[Ansteorra] just read the link

[Lori Campbell]

> Sir Alexis wrote:
> I am just fine with a seventeen year old posing with a sword. 

But he didn't just pose with one sword.  

Of course, we can't say for certain, but if he'd limited himself to the
sheathed broadsword he wears on his hip, I bet the pic would've been
allowed.  The thing is... he added a two-handed greatsword to the mix
(a weapon clearly meant to look intimidating, despite the fact that he
looks like he could barely lift it).  

I'm not saying there aren't a whole host of things wrong with this
incident, especially with the reasons and explanations given by the
school officials.  I just don't have any sympathy for the kid because
he didn't appear to use even an ounce of common sense. 

> From a legal position, the facts as described give rise to the term 
> 'arbitrary and capricious enforcement', and should be thrown out.

And in this particular case, it might just be.  My understanding,
though, is that there have been plenty of other instances where
yearbook pictures of students with guns were disallowed.  I'm not sure
if precedent will hold any sway, but I'm thinking a court wouldn't see
a major difference between a sword and a gun. A weapon is a weapon.  

The only real problem with any of this is the inevitable backlash. 
Once you allow the reasonable, educated kids to pose with their gun
club weapons and medieval reenactment swords, there *will* be kids who
push the envelope by bringing pics sporting assault rifles and knives. 
To use an extreme example, gang kids would prefer their pics to be in
gang colors, displaying the toughest weapons they have.  Without being
discriminatory, how do you allow one and not the other?

Was it really so awful back when senior pics had to be taken in
graduation robes or drapes?  Oh, the horror of squashing each child's
delicate sense of individuality...  

> Michael Silverhands said:
> Almost all of us bear arms that we would never use on a list field;
> e.g., a belt knife. 

The truth of it all is that most SCA kids *are* armed at events.  Just
ask any group of children standing around if you can borrow a knife to
cut something... Every single one of 'em will hand you one.  And I
don't have a problem with that.  I like to think they've been taught to
respect the weapons they carry.  I just don't think any
non-sca-educated person will share (or should be expected to share) our
comfort level with the scenario.

> Whether that photo is an ideal representation of the SCA is a whole  
> 'nother matter. :-)

I don't see it as another matter at all, just a ripple from the
original splash.  This was on MSNBC.  The article has had thousands of
hits from casual readers who have now formed uneducated and very
limited opinions about the SCA based on one teenager sporting a couple
of big swords.  

Kat M.
whose high school mascot was a patriot holding a gun... 


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