Education

Nevada Considers Legalizing ‘Pop-Tart’ Guns In Schools

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Blake Neff Reporter
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Nevada Republicans have introduced a bill that would legalize Pop-Tart guns, finger guns and other non-lethal non-firearms in the state’s elementary schools.

“A little plastic gun that small is not going to be mistaken for a real gun,” Republican Assemblyman Jim Wheeler told the state Assembly’s education committee on Wednesday, according to KOLO News.

To drive the point home, a supporter of the bill treated members of the committee to tasty Pop-Tarts to observe how harmless they are, a reference to a case two years ago in Maryland where an 8-year-old boy was suspended after nibbling a cherry Pop-Tart into the shape of a gun. (RELATED: ‘Toaster Pastry Gun Freedom Act’ Proposed In Maryland)

The bill, AB 121, wouldn’t just bar school staff from punishing students for wielding toy guns made of plastic or toaster pastries. It would also protect students from being punished for “simulating a firearm or dangerous weapon” or “wearing clothing or accessories that depict a firearm or dangerous weapon.”

“This kind of reminds me of the debate the Founding Fathers had regarding the Bill of Rights,” said Assemblyman Chris Edwards. “Many of them thought they would never need a Bill of Rights because no government would ever violate things like freedom of speech. However, wisdom won out and they put in those precautions just to make sure those things wouldn’t happen to us. I think they were very wise to do so.”

The law would also represent a rollback of zero-tolerance policies in a state that once took them up with gusto. Back in 1999, after the Columbine High School shooting, Nevada lawmakers approved a bill allowing schools to expel students with disciplinary problems for just about any reason. Stories spread of students who faced expulsion for, for instance, including guns in a writing prompt.

Nevada isn’t the first state to consider such a law, as similar legislation has already been passed in Florida and Texas.

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Tags : nevada
Blake Neff