I applaud you for telling it like it is, Joel. These actions are, at best, unkind and thoughtless, and at worst, cruel and illegal.

I applaud you for telling a biased, pompous and exaggerated version of the senior's last day at BHS. The fact that you refer to these pranks as "cruel" and imply those responsible should be punished as felons suggests you are either grossly dramatic or pathetically naive. Certain words you use seem almost comical in the context of the situation.... "harsh and unkind" pranks pulled on teachers? Perhaps you should share with your audience how these pranks consisted of tiny alarms hidden around the room or students bursting into song during class... yep, that sounds like "abuse" to me, too!
Bouncy balls, a felony?! Salad dressing, life-threatening?! Please!
Further, the fact that you compare a school's response to catching 2 PIGLETS to the nation's response to TERRORISM is one of the stupidest and most trivializing analogies I've ever heard. I guess your three years as a professional comic in LA really paid off!
The only point you made that had any validity were the references to slurs written on a girl's car. While I saw no evidence of this, if this did in fact happen then I agree that this stands as the lone cruel and illegal act that occured at the high school.
Perhaps before writing an editorial, you should check with more than "half a dozen" students who were clearly unhappy with their high school experience prior to these events.
- an offended and annoyed BHS senior .

Sally

Thank you for leaving your name. I admire people who sign their letters. I mean that sincerely.

My article is a blog, an opinion piece not unbiased journalism. But thank you! You more than made my point. The fact that the majority of kids like the pranks and only a few were humiliated or offended is what makes it wrong.

Majorities always like hurting the minorities, It is a familiar a story in history that goes back thousands of years. It makes majorities feel good to put weaker people down.

Comment continued
Majorities are for elections, but laws and rules are for the protection of the minorities and the weakest members of our society. In 1861 the majority of people, North and South, felt that slavery should be legal, and even Lincoln was not in favor of extending civil rights to African Americans in 1861.

That most seniors feel that hurting others in any way is an important part of their experience is a COMPLETE FALIURE of the administration of the high school, that in my opinion, ( and this is an opinion piece so I am entitled to my opinion) outweighs all the successes in the school. I was at graduation today, and I was appalled when Mr. Hurley spoke in support of senior pranks.
He should be absolutely ashamed of himself. He should know better.

If someone had fallen on the stairs, slipping on the super balls left there for that very purpose, and hurt themselves would it still be a harmless prank? Was it only harmless because it failed? If and when someone gets hurt next year, or the year after, or the year after that, then I would consider Mr. Hurley complicit in that injury.

Comment Continued

I find that the adults I speak to on this issue agree with what I am saying and some of the students do not. You are young, and when you live long enough then perhaps then too you will see that risking lives, destroying property and people's self esteem needlessly or treating minorites with contempt is wrong. Most of the parents in the room today know that . It is a shame that you could not learn that lesson in Barrington High school.

Dear Mr. Hellman,
Are you kidding me? First I would like to state how childish it is to assert age as a contention to undermine my colleague's argument. Yes, she is a teenager, but she is equally qualified as anyone to voice her opinion. Secondly, I am frankly shocked at your response. How dare you bring up the battle of civil rights to compare it to senior prank day! It is clear that you are simply being a yellow journalist and supporting your own arguement by compounding your sensationalism. This is not issue of a subordinated minority. The events you mentioned that even fell under illegal or offensive were actually not performed by any member of the senior class at Barrington High School. Mr. Hellman, I propose an appropriate comparison to you (not one outlandishly ludicrous like comparing Sally to a nineteenth century racist) My analogy refers to you and what you accomplished on here: what you did is yelled fire in a room where someone was simply trying to light a cigarette.

comment continued:
I would also like to say that you are getting your information from too few sources. At least be a responsible journalist before you voice an unsubstantiated opinion.
Next, I would like to actually applaud the Barrington High School Administration for handling and maintaining control of senior prank day so tactfully and sucessfully. They truly succeeded in toning it down compared to years prior. I would also like to finally make a comment on the Seniors' Last Day. It is truly a time of togetherness and celebration of what we have achieved together.We even have the senior parade where we all celebrate our last dismissal. It is far removed in actuality from the bigotry that you asserted that it breeds. We are all sucessful, as a class. We made the journey together and finished together. And for you to sit there and completely disregard the world class education that was provided to your child because someone unafiliated with the school performed a hate crime on the exact same day as senior pranks occuring is OUTRAGEOUS!!!

P.S. I did the Latin American dictator sign. I love Ms. MacIntosh. She found it funny.

Mr. Hellman.
I do not go to BHS. I am a freshman in high school, and i still read this article. I found it sorta funny how, only a few days ago, you wrote an article about biased journalism tarnishing barringtons reputation. funny. what better a way to do that than portray us barrington teens as antisemetic homophobics who also happen to have it in for farm animals? I must congratulate you, sir, on providing your readers with a generous display of exactly that which you condemned. also, thanks for a good laugh at half past midnight.
-jack hughes

p.s. sign mah comments like a MAN. (or like sally collins? whoever that is anyways)

oh also, that rooster was fine. im good friends with it.
-jack

Daniel,

You keep proving my point. No one has stated that what I wrote was incorrect, Just that it cast seniors in a light they don't like. Sometimes what you see in the mirror is different than what you thought. Read what you wrote again in 25 years and see if you want to take the same stand with your children. Until then you are just too young.

Jack

Again, no one denies that any of these things happened, just that you don't like reading it in the newspaper.

Again this is a blog, an opinion piece, not an article covering news which is supposed to be objective which I was writing about when I took issue with the reporter's facts. When you go to college take journalism 101, and on the first day they will explain the difference. articles presented as news are supposed to cover both sides fairly, opinion pieces approach things from one side or the other.

No one has said that these events did not occur, Just that they are upset that I wrote about it. If I was wrong and these things did not happen, then say that they did not happen.

Wait a second Mr. Hellmann, we're not denying that some of these things happened...we're challenging your depiction of the impact that these pranks caused. This article is driven off of "half a dozen" students (Not concluded to be seniors; thus already a bias source as underclassman were intended to be on the receiving end of these pranks.) Where as even if they were seniors, doesn't give any validity to the events that a grade close to 300 had been apart of. Let me clear up what you think happened.

-The pigs were absolutely fine.... and a fun fact: they came from a slaughterhouse and after being taken away from the school they were brought to a local farm to live, rather then being someones meal. (animal abuse huh?)

- Goldfish in toilets...GOLDFISH CRACKERS...not live fish...more sources would of cleared this up

-Clam juice and dead sun fish....a minor inconvenience

-Rooster in the school.....the rooster was also fine...faculty and students found it hilarious

-Superballs...although dangerous on stairways they ended up being collected by underclassman anyway....a felony?! yea right.

-The condoms on the door? Ill take credit for that.....also a minor inconvenience (and a funny one at that) caused no harm and i even gave them out during the parade at the end of the day....be safe everyone!

-I had not heard of any such "death to jews" sign...and the writing on the girls car happen to coincide with senior prank day and was not carried out by any seniors.

Comment continued:

-The dressing in the squirt guns was carried out by no more that 3 students and this also only was a minor inconvenveniance.

-The latin american dictator poster...daniel cleared that up

By the end of the day, i applaud the faculty and administration on their efforts that you whole heartedly attacked.

All this article proves is how someone can twist and turn something around based off of a bias... diminutive source. We may be teenagers, but we have all the right to speak against what you wrote. And im sure when im 42 ("read what you wrote in 25 years and see if you take the right stand") i'll still hold my opinion strong that that day was a day of celebration and union for the class of 2011 as we departed from BHS and the pranks and their effects were in no way felonious nor close to the magnitude that you have reported. Get your facts straight, Mr. Hellmann.

-Matt Roza

Matt, You all still prove my point. The fact that one person thinks it is funny does not mean that everyone does. Some things were meant as harmless. Some were not. Is Ok to offend some people? Are there some people that deserve humiliation? Some people did harmless pranks. Some people went over the top. Which is which? Some people are really offended. Not the majority. But how many people who are offened or humilated is too many? 2? 8? 20? Who picks that number? The seniors? the student body? Is it you that chooses?

I choose 1 person as too many. I have had 20 foster kids. They are easy targets for this stuff. I have seen how it hurts them. It happens to them a lot in Barrington schools. Nobody should be humiliated in school. Not on any day. Not for someone else's fun. 1 person is just to many

The car I heard was not done by the seniors. But the people who did it took advantage of the suspension of the rules on that day to commit a hate crime. You didn't do it, You just provided the cover for it.

We have a difference of opinion and that is OK . And I appreciate the comments, But I suggest that you print this blog out and read it to your kids in 25 years and see if you feel the same. I would bet that you'll feel differently.

All I wanted to do was clear up what you incorrectly reported. The writing on the girls car wasn't allowed due to a "suspension of the rules"....there was no such "suspension of the rules" on that day, the rules were enforced especially on senior prank day, I proved no such cover.
Also, I think you think that the administration encourages pranks, when in actuality they don't, but they expect it as it's tradition which is why it's illogical to suspend any rules; confusing why you thought just that.
And about the students getting humiliated, none of the genuine harmless pranks (about 95% of them) caused any such humiliation...all they could have done was create a small, probably awkward situation. If people don't have any sense of humor going into school on senior prank day, the practical jokes aren't as funny.
All in all chances are the students that were effected by the pranks and reported negative feedback will participate in the annual senior prank day when they are seniors, however hypocritical, and the cycle begins again.

Hello Mr. Hellmann. My name is Sara Feit (a graduated senior of Barrington High School) and I would like to state that I would hope I speak for a good 'majority' when I say that your bias is, quite honestly, unfounded. I have, unlike yourself, spoken to more than half a dozen sources that can testify that the hate crime performed on the girl's car was done in hate and in a personal interaction, not as a representation of the senior class' hatred for any particular person. Also, the sign that said "Death to the Jews"-I am Jewish, like you. I am offended, like you. Unlike you, however, I believe in my graduating class enough to know that there is no one who would intentionally hurt an entire religion. I have also heard word, from my more than half a dozen sources, that the sign was done by the same people who vandalized Temple Habonim (NOT BHS seniors). However, since I would like to present facts, I cannot say that is absolutely true. Next time, please just talk to someone who you presume you can speak for. How can you assert that teachers were offended, or the administration could not handle us? We adore our faculty and profusely thank them for allowing us to enjoy four years at a wonderful school. I honestly cannot believe that a Barrington resident who has had the chance to experience the amazing teenagers that live here can express this news in this tone. But thank you for giving me the opportunity to sharpen my argumentation skills.
P.S. I like my barnyard!!!

Hey Joel you really need to discontinue your histrionics and get your facts straight. As an old curmudgeon I can identify with your natural disdain towards rambunctious adolescents, but once you start asserting imaginary accusations and hyperbolizing like a madman then it becomes clear that anything you have to say wouldn't really be worth reading. I am an underclassman in the school, and I can attest firsthand that we as underclassmen are willing to accept whatever shenanigans the seniors choose to perpetrate on their last day. It is their last day after all; a very sentimental day where, as mentioned by Dan Keller, they mostly just focus on being together. You are very dramatic, and as a comedian I can't help but assume that you were probably quite the rotten tomato target. From how you write you seem about as funny as a funeral. Noone is asking your permission for anything here, and frankly your opinion is undesired. Let these graduating classes celebrate as they please; if something very hostile or illegal is perpetrated then consequences will be enforced. However nothing of the sort occurred on June 3, 2011. It was a day for the seniors to celebrate the end-times of Barrington High School and look towards the future hand in hand.

This is like arguing with a wall, or something with the intelligence level of one. We're lucky that mr hellman wasn't there at the creation of our constitution or it might say something along the lines of Innocent until proven guilty by the testimony of half a dozen "teenagers whose minds aren't fully developed." this is exactly the same kind of idiocy in journalism that got barrington the reputation it has as my colleague jack Hughes stated. I thank everyone on here who supports the truth and abhors sensationalist hypocritical garbage. The barrington times should expect my editorial within a week.

I think what takes people to dismiss any part of your argument so quickly is that you:
1) Appear to compare shooting someone with salad dressing to assault with a deadly weapon.
2) Compared the Barrington High School system of locks and cameras to our national security.
3) Compared Barrington High School seniors to felons.
4) Compared the student who released pigs in the school to a member of Al Qaeda.
5) Compared a nice and intelligent senior to 20th century racists.
I would think since you seem to be well informed you would have taken a lesson as a journalist after the shooting in Arizona and learned what comparisons are appropriate and what is not. You have taken your argument too far, it is becoming immature and it lost the miniscule of meaning it began with.

How could you possibly think that they just suspend the rules for a day? Nearly half of the major pranks that were planned got shut down before they could be fully realized, including the one that my friends and I attempted (and they did have reason to shut us down, despite our prank not posing any realistic danger, and the fact that we planned to clean it up later). Administration was out in full swing that day, most of what was done was harmless, and anything harmful simply managed to seep through the cracks, as is often the case.

This entire article reads like sensationalist trash. Opinion piece or not, it's completely dishonest of you to spin this issue in the manner that you did. In addition, the fact that this is an opinion piece does not excuse you from presenting objectively inaccurate facts. You should honestly be ashamed of writing such a blatant attack on the class of 2011, who managed to pull off one of the most harmless senior prank days in recent memory, as my classmates have already shown you point by point.

Here's hoping you gain a little bit of common sense.

-David Bohrer

Mr. Hell—never mind, I’ll just call you Joel (it’s shorter). I offer you my sincere congratulations—you have risen beyond us mere mortals, and quite frankly have achieved celebrity status. How does it feel? Here’s a hint—if you said “good,” then you admit defeat. If not, then why did you write this? I dare you to read this opinion in its entirety. I read yours. What happened here is much worse than what happened on the Third of June. Let’s take a look.

Obviously, some of your intent in writing this opinionated piece is to inform the public of what supposedly transpired on that day. You admit that you spoke to “half a dozen students” about what transpired on that day. Regardless of the extremely small data sample (because of course, it’s not about the majority), the fact remains that you were not on hand to witness the events. Therefore, already you have no credentials to back up your claims. At this point, the only logical course would have been to state the facts that you heard and allow the community to supply the argument. But somehow, Joel, you felt that you had the ability to offer a heavily slanted view on the matter. At the same time, you are trying to suppress the voices of those who were there to witness the events firsthand. You are a supporter of human rights, yet not the right of adult members of our community (yes, according to the law many of the seniors here are in fact adults) to voice their opinions. Therefore, I challenge you to respond to the above comments based on *their* merits, rather than a blatant and unsupported advertisement for your own points.

Joel, you mention that “the adults [you] speak to on this issue agree with what” you say. Obviously, these are the adults who do not go to Barrington High School and have certainly not experienced its current culture. Why did you write your article on Barrington’s reputation from the Projo’s “Bad, Biased Reporting”, Joel? Because you felt that people’s opinions were being swayed by heavily opinionated writing. Case in point—the opinions of the adults you’ve spoken to (by the way, sources please?) have obviously been manipulated by your uninformed generalizations. Therefore, these sources, who have only your account to go off of, would obviously be in support of the only opinion they experience—consciously, it is human nature to agree with a blatant opinion, and it is difficult to stay neutral. The more pressing issue is your attempt to criticize Mr. Hurley’s comments about the seniors. Undeniably, Mr. Hurley is an adult voice. Undeniably, Mr. Hurley is a member of our school culture. At this point, he has more credentials than you, Joel—see that latter part? He realizes what you, in fact, do—that there was no immediate danger here, and that pranks are a part of life.

While the implications of credibility sink in, let’s go on a little detour through reality. I’m sure you’re familiar with the tragic death of Vic Morrow—while on set filming for “Twilight Zone: The Movie,” he, along with a child actor, was decapitated by an exploding helicopter; another child actor was killed by the explosion. Does this mean that Steven Spielberg is immediately complicit, or even guilty, in this incident? Should Spielberg have been jailed for his role as producer of the film? Of course not—something completely unforeseen happened, even in a carefully coordinated stunt scene. Now at this point, I expect you to say that I’ve proved your point, that an accident can easily happen, and if it did in a professional film set it could also happen at school. Obviously, Joel, this would be the response of someone who has difficulty putting things into perspective. Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect utopia. I could be killed biking to school each morning. I intend to bike to school each morning until I get my license—I could die when the bus breaks through the White Church Bridge; I could die in a car accident when I get my license. In fact, we could all die because of a giant meteorite from space. But nobody’s worried about that.

Why not, Joel? It’s a matter of perspective. The senior pranks this year did not pose a safety threat. No one could have been decapitated by a helicopter and explosives. There was, in fact, no danger from the pigs or rooster—obviously, the pigs “can’t walk on tile floor,” so any injury to anyone who dared to venture too close to scared pigs would have been a self-induced injury, and would have involved no liability on the school’s part. Any student could cut himself in a dissection for biology, but that’s not the teacher’s fault, is it? The dead sunfish in the cafeteria—if it did happen, it didn’t affect anyone. You make it seem like the fish was put in the food and served. If, in fact it did happen, it would have simply been a piece of trash—no more of a health violation than the half-eaten food in the trash—to be removed. There were hardly hundreds of super balls on the stairways, and the very effective administration worked quickly to remove them—hence the reason why there were no injuries. I walked the hallways after school—not a single trace of Italian dressing on the floor. And unfortunately, I’ve never had the experience of walking on a tile floor covered by Italian dressing. I’m sure it would have been a very fun experience, if you’re into that sort of thing (because evidently you have). However, I have walked on a waxed tile floor—waxing performed by the janitors.

I’ll let the implications of that sink in, but please don’t write another article decrying the janitors for doing so

Digression over. If you’ll recall, Joel, I mentioned a utopian society up there. One in which there would be no wars, in which everyone would live in a sense of perpetual equality and brotherhood, where no person is more equal than another. Maybe one day we’ll get there. But years after anti-bullying laws have been implemented, there are still perhaps cases of bullying occurring. Of course, any statistic would show that bullying levels have declined over the last few decades (you would obviously remember the classic bullying acts from the middle of the twentieth century), so evidently the law and administration has been effective. I feel no fear coming to school each day. But I can sympathize with those who are picked on. And evidently you, Joel, cannot. Why is that? Because you have publicly humiliated those who have been harmed and bear the scars for life. Take the case of the poor girl who had her car egged and vandalized. I’m not going to argue the validity of the claim, because I don’t possess the knowledge to prove or disprove it (no, I’m not a hypocrite). But what might have been a personal struggle has now been publicized for the whole town to read—in fact, it’s on the Google-searchable internet. You have taken this girl’s suffering and made it public. Of course, Joel, the memory is not as fond if your car had been egged and vandalized. But it would be almost unbearable if the world had found out.

Rather than offering help for a minor issue, this public announcement could very well have pushed her over the edge. There’s a celebrity responsibility here, which you obviously have not met. (Remember the question from the beginning?) As for the case of the antisemitism and the vitriolic degrading of a teacher—and again I cannot ascertain the validity of these claims—well, we don’t live in a utopian society. There are always going to be outliers. And rather than working to discipline or help these individuals, you have promoted their actions to a public (read: global) audience. Why have these people committed these actions? Obviously, it is because they want attention (…thoughtful pause…). And through you, they have received that attention. By supposedly decrying their actions, you have helped them fulfill their purpose, Joel. I hope you’re happy.

Do not for a moment believe we do not have an effective administration. Do not for a moment believe they relaxed the rules for a day (believe me, there was more fun planned. The same kind of good, wholesome fun you might find at something called a “birthday party”). I’m not here to counter your points on the administration (that’s for the other article, at a later time). What I am here to do is to help quench the flames. Misinformation is a dangerous tool, and should never be used on the public. It is a deceived public’s panic that hinders progress. I have one last example to cite—something perhaps more recent. I recall the issue dubbed “Antennagate” —the panic that resulted from the signal drop Apple’s iPhone 4 would experience if held in a certain way. A quick Google search yields millions of results from every news organization, and it peaked at near 100% search volume index from Google Trends. All this attention for an issue that affected less than 1% of users. What fixed this uncontrolled frenzy? A 40-minute press conference with hard, cold facts by the people who had the facts. Two weeks later, the issue was barely a blip in the news. What was the fix? A little rubber casing for the few thousand (again, perspective) users who had the issue. In a case like this, the minor issue, if any here, is easily amendable. But not if there is a panicked crowd threatening to overrule the school and institute martial law.

So what is my final point? Take things in perspective. Verify your sources before causing a mass panic. By the way, my home-built radar tells me there are some missiles coming towards here. …Oh, they’re birds. Drawn on a printout of a radar. Scaring the public is not the answer, Joel. If you have a valid complaint, please bring it up civilly at the next Town Council meeting (and yes, the majority matters. Hopefully they won’t hurt the minority). Try to save some scraps of dignity and humanity, Joel.

I am not a senior. But I do not condemn Senior Prank Day. Undoubtedly the class of 2011 has worked hard for the past 12 years, and it is only fair that on their last day they are allowed to celebrate. In any form of revelry there is bound to be some danger (oh look, the popcorn at the movie theater is a choking hazard! That’s attempted murder by National Amusements of the customers, that is). But the very effective administration has pulled through, ensuring that the day was in fact safe. I can say so after being there. Experience is a very powerful contention, Joel. I suggest that you re-evaluate your sources, actions, and morals Joel. Profiting off of others’ potential discomfort does not make you right. It does not make you better. In the end, it does not make you a celebrity. I feel like there would be a few choice words that would better describe what you are, but I at least have some sense of what is right. There are children reading.

It was a pleasure to meet you, Joel. The age-old adage stands—first impressions do matter. And quite frankly, I’ve never made such a quick or opinionated first impression. So I challenge you, or any of my peers, to respond to my voice.

Congratulations class of 2011. The defense rests.

I originally read this blog with the intent of replying with an intellectual response in denouncement of your blatantly ignorant post, but then i thought, "screw it! my brain is not yet fully developed!" so I have decided instead to plant this seed in your brain, Joel: when you wrote this did you actually have any just intentions? Perhaps you did, but from the looks of it, this is just another publicity stunt from just another bored, Barrington parent.

PS... if condoms on doorknobs don't make you at least chuckle, you may want to realign your sense of humor

Lets just say for one second that the presence of farm animals in the halls of BHS takes away from the student’s education and taxpayer dollars. Lets also pretend that the extreme curriculum Barrington High School displays is not among the highest in the nation, never mind Rhode Island. I can assure you that the last four years any Barrington senior has spent in the most excruciating stress known to education, is certainly light years past whatever non-existent syllabus you experienced.

If you think that senior pranks are among the worst of lesson that students are taking from school, you could not be anymore wrong. These pranks take place on the last day two days of school. Clearly this is precious time for our seniors to take in all the knowledge they need. Also, Please tell us all who stated that, “senior prank day is good for education.” The argument there is about as good as yours is right now. No one ever said it was, it is just as much a part of the high school experience as is a Thanksgiving football game or a school dance (obviously you probably want to get rid of both of those too). The administration does not support these acts nor look the other way. They just simply try to allow the students to have fun without crossing the lines of safety, danger, or offense to any other students or faculty before they leave the only life they know.

If you would like to help reshape the curriculum for the last two days of school in manner that would please only you and God, then be my guest. But there is no use in fighting against a non-issue such as this. You of all people should know that there are more pressing matters to deal with (like things that actually affect people). I encourage you to pay a visit to some neighboring high schools such as East Providence or Mt. Hope and see how well their tax dollars are doing.

When you publically post this article with no other intentions than to rely on the inexperience and foul mouths of teenagers to write your argument for you, hoping they will simply make fools out of themselves is just embarrassing.

One last thing… It is also both sad and unnecessary for you to bring drinking AND Al Qaeda into all of this. Underage drinking has absolutely no right in this article but I do understand your affection for Al Qaeda (You both hate the American public and do whatever you can to destroy it).

Seniors don’t do it for the memories; they do it for the now. I think its time you worry about your now, and let the school worry about the seniors. There’s a reason you’re not principal..

Mr. Hellman you should be embarrassed
embarrassed for being an adult writing articles in the Barrington patch about teenagers
embarrassed for your daughter who has to live with people making fun of her father all the time
embarrassed for the wonderful principles and teachers at Barrington High School who you made seem awful
embarrassed for comparing High School seniors who will be attending college next year to terrorists
And honestly I am embarrassed for my parents because you make Barrington High School parents seem pathetic

Are you all seriously making a huge deal out of a blog post from ONE parent? No one took this post to heart until you all began to lash out about it. This isn't practice for debate team, this is blog website where people share their opinion. If you don't like his opinion then ignore it. "fighting" this non existent issue is lame at best. He disagrees with senior pranks, so what? You disagree with him, are either of you going to change your opinions? Nope. So what exactly do these posts do? Nothing but add anger and frustration to a group of people.