WEDNESDAY’S RANT: Bus driver and monitor arrested & fired

Let’s start with a little recap.

A couple of weeks ago two 13-year-old girls say they were kicked off their school bus at Eighth and Wooster Streets… a part of town with a crime problem… because they were making fun of the bus monitor.

The other day, the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office arrested driver Douglas Farrow and monitor Angela McIntyre… charging them with contributing to the deliquency of a minor.

Farrow is also charged with neglect.

The school board also fired the duo after their arrests.

The Ranting on this one has fallen into two categories.

j.blakk – what is this world coming to?
“Maybe parents should teach their children to have respect for people in authority positions. I agree the driver and monitor should be held accountable for their actions (suspension), but being fired and arrested is overkill. There are two sides to every equation. It’s a basic principal to life, and everything is balanced. If the kids don’t disrespect the monitor they don’t get kicked off the bus.”

guest321
“What a shame. America, we are going down the tube. We are now into the second dumbed-down generation of no-good kids and ignorant parents. No one takes responsibility anymore for their actions, and their parents don’t care.”

Others sided with the kids and parents involved.

Ashley Waddell
“I think it is about time for people to stand up for their children and to protect them. We put them in the hands of the school system and our bus drivers to keep safe until they arrive home. Maybe they will think twice before they let another child off.”

guest ???
“Have you ever been through 8th & Wooster? This isn’t country lane territory. Thugville even in daylight hours! Kudos for taking action. Now if the kids need to be disciplined, so be it, but being forced to walk through drug and crime infested streets is not proper punishment.”

Finally…

mthorpe1
“I agree with the decision of the school board to fire both of these individuals for their actions. I also agree with the charges being file against them. Both of these individuals acted irresponsibly. They put the lives of these children in danger. I believe also that these two girls should have been punished for their actions if they did in fact do what they were accused of.”

I think that’s the most balanced take on it. Two wrongs do *not* make a right. If all the allegations are true, the driver and monitor did wrong… but so did the kids… and for that matter, so did the parents. If this happened to me when i was young, you can bet my mom and dad would be mad at the adults who did it. But they would have been even more upset with me for acting up to begin with. It’s called parenting, discipline and accountability. Anyone remember that?

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-Kevin Wuzzardo