Parenting Examiner

36 students at El Camino High in Oceanside, California pulled off an elaborate hoax aimed at scaring their fellow classmates straight.  If you haven’t heard the story, here’s what reportedly happened.  On May 26^th a uniform police officer made appearances in several classrooms to notify students that a fellow classmate died in a drunken-driving accident.  The officer then proceeded to read a brief eulogy, placed a rose on the deceased’s desk, then turned around and left the students to think about what had happened for the next hour.

The juniors and seniors, after hearing the news, were overwhelmed by emotions.  Many began crying and some were near hysterics.  At 10:00am the students were lead into the athletic stadium where they found out that their peers had not died at all.  There in the stadium, a group of 36 seniors, police officers and firemen staged a fatal car crash—an alcohol related fatal car crash.  Those students who were have said to have been killed portrayed ghosts encircling the scene. 

As for the students watching all this, they were rightfully confused and angry by the entire hoax.   

“When someone says to me, ‘Oh, my God, you’re traumatizing my children,’ I’m telling them, ‘No, what I’m doing is waking them up.’” said California Highway Patrol Officer Eric Newbury, whose father had been killed by a drunk driver.  “I want them to be an emotional wreck.”

Some teachers did not take part in the program titled “Every 15 Minutes,” which was designed by MADD.  Some of the students that were near hysterics were taken aside and told that in fact their classmates were alive. 

So, as a recap, teachers, policemen, and fellow classmates all lied to students at El Camino High to teach them the dangers of drunk driving.  Is this a good program?  Should we promote lying as a society to teach our children?  First Santa, then the Easter Bunny now this—when will it stop?  I think a program like this is a slap in the face to students and may teach them not to drink and drive, or it may make them distrustful of authority.  Is this program a winner or a loser?  Vote now and be heard.

For more from this Examiner you can visit him at his homepage here.