Schools to Kids: Bring your own Toilet Paper

[BeFree]

Good idea. Why should I be buying toilet paper for somebody's kid?

I don't mind buying the pencils, and desks, and books and teachers and buildings and school buses, and the toilets, so this is a good line to be drawn.

I think it will teach the kids a lesson: there is a point that you need to take care of yourself. And make parents aware of just how much the rest of the country does to educate the little darlings.

Maybe parents playing a more active role in their precious little baby's education will help revamp schooling as we know it?

[mediaman007]

1. Good! I should have thought about that a long time ago!

I was always struggling with those one-ply, single sheets.

[pipi_k]

10. That stuff was evil...

only one step above using Birch tree bark.




PS...I cart my own dissolving soap sheets around in my purse just in case there isn't any soap in the public bathrooms.

[Igel]

43. No, not birchbark!

It's too useful in class when the paper runs out!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birch_bark_document

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bryggen_inscriptions

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiigwaasabak
(I take the uncertainty around the antiquity of birchbark use in N. Am. to indicate a clash between traditions and archeologists--probably the earliest ones dated aren't nearly as old as tradition says they must be.)

[TheMightyFavog]

23. We called it "State Sandpaper" when I was a kid.

I swear you could use that stuff to finish wood. :hurts:

[madmom]

27. We called it John Wayne toilet paper....

rough and tough and won't take any shit off of nobody.

[LiberalFighter]

52. Must not had been useful.

[MadHound]

2. Maybe fully funding our schools will do the same thing,

In fact I'm sure it would. But sadly, this country has always wanted to do education on the cheap, and now we're seeing what happens after years and decades of following that policy.

You don't like kids having to bring toilet paper to school? Then support and vote for your school bonds. Urge the president and Congress to stop playing games with federal funding. Agitate for fully funded schools, the one solution we haven't tried.

[lse7581011]

34. Uh...Who Said?

I didn't like the idea?!

[Igel]

45. But wanting wasn't doing.

http://www2.ed.gov/about/overview/fed/10facts/index.html

It's good through 2003. If you actually follow the numbers (adjusted for inflation) and not the rhetoric decrying the assumedly low numbers, you'll see that the US (taken as all levels of government) spends a lot of money per student (EC-12, excluding higher ed)--more than most other developed countries. The increase was been pretty much monotonic since the '60s, with sharp increases under Nixon, Reagan and Clinton (not so much Carter and Bush I).

Since 2003, ed expenses continued to increase although I suspect they will have flattened in the last couple of years except for the federal component.

So after years and years of having pretty steep increases in education spending, we're to having fewer supplies than ever provided to students. But I must say, my local school district has some really, really nice buildings. Most of the student bodies are "acceptable" or less, unchanged since they had their old buildings, so that idea didn't quite pan out.

One point is that there is no amount that constitutes "full funding." Give the school system an extra $200 billion this year, and you'll see more buildings, more teachers, higher salaries. Give them $800 billion, you'll see even more buildings, teachers, higher salaries. Give them $1.5 trillion, you'll see even *more* buildings, teachers, higher salaries. If you offer them $1.7 trillion instead of $1.5 trillion, the answer won't come back, "No thanks, we're fully funded." Instead, the school systems would take the $1.7 trillion and then say they could use yet more money.

[Dennis Donovan]

3. ...and kids who parents' can't afford it should do what?

:shrug:

[cap]

4. use their hands?

instead of raising taxes or voting for a school bond! You know, the rugged individualist movement applied to school bathrooms.
/sarcasm

sorry... bad taste... I couldn't resist.

[bulloney]

11. Bring a sheet of notebook paper.

When that plugs up the toilets, then the kids will have to bring their own plungers and learn a little basic plumbing.

Our schools can become academies cranking out a bunch of midget Joe the Plumbers!

For the sarcastically-challenged: :sarcasm:

[BeFree]

14. Can't afford toilet paper for their kids?

That's bad. Think about that. Can't afford toilet paper? For their own kids?

[Dennis Donovan]

18. Perhaps they can afford it at home, but not an extra roll for them to bring to school...

Think about it...

[seabeyond]

37. do you bring your own toilet paper to work? nt

[Lyric]

40. We've been there.

More than once we've gone salvaging at gas station restrooms for a few handfuls of TP to get us through until payday. Poverty involves lots of low, humiliating surprises like that.

[Liberal_in_LA]

53. It happens.

[msongs]

5. taxpyayers to military:bring your own bombs nt

[chrisa]

6. Toilet paper for all is a Socialist concept!

:)

[RainDog]

12. I had the opportunity to go to the Soviet Union as a student

and we were all astonished by the toilet paper in Moscow... it was the thickness of stationery and caused paper cuts. seriously.

[SpiralHawk]

7. "Pull yourselves up by your own damn bumwad." - Republicons for Diapers

"Since we are Republicons and our shit don't stink (smirk), we are totally against crap and crappers.

"Everyone should be like us good republicons, and wear diapers (smirk)."

- Republicons For Diapers (Chair, David Vitter (R))

[Billy Burnett]

15. Tea baggers against "dipers" (sic)

[SpiralHawk]

32. OMG. This stinks.

[mike r]

8. Cut some salaries and expenses in the administrative headquarters

especially the junkets and consultant bullcrap.

[seabeyond]

9. and those fuckin asshole parents spoilin child, can send kid outside for leaves to wipe.... if they

cant afford to provide the pencils, paper, pens, tissue, tape, glue, notebooks, binders, calculators, baggies, rulers, scissors, sharpies, expos, sharpeners, art fee, orchrastra fee, reading material, dividers, highlighters, erasers, computer paper, color paper

and on and on

but hey.... fuck those kids, as long as those free loading parents learn a valuable lesson

[hobbit709]

13. Wait until they install pay toilets in the schools.

That will be next bright idea from the "we don't want to fund anything with tax dollars" crowd.

[Cirque du So-What]

16. I'm not a fan of the 'John Wayne' toilet paper that I remember from my public-school days

you know, the stuff that's rough, tough & don't take shit off nobody?

But I'd rather have TP publicly funded instead of shifting the cost to those who are least able to afford it.

[uncommon]

17. Forget bootstraps - you can use tp!

[peace13]

19. Ridiculous!

Maybe the kids should bring their own camp stools and head lights. Maybe they should pack water for washing hands, that's not free either. And how about they spend study hall cleaning the restrooms so that we don't need a janitor. How about we fund schools so that they can get on with educating the children. Maybe we can request that the Pentagon use their funding to do this as the only jobs these young people can even hope for is 'defending America'.

[BeFree]

21. heh

We should charge them for the air they breathe?

Y'know, following the 'logic' found here in this replies to this thread, schools will become places where everything is supplied. Everything. Clothes, too. Uniforms!! Shoes, haircuts, underarm deodorant, tooth paste, eyeglasses, new parents if needed, their own personal bus, their own whoopy cushions, umbrellas, raincoats and condoms.

Yep, why draw the line anywhere?

[peace13]

36. Toilet paper?

When you are out in public make sure that you never use the toilet paper. Don't want ot be a free loader!

[jayfish]

20. Did You Forget The Sarcasm Tag?

That was one of the most hateful original posts I've read on this site.

[BeFree]

22. Well I hate...

...that you feel that way, but, go ahead feel free to not even think.

[jayfish]

24. So It Wasn't Sarcasm Huh?

Lemmie guess; you don't have any children? "Feel free not to even think"? Oh, that was a cute one. I'll tell you what I think. Your post does little but garner anger, from this reader at least, because it's bombastic hyperbole.

[BeFree]

25. eh?

You do know schools are doing this, right?

Actually, you are not thinking, you are just reacting. For some reason you won't even ponder why. You don't dis-cuss, you just cuss.

If I had some TP I could give you, I would. Maybe that is your problem?
:sarcasm:

[seabeyond]

30. +1. nt

[Winterblues]

26. It is like that in Russia as well.

:shrug:

[montanto]

28. Great! Good Thinking!!

Another thing for teachers to supply. Many teachers already supply the pencils, pens, paper, tissue, tampons, pads, band-aids, etc., that the students are supposed to supply for themselves. Hey, who wants to pay for toilet paper? Not me!! Not for someone else's kid!! Let someone else do it! Let the parents do it. And if they won't, let the teachers who have to deal with the issue do it, after all, they are the parents while the kid is at school. Oh, wait. That IS me. *sigh* It's ok. I'm used to it by now. I'm used to spending hundreds of dollars of my own money to provide the things that kids and parents won't supply for themselves. Not to mention the fact that it's the law that they be in school. Seems like if there is a law that dictates that a person be in a place for 7 hours or more that whoever set the requirement should provide services for basic life functions. If I get arrested for seven hours seems like at least I could look forward to some toilet paper out of the deal.

[BeFree]

31. Good point

I remember thinking that the law that made me go to school should have been trashed.

And I've known teachers who have done as you do.

Who is to blame for kids not having their pencils? Me, the teacher, or the parents?

I see the biggest problem with the system being that the parents are not being held responsible. Is that inaccurate?

[FirstLight]

33. parents not being held responsible...?

how broad is your brush?...sheesh

the list of supplies i have to buy for my kids this year is crazy, and i am not sure i can buy it all...and that makes me irresponsible?

ridiculous.

asking the kids to provide everything is not the school system I grew up with, seems like the schools are being gutted and pretty soon it will be like a little college...we will pay per class and have to buy books too...
no, not being sarcastic, wish that i were.

[seabeyond]

38. this poster demands everyone "think" but him/her. nt

[BeFree]

42. Good for you

Are you being held responsible, or acting on your own free will?

Do you think all parents act as responsible, or think, as I do, that schools are used too much as free child care by too many irresponsible parents?

[jayfish]

44. From Your Posts On The Subject I Can Only Come To The Conclusion...

that you lack even a basic understanding of it. Your preceding post is a prime example of what I'm talking about.

"schools are used too much as free child care by too many irresponsible parents"

This one little statement is all over the place. You do know that children are compelled by law to attend school and that parents can be held criminally liable for a child's truancy, right? You understand that attendance is one of if not the main factor determining scholastic success, right? You understand that many school budgets are based on attendance, right? I could go on and on. Getting your kid to school and keeping him/her there is half the battle. For you to suggest that parents are irresponsible for fulfilling that responsibility is ignorant and... ...well, irresponsible.

http://www.greatschools.org/parenting/behavior-discipline/school-attendance-issues.gs?content=644
http://www.kamalaharris.org/news/676
http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED364799&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED364799

[BeFree]

55. eh?

Some parents do use school as child care.
That's a fact. You want to argue against that fact?

Our schools are a mess. That's another fact.

[montanto]

46. Parents aren't legally responsible for much more than

attempting to get them to go to school. Beyond that the question is how many of them TAKE responsibility for their kid's welfare. That element is vastly different from place to place. In middle and upper middle class areas, education and performance are the norm. In low income areas, school is often a glorified babysitting service for parents. Many of them care, but many of them don't see how there own kids manipulate them. Parent: "Do you need anything to start school?" Child: "Nah." Where "Nah" = "If I don't bring supplies, how can I be expected to work? If I can't be expected to work, then failure is okay." Then the parent is shocked when the report card comes in. I think that the majority of parents and teachers have their hearts in the right place, are attempting to do what is right, but that the situation is difficult not because these groups are irresponsible, but that they have no authority. The parents can't make the kids do anything, and neither can the teachers. (I'm speaking of High School. In lower grades kids can still be forced to do what they don't want to). Anyway, if toilet paper is made the parent's responsibility, one way or another, it will be the teacher's problem. I can only imagine the disruption to class when someone really needs to go and doesn't have any with them.

[Xenotime]

29. If everybody brought one roll, there would be plenty to go around.

[uncommon]

35. For like a week or two. How much tp do you use?

I know my house of 4 goes through a 4 pack at least every week.

[Igel]

47. Not with my kid.

Amazing the amount of TP he goes through. It comes up clean? Well, how about another dozen wipes just to make sure.

Argh.

[seabeyond]

48. lmao. nt

[LWolf]

39. No school or district I've worked in has ever asked students

to supply their own toilet paper. Including the school I work at for this school year.

[BeFree]

41. It was on ABC news the other day.

Really. On the booby.

And I thought, "What would DUers think?"

[LWolf]

51. I wonder what that district's budget looks like. nt

[walldude]

49. How about you don't worry about my "precious little baby's" anything

I can provide just fine for my kids. I don't need your fucking help with anything. And even if I couldn't I wouldn't take help from you. I'd rather fucking starve than take anything from you and your "precious" bank account.


Goddamn that was one of the most nasty posts I have read in a long time. WTF? You are ripping on parents because schools can't afford toilet paper? Christ get a grip.

[seabeyond]

54. bet this poster has something to wipe his/her ass with at work. not bringing toilet paper

to work

i agree with you....

[BeFree]

56. Its ok

I'll help your kids. But there is a line. And in a world of shrinking resources, that line is gonna get tighter.

I feel sorry for the wee ones. We are leaving them a messed up world.

And yes, some parents shouldn't be parents, But there they are. I just wish they would all be responsible.. to the max. And for that I get ragged?

[Igel]

50. And I thought this was sarcasm.

http://www.infowars.com/back-to-school-bring-your-own-toilet-paper/
Moody, Alabama

http://www.theprovince.com/opinion/Guest+column+Pack+your+toilet+paper+along+with+your+books/3435160/story.html?cid=megadrop_story
Honolulu

http://www.parentdish.com/2009/01/10/detroit-school-asks-parents-to-donate-toilet-paper/
Detroit. (But then again, it's Detroit.)

My kid's school asked for hand disinfectant. A pint. Presumably to kill viruses, and therefore useless.

Meanwhile, the vegetable garden that the principal thought would be nifty is not only going in, but will have a 4-foot high fence around it, supplies bought for it, and a dozen cubic yards of mixed soil dumped on top.

[Maat]

57. Maat to school: forget me providing a school with toilet paper!

This is just another reason to add to the list - I'm so glad that I homestudy Daughter through a charter school. I do provide the toilet paper for THIS house.