Topic: Florida schoolgirl Kiera Wilmot facing felony charges for science experiment (Read 4235 times)
May 06, 2013, 09:31:19 AM
As I understand it, the whole thing was witnessed by school staff, who stood by and made no attempt to intervene. Even the expulsion is preposterous.
May 06, 2013, 08:37:16 AM
Bloody ridiculous! If she gets charged with anything it will be outrageous. I understand to some extent the expulsion, but marching her out in hand cuffs. My days..
May 06, 2013, 06:24:19 AM
Lawyers will be tripping over themselves to draft the coming lawsuit against the school district. There is no way in hell she will be formally charged with a felony crime for this.
Coming up next: a call for a TSA like ban of household goods into public schools.
Coming up next: a call for a TSA like ban of household goods into public schools.
May 05, 2013, 12:26:24 PM
The presence of fear is a good thing, but only if accompanied by the guidance of wisdom.
Fear abolishes wisdom. Like the litany says, it is the mind-killer.
Reasoned caution is a good thing, but fear is not.
Hah, Dune reference. Not enough of those around.
May 05, 2013, 12:25:43 PM
I wonder what they think they'll accomplish by jailing her. I wonder if they think.
Enforcers of law do not think. The thinking is left up to the judicial process.
Let's hope the judge in the case sees that the incident does not meet the important standard of "spirit of the law."
If the judge doesn't apply critical thinking to this case then this incident is another example of a country that may be becoming a police state.
May 05, 2013, 12:21:59 PM
The presence of fear is a good thing, but only if accompanied by the guidance of wisdom.
Fear abolishes wisdom. Like the litany says, it is the mind-killer.
Reasoned caution is a good thing, but fear is not.
May 05, 2013, 12:13:11 PM
Fear is a natural emotion, and can even be constructive. But when you surrender to it and make it the guiding principle of your life, terrible things happen.
Fear was useful when we were the weakest species on the planet. When there were things in the dark that could kill us and eat us. Now, we control the lightning, the fire. We have nothing to fear on this planet. Fear is of no use to a civilized race.
Quote from: Frank Herbert
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing......Only I will remain.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing......Only I will remain.
The presence of fear is a good thing, but only if accompanied by the guidance of wisdom.
May 05, 2013, 11:59:09 AM
Fear is a natural emotion, and can even be constructive. But when you surrender to it and make it the guiding principle of your life, terrible things happen.
Fear was useful when we were the weakest species on the planet. When there were things in the dark that could kill us and eat us. Now, we control the lightning, the fire. We have nothing to fear on this planet. Fear is of no use to a civilized race.
Quote from: Frank Herbert
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing......Only I will remain.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing......Only I will remain.
It's also an element of not admitting to fault. I see this over and over again, officials overreach, but then they're too ashamed to admit fault, so they'll never admit to it. And since they're the top bully in the schoolyard, there's nobody to set them straight.
May 05, 2013, 11:39:56 AM
Fear is a natural emotion, and can even be constructive. But when you surrender to it and make it the guiding principle of your life, terrible things happen.
Fear was useful when we were the weakest species on the planet. When there were things in the dark that could kill us and eat us. Now, we control the lightning, the fire. We have nothing to fear on this planet. Fear is of no use to a civilized race.
Quote from: Frank Herbert
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing......Only I will remain.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing......Only I will remain.
May 05, 2013, 11:32:33 AM
Society has gone mad in the present culture of surrender to fear and paranoia. Because the primary guiding factor of our culture is fear, we do ridiculous and self-destructive things. When a bright, inquisitive young mid comes along, our reaction is that this must be eliminated in the name of "public safety". Disgusting and pathetic.
Fear is a natural emotion, and can even be constructive. But when you surrender to it and make it the guiding principle of your life, terrible things happen.
Fear is a natural emotion, and can even be constructive. But when you surrender to it and make it the guiding principle of your life, terrible things happen.
May 04, 2013, 04:59:56 AM
I remember setting off a (semi-failed) smoke bomb on the school field some time back. 
May 03, 2013, 09:55:35 PM
This is seriously fucked up. Back at school I made numerous explosions as a direct result of my interest in chemistry. It all ended by intentionally blowing up bookshelf with nitroglycerine. Nobody could do anything about it and probably they were happy as my interests turned from chemistry to math and computers.
American society is seriously in trouble. That Zero tolerance and the paranoia stuff. Too dumb to reasonably think and too corrupt government and justice system to do that really matters.
American society is seriously in trouble. That Zero tolerance and the paranoia stuff. Too dumb to reasonably think and too corrupt government and justice system to do that really matters.
May 03, 2013, 06:12:36 PM
That statement from Wilmot's school district is a complete joke, and the charges are a complete joke as well. In the eyes of a non-american individual, you're making a mockery of yourselves.
Zero tolerance makes a mockery of us all.And your point would be ? If you didn't grasp it, my view is that they're overreacting and overreaching. She's a 16 year old girl that wondered what would happen if she mixed some chemicals. She didn't intend to blow up a building or harm anyone.
Ah... I thought you were implying that I had zero tolerance, and by extension, I didn't quite get where you had that from. Lol.
I get what you're saying though. I'm not a fan of 'zero tolerance'.
May 03, 2013, 06:10:14 PM
That statement from Wilmot's school district is a complete joke, and the charges are a complete joke as well. In the eyes of a non-american individual, you're making a mockery of yourselves.
Zero tolerance makes a mockery of us all.And your point would be ? If you didn't grasp it, my view is that they're overreacting and overreaching. She's a 16 year old girl that wondered what would happen if she mixed some chemicals. She didn't intend to blow up a building or harm anyone.
May 03, 2013, 06:01:33 PM
That statement from Wilmot's school district is a complete joke, and the charges are a complete joke as well. In the eyes of a non-american individual, you're making a mockery of yourselves.
Zero tolerance makes a mockery of us all.And your point would be ? If you didn't grasp it, my view is that they're overreacting and overreaching. She's a 16 year old girl that wondered what would happen if she mixed some chemicals. She didn't intend to blow up a building or harm anyone.
In that light, how can the handling of her case be right ?
And yes, you're right - there should be zero tolerance for idiots.
May 03, 2013, 05:44:53 PM
That statement from Wilmot's school district is a complete joke, and the charges are a complete joke as well. In the eyes of a non-american individual, you're making a mockery of yourselves.
Zero tolerance makes a mockery of us all. May 03, 2013, 05:40:34 PM
Edit: Sorry for generalizing all americans. If you feel offended, then go for a walk. 
I challenge you to a duel of fisticuffs!Perhaps you're one of the Americans with an actual brain. In that case, it would be a draw right of the bat.
May 03, 2013, 05:38:53 PM
Edit: Sorry for generalizing all americans. If you feel offended, then go for a walk.
I challenge you to a duel of fisticuffs! May 03, 2013, 05:37:03 PM
As a non-american, seeing things like this... I just shock my head in disbelief. Americans seems to always be overreacting, and being unable to exercise logic and intelligent thoughts. It's a culture of fear that's far outside anything I can comprehend.
In my country, some teacher would've told her - oh - you blew something up ? Then perhaps a meet with the headmaster to let her know this is not approved of and that she should refrain from such experiments on the school in the future, and that would be it.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/kiera-wilmot-arrested-science-experiment_n_3194768.html
That statement from Wilmot's school district is a complete joke, and the charges are a complete joke as well. In the eyes of a non-american individual, you're making a mockery of yourselves.
Edit: Sorry for generalizing all americans. If you feel offended, then go for a walk.
In my country, some teacher would've told her - oh - you blew something up ? Then perhaps a meet with the headmaster to let her know this is not approved of and that she should refrain from such experiments on the school in the future, and that would be it.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/kiera-wilmot-arrested-science-experiment_n_3194768.html
Quote
The experiment reportedly created a small explosion that caused the bottle's top to pop off and produced smoke. Although no one was hurt and no property was damaged, Wilmot was charged with “possession/discharge of a weapon on school property and discharging a destructive device,” according to WTSP. Both charges are felonies.
Quote
Wilmot’s school district released the following statement about the incident, according to the Miami New Times:
Anytime a student makes a bad choice it is disappointing to us. Unfortunately, the incident that occurred at Bartow High School yesterday was a serious breach of conduct. In order to maintain a safe and orderly learning environment, we simply must uphold our code of conduct rules. We urge our parents to join us in conveying the message that there are consequences to actions. We will not compromise the safety and security of our students and staff.
Anytime a student makes a bad choice it is disappointing to us. Unfortunately, the incident that occurred at Bartow High School yesterday was a serious breach of conduct. In order to maintain a safe and orderly learning environment, we simply must uphold our code of conduct rules. We urge our parents to join us in conveying the message that there are consequences to actions. We will not compromise the safety and security of our students and staff.
That statement from Wilmot's school district is a complete joke, and the charges are a complete joke as well. In the eyes of a non-american individual, you're making a mockery of yourselves.
Edit: Sorry for generalizing all americans. If you feel offended, then go for a walk.
May 03, 2013, 05:26:16 PM
Quote
Schoolgirl tries science experiment, arrested for felony
16-year-old Kiera Wilmot wasn't so lucky.
16-year-old Kiera Wilmot wasn't so lucky.
More:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/kiera-wilmot-arrested-science-experiment_n_3194768.html
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/urban-scientist/2013/05/03/scientists-support-for-kiera-wilmot-solidarity4wilmot/
The plot thickens: "Kiera is, as one might expect, black"
http://my.firedoglake.com/jlava/tag/tammy-glotfelty/
May 03, 2013, 05:25:36 PM
WTF? Jailed for a Diet Coke and Mentos bomb?
Basically, yes. May 03, 2013, 05:23:57 PM
WTF? Jailed for a Diet Coke and Mentos bomb?
May 03, 2013, 05:18:36 PM
I wonder what they think they'll accomplish by jailing her. I wonder if they think.
May 03, 2013, 03:45:44 PM
Does everyone believe what I was saying about explosives being more dangerous than guns now? They're also a lot easier to assemble 
But seriously I fucking hate these people, the sooner Bitcoin puts them out of business the better, every time I think about giving them the benefit of the doubt something like this gets posted up.
But seriously I fucking hate these people, the sooner Bitcoin puts them out of business the better, every time I think about giving them the benefit of the doubt something like this gets posted up.
May 03, 2013, 11:13:04 AM
Well, thank god she didn't try the old "lit splint in a test tube of hydrogen" experiment... She might have been charged with possession of a hydrogen bomb.
May 03, 2013, 11:10:57 AM
Did it count as WMD?
May 03, 2013, 11:07:08 AM
Quote
Schoolgirl tries science experiment, arrested for felony
A teenage girl puts two household chemicals in a water bottle at school to see what might happen.
There is a small explosion. No one is hurt. She is expelled and charged with weapons possession.
Who among us hasn't -- just once in our lives -- put a couple of things in a test tube, a bottle, or our mouths and wondered what might happen?
Occasionally, this might have difficult consequences. But rarely does someone try to arrest us for it.
16-year-old Kiera Wilmot wasn't so lucky.
This student at Bartow High School in Florida allegedly thought she'd put a couple of household chemicals in an 8-ounce water bottle, just to see the reaction.
The reaction was that she was expelled and marched off in handcuffs, accused of felony possession/discharge of a dangerous weapon.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-57582330-71/schoolgirl-tries-science-experiment-arrested-for-felony/
A teenage girl puts two household chemicals in a water bottle at school to see what might happen.
There is a small explosion. No one is hurt. She is expelled and charged with weapons possession.
Who among us hasn't -- just once in our lives -- put a couple of things in a test tube, a bottle, or our mouths and wondered what might happen?
Occasionally, this might have difficult consequences. But rarely does someone try to arrest us for it.
16-year-old Kiera Wilmot wasn't so lucky.
This student at Bartow High School in Florida allegedly thought she'd put a couple of household chemicals in an 8-ounce water bottle, just to see the reaction.
The reaction was that she was expelled and marched off in handcuffs, accused of felony possession/discharge of a dangerous weapon.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-57582330-71/schoolgirl-tries-science-experiment-arrested-for-felony/
More:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/kiera-wilmot-arrested-science-experiment_n_3194768.html
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/urban-scientist/2013/05/03/scientists-support-for-kiera-wilmot-solidarity4wilmot/
Jump to: