Academia, Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Politics, Society

Hairy Tater Tot: Texas School Suspends Four-Year-Old Boy For Growing His Hair Long for Cancer Patients

Taylor Pugh, 4, (known as Tater Tot) is a bit too hairy for Floyd Elementary School’s principal. Taylor and his Dad are growing their hair to donate it for wigs for cancer patients. The suburban Dallas school district, however, insists that boys cannot have long hair and it has suspended him from classes since last month.


Remarkably, the school district is sticking to its position. Mesquite Independent School District spokesman Ian Halperin “We expect students … to adhere to the code of conduct.”

The short hair requirement always struck me as a bit sexist since girls are allowed to have longer hair than boys. So long as the hair is clean and not a danger to the child, why should a boy be required to have shorter hair than a girl? Looking at the picture with the article below, Taylor does not even appear to have particularly long hair.

Even if you agree with the requirement, it is bizarre that the school would not want to encourage such a selfless act of charity. One of my nieces at eight was part of this program and I was very proud of her. It is a wonderful message of giving that has now been replaced with a conflicting message of a senseless bureaucracy imposing arbitrary rules on children.

Not only would George Mifflin Dallas (left) not appear able to attend the school under the hair rules, but some other famous individual would find themselves suspended if they showed up for class.

For the full story, click here.

68 thoughts on “Hairy Tater Tot: Texas School Suspends Four-Year-Old Boy For Growing His Hair Long for Cancer Patients”

  1. Regarding secession of Southern states, which sounds more and more like a lost opportunity as the days go by, I’m beginning to think Lincoln was really just another Republican.

  3. I know it was said earlier, but when are we going to realize that Texas is the saddest place in the country. Can’t we please let them secede?!

  6. Since this is drone day, a day which the military admits to some of the hacking done to their killer toys, lets go way back 40 years …

    … a long hair from Berkeley single handedly discovered a hacker who had hacked the NSA, FBI, CIA, Pentagon, Air Force, etc. etc. and they did not even know it.

    Yep, a long hair was given the National Medal of Honor.

    Get a copy of the free book and read it. It is still the reality today, 40 years later:

    http://blogdredd.blogspot.com/2009/12/ye-olde-drone-hackers-ride-again.html

  7. Buddah.

    “I don’t hope the school admins get cancer.”

    You are far to kind to these expletive deleteds.

    My late wife threw out all my books on black magic otherwise I would already be drawing up a pentacle with the blood of fundamentalist Christian babies.

    May there be a hell and may these school administrators find their way there.

  8. Oh yeah.

    A f’ing dress code is MUCH more important than helping CANCER VICTIMS.

    Morons.

    Let’s just put it this way.

    I don’t hope the school admins get cancer.

    I do hope they loose all their hair though. Permanently.

    And are unable to replace it as they are allergic to nylon and latex wigs.

    Unless a caring little kid decides to donate his or her hair to them.

    And I hope some other busybody dipstick stops them from doing so.

    Then, maybe then, they’ll appreciate the true scale of their inhuman stupidity.

    You go Tater. You are a good boy! Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

  9. They’ve been fighting this “long hair on males is an abomination” business for more than forty years. Isn’t that enough? This is beyond ridiculous.

  10. If this event provokes such anger in the little shit that he comes to hate everything about school and enters the school to prison pipeline that will strip his voting rights, then it will be a good result.

  11. From the article: On its Web site, the district defends its code, saying “students who dress and groom themselves neatly, and in an acceptable and appropriate manner, are more likely to become constructive members of the society in which we live.”

    That kid looks fine to me. Imagine suspending a four-year-old from pre-kindergarten! Rules is rules…I guess.

    Just a thought: Hitler kept a neatly trimmed mustache–and wasn’t he a constructive member of society???

  12. Long hair indicates support for dirty hippiedom. The school is absolutely right to suspend this deviant four year old. This kid is going to grow up to be an evil un-American liberal. He will probably vote Democrat.

  13. Does Ron White know you’re stealing his material, i.e., tater tot, or does this constitute fair use?

  15. The world has gone crazy, and it’s our fault.

    When I was 4 (and had hair), I wasn’t taught about social responsibility in this manner. When I was 9 and the protests against the Vietnam Was was in high gear, I grew my hair, tie-dyed my t-shirts, bought black light posters (not bad on my allowance) and I studded jean jackets. As long as I didn’t disrupt class, they didn’t care–and neither did my parents unless I came home wit bad grades.

    We are pushing our children to over-achieve as we over-achieve. Because we don’t have time to be parents to the over-achieving children, we leave it up to the schools to be the parents we’re not being. Because of that, the schools have to cope with the situation by creating these insipid rules and following them under the concept of “zero tolerance.” Follow the rules or else.

    This was the prelude to the social revolution of the 1960s. Rather than letting the youngsters think, they tried to enact rules. Rules that tried to stifle music, fun, and life (remember, there was a draft back then). Too much was being put on the young people in the context of “it is good for you.”

    We are priming the pump for a social revolution. Life is moving online and our parents are being left behind. Young people are becoming more socially conscious, which is working against the conservative nature of our parents and going to cause an upheaval. The clash of cultures is just beginning and the first casualty will be the schools, whose zero tolerance policies are seen as just plain stupid. Hopefully, this revolution will be more peaceful than the 1960s!

  17. OTOTOTOT, I just can’t contain myself anymore:

    How is it that the Senate can legally mandate that citizens buy a product and fine one, through an IRS penalty, if one does not? I simply do not understand this.

    My limited understanding of the Commerce Clause tells me that the scope of the government’s power regarding commerce does not extend so far as making a law that forces citizens to buy a product. Through its regulatory role it can potentially limit your choices but it can not demand that you buy or fine you (unlawful taxation?) if you don’t.

    This seems literally insane to me. Can any of our lawyers at this site explain this to me before my head explodes?

  18. Well they should have just taken the kid up to the front of the classroom and chopped it off in front of everyone.

    I’m kidding

    Seriously, how does the long hair on a little boy affect the learning ability of any student in that school?

    I think his goal is admirable!! Would they get after a little girl that had hair down to her butt and tell her that her hair is too long?

  20. Good lord, don’t read the comments at the linked article.

    The kid and his dad are growing their hair out for CANCER PATIENTS, for God’s sake. It’s not like they are starting their own biker gang or anything.

    I try to keep an open mind about Texas, but it is becoming increasingly hard to not want to take Governor Goodhair up on his offer and let them secede.

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