Dan Gould

Motherfucking Christ we're in deep trouble. Dice-K makes his return - and barely gets out of the first inning, down 4 runs, and stranding runners at second and third. He can't throw over 89. He cannot fucking be right in the shoulder. How can you take an extra ten days after you are eligible to come off the DL and be back throwing softer than before? And with less command. I better fucking pray that Houston somehow wins again tonight - just like Cincinnati managed to beat the Yanks two in a row. Otherwise its sayonara to first place.

Well Alex (and Tim), it just so happens that my closest friend was, for over ten years, not only a teacher in the Florida School system, but a Special Ed teacher specializing in autism. I ran down the facts of the case, and the arguments that have been made. He confirmed that Florida has a similar law. His response: A claim by a psychic does not qualify as as reasonable suspicion. I would do nothing if this had been reported to me. Sexualized behavior by an autistic child is not necessarily supportive of a sex abuse claim, particularly when that child has been mainlined and has exposure to "normal" kids. Yes there are teachers and administrators who err on the side of caution, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't use their own good sense. The word of a psychic is no word at all, and that would be my defense if I were ever charged with failing my duty to my kids.

If I were a teacher, I would demand instruction on the meaning of the word "reasonable" in the statute. Otherwise, I would apply my standard of "reasonableness" and say, "Miss T.A., you're an idiot for going to a psychic. You're a bigger idiot for believing what you were told."

Speaking of abuse.... Go back and read the article, Dan. The person making the report was a teacher assistant. A non-credentialed person with little or no college education. Obviously, not a terribly bright individual either. You want to gang up on somebody, fire up on her. The teacher and the administration were only following the chain of command set down by the law which governs our required response to an allegation of abuse. This is easy to understand, Dan. We aren't building a rocketship here, OK? No, only to a foolish person like you. The T.A. reported what her psychic said - and the first thing the teacher should have asked is, does this constitute a reasonable suspicion? No, it does not. "Case" closed, and sign up the T.A. for James Randi's email list. In your opinion, Dan. Not in the opinion of the law. The TA was the first contact for this incident, not the teacher. The teacher, by law, correctly followed legal procedure which she is required, by law, to do. It is not our call to make after the TA has determined this is a situation in need of the attention of CPS. Once the allegation is made we must report on it. Period. End of discussion. Game over. A psychic, however idiotic we may think she is or the people who consult them are, is still a living, breathing, thinking human being. On that level and on that level alone, however shaky her evidence is, we are still required to report the allegation. A game board, tea and a child's toy are things, Dan; inanimate objects.They by themselves cannot talk or think or see or reason, OK? I thought you said this was a serious question. You don't like the law then write up a petition to change it on the next election ballot. Until then, you can go get your teaching credential, get a teaching position job and ignore all the allegations of child abuse you want. People like Alexander and myself will obey the laws of our land until a better way comes along to change how it's done now. Understand? You still refuse to answer the question: What does "reasonable" mean in the statute? What constitutes "reasonable" and "unreasonable" suspicions? "Reasonable" suspicions come from living, breathing, thinking psychics? And "unreasonable" ones come from a game board, tea leaves and a child's toy? Why was "reasonable" inserted into the language of the statute? Its time for you to simply tell the truth: As a matter of policy, teachers are told that "reasonable" has no meaning. The statute is to be interpreted as if "reasonable suspicion" has the meaning of "any suspicion". Just tell the truth: that is how the statute is interpreted. Not to protect children but to protect your own job. Otherwise, tell us what "reasonable" and "unreasonable" suspicions are. That's the letter of the law! What does it mean? Tell us.

Speaking of abuse.... Go back and read the article, Dan. The person making the report was a teacher assistant. A non-credentialed person with little or no college education. Obviously, not a terribly bright individual either. You want to gang up on somebody, fire up on her. The teacher and the administration were only following the chain of command set down by the law which governs our required response to an allegation of abuse. This is easy to understand, Dan. We aren't building a rocketship here, OK? No, only to a foolish person like you. The T.A. reported what her psychic said - and the first thing the teacher should have asked is, does this constitute a reasonable suspicion? No, it does not. "Case" closed, and sign up the T.A. for James Randi's email list.

OK, here is a serious question for Tim: The statute says "or which you reasonably suspect to have occurred to a child" Why does the word "reasonably" modify "suspect to have occurred"? The legislature could have simply said "or which you suspect to have occurred to a child". They didn't. They included the modifier "reasonably". What does "reasonably" mean in this context? What would, in your opinion, constitute a reasonable suspicion under the statute and what would constitute an unreasonable suspicion under the statute? We now know that a psychic who doesn't even give a name constitutes a "reasonable suspicion". How about tea leaves read by experts? A Ouji board? What about interrogating a Magic 8 Ball? Don't laugh, its track record is at least as good as your average psychic.

Psychic: A student in your class is being abused. Teacher: Really? Who? Psychic: The stars say that it is a strange name, a name you don't see every day. Teacher informs Principal. Principal: Well, what are some of the strange names of kids in your class? We must get to the bottom of this! We must protect our jobs! I mean, the children, we must protect the children. Teacher: Well, I've got a couple of celebrity kids - Sailor Brinkley and Rumor Willis. Oh, and that Egyptian exchange student - Ahmenidijad. Don't see that name every day. Principal: Call Children's Services! Arrest the parents! I'm not losing my credentials!

Its absolutely stupefying. There are two possibilities that a teacher might encounter. "every INSTANCE" refers to physical evidence of abuse or eyewitness testimony, by the child or someone else. THAT is an "instance of abuse". The other possibility is an "allegation" of abuse, and it is covered in the second half of the statute, the infamous "OR" "which you REASONABLY SUSPECT to have occurred" "reasonably suspect" - this is designed to cover ALLEGATIONS, which must be REASONABLE. No allegation by a psychic, but most especially an allegation by a psychic which has no specificity, can be described as reasonable. It can't even be described as an allegation. Gee Tim, the psychic said a girl with a first name starting with "V". What if she had said a first name starting with "M"? Call in the parents of Mary, Melissa, Melody, Maura and Marilyn? That's when it would get hairy for you and the school administration, because all of those parents would raise holy hell over what was done on the claims of a freaking psychic.

News flash: I'd root for the Cubs in that scenario. Or else I would just sit back and enjoy the games, and change who I root for with each match-up. Ellsbury at first? Steal 2nd, kid! Papi, Manny, D-Lee, Fukudome, A-Ram at the plate? Muscle up, batter! Paps or Wood on the mound? Blow it by him! But in all honesty, should the Cubs make the Series, I'd want them to win, specifically for my now ailing Father. Should the Cubs get there and lose to the Sox, there'd be a very tiny silver lining in a very dark cloud. Sorry to hear your Dad's not doing too well Dan! Thanks Conrad. He's actually seemed to regain a measure of health in the past three months - his doctor actually told him today that he looks the best he's seen in the last two years. So that's reassuring but at the same time, he's 82 and you just can't know ...

would you say the answer to this question should be "yes" in the present story? Curious but waiting to be astounded by Goodie's answer.

"REASONABLY SUSPECTED". I think a psychic's word isn't reasonable suspicion in this case. In your opinion. I'm not willing to risk my credential on some over zealous case worker and their hyper-extended definition of what is or isn't considered reasonable, Aggie. If it means the difference between my staying out of jail and somebody else's happiness the choice is a nobrainer. Mess with the state on this one and you will be burned to the ground first before the truth of it comes out. I'd report it no matter who told me. It simply is not worth the risk, Aggie. Wow. Is the law - hell, the world - that black & white to you? Let's be clear why its so black & white to him. He's a state employee beaten down by the rules and regulations of an overbearing state. Yet he has internalized the mindset so thoroughly, he cannot see how ridiculous he is.

instances of child abuse known or reasonably suspected What part of a "psychic said so" makes it a "reasonable suspicion"? Proof that bureaucrats only know how to follow rules, not apply common sense. No teacher could ever be prosecuted by the letter of the law. They have an affirmative defense: "A psychic says so does not constitute a reasonable suspicion, Judge." "Correct. Case dismissed."

Zen, In his interview with WEEI, he spoke of the likelihood of two outcomes: 1) They tell him flat out that he'll never pitch again 2) They tell him he can pitch again but in terms of rehab, the work will be five times as hard as ever before Curt basically expects to be told when he wakes up that they did this, this and this, with two of those things being only partially expected right now. There are really overwhelming odds that his injury would have ended his career anyway. And you can't say that delaying the surgery or throwing with the injury did anything to worsen it - the problems were there, the team just didn't see a chance he'd play this year if he went for surgery, so they pushed the rehab route.

They said Schilling reached a "plateau" in his bullpen work and was being evaluated Wednesday afternoon. When there was no information forthcoming, it was pretty obvious that the results weren't going to be encouraging. Turns out it was hardly a "plateau" it was a return of the debilitating pain, whenever he tried to increase the effort. If Schilling had completed a comeback to the point of being an effective pitcher again, it would have been a big boost down the stretch. But I always viewed that as an extreme long shot - frosting on the cake as it were but not something to be remotely counted on. So, we go forward with Beckett, Dice, Lester, Masterson, Wakefield and Buchholz + Colon, hopefully, in reserve. That still has to be the deepest group of starters of any contender.

News flash: I'd root for the Cubs in that scenario. Or else I would just sit back and enjoy the games, and change who I root for with each match-up. Ellsbury at first? Steal 2nd, kid! Papi, Manny, D-Lee, Fukudome, A-Ram at the plate? Muscle up, batter! Paps or Wood on the mound? Blow it by him! But in all honesty, should the Cubs make the Series, I'd want them to win, specifically for my now ailing Father. Should the Cubs get there and lose to the Sox, there'd be a very tiny silver lining in a very dark cloud.

Thank you VB and Mark. As for Timmy's allegations about the law, let's see what happens with the young Mother. After all, if she sues, the school should have no problem getting it tossed immediately under the blanket immunity of "a psychic made an allegation, and we must by law respond to any allegation". Care to wager on the outcome, Timmy?

Un -motherfucking-believable. The Cubs take a 3-1 lead and their best reliever, Marmol, goes walk, walk, hit batsman, hit batsman, gets yanked and all hell breaks loose. When the fuck do the Rays leave Tampa? Ah, not til they pound Houston then take a lovely road trip to the Marlins and Pirates. Before they meet up with Boston at the Trop. They could fucking be in first place by the time the Sox move on to New York.

I'm going to be mother-fucking pissed if the Rays complete a sweep of the Cubs. 1-0 middle of 6. I'll be M-F pissed both for the Cubs and the Sox.

A statement by a PSYCHIC does not by statute constitute an "allegation". Bank on that.

Agree with Paul. Its staggering that presumably educated people like a Principal, Vice Principal, and teacher would react in this way to someone citing the advice of a freaking psychic as evidence that something had happened to this girl.

That's very cool to hear, particularly if that means a little freshening up of the setlist.

Fuckin' ridiculous. I can only hope the luck runs out tomorrow.

It still kills me to think that Boston is sixty seconds and one impossible play from being champions in all three major sports. Now its up to the Sox to keep it going (and you know how tough it is to repeat in baseball) to give the Patriots another shot.

Probably a foolish question, Lon, but are you sure they are delayed? Worlds doesn't say they are in stock but there is a "buy now" button. KH, here are the descriptions:

Mileage indeed does vary.