EDITORIAL:
Dressing for the occasion
THE POST
 As Alexander High School prepares for its last graduation ceremony of the millennium, its administration is stuck in time.
The Alexander School Board is refusing to allow senior Kristy King to wear pants to the graduation ceremonies because it goes against the school dress code for females at graduation, which allows dresses or skirts and blouses and dress shoes.
The ridiculous limitations of not allowing women to wear pants has forced King to say she will not participate in the June 5 ceremony if the school board doesn't budge.
It is unfortunate this is even a discussion for the board. King, who says she never remembers wearing a dress, might be stripped of the graduation ceremony she earned because she is holding to her belief that women can wear pants and still look formal.
The old-fashioned idea that women must wear a dress to be "dressed up" left society in the 1960s. Alexander should be no different, and tradition is no excuse. King has said she wants to wear something formal, not jeans and a T-shirt, so the ceremony's tradition of being formal and respectful will remain.
Public high schools, including Alexander, should not be able to set dress codes for graduation. The rest of Athens County high schools have the right idea in only suggesting formal wear, not demanding it.
Alexander High seniors, who will vote on the issue this week, should remember it is their school, their ceremony and their generation, and allow King and any other female graduate to wear pants June 5.
Graduation is meant to honor the students who have invested time into their education. After four years of higher learning, high school students should be responsible enough to appreciate their education and choose their own outfits.
Plan clouds true intent
THE POST
Ohio lawmakers are trying to deter teen-age smoking with a bill that proposes sweeping changes to the smoking scene, including raising the legal smoking age to 21.
If passed, Senate Bill 121 would increase the age to 21 at which a person can purchase, smoke or possess tobacco products. The bill also would require an additional license for retailers selling tobacco products and impose monetary penalties for violations.
The Ohio Senate should strike down S.B. 121 because it proposes too many changes at once.
Raising the legal smoking age to 21 will not deter teen smoking and instead will infringe on the rights of legal adults to buy tobacco. The age to target to deter smoking should be 14 or 15, when most children first experiment with tobacco. Making tobacco unavailable to adults until they are 21 will produce more problems than solutions and could force the black-market selling of tobacco products.
However, lawmakers should focus on the second part of S.B. 121 and heighten retail responsibility by making it more dangerous for retailers to sell to underage smokers. The law would require retailers to obtain licenses to sell tobacco. Right now, retailers only are required to obtain a license for tax purposes.
The extra license and the possibility for monetary fines will threaten the retailers' business and pocketbook, giving more incentive to cut down on selling to smokers under 18.
Teen smoking should be a top concern for health experts and lawmakers, but proposing bills that try to tackle many problems will be counterproductive. The state should start with retail responsibility for smokers of the current legal age and work from there to devise strategies to reduce smoking for minors.
|
An Independent Daily Newspaper