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Well, I think that you should not take the Marines out. They are cool and it’s not that bad. If they don't like it its not our fault. I think they should just leave it and continue there are lots more people that do like the Marines and it’s true they should just forget the whole thing.

Well first of all, my opinion on this suspension is not right. Teachers should understand that we just use our iPods because there is nothing else to do while we're on campus. In a way I understand the situation but in my mind I see it as a way of getting away from problems and people. It keeps our minds on the music. And as for the peircings, I say that’s a sense of style that should be allowed to any student. It might look wrong like in jobs and stuff, but we're still kids and sooner or later we're going to realize that it was all immature. We just need time!

I think that 12 days is too long to suspend someone for a piercing and headphones. I think it’s stupid because there are other people with headphones and they don't get in trouble. I think we should be able to use headphones on campus, but not in class. I also think that she shouldn’t have gotten suspended for that long.

You know,
I find this article "One-sided, and selfish," more than anything.
For one, she didn't follow the rules (three times in a row) which calls for discipline.
Two, she IS supposed to answer to Mr. Land because she's not a senior or a freshman and Mr. Land deals with sophomores and juniors.
And lastly, a simple mispronounced name should never call for a smart remark.
So in conclusion, this is a call out for attention and false justice.

Andrew Velasquez, GTV

The school is definitely taking things way to far, especially when it comes to peircings and iPods. Is it really hurting anyone? I agree with Ashley also. That wasn’t fair how the teachers acted towards the article, like she did something 'so horrible.’ Then they suspended you! Wow!! That’s pretty stupid if you ask me! A lot of these teachers, new and old, really bug me!!! A lot think they know the answers to everything. It makes me laugh! Who cares, girl! Your peircings and music aren’t bothering me, and I really truly doubt they are anyone else! It’s YOUR life. Live it how you want! Even if that means to be a rebel!!

After reading numerous replies to teacher responses, chiefly mine, I would like to clarify. Teachers are not here to "suck the fun out of life." We are here to help students grow, learn and become productive members of society. Learning to follow rules is a part of life. Respecting your elders is a value we uphold in our society. Everyone has a right to express their opinion, but if we do so, we must be ready to accept the consequences of our choices. That is a life lesson that all students and even adults must learn. I understand that you follow AP style, but the tone you took in the article was very disrespectful and many teachers, like myself, took offense to your lack of respect. We want all our students to go out and lead productive lives. Learning how to treat people will take you far in life. It is okay to disagree with a rule, but you should show respect for your teachers and campus supervisor even if you object to a rule. We did not make the rules, but it is part of our job to make you adhere to district standards. I always get disrespect in the beginning of the year when I ask gentlemen to remove their hats in my room. I explain why and tell them it is an issue of respect. As the year goes on, I am happily surprised when a gentleman enters my room and another asks him to remove it and when that student asks, "Why?" my student replies, "It is an issue of respect in this room." I know I have taught a life lesson, which is far more important to me than teaching English. My response was about respect and your lack of it. Sorry if this "sucks the fun out of life.”

First of all, Merrissa has had her lip pierced for the past three years, this being the third. The two previous years before this, there was never a problem with her piercings. For some reason, this one year, this simple piece of jewelry has caused a whole lot of controversy. I don't see why. Aren't we supposed to worry about our kids\' education rather than stress so much about what they look like?

I am the mother of Merrissa Camarena, and on her first suspension, she didn't get the regular sentence that anyone else would have gotten, that of which is a one-day suspension. She had gotten a three-day instead. Maybe if my child was one of those students who always seem to cause trouble and get into fights, or who rarely shows up to school, such discipline would be reasonable.

But that is not my daughter. She is only speaking her mind. And aren't we, as adults, supposed to encourage our young to stand up and speak their mind, no matter who might oppose? So I see nothing wrong with her posting this article about what happened with her suspension from HER POINT OF VIEW.

I want to say that I am very proud of my daughter, for standing up for herself and explaining what went on through her mind, through a teenager's mind. And once she enters "the real world," she will be ready. She will be ready to handle all the criticism that life will throw at her. There are many people who have great, well-paying jobs that earn them a respectful place in society. And guess what, there are a number of them who do have tattoos and piercings. I have customers who come into my store (I am a manager) who are inked all over, yet they maintain a position in a work office. And for anyone to oppose these people for the ink on their skin, or the titanium/sterling silver/metal in their mouth should know that they are discriminating. It is straight out discrimination!

I think that the focus needs to be more on how the kids work in school rather than the way they look. Kids these days have so many classes to worry about, so many credits and standards to meet. Then when it comes to their apparel, that is when they get to break away from the stress and be able to be laid back and enjoy their youth. I can understand toleration to a certain extent. I wouldn't let my child walk out of the house with a shirt that had the F-word sprawled across the front or with torn and tattered clothes. These minor things such as piercings should not halt a student's education just because some people on the board believe that it will disrupt their learning abilities and cause such a threat to their lives.

These long suspensions for such little things are completely unreasonable! It takes a long time to catch up on a whole weeks worth of school work AND homework.

My daughter does not have a huge distracting hole in her lip, and so many other people in this world have piercings located on their face. Not all of them are teenagers. It's a common thing, colleges do not make such a big fuss over this unlike high schools. Why would the matter be stressed so much when piercings on the body, other than the ears, is such a common thing that everyone has grown used to?

And lastly, I do remind my daughter to take out her lip ring while she is in school.

Sincerely,
Angel Sanchez, the mother of Merrissa Camarena

I am in sixth grade and my mom teaches at Granite Hills High School. I know a few students and a few teachers there. They know that everyone should follow the rules. Even though I don't go there I know that following the rules is a good thing. I think people on this website should show GOOD EXAMPLES!!!! Good examples are great for people like me who look at this website. As a result students should follow the rules, listen to their elders, and show good examples. Thank you, and I plan to see more students on the website with GOOD EXAMPLES!!!!

I wish to respond to some of the comments that have been made about Merrissa's explanation. The Grizzly Gazette is a student newspaper, run by students, for students. It is a place for students to express their ideas and opinions about life at Granite Hills. As teenagers, it is inevitable that students will question school rules and policies - that is what young people do as they are trying to form their own opinions and make their own way in the world. It was clear to me that Merrissa's piece was more of an opinion item and not a "news" story, thereby relieving her of some of her journalistic obligation to be unbiased. I am proud to work at a school that produces such a consistently outstanding newspaper that represents a variety of student viewpoints.

I think the school does need to calm down a lot on their dress code. Lip rings distract people? I understand teachers and principles want to show authority and discipline, but to suspend a person for a lip ring violation? 12 days? All they are doing is taking away from that person’s education! Aren’t schools trying to stress a good education and attendance in school? This is the way they are showing it? Suspending someone for almost 2 weeks? Kids who get in fights at Granite get a lesser suspension. I think Mr. Land [could have] gone about the disciplinary action a much better way. I don’t think the violation weighs out the action taken. Sure, Mae shouldn’t [have] had her lip ring in, or headphones, but she wasn’t in class, was she? So what was there to distract her, or others?
I just think that if we're going to discipline people for different reasons, then we should think about everything, like how serious the issue is, before they make the decision.

To all the teachers that are writing bad about Merrissa’s article:
I have read all your letters and can’t see how any of you can put Merrissa down the way you did.
Mrs. Amann, Merrissa was solely stating her opinion and informing her readers why the entertainment page would not be going up until she returned to school. She also did not intend to have a lack of respect for Mr. Land by not putting a Mr. in front of his name. In journalism we use AP style and do not put titles in front of ANYONE. Go look at some of our other articles that are about other teachers and you will see the same. For example, if their was to be an article about you the first time your name would be mentioned it would be put as Christine Amann, then the next time you would be referred to as Amann not Mrs. Amann.
To everyone else, Merrissa has a right to state her opinion and she was only stating how she believes that the district policy is a waste of time to enforce. Personally, I believe that if a student is not in a class or a teacher is not instructing, then one should be able to listen to their music. Also, I will have to say that it does seem as if Mrs. Brown and Mr. Land are after certain students and others get away with doing the same things that these students get in trouble for. I mean, I have noticed that I am more likely to get in trouble for a shirt that shows some of my cleavage because I am big-busted than a girl that is flat-chested. The district policy is based on a double standard, and if the district was so worried about what we wear then they should put us all in uniforms! Just as a work place would do if they didn’t want their employees wearing inappropriate clothing.

I said it before, and I will say it again: some people just don’t like to be lenient and always suck the fun out of life. I hate being this way, but I am sick and tired of having to conform to what other people believe I should be. Many of the head figures want us to express individuality and originality, but how can we when we must live on edge wondering if what we wear and how we live will be the cause of our punishments. We are only allowed to be original in their sense of the word, not our own. Live long, fight strong, be true, walk not in fear.

First of all, how do you personally know that the piercings we have are going to prevent us from going anywhere in life? How do you know that my future career is going to be in jeopardy because of my tiny piece of sterling silver? I cannot think of a single college that has a policy against piercings, tattoos, or iPods. I am getting ready to go to college and I have spoken to counselors from a number of universities and they (the schools) have no problem whatsoever with my form of "free expression." Also, as I plan to continue my career in journalism, I DO personally know that my piercings and headphones are not discouraged in the workplace. In fact, a number of people I have spoken to HAVE piercings. The policy against them, and this may sound childish or immature, has been created to make us, like our predecessors, to be like robots and look like everyone else. But why should we do this? Weren't we put on this earth to be individuals, and stand out form the crowd? Come on, this is a pointless argument. We don't get pierced to "take a stand." or to make trouble in school, we do it because this is what we like to do. It's not different from piercing a newborn's ears. Why is piercing my lip any different from piercing my ear? THEY ARE BOTH ATTACHED TO MY HEAD!!!

In response to Mrs. Amann:

The fact that I referred to him by "Land" is not a matter of disrespect. In AP format we have been taught to refer to a person by his/her first and second name along with a title the first time they are mentioned, when it comes to the second time we are told to simply go by last names in which the title of Ms., Mrs., and Mr. are removed.

While perusing the Letters to the Editor, I noticed some, not really mistakes, but misinterpretations of Mae's article. First, it was stated that she showed a "lack of respect" by not using titles when referring to Mr. Land or Mrs. Brown. This does not show a lack of respect, it is just a generational difference. To us students, the titles are meaningless, and almost everyone drops them when referring to teachers, myself included. It does not show disrespect, it just shows that either we are lazy or just don't feel it necessary. It was also said that she "purposely broke rules." In English, a required class in PUSD, we learn from Thoreau and others that if a law is unjust, it is within our natural rights to disobey it. Piercings are forbidden because the district believes they detract from the learning process. If the district were to go to all of Mae's classes and ask the students if her lip ring detracted from their learning, it would be a unanimous no. Truth be told, the fact that the people making the rules refuse to listen to ones affected by them is killing the learning process more than anything else. And about iPods: They. Can. Actually. Help. There have been many days, especially ones where the whole assignment is reading, where I would have been more efficient had I been able to break out my iPod. For me, it’s because my mind wanders, but if I have something to take my mind off of, like the music, then it is easier to focus on boring writers. I can not possibly be the only person who works like this, so the administration and district officials should really get with the times, and not think any technology that didn't exist when they were in school detracts from our learning, especially when it helps!

As a journalist, I wanted to comment on the article you wrote. I hope you have learned in journalism class the importance to look at both sides of an issue. Your article is slated only to your side. Why not mention the reasons the district has rules about piercing? Why not mention the school rule about ipods and headphones? Yes, each student has the right to "free expression," but you must also learn that you will go out in the work place someday and whether you like it or not, you will have to follow rules. As a teacher, I personally don't like telling students to put their ipod or cell phone away and I don't want to tell students that their piercing is violating a district rule; but I am a school employee and I do the job I am asked. You put down Mrs. Brown and Mr. Land, but they are just doing their job. Your lack of respect for both of them is deplorable and I hope if your parents read your article they would comment to you on your lack of respect. At the least you should refer to Mr. Land as "Mr." Land, not Land. As a member of the journalism staff, students look to you and follow your lead--you presented yourself very poorly and I hope you will apologize to Mrs. Brown and Mr. Land.

Let me get this straight. We are supposed to stress that character counts: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, etc. The way I see this, Merrissa purposely broke a rule. She is upset [that] she got caught. People think it is unfair to enforce rules. This was not the first time she broke the same rule. Then you put her picture on the website with her lip ring and earphones in place. This is called rebellion. When you purposely break rules you must face the consequences. It doesn't matter how many get away with something. Rules are rules. That's life. Deal with it. Only fools continue to make the same mistakes.

Thank you, Mr. Land and thank you, Ms. Brown. Merrissa, if you really cared about journalism class, you would abide by the school rules and do as you are instructed. The school rules are school district policy and should be followed. I am thankful that the administrators and campus supervisors and SOME teachers enforce the DISTRICT POLICY (I might add: they may take your cell phone, mp3 player, or camera too). If you have a job some day, possibly writing for a newspaper, magazine or something like that and the boss hiring you told you that the rules of the company are: there are no headphones allowed and you will not wear piercings anywhere but the ears, would you comply or do whatever you wanted to do? The boss may just give you one warning and may just give you a day off to take care of the non compliance. Next time, he would FIRE YOU! This is life & there are rules to abide by.

Aww. That is so bogus! Mr. Land needs to chill and let kids be kids. [Come on], 5 days of suspension (that does not include the holidays)? I’m sorry, as a respected student at granite hills high school, I have to say this: this is utterly retarded. I can understand a three day suspension or even OC for a week, but not 12 days of [without] school.

These rules are depriving students from their education that keeps them out of trouble. I guarantee you that 3/4 of the student body does not care if a student has a piercing on their lips or face, just as long as it's not the size of California!!!!