The Colony Courier-Leader (The Colony, Tex.), Vol. 26, No. 16, Ed. 1 Wednesday, May 23, 2007 Page: 6 of 31
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Page 6A — The Colony Courier-Leader — Wednesday, May 23,2007 — www.sentx.com
PINION
I IV IOI
New Web site a definite improvement
Cay
DCI
COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS
the Community. With the Community. For the Community.
Blaine Crimmins
Managing Editor
Phone: 469-633-7765
Fax: 469-633-7779
bcrimmins@acnpapers.com
www.scntx.com
EDITORIALS
Dress Codes
Consistent enforcement essential
For better or worse, student dress codes have been added to
what seems to be an ever-increasing list of regulations governing
life in K-12 education.
Not every school in every community requires what is known
as “standardized dress,” but many do and many more are await-
ing the results of those programs to determine their own actions.
The general movement here and elsewhere appears to be
toward requiring such codes.
In Mesquite Independent School District, Barry Walker made
the district’s dress code, or rather questions about the enforce-
ment of it, an issue in his recent unsuccessful challenge against
Place 1 incumbent Rita Crump, who is doing a turn as the school
board’s president.
The current code is similar to that used in many districts
across the country. Many analysts consider such dress codes a
means of taking the Paris-fashion-runway element and the envy
and competition that go with it out of public education, but their
most basic purpose is to improve the learning environment by
bolstering student safety and reducing disruptions.
Gangs like the prohibited baggy pants and related attire
because it is relatively simple to hide weapons and drugs in
them. A recent television news report demonstrated how easy it
is for someone to hide a virtual arsenal in them.
Attire, it will be remembered, was also a factor in the
Columbine shootings, according to some.
In light of this, the public has understandable concerns about
how students clothe themselves and, in large urban high schools
at least, has supported reasonable dress requirements.
Although Walker did not win the election, the questions he
raised were legitimate and deserve further examination by the
public and trustees.
Indeed, Walker told The Mesquite News, a publication of Star
Community Newspapers of Texas, that the perceived failure of
the district to enforce the code adequately was his primary rea-
son for running.
Considering the challenges — both logistical and financial —
that running for elected office may entail, we should take this
seriously.
Walker brought to his campaign a background in activities at
North Mesquite High School as a booster and in other capacities.
It was there that he developed a concern about a perceived fail-
ure of the district to enforce the dress code, although he later
said he believes the problem occurs across the entire district.
He cares. And, when citizens care enough about an issue to
run for office on the basis of it, we should take note.
At about this time last year, which was the second year for the
dress code in Mesquite’s public schools, district staff members
reviewed their experience to that point and updated the policies
where they thought gaps needed to be filled.
Beginning last fall, for example, students were asked not to
wear gaucho-style Capri-pants. But khaki Capris were permitted,
and they were still allowed to wear black t-shirts as undershirts.
Given this precedent for review and the concerns brought out
in the election contest, the board of trustees should direct
Superintendent Linda Henrie to review enforcement procedures
and provide a comprehensive report in a timely manner on the
level of enforcement that is under way.
At the same time, trustees themselves should make unan-
nounced visits to schools to observe the situation and use them
as opportunities to remind students and parents that a dress
code exists, for good reason, and should be followed.
West Nile
Rain makes infections more likely
A relatively plentiful rainy season has raised our reservoirs,
enabled residents of suburban North Texas to delay turning on
their sprinklers and, in general, turned this into a somewhat
more normal spring.
But some of that rain ends up in pools of standing water,
which provide the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes and
the health threats they may pose, including potentially fatal West
Nile virus.
In 2006, Texas reported 354 cases of West Nile virus and 31
deaths — up from 128 cases and 11 deaths just a year earlier —
for the nation’s second-highest number of cases.
The rainfall during some recent storms has been so heavy
that the National Weather Service issued flash-flood watches.
Residents have been asked to check their residences for areas
where standing water may collect.
Some municipalities have already begun inspections them-
selves. City crews typically apply larvicide to standing water in
public places and spray for mosquitoes in the early morning.
Typical collection points include flower pots or similar ves-
sels, bird feeders or other containers.
Health officials urge residents to get rid of all standing water;
empty, remove, cover or turn upside down any receptacle or
container that will hold standing water; change water in pet dish-
es, wading pools and bird baths several times each week; cover
trash containers; and repair any leaking plumbing and outside
faucets.
They also urge residents to contact their local health depart-
ments or visit their Web sites for information; wear long, loose-
fitting, fight-colored clothing when outdoors; report dead birds
to authorities; use insect repellent products containing DEET or
other EPA-approved repellent compounds; and keep doors,
porches and window screens in good condition and frames
sealed tightly to help keep mosquitoes out of the house.
Health officials came up with the “Four Ds” — dusk/dawn,
dress, DEET and drain.
More information on mosquitoes can be found on the Web
sites www.epa.gov and www.cdc.gov. To report mosquito prob-
lems, contact county health departments.
Opinion Policy
The Colony Courier-Leader encourages
you to voice your opinion on matters of
interest to you and other readers through
the Letters to the Editor and In My
Opinions columns. All viewpoints are wel-
come.
Submissions must be signed and
include your address and daytime tele-
phone number for verification. However,
only the author’s name and hometown
will be published.
The Courier-Leader will not print items
suspected of containing defamation, and
it will not publish items personally attack-
ing other individuals. Name-calling will
So I’m forced to eat my words.
A couple months ago, or so, I wrote about
my displeasure with The Colony city Web
site. That included the color yellow, which
was particularly unappealing while on the
screen. The good news that came out of it
was that the city had already been in the
process of re-designing the site.
The new-look site launched last week,
located at www.ci.the-colony.tx.us, and it’s a
definite improvement.
At the end of last year, the city formed a
committee of staff member to re-design the
site to make it more appealing, more naviga-
ble and easier for the staff to maintain, said
city spokesman Diane Baxter. The task of re-
design fell a great deal on GIS coordinator
- Justin Johnson, who re-built most of the
"1 pages. He went through the site page by
page, reviewing and re-designing the infor-
mation.
There are still some kinks that need to be
worked out, Baxter said.
not be tolerated.
Letters intended for individuals rather
than the public at large are unacceptable.
Letters to the editor may not exceed 300
words and In My Opinion essays may not
exceed 600 words. Other items may be
longer if in the editor’s judgment, the
extra length is merited. No more than one
In My Opinion and one letter to the editor
will be published per person per month.
Letters and opinion essays should be
sent to Opinions Editor, The Colony
Courier-Leader, 8820 W. Main St., Ste.
200, Frisco TX 75034. Send via e-mail to
bcrimmins @ acnpapers.com
“We came up with
designees from each
department and trained
them how to update
their pages. We are cur-
rently dealing with
some issues of browser
incompatibility, howev-
er it all seems to work
well on Internet
Explorer. The city has
incorporated input from
the users to the greatest
degree possible,” Baxter
said.
“It is, and will forev-
KEVIN
BOWEN
Hey Kids,
Get Off My Lawn
er be a work in progress as we continue our
mission to give residents and visitors a quick
and easy way to find the answers they are
searching for,” Baxter said.
The design doesn’t stray too far from the
previous design. What I do like are three
easy-to-spot links, one each for businesses,
residents, and visitors, that lead to a page of
useful information for each group.
The Web site has changed from that pirn-
gent yellow to a basic white adorned by red,
blue, and green. That includes the new logo,
the adoption of which is still a point of con-
tention. There might be problems with how
the logo would look on things like water
towers, but on screen, the medium for which
it was designed, it looks pretty sharp.
Much more importantly, the Web site is a
grade up on the professionalism scale, which
was the substantive complaint about the for-
mer site in the first place. It’s not perfect in
this regard, but it is no longer a turnoff.
Prospective businessmen considering The
Colony will no longer have a terrible first
Internet impression. And that’s what really
counts.
Kevin Bowen is the community edi-
tor for The Colony Courier-Leader.
Moms, dads parent different
When the ladies of our church retreated -
as in “hid in piney woods for a long weekend
of revelry and general silliness,” not “ran far
away with our tails tucked between our legs”
— I chose carefully the words in which I
would ask my dear husband if he’d be up to
the task of parenting alone in my absence.
“Honey, I’m outta here on the 17th. I’ve
loaded the freezer with mini corn dogs and
bagels.”
Thankfully Bret focused so intently on
whatever game he was watching at the time
that he simply nodded and waved me off with
one hand. “Yeah, yeah.”
He’d live to regret those words.
Next, I started lining up all the planets in
our solar system. No, wait, my job was hard-
er than that. I actually had to complete all the
preliminary prep work to going out of town.
Let’s see, I’d be away from home two days;
so, naturally, it would take me more than a
week to get everything ready.
Men don’t understand this about moms.
When dads go out of town, they just go. They
toss a razor, a toothbrush, and deodorant in a
carry on, charge up the laptop, and they’re
good to go. Dads don’t waste Thought One on
what will happen with the kids while they’re
gone. Why is that?
Are they so confident that Mom has things
handled? Or are they so self-absorbed that
they just don’t allow such insignificant
thoughts to camp in their overly full brains?
After all, they have much more important
things to think about —
like who’s going to make
the playoffs and whether
the Dow will break
14,000.
My husband thinks
on a linear basis. When
he finishes one appoint-
ment, he checks his
Palm Pilot and heads for
his scheduled lunch. He
operates much the same
way with the kids —
pick one up from choir
and head to baseball
LESLIE
WILSON
Reality Motherhood
with another. It wouldn’t bother him to have
to run back by the house to get a bat bag or a
bottle of water. I’d kick myself for my lack of
planning ahead which led to my wasting valu-
able time!
Parenting is extracurricular to men. They
have a real job that gives them their identity.
Conversely, women are defined by mother-
hood and how good they are at doing it - even
if they hold down jobs outside the home.
Women fill their brains with tons of “use-
less” information: kids’ birth dates, shot
records, sleep schedules, and allergies. I
mean, it’s not like anybody could write down
that kind of stuff to free up brain waves. No,
we cram it all in, along with the phone num-
ber for poison control and our 4-year-old’s
soccer practice schedule.
Though some of my over-planning, over-
preparing, and overkill might have been
caused by the perfectionism I’ve been trying
to eradicate from my life like these last 10
pounds, mostly it’s a mommy vs. daddy brain-
thing.
Therefore, I not only packed myself, I
typed up schedules and rosters and waivers
and instructions and permission slips and
directions to friends' houses. I called a fami-
ly meeting and went over everything in
minute detail.
Then, turning to my husband and shaking
him gently, I said, “Honey, Honey, wake up.
Do you have any questions about any of the
stuff I just went over?”
“No, Baby, we’re good.” He winked at the
kids, conveying in that nanosecond: Just wait
‘til she’s out of the driveway gang. It’ll be
takeout, late nights, and all the soft drinks
you want.
I shut my Going Out of Town notebook
and closed my eyes for a brief moment. I’d
finished with 12 minutes to spare. The rest
was up to Bret ... and the kids. Though my
heart fretted whether my helpers would
remember to do what they’d promised and
my head swam with details, I knew I’d done
everything I could. And it wasn’t easy.
If I’d wanted easy, I would have stayed
home.
Contact contributing columnist Leslie
Wilson at les5points@aol.com.
Zero tolerance policies are problematic
Over the past decade or so, many school
systems, as well as other entities, have insti-
tuted a “zero-tolerance” policy in terms of dis-
ciplinary action for misbehaviors of various
sorts.
A prime sports example of zero-tolerance
happened just this month in the Phoenix
Suns/San Antonio Spurs NBA playoff game in
which two prime-time players for the Suns got
suspended for the next game when they left
the bench when their teammate, Steve Nash,
was knocked to the floor by a forearm of an
opposing player. Mind you, the players never
even got close to confronting Robert Horry,
who forearmed Nash into the scorers’ table,
but since the league’s policy is that no one is
to leave the bench in a conflict of any kind,
they were automatically suspended for the
next game, which was the most significant
game of the season for both teams this late in
the playoffs. I heard the NBA commissioner,
David Stern, defend the league’s actions on a
radio show, saying with defiance and pride
that he was just enforcing the “letter of the
law.” For a guy like me who is much more
interested in the “spirit of the law,” rather than
the “letter of the law,” Stern’s position was
quite amazing.
After all, aren’t laws intended to be for the
benefit of the people and cause for whom they
are passed? Seems to me that the purpose of
all institutions is to serve the people who com-
prise them, and in doing so, certain rules or
guidelines are set in place for this reason, and
I have no problem with this at all. However,
over a long period of time, it often happens
that the rules themselves becomes more
important than the actual lives of the people
the institution — and rules — were designed
to serve in the first place. In my sports exam-
ple, the letter of the law became more impor-
tant than the spirit of the law, which was set in
place years ago for the purpose of preventing
brawls on the basketball court. This rule will
probably be changed by the league powers
this summer by giving
the commissioner some
discretion.
Concerning enforce-
ment of the rules, who
among us is “perfect”
enough to have the right
to enforce zero-toler- ■
ance? If one is to play
God, shouldn’t one be j
rather God-like? I don’t I
know anyone who is
even remotely qualified.
The speed limit on area
freeways within the
DOUG
SMITH
Reminders
for the Journey
Metroplex is 60 mph, but
how many of the judgmental do-gooders
amongst us have not exceeded the limits at
least once this week? And who amongst us
that condemns others for various infractions,
from smoking to drinking to cursing, ate 100
percent nutritionally balanced meals this
week and exercised perfectly every day?
This is not to say that we don’t need rules
or enforcers of the rules, as we must have
them or chaos would reign. Yet I do say that
we need to accept that one-size does not
always fit all, and that we need to accept that
enforcing the rules is of necessity a compli-
cated process, and we should be willing to live
with the agony that fairness dictates with an
eye to the spirit of the law.
We can even refer to a biblical story that
exemplifies my thesis, that of Jesus and his
disciples walking through a corn field on the
Sabbath, a day that according to Jewish law
no one was supposed to work, such as picking
corn to eat because they were hungry. When
the “keepers of the law” reprimanded Jesus
for his dastardly deed, he replied, “The
Sabbath was created for man, not man for the
Sabbath.” In other words, human needs, such
as the one to rest one day a week were cer-
tainly important, but let’s not get carried away
with it and make the rules more important
than the fundamental needs of mankind.
This topic is germane to me as I recently
had small involvement in a situation in which
a high school student was expelled from high
school and sentenced to attending school in
the Denton County “juvie jail,” a boot camp
type school for disciplinary offenders in sev-
eral public school systems. Yes, there was an
infraction, and no one, certainly including the
student, as well as the parents, denied that,
but their strong contention was that the pun-
ishment was far greater than the crime war-
ranted. And, according to the letter of the law,
the senior awaiting graduation ended up in
juvie jail even though the student has been
exemplary throughout high school, having
been a solid A and B student and having never
served even one detention. Even courts of law
generally take a look at people’s previous
records prior to handing out sentences, and
often give the benefit of a doubt.
The school system’s first strike, though,
was to hand down the stiffest punishment.
Thankfully, though, there is in place a three-
step appeal process, which the parents under-
took, and the final appeal reduced the sen-
tence, indicating to me that the administrators
had compassion and grace, and an eye and ear
to the spirit of the law.
We are a nation that “practices” democra-
cy, and we are and always will be in a contin-
ual state of evolvement. This is essential as
none of us is capable of conforming to zero-
tolerance at all times. It is not the human con-
dition, so at times we must exercise not only
the courage to exact justice at times, but also
compassion and grace at other times, and
when we must enforce sanctions, we must be
so with great humility.
Doug Smith is a licensed professional
counselor in the Lewisville/Flower
Mound/Highland Village area. Smith
can be reached at 972-436-6227 or by e-
mail doug@ccclewisville.com.
Turtle rescue anything but routine
I saw the vehicle, still and seemingly aban-
doned in a turn lane; a woman nearby, walk-
ing aimlessly down the busy thoroughfare, a
cell phone hanging from her ear and mouth
moving frantically. Obviously she was upset.
I, on the other hand, didn’t have a care other
than getting rid of the jelly substance stuck to
my buns. Walking, and walking hard, hadn’t
yet done the job. Still it follows me wherever
I go. Always clinging. Never leaving. But,
convinced someday this jelly will miracu-
lously turn to giggle-proof jam, I march on.
Slowing a bit, I turned to the stranger
nearby. She had to be a good person; she
owned a Toyota. My mother and brother are
Toyota owners and they’re good people —
most of the time.
“Do you need help?” I inquired. Hanging
up the phone she explained her dilemma. A
turtle. It was a turtle causing this woman
grief. In the road, stuck squarely against a
high curb, unable to climb over, unwilling to
turn around and unreceptive to her assis-
tance, the turtle was doomed.
They were in luck. Tortoise rescuing is my
thing. The rescue routine is an automatic
reflex. A turtle, any turtle spotted crossing a
country road, secondary street, even a four-
lane highway prompts the same action: Turn
around, risk life and limb, dash through
speeding vehicles, grab destined-to-become-
tortoise-tortilla then relocate clammed up
critter by placing it far away, safely out of
auto and asphalt range.
However, this rescue was riskier, more
dangerous than most. This turtle was not any
ol’ ordinary turtle. Nope. I
This guy was massive
and mean. And I mean
mean! It was a snapping
turtle intent on grabbing
hold of anyone attempt-
ing to grab hold of him.
That included two good-
hearted women blocking
traffic in a sad attempt
to save this ill-man-
nered, bad-tempered
guy with a death wish.
Though strangers we
came together for a
PATTI
PFEIFFER
Life's A Trip
common goal — rescuing this mean-spirited,
big-mouthed, hard-clamping stranded snap-
per from certain squashing. What a sight.
Two blondes, in the middle of a busy street
with cars coming and going, blocking one,
then two lanes, moving toward the reptile,
then jumping back with every snap of his
massive mouth. We had no idea how to move
the monster without losing shoes, fingers or
toes in the process. We needed a plan. Where
are men when you need them? Oh heck, hus-
bands would brush this off as a bad idea. And
it was! And it was deja vu all over again.
Years back my husband and I came across
a similar situation. Hubby refused any part in
moving the critter to safer grounds. “He’s a
snapper honey, they have a very bad disposi-
tion,” he warned and warned again. But I was
intent of saving the center-stripe straddling
snapper... until I went to handle it. I’ve never
seen anything move so fast as that creature
turning to get me! I ran like I’d seen a mon-
ster. And I had. It was out of my hands. Only
minutes later, on our return trip, we saw him
- a splat on the center stripe. I was sad, but
hey, I tried.
Since that infamous day, I have respect for
snappers. I knew what we were up against.
Odds were not in our favor, and from his dis-
position I think maybe this snapper was sui-
cidal. But me and my new buddy? We were
determined, and/or dumb. We plotted and
planned the turtle’s great escape. Grabbing
two boards from a nearby discarded fence
plank pile we pushed, pried, bullied, shoved
and slid the snapper across two lanes, up and
over a curb, off the concrete into green pas-
tures. He wasn't willing. He wasn’t happy. He
wasn’t even appreciative. He was just sour.
He was a fighter to the bitter end, snapping,
biting the boards, clamping onto them, turn-
ing towards us, hissing, even digging his long-
clawed heels into the pavement. Willing he
was not. But he got safely out of harm’s way,
in spite of himself.
Walking away from that rescue operation
I came across a baby green turtle only yards
away. He was less than an inch long and the
kind kids want for pets. The kind sold at pet
stores. The kind I craved to care for as a
child. I gently carried him to the sanctuary of
a nearby lakeshore. Then I bid him farewell.
I swear that turtle smiled at me
didn’t snap.
Contact contributing columnist Patti
Pfeiffer atpattip913@msn.com
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Bick, Jack & Crimmins, Blaine. The Colony Courier-Leader (The Colony, Tex.), Vol. 26, No. 16, Ed. 1 Wednesday, May 23, 2007, newspaper, May 23, 2007; The Colony, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1621969/m1/6/?q=architectural+drawings: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting The Colony Public Library.