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District Considers Demolishing & Rebuilding Columbine High School

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2 years ago

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  • On Thursday the school district for Columbine High School asked the community their thoughts about tearing down and rebuilding the school.
  • The district says that since the mass shooting 20 years ago, the Denver area high school has been a “source of inspiration and motivation” for other school shootings.
  • Some argue that the decision might help survivors since staff members from schools that have experienced similar tragedies have said they find it difficult to return to the scene of the crime.

Community Considers Rebuilding

The school district for Columbine High School is considering destroying and rebuilding the school due to the increasing “morbid fascination” of the mass shooting that took place 20 years ago.

On Thursday, the superintendent of Jefferson County Public Schools, Jason Glass, published a letter to the community. Glass starts the letter acknowledging the horrific event that took place in April 1999 and how the Denver suburb high school became the “point of origin” for school shootings to follow.

“School shooters refer to and study the Columbine shooting as a macabre source of inspiration and motivation,” Glass wrote. “Called “Columbiners,” there are people across the globe obsessed with the Columbine shooting.”

He cites an incident from April, around the anniversary of the Columbine shooting. A Florida woman known to be obsessed with the massacre, made her way to the Denver area causing 20 schools to be locked down. Glass adds that within the past 11 months, people attempting to illegally enter Columbine High School have increased to “now record levels.”

“Today school safety experts recommend tearing down buildings where school shootings take place,” he explains. “Since the morbid fascination with Columbine has been increasing over the years, rather than dissipating, we believe it is time for our community to consider this option for the existing Columbine building.”

Glass also explains what changes would be expected if a new school is constructed. The school’s name, mascot, and colors would not change, and instead of completely relocating, the new building would be near the current location.

“The existing building would be demolished, replaced with fields, and controlled entry points,” the letter states. “The new building would have enhanced safety features, designed to provide greater monitoring and school privacy”

While the idea of building a new high school is “in the very preliminary and exploratory stages” as noted by Glass, he wants to know the communities thoughts. He also provided them a link to a survey at the end of the letter.

If the Proposal Passes

The letter lays out the financial implications that would affect the residents of the district, noting that voters would need to approve an additional $60 to $70 million for the construction. Glass uses the example of a $500,000 home in Jefferson County, to explain that property tax impact would be around one or two dollars a month.

In 2018, the county voted to pass a $567 million bond investment to improve schools throughout Jefferson County. Each school got a specific amount depending on the improvements needed. Columbine High School was alotted just under $15 million for their projects, including improving security cameras, locks, and entrances.

Glass states in his letter those funds could be used for the construction of a new Columbine or re-distributed to other schools in Jefferson County.

Why rebuild?

After tragedies like shootings, schools often remain closed until any physical damage, such as bullet holes or blood stains, are fixed. Schools will often permanently close any areas that were at the center of the violence in hopes to ease anxiety. Columbine closed their library, which was the epicenter of the 1999 shooting and opened a new one two years later.

Crisis-response team leader for the National Association of School Psychologists, Cathy Kennedy-Paine, explained that physically being in the area where a tragedy took place can trigger anxiety.

“Obviously going back into a room that you had been in during a shooting would be traumatic, your heart races, suddenly you’re back to the day [of the shooting],” she told the Atlantic.

Teachers from other schools and districts that experience shootings agree with Kennedy-Paine.

“It was an exhausting year,” Rancho Tehama elementary school teacher Ken Yuers told Slate. “Sometimes before I went in that classroom, I would be in that staff room just trying to get myself together.”

Mary-Ann Jacobs, who was a library clerk at Sandy Hook, also told the magazine that she had to put her own feelings aside in order to be there for the students.

“We had 11 children, 6-year-olds, who survived in the two classrooms where the shooters were…It meant, again, putting aside our own grief and trauma every day.”

For a new Columbine High School to be part of November 2019 elections, the county school board must approve the ballot issues by the end of August.

Editor’s Note: At Rogue Rocket, we make it a point to not include the names and pictures of mass murders or suspected mass murderers who may have been seeking attention or infamy. Therefore, we will not be linking to other sources, as they may contain these details.

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Katie Couric Says She Edited Ruth Bader Ginsburg Quote About Athletes Kneeling During National Anthem

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3 days ago

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October 14, 2021

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Couric said she omitted part of a 2016 interview in order to “protect” the justice.

Kate Couric Edited Quote From Justice Ginsburg

In her upcoming book, journalist Katie Couric admitted to editing a quote from Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg in 2016 in order to “protect” Ginsberg from potential criticism. 

Couric interviewed the late justice for an article in Yahoo News. During their discussion, she asked Ginsburg about her thoughts on athletes like Colin Kaepernick kneeling for the national anthem to protest racial inequality.

“I think it’s really dumb of them,” Ginsburg is quoted saying in the piece. “Would I arrest them for doing it? No. I think it’s dumb and disrespectful. I would have the same answer if you asked me about flag burning. I think it’s a terrible thing to do, but I wouldn’t lock a person up for doing it. I would point out how ridiculous it seems to me to do such an act.”

According to The Daily Mail and The New York Post, which obtained advance copies of Couric’s book “Going There,” there was more to Ginsburg’s response. Couric wrote that she omitted a portion where Ginsburg said the form of protest showed a “contempt for a government that has made it possible for their parents and grandparents to live a decent life…Which they probably could not have lived in the places they came from.“

Couric Says She Lost Sleep Making Choice

“As they became older they realize that this was youthful folly,” Ginsberg reportedly continued. “And that’s why education is important.“

According to The Daily Mail, Couric wrote that the Supreme Court’s head of public affairs sent an email asking to remove comments about kneeling because Ginsburg had misspoken. Couric reportedly added that she felt a need to “protect” the justice, thinking she may not have understood the question. Couric reached out to her friend, New York Times reporter David Brooks, regarding the matter and he allegedly likewise believed she may have been confused by the subject. 

Couric also wrote that she was a “big RBG fan” and felt her comments were “unworthy of a crusader for equality.” Because she knew the remarks could land Ginsburg in hot water, she said she “lost a lot of sleep” and felt “conflicted” about whether or not to edit them out. 

Couric was trending on Twitter Wednesday and Thursday as people questioned the ethics behind her choice to ultimately cut part of the quote. Some thought the move showed a lack of journalistic integrity while others thought revealing the story now harmed Ginsburg’s legacy.

See what others are saying: (New York Post) (The Daily Mail) (Insider)

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Biden Administration Orders ICE To Halt Workplace Raids

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4 days ago

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October 13, 2021

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The Department of Homeland Security will now focus on targeting employers who exploit undocumented workers, instead of carrying out raids that dissuade those workers from reporting labor violations.

DHS Reverses Worksite Raid Policy

The Biden administration announced Tuesday that it was ordering Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to stop workplace raids.

The move marks a reversal from Trump administration policies that have been strongly criticized by immigration activists who argue the efforts created fear in immigrant communities and dissuaded them from reporting labor violations or exploitative employment practices.

In addition to stopping the raids, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a memo that the administration will refocus enforcement efforts to instead target “employers who exploit unauthorized workers, conduct illegal activities or impose unsafe working conditions.” 

Mayorkas added that the immigration agencies housed in DHS will have the next 60 days to identify harmful existing policies and come up with new ones that provide better deportation protections for workers who report their employers.

In the Tuesday memo, the secretary argued that shift of focus will “reduce the demand for illegal employment by delivering more severe consequences to exploitative employers” and “increase the willingness of workers to report violations of law by exploitative employers and cooperate in employment and labor standards investigation.”

Labor Market Implications

The new policy comes at a time when the U.S. is experiencing a critical labor shortage, including in many sectors that rely on immigrant labor.

Some companies that use undocumented workers pay them wages that are far below the market rate, which is not only exploitative but also undercuts competitors.

According to Mayorkas, the pivot to employer-based enforcement will help protect American businesses.

“By exploiting undocumented workers and paying them substandard wages, the unscrupulous employers create an unfair labor market,” he said in the memo. “They also unfairly drive down their costs and disadvantage their business competitors who abide by the law.”

It is currently unclear how effective the new efforts will be, but historical precedent does not paint an optimistic picture.

The Biden administration’s efforts closely mirror a similar move by the Obama administration, which attempted to reverse workplace raids authorized under President George W. Bush by targetting those who employ undocumented workers rather than the workers themselves.

That effort, however, still led to thousands of undocumented workers being fired.

See what others are saying: (The Washington Post) (The New York Times) (ABC News)

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Mom Charged for Hosting Secret Teen Parties, Pressuring Kids To Drink and Engage in Sex Acts

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4 days ago

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October 13, 2021

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Investigators said some of the sex acts between teens were non-consensual and at times took place while the mother stood by laughing.

Mother Hit With Dozens of Charges

A California mother is facing 39 criminal charges after hosting a series of illegal parties for her teenage son and his mostly 14- and 15-year-old friends that regularly led to dangerous accidents and sexual assaults.

The mother, 47-year-old Shannon O’Connor, also known as Shannon Bruga, is currently awaiting extradition to Santa Clara County. According to The Mercury News, she was arrested Saturday in Ada County, Idaho, where she has a home in addition to her property in Los Gatos that is currently on the market.

Her criminal charges include 12 felony counts and 10 misdemeanor counts of child endangerment, one count of misdemeanor sexual battery, three counts of misdemeanor child molestation, and 13 misdemeanor counts of providing alcohol to minors.

“It took a lot of brave children to come forward and to untangle this deeply disturbing case,” Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a press release regarding the case. “As a parent, I’m shocked. As the DA, I’m determined to hold those adults who endanger children fully accountable to the law and our community.”

What Happened During the Parties?

Investigators claim O’Connor organized the functions, attended by as many as 20 teens, via text message and Snapchat. She would then allegedly supply the teens with alcohol and push them to binge drink, often to the point of illness or unconsciousness.

The harm that resulted from their intoxication included one teen breaking a finger and another almost drowning in a hot tub, among other serious situations.

In another instance, O’Connor let an unlicensed drunk teen drive her car. Her son and another one of his friends then hung off the back while it was moving, which caused the friend to fall, hit his head, and become unconscious for 30 seconds. He was later diagnosed with a concussion after spending the night vomiting.

O’Connor is additionally accused of manipulating and encouraging drunk teens to participate in sex acts with one another, which were sometimes non-consensual or carried out while she watched. In some cases, she allegedly laughed while the sexual acts happened or when assault victims asked her why she didn’t step in to help.

Investigators added that O’Connor required teens who attended her parties to keep them a secret. She’s even accused of helping them sneak out of their homes so she could drive them to her events. Authorities said she was found to have bullied at least one teen who she suspected of breaking the secret.

“Everyone should feel relieved this woman’s not on the street,” the parents of one assault victim told The Mercury News. “She was grooming these kids, setting them up for sexual acts, and she’s a mother and doing this to her own child. … I’ve been racking my brain trying to think what was in it for her.“

See what others are saying: (The Mercury News) (ABC 7) (CBS San Francisco)

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