Misguided TJ Students Back at It

In Misguided Youth, I wrote about a group of students at Frederick's Thomas Johnson High School who were asking the Frederick County Board of Education to eliminate access for United States Military recruiters on Frederick County high school campuses.  The Board refused to change the existing policy, which allows recruiters one visit per marking periods (four per school year).  The students belong to or are supported by various leftist groups, including the TJ Young Socialists Club and Rainbow Alliance.

Yesterday, instead of making their case in front of the Board, the students held a protest during a recruiting session at Thomas Johnson.  The Frederick News-Post reports that Mr. Hayes and several other students staged a "die-in" by lying down and playing dead in front of the military recruiters at a career fair.  Several students were eventually removed by the sheriff's deputy, after refusing to leave when asked to do so by the school's principal.  All five students involved have been suspended by the school, pending parent conferences.  That's good, they should be punished.

In February, the News-Post quoted TJ student Mark Gradoni as saying "This is not about our personal favor or disfavor for the military, this is about human rights and civil rights."  The students claimed that their issue was not the military per se, but the military's discriminatory policy towards gays.  In my piece in February, I questioned Mr. Gradoni's candor on the true nature of their beef.  Now Mr. Hayes appears to have a different view of the issue.  In today's article Mr. Hayes is quoted as saying "We're angry ... the school shouldn't be occupied like Iraq is."  Gee, I wonder where he is getting that idea from.

The free society we have in America provides limitless opportunity to argue one's perspective, as I am doing right now by typing this.  As I said in February, if the TJ students really want to change the policy regarding gays in the military, they should be addressing their effort toward the elected representatives who created that policy.  If they just hate the military (which is totally ironic when you think about it) and want to be a nuisance, they should be disciplined to the fullest extent possible, just like any other high school student who is a nuisance. 

It's too bad that these kids aren't getting enough of a social studies education to understand how things in a representative republic work.  It's better they learn it now, rather then 20 years from now.

Mr. Hayes, if you really want the policy to change, go talk to Congressman Barlett or Senators Sarbanes and Milkulski.  Otherwise, stop getting in the way of our soldiers who are doing their jobs.    

LATER (April 29, 2006 11:33a EDT):  Michelle Malkin has more on the latest college student attack on recruiters.