9-18-89 . . . There’s a new and disturbing trend in public schools, at least in Texas: imposing dress codes on students. Teachers and administrators say that they’re concerned about the messages carried by tee shirts, for example. Many students wear shirts with rock-and-roll insignias, some of which depict skeletons, skulls, and scenes of violence and domination. (Bands like Metallica, Iron Maiden, Dio, and Megadeth celebrate death, mutilation, drug usage, and various forms of conquest.) In addition, some school districts are regulating hair length for males. Those who defend such dress and grooming codes claim that the depictions and wild hairstyles distract students. In order to learn, they say, students must be disciplined, and in order to be disciplined, they must conform to certain standards of apparel and grooming. I agree that learning is the ultimate goal and that discipline is an important means to it, but I don’t understand how prohibiting certain items of clothing and forcing males to wear their hair short promotes discipline. In fact, I suspect that the dress codes will backfire; students are likely to rebel and become even less disciplined than they were. What we have here is a misguided attempt by adults to mold children into their image. These adults view rock and roll as the great scourge of youth, so they try to drive a wedge between students and their musical idols. It won’t work, and even if it did work it wouldn’t be right. If X doesn’t approve of the message or depiction on Y’s shirt, X has every right to scowl at it, think poorly of Y, and even try to persuade Y not to wear it; but X has no right to prevent Y from wearing it.
With less than two weeks remaining in the season, the major-league batting titles are up for grabs. In the National League, the contenders are Tony Gwynn of the San Diego Padres, who has won at least two such titles, and Will Clark of the San Francisco Giants. Their teams, not coincidentally, are fighting for the divisional title. I’m rooting for Gwynn. He’s a nice man and a tough competitor. In the American League, the contenders are Kirby Puckett of the Minnesota Twins, Carney Lansford of the Oakland Athletics, and—ho hum—Wade Boggs of the Boston Red Sox. Both Lansford and Boggs have won batting titles before, and Puckett finished second to Boggs in 1988. I’m rooting for Boggs. Though he has won four consecutive titles and five of the last six, I want him to win another. I want to see how many he can string together. Also, I’d like to be able to tell my children and grandchildren that I was around when Rod Carew won seven consecutive batting titles [the seven titles were not consecutive] and Wade Boggs won seven, or eight, or nine, or. . . . [Gwynn won the National League title with an average of .336. Puckett won the American League title with an average of .339. Gwynn won eight batting titles. Boggs won five. Both are in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.]
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 