Jail for Facebook

Did you know there was a time when the California legislature was considering making it illegal for teachers to be facebook friends with their students? Of course, this very action (along with emailing a teacher) is illegal in Missouri. The idea of teachers and students interacting about something other than school (GASP) is still terrifying parents. One teacher quit his job in order to be with a student he loved. She loved him. The relationship was completely legal and consensual, but the mother wanted the teacher arrested anyways. Of course, there is the issue of "dude, you have a daughter who's at the same high school as your girlfriend," but that shouldn't be a legal issue. Yet it continues to be one, despite the myriad of other issues the California state legislature SHOULD be dealing with. There's also the issue that these issues are based on the idea that teachers are pedophiles-in-hiding. Simply not true; if you look at a teacher's job, they work hard for little money. They enjoy helping their students. And now, after Missouri does this, California goes back to considering this law. There is no logical reason to do this. It's not "protecting children," if they are of legal age. What that is suddenly doing is taking away rights, and on top of that, it is stopping students and teachers from having a friendship, a simple friendship, because of the fear that teachers will brainwash all their students, forcing them into relationships. Now, texting a student, or messaging them on facebook, WOULD BE A FELONY. Let that sink in for a minute. Of course, with that done, why not ban teacher-student eye contact while walking in the halls? That could lead to something bad too! There is absolutely no reason why electronic contact should be any different than contact made in-person. The logic is, as it often is with the government, noticeably missing.