Better Sorry than Safe

That seems to be Mayor Mike's motto. After all, it's just 1.1 million kids, and few of them are rich. Why bother closing the schools and losing all that cool state money? One of the things I often hear from the Tweedies is that the schools are for the benefit of the kids, not the adults. Therefore, apparently, since it's a mere adult people are mourning at today's funeral, there's no reason for concern.

Still, in my classes, attendance was down 20% today. I saw one kid, who was absent yesterday, walking around in a face mask. He said he was sick. I told him if that was the case, he needed to go home. Apparently he did, because he didn't show up to my class. Another student of mine said she was sick on Monday. I forced her to go to the medical office, and she returned three minutes later. But she hasn't been back since.

Another of my students showed up late to class today. She said her teacher had been trying to compel a sick boy to go to the medical office, but he'd refused, much to the teacher's distress. Eventually someone from administration gave her some support and removed the boy.

On Monday, there was not only soap, but toilet paper and paper towels in the trailer bathroom. I thought this was a response to concerns about the flu. Alas, yesterday and today there was no more paper. So much for wishful thinking. I've also heard that kids prefer the disgusting trailer bathrooms to those in the main building which, incredibly, are even worse.

Mayor Bloomberg ought to close down the schools, if for no other reason, to clean the filthy buildings so patently unfit for schoolchildren, or anyone (even if they don't happen to have millions of dollars). Will he do the right thing?

You never know--it could be the exception that proves the rule.