Monday, February 19, 2018

Rings

"Penguins don't come from next door. They come from the Antarctic." This is the kind of logic that pervades a discussion about how a penguin came to rest on the top of a television set in a Monty Python skit. As the two pepperpots continue to debate the origins of this flightless fowl, one of them suggests it came from the zoo. Which zoo? Well, if it was from the zoo, it would have "property of the zoo" stamped on it.
"There, I run rings 'round you logically," she exclaims. This is just before the announcer on the television lets us all know that it is time for the penguin to explode.
I understand that I have done exactly no justice to the humor found within that classic bit of comedy, but I hope the sense of absurdity continues to shine. Pretending there is an ipso-facto path to be followed when a visitor from the South Pole is found perched on your home entertainment center just prior to having that bird blow up was what I was reminded when I read the headline: "Schools have 'option' to arm teachers, Education secretary says." Secretary Betsy DeVos said, "This is an important issue for all states to grapple with and to tackle. I think this needs to be part of the broader, more robust conversation about how can we avoid these things in the future, and how can we ensure that when my child, your child, goes to school in the morning, they're going to go to a safe and nurturing environment." This is why she believes states "clearly have the opportunity and the option" to allow teachers who have had weapons training to carry guns on campus.
Clearly. 
Within a breath, Secretary Betsy used the words "safe and nurturing environment" and the option to carry guns on campus. This is the suggestion the Secretary of Education offered up in the wake of seventeen people dying from gunfire at a school. The logic is stunning. 
And now it's time for the penguin on top of your television to explode. 

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