fanboy2000 said:
Mr. Graham is ignoring parental concerns for no other reason than money.
As far as money goes... Schools are businesses. Most of the decisions that the administration makes hinge on making money for the school or spending as little as possible for what the school has to have. I don't agree that it should be like that (but then again I think teachers should make twice as much as they do and be much better trained), but it is the way it is for public schools.
I don't see him ignoring concerns so much as explaining why each one lacks validity. It is highly unlikely that the technology in these little chips or the chip readers could pose any sort of medical threat to the children (no more than your television, microwave, or other household electronics are causing). The chips don't provide any sort of exact location (just a notice that the child has entered or left through a doorway) and isn't linked in any way to personal data on the child.
I respect the opinions of those of you who are voicing yourselves against this concept, but I just can't agree (hopefully you respect that too). I don't see any trampling of civil liberties here (no more than say, school uniforms which would present a higher cost to parents). I don't agree with stopping something that could be potentially good because of the possability that it leads down a real or imagined slippery slope to something bad.
If my child's school did this. I would be for it. If they later told me they were going to attach my child's personal information, school records, and so forth to the badge... My opinion would change (but only on the additional stuff), and I'd take action as a parent against the changes.
I don't know about implanting anything medically (it would have to be proven pretty darn safe before I or my child would get any sort of elective surgery of that sort), but I could definately see myself buying a backpack or jacket with a lojack in it for my child or getting one of those "black box" things for my kid's car so that I always know where they are, how fast they are travelling, and whether the vehicle has detected any recent collisions.