Kids being drug tested

I'm all for it...But some people hate this idea

Let's face it...drugs are a huge problem & it's not just limited to adults. These young kids are getting hooked on drugs from an early age & many parents don't even know.

1. These young kids now will eventually have to take drug tests when they're ready to get out in the real world & find jobs. We need to teach them early that a failed drug test means failed opportunities.

2. In the real & adult world, you go to jail, lose your health, lose your scholarship, lose your job & a lot of other things if you use drugs. If schools start disciplining kids who have failed drug tests, it'll teach them that the very same thing will happen to them in adulthood, which gives kids an incentive NOT to try/do drugs

3. Wouldn't you want to know if your kid was on drugs??! Let's say you didn't know before the test, but know now b/c their school did the procedure! Wouldn't you be happy to know so that you can address /fix the problem? Face it, many kids will NOT tell their parents when they 1st try drugs. Parents can get a firm hold on the situation before it gets to the point that their kid is 18 & fully addicted to drugs.

4. Many parents DO know, but won't do anything about it OR feel they can't do anything about it. They know but won't report it to anyone. Welp, if the parents won't do their jobs at home, at least the school can if they find out about it. Sometimes school authorities are better teachers/disciplinarians than the parents. If these kids can't get a good education & good discipline from their home, they should at least be able to get that from their educators at school so that they at least have a freakin' chance in life!!

5. It opens up the dialogue about drugs, which makes it less of a taboo topic. If anything is a real world issue, it ought to be addressed BEFORE it turns into a potential problem, not afterwards! This goes for talks on sex too!

I see wayyyy to many advantages & benefits to getting them drug tested. As long as the tests are random & not specifically targeting 1 group of kids b/c that'd only lead to accusations of discrimination.

It could do wonders for these kids if they just got drug tested once a year. Maybe more! I'm all for it!

Posted by everevolvingepithet
Would alcohol count as well?

I'd say yes, but I doubt that aspect of it would ever happen

If something that kids are most likely to do is illegal, they should be tested for it. Drugs are illegal at ANY age, but alcohol isn't.

I'd be way more fearful of my kid being on drugs since they are highly addicted as opposed to finding out that he once took a shot of Vodka lol

Posted by ellessque
it can't be random because then it leaves the opportunity for only certain kids to be tested.

it's all or none....in order to be fair.

with that said, it's just never going to happen.

Oh it's already happening in Ohio & in Virginia. And the reason so many people are debating about this is b/c more states are trying to go this route too

And by random, I did mean everybody (all or none) being tested! As long as the school system is willing to pay for it AND drug test everybody, I see no harm in it!

Let's also teach them early on that they can't trust anyone or dare approach adults for help when they serious issues to deal with, and also that they don't actually have any real form of personal freedom. They're just cattle to be probed and pushed through a chute.

I say let them make their own decisions and learn the hard way. Life kicking your ass is one of the best teachers there is.

Posted by ellessque
The majority of my property taxes go to public schools. I'm not paying for them to experiment with drugs. I'm paying them to receive an education.

Pretty sure school don't typically pay for kids' pot habits.

Posted by Synapse

Posted by ellessque

Posted by TMV

Posted by ellessque
The majority of my property taxes go to public schools. I'm not paying for them to experiment with drugs. I'm paying them to receive an education.

Pretty sure school don't typically pay for kids' pot habits.

no, they don't but it's disruptive to others.

No, disruptive people in general are disruptive to other people. I smoked EVERY DAY before school started, on lunch and after school and I got all of my work done with high grades aaaaaaaaaaaand helped numerous other people out. So no.

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+1

Dunno about you guys but the stoners at my school were the most chill people there. The only thing they disrupted was a bag of Cheetos.

My big question is, if parents are so damn concerned about their kids doing drugs then why aren't they doing something about it? Why are they depending on the school to handle the problem for them?

Maybe because they don't actually care enough to spend that kind of time with their own children. Priorities A through X are more important than the futures of their progeny. Hell, anymore it seems like finger banging the newest iPhone is more important than quality time with kids. I can't even remember the last time I was able to go to one of my nephew's soccer games and find a parent that wasn't glued to a screen instead of really watching.

And for that matter, they're doing the same thing with sex ed. And then people sit around scratching their heads as to why little Timmy is acting out for attention.

Posted by ellessque

Like I said....especially athletes and the *popular* students....I imagine those tests will come back positive more so than not.

Posted by ellessque

those are handed out like candy in the bathroom stalls of your rich white schools....

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And now we're profiling?

Should we be checking black kids from poorer neighborhoods for crack too? Maybe some Arab looking children should have their lockers and cars checked for automatic weapons and RPGs just to make sure they aren't terrorist cells.

If kids are on drugs, then yes.

Test their punk asses.

As if DXP'er with kids in school these days is perfectly fine with druggies and dealers in their kids' school hallways.

The piss tests will be the filters that remove the little assholes from the learning environment.

If anything, the specter of getting caught should be embarrassing enough for them to refrain from the shit.

Oh stop it!

Let's not start discriminating. That is part of the reason the children in this generation is so F'd up! The adults don't have it altogether themselves, then wonder why the kids come out F'd up!

They've done so many polls where kids have admitted that they've tried, are doing or have done drugs. The numbers are alarming, of course b/c half of those parents probably never would've thought that "their precious child" would be included in that group that tried drugs.

It's an issue & the best way to address it is to FIRST ADDRESS IT lol

Just like sex starts in middle/high school for most kids, the same is true for drugs. If they are educated about the subject & the consequences of it, we may not be able to save everybody, BUT if having this procedure become standard even saves 1 or 50 kids from drugs, It's well worth it!

We can't sweep the drug problems with our kids under the rugs. That's the problem. All the adults wanna sweep things under the rug & act like things aren't happening that really are happening. It's not that we don't have the tools to educate our children on these things; it's that we as parents can't take the emotion out of it & have these conversations & push for the consequences of certain actions.

There is absolutely NO benefit or advantage to a child if he/she knows they can do drugs & get away with it! It's no wonder half of them go into the corporate world 10 years later high as a kite! They've been programmed that there's no real consequences or they think they can beat the test. BULL

Personally, if I had a kid and found out their school was drug testing like that I would yank them out regardless of whether or not I suspected they were using. One, it's nobody's business what happens on personal time and suggesting otherwise sets a very dangerous precedent. Two, I don't pay taxes so that people can have their rights violated. Three, we take care of our own. I don't need some crater faced barely out of college certified mouth breather who doesn't even have kids to dictate to me how to care for mine and what to do with them. We are NOT sheep. We do NOT need to be herded and injected and told how to wipe our asses so that we can fuel a machine with more interest in controlling us than actually doing what's best.

Posted by Synapse
It's not fair at all. And now why is it only high school students? Shouldn't it be all students? But then if it's all students, why should only students and workers? Why not everyone in the nation?

Well b/c high school & middle school students are the most vulnerable in our society. They are underage. Their brains haven't even stopped growing yet. They need guidance & discipline from adults. A grown azz man doesn't need his hand held like a vulnerable 14 year old kid does. They lead the future & determine so much. They continue legacies & define the next generation! That's a big F'ing deal! So the least we can do is to try doing everything to keep them off drugs!!!

Not to mention, drugs are illegal which leads to prosecution & jail time, which leads to a tarnished record & reputation, which leads to less job opportunities in an already strict/tight economy, which leads to just blah!

The question isn't why would we try to stop these kids from taking drugs. The question is why wouldn't we?!!!!!!!

At some schools they have metal detectors. Who cares that it makes some parents or students uncomfortable! The reason they are there is b/c somebody had a reality check & realized that weapons ARE being taken into schools & sweeping issues like that under the rug are how these kids feel comfortable & like they'd get away with bringing weapons into schools! If it's for the greater good of the students as a whole, take the emotions out of it & do what you've gotta do to protect their best interest in the long run!

Posted by Synapse
You do realize that kids can put down fake answers as well? In middle school/high school, we used to be handed those polls and herded into the gym. I know a lot of kids put down fake answers. Once kids hear "anonymous" it STAYS a joke, because it was never taken seriously in the first place.

Ok you're right! F the fact that many rehab centers are filled with underage kids! Let's completely act like it's not happening & ignore the fact that drugs are a huge problem for our youth! If it means sparing a parent's feelings, let's ignore issues that our kids are going through alone simply b/c the adults in their lives can't handle the truth. Ok

Posted by Synapse

Posted by ScorpioFish
If kids are on drugs, then yes.

Test their punk asses.

As if DXP'er with kids in school these days is perfectly fine with druggies and dealers in their kids' school hallways.

The piss tests will be the filters that remove the little assholes from the learning environment.

If anything, the specter of getting caught should be embarrassing enough for them to refrain from the shit.

Why are they not allowed to learn? Because they do something that isn't "socially acceptable?"

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Many kids today are total jerks. Devoid of respect, fairness, understanding, knowledge, logic and decency. The last thing these punks need is drugs. Their bad attitudes PLUS drugs? Talk about the worst type of asshole.

Posted by krysrenee7
They need guidance & discipline from adults.

So again I ask, why are parents not being held accountable for the parenting?

I'm an asshole personally, I'll admit that. I wasn't treated rightly or fairly as a kid and realized it. You give respect to get respect. Taking away more personal freedom? Disrespect.

Hey asshole,

If I had a kid in the gubmint's publik skrool systum (and that's a hell of a big IF), the only way I would allow him/her in those sordid hallways is if I could verify that the other kids were drug free. Dealers and druggies in the halls are only destroying the other kids' lives, especially when the good kids are tainted by the drugs and get arrest records and so forth.

Otherwise, I would stick to private schools and homeschooling. Safer and better learning environments, regardless.

Posted by Arietteheart
Where do mentally ill go to get help?

Pssh. There isn't going to be anywhere they can go soon. Budget cutbacks are killing the mental health services sector for lower income people.

Posted by Arietteheart

you are correct, that is why I'm an advocate of drug testing students, teachers and all the faculty that works within a public school.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/18/us/no-savings-found-in-florida-welfare-drug-tests.html?_r=0<div class="bqfade">click to expand

LMAO

People need to stop getting their information about what it's like to be on public assistance in this country from TV. What do they think people are doing? Trading their food stamps for coke? Ha.

Invasion of privacy & rights?! BULL!

When children are underage, their PARENTS end up footing the bill for their mistakes! When I or tax payers have to foot the bill for your child's mistakes, it IS my business!

Abortion clinics, rehab facilities & prisons are funded by OUR tax dollars! So it absolutely IS my business!

Oh who cares that my daughter now has 2 stds & is pregnant if it means that she'll have the right to sleep around with who she wants! Why educate them on sex, since they're just gonna do it anyways? BULL! That's silly

Oh who cares that my child is on drugs, ends up jeopardizing their health & future opportunities as long as no one finds out about it. God forbid someone other than their parents actually care enough about our kids to try to prevent them from doing something that will kill them in 10 years!

Oh F it! Let's just let our kids run wild & slowly kill themselves if it means them having privacy at 13. Give me a F'ing break!

Posted by Synapse
You're so uptight your asshole must be keeping all that waste inside you, thus why you believe extremist shit that doesn't make any sense.

Yeah well maybe you try should make sense and drop the personal attaks when respond me and then you would look less like jackass dude.

Posted by krysrenee7

Oh who cares that my daughter now has 2 stds & is pregnant if it means that she'll have the right to sleep around with who she wants! Why educate them on sex, since they're just gonna do it anyways? BULL! That's silly

Oh who cares that my child is on drugs, ends up jeopardizing their health & future opportunities as long as no one finds out about it. God forbid someone other than their parents actually care enough about our kids to try to prevent them from doing something that will kill them in 10 years!

I'm still asking why this person hasn't had their foot up that kid's ass since day one? Why should other people be responsible for their hell spawn? Why should the government have to play nanny?

Maybe what we should be doing is removing these children from the homes of parents who aren't responsible enough to take care of their own family business?

Posted by ellessque

seriously?

I can buy foodstamps for .50 on the dollar where I live if I wanted to.

you think people don't do it?

Of course people do it. There are scumbags everywhere you go that will do what they can to take advantage of the system. The point is that they account for a small percentage of the overall population. Should we punish everyone in the lower income brackets and treat them as criminals just because a sparse few are?

What's next? Labeling all men rapists just because a few are? All white people are racists just because a few are? How about the profile for the typical shoplifter, a middle aged white female. When was the last time you stole something?

Posted by ellessque
since when is drug testing punishment?

it's being proactive.

It's a violation of the US Constitution's 4th Amendment right to protection against illegal search and seizure. Unless we're going to argue that a person's body isn't their own personal property? Or that we're okay with signing away our Bill of Rights?

And no, kids don't have the same rights as adults, which is why there should be a warrant provided with probable cause directly to the parents of said children otherwise it's a violation against a minor and under specific circumstances could be considered sexual harassment or even molestation. That's not due diligence or even being proactive to accuse children of being criminals without any provocation or chance for them to defend themselves. That's just some stranger leaning against the stall door watching your child drop trou and take a piss. Not to mention to that it would be taking valuable time away from the education that we're supposed to be so worried.

Last time I checked a newspaper it wasn't the people with kids in the public system that were causing the real trouble to be worried about anyway.

Posted by ellessque

I'm not paying for them to experiment with drugs. I'm paying them to receive an education.

Is that similar to your employer paying to work, rather than be on dxp?

—Those who surrender freedom for security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one.??

-Benjamin Franklin



Don't care when it was written. Doesn't make it any less true.

Posted by ellessque

Posted by TMV
—Those who surrender freedom for security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one.??

-Benjamin Franklin



Don't care when it was written. Doesn't make it any less true.

I'm sorry to inform you....not a single one of us within the compounds of US borders are 'free'.

It's an illusion at best.

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So exacerbating the problem is our answer?

Posted by ellessque

Posted by TMV

Posted by ellessque

Posted by TMV
—Those who surrender freedom for security will not have, nor do they deserve, either one.??

-Benjamin Franklin



Don't care when it was written. Doesn't make it any less true.

I'm sorry to inform you....not a single one of us within the compounds of US borders are 'free'.

It's an illusion at best.

So exacerbating the problem is our answer?

isn't ignoring the problem also making it worse?

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Ignoring the problem is not making the parents accountable for their own children. Why doesn't mommy know where Little Timmy is when he's buy these drugs? Where's daddy to have a talk with his son about how grounded he's going to be while he's using the family credit card to draw a line?

Drug abuse by the youth is merely a symptom of a far larger problem within society and pushing these kids farther away isn't going to help anything.

Posted by robyn808
I just got all caught up on this thread. And now I feel sad and kinda dirty. At just the thought that people think this is a good idea. where in the world are we going? why isn't scorpfish screaming something about Orwellian?

I'm gonna go have a good cry, and pray for all of you.

Hey Robyn,

Kids don't have Constitutional Rights on the same level that adults do. Because good kids don't deserve to be placed into the same environment as druggies and dealers, why do you ardently insist they should be? I don't have kids yet, but there is no way in hell you can justify forcibly mixing good kids and druggies together and not expect a tainting effect on the good kids via peer pressure.

Kids don't have anyone to put the absolute Fear Of God into them anymore. That is why many of them are so damn rotten.

Why not put kids in their place? Bad kids usually turn into even worse adults in most cases. Piss tests are but one part of many ways to get these jackasses under control.

Posted by ellessque

doing absolutely nothing doesn't help anything either.

I'm not talking about doing nothing. I'm talking about handing responsibility for children back to the parents that spawned them. If they aren't capable of dealing with their own kids then they should be removed from the home and placed in one that will.

I would love, love, love to not see the foster system explode though.

Posted by ellessque

Obviously some of these parents are never going to take responsibility and these children are going to fall through the cracks and end up being adult asshats that recycle the problem.

FFS, they can't even keep weapons out of their hands.

Hold people accountable and I bet condom sales will eventually shoot through the roof too.

Exactly. Don't slap a Band-Aid on the problem and say job well done. Go to the source of the issue and remove the infection before it spreads.

Posted by ScorpioFish

Posted by robyn808
I just got all caught up on this thread. And now I feel sad and kinda dirty. At just the thought that people think this is a good idea. where in the world are we going? why isn't scorpfish screaming something about Orwellian?

I'm gonna go have a good cry, and pray for all of you.

Hey Robyn,

Kids don't have Constitutional Rights on the same level that adults do. Because good kids don't deserve to be placed into the same environment as druggies and dealers, why do you ardently insist they should be? I don't have kids yet, but there is no way in hell you can justify forcibly mixing good kids and druggies together and not expect a tainting effect on the good kids via peer pressure.

Kids don't have anyone to put the absolute Fear Of God into them anymore. That is why many of them are so damn rotten.

Why not put kids in their place? Bad kids usually turn into even worse adults in most cases. Piss tests are but one part of many ways to get these jackasses under control.

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And what will drug testing do, exactly?

It's just one more step toward a nanny state (if we aren't already there).

Wait who said that school districts paying for drug tests would interrupt their ability to pay for college? lol the 2 aren't even connected

To say that drug testing kids would somehow mess up the tax dollars enough to interfere with their ability to get the funds for college is just flat out crazy!

We don't mind using our tax dollars to fund alcohol, tobacco, lottery sales, & casinos but suddenly we're offended when our tax dollars might actually go to some good use?! It's no wonder this country is so F'd up! We've got our priorities all F'd up!

Drug testing for work is a little different.

To the best of my knowledge, it lowers the company's insurance rate.

Posted by ellessque

Posted by robyn808
public schools don't generate any revenue.

since when are taxes not a source of revenue?

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Schools spend the revenue, not generate more.

To those who are okay with signing away their rights, that's your business. But when the fed god comes for mine they won't be getting the job done while I'm still alive.

Oh so should we get rid of condoms too?! Condoms & sex education are tools to give kids an incentive to make smart decisions in that area of life! It's not infringing on their rights!

No, you're not accusing children of being drug addicts all b/c you give them a drug test nor is anyone insinuating that you're an addict when you're made to take 1 as an adult. Why aren't people screaming about "rights" in adulthood with these very same procedures—!

Why is it a violation of rights for children, but not for adults? It's not like drug use & its consequences are just limited to adulthood.

If my child was on drugs, I'd want to know about it! And I'd want to implement a plan of action before the possibility of an addiction gets out of hand!

There are internet predators out there too, but are parents or schools violating children's rights by putting up barriers on the internet that stop them from logging on to certain sites? NO!

We're all about protecting children when it comes to sex, guns & predators, but yet 1 of the biggest issues of them all (drugs) I guess is an off limits subject smh

I am completely unable to follow any of this logic.

OMG this is such an emotional girly response. and the fear of god? come man... really? listen to what your saying. Controlling with fear? Dear lord help these people!

Why don't we just take their dna, maybe implant with an id and tracking system too?

I actually remember when the fire and police departments would come in, to "teach" the kids about these fields, they had a fingerprinting set up so they can "show" you how its done. And I always refused to get fingerprinted. Nope, not gonna do it.

You should know about being a crybaby, since this entire screed is just that.... a SCREED.

Kids don't have full Constitutional Rights, and justifiably so. They are kids, and need to be taught certain things are right and certain things are wrong.

Never said anything about forced finger-printing and DNA scan.

Am in favor of separating the wheat from the chaff. The druggies and dealers should be identified, shamed and put into another environment outside of the children who actually have the common sense and decency to avoid drugs and the destruction that comes with them.

Trust me, if you ever have kids, you may finally start thinking like a grown-up.

Until then, I won't expect much out of you in the way of a grown-up's POV on issues such as this.

Posted by krysrenee7
Oh so should we get rid of condoms too?! Condoms & sex education are tools to give kids an incentive to make smart decisions in that area of life! It's not infringing on their rights!

You aren't testing them to see if they're having sex, though-- that might be a viable comparison, here.

Schools dispensing condoms might be like -- idk, a nice, free needle exchange.

Cool, huh?

Posted by krysrenee7
If my child was on drugs, I'd want to know about it! And I'd want to implement a plan of action before the possibility of an addiction gets out of hand!

Drug tests are available at the store; you can buy one anytime you like.

There is no need for the school to do it FOR you.

Posted by krysrenee7
There are internet predators out there too, but are parents or schools violating children's rights by putting up barriers on the internet that stop them from logging on to certain sites? NO!

We're all about protecting children when it comes to sex, guns & predators, but yet 1 of the biggest issues of them all (drugs) I guess is an off limits subject smh

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Education (the purpose of school!), and blocking SCHOOL computers is not on par with physically drug testing each and EVERY child at each and every school, in the country.

You aren't offering sensible arguments-- at all.

Posted by P-Angel

Posted by ellessque

I'm not paying for them to experiment with drugs. I'm paying them to receive an education.

Is that similar to your employer paying to work, rather than be on dxp?

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