistant principal in a school district that makes scapegoats of their best people is no place anyone with any self-resepct would want to work. In short, a firing will shut people up for now, but will be bad for children.

The school distrcit should stand by the assistant principal in the same way the assistant princiapal is standing by the teacher.

***UPDATE***Don Bartch Is A Decent Guy

***UPDATE***

1. All quotes from Don Bartch are not true as he has not given any interviews.

2. Don Bartch did not organize, plan, authorize, or have any knowledge of the fake gun attack until it was in process.

3. He decided not to let the teacher who concocgted this plan not hang out to dry. Bascially, he is standing in front of a bullet (media) for the teacher.

4. In short, he is taking one for the team on a national stage.

THAT is the Don Bartch I know.



Everyone wants to take Don Bartch to the woodshed. He's the assistant principal who, along with another teacher, took a group of 6th graders on a trip to Fall Creek Falls. They staged a fake attack by a gunman. The way this story is being reported makes these guys sound like montsters. Bartch, I know, is not a monster.

I know this guy personally and I can tell you beyond the shadow of a doubt that he is a man of integrity and honor. I think that the fact that one of the kids who experienced this situation said the following is testimony to the fact that he is a decent guy.

Student Shay Morris said, "If (the assistant principal) loses his job, I will break into tears. He's the best assistant principal I've ever had."


It comes as no surprise to me that a student would say this about Don. I am quite sure that most of the students who have come into contact with him would say the same. It is almost impossible not to like this guy.

If you are the kind of person who wants to waylay people reported in the news, here's your chance, so I guess you can go ahead. But you need to understand that you are taking out your rage on one of the best people I know.