Yesterday I wrote about Bill Tucker, the Director of Education for the Thames Valley District School Board, rejecting a $5000 donation from the East Elgin Sportmen’s Association (EESA) because EESA was a gun club. Today the London Free Press is reporting that Mr. Tucker is refusing to back down even in the face of criticism:
But Tucker isn’t backing down, saying this week’s school shooting in Finland and a gun scare in Regina prove his point that guns and schools don’t mix.
“I’ve had no second thoughts or doubts,” he said.
“I knew this was a decision that wasn’t going to make everyone happy, but I made it and still believe it is in the best interest of the school and the students.”
It would appear that Mr. Tucker is incapable of drawing the distinction between the illegal use of firearms by individuals such as the 22-year-old Finnish gunman who killed 10 people before turning the gun on himself and internationally recognized competitive shooters from as far away as France competing in a sanctioned event on an approved shooting range.
By Mr. Tuckers logic it would be appropriate to reject a donation raised by members of the Canadian Automobile Sports Club of Ontario at a race track because drinking and driving is one of the leading cause of death for teens.
Mr. Tucker’s logic is an obvious non sequitur. In fact, it wasn’t that long ago that high schools across the province had shooting ranges in their basements – safely being enjoyed by students, cadets, and teachers alike.
Getting back the the students, the London Free Press goes on to report:
“I’ve talked to the school, and the students will not go without,” said Tucker.
“(My decision) isn’t a reflection of the sports club, or the gun club — it’s just that guns don’t go with schools.”
Students will have to raise the money another way, he said.
Its a great sound bite to suggest the students “won’t go without”. Of course, the truth is they will. Mr. Tucker goes on to say that students will have to raise the money “another way”. Now, it falls within the realm of possibility that my comprehension of the concept of ‘going without’ is somehow radically different than everyone else’s – but having to get $5000 from somewhere else, or not having it if alternative fundraising arrangements can’t be made in time, certainly strikes me as ‘going without’.
Not going without would require Mr. Tucker to find the money, either in a the board’s budget or in his own pocket, and give it to the school to replace the donation he has chosen to refuse. Finding that kind of money won’t be easy. The Thames Valley School Board administers some 184 schools. While its budget of $630 million is significant it works out to roughly $7875 per student.
In other words in one weekend the East Elgin Sportsmen’s Association raised over 60% of what the school board spends on one student for an entire year.
Maybe that’s why Michael Knight, the chair of the East Elgin School’s council, appears to want Mr. Tucker to rethink his decision:
“Our society does recognize a place for guns in hunting and sports like the Olympics, and they’re government- backed,” said Michael Knight, chair of East Elgin’s school council.
“I hope the director will review the matter to make sure he made an informed decision and didn’t base it on a knee-jerk reaction,” he said.
Sadly, I think Mr. Knight and the East Elgin Secondary School will be forced to find much needed donations elsewhere. It’s becoming clear that Mr. Tucker is blinded by ideology. The real tragedy is not that a bunch of high school students are being denied a $5,000 donation – its that someone so obviously insulated from reality is in charge of shaping that many minds.
- Rafael.
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