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by Dave Soulia for FYIVT.com
According to the Rutland Herald, Rutland High School attendance officer Howard Wasserman wrote an apparent inflammatory post on Facebook about the assassination of conservative speaker Charlie Kirk. Superintendent Pam Reed told the paper she had received multiple complaints about the post but could not comment further on personnel matters. His post read:
“Violence of any kind is not okay. But if you feel bad because a racist piece of shit was gunned down, there’s something seriously wrong with you. Meanwhile, there was another school shooting today and nothing will be done because the racist Pedophile Party is running the show.”
That last line raises a blunt question for Rutland residents: by saying the “racist Pedophile Party” is “running the show,” did a district employee effectively label roughly half of Rutland City’s voters and taxpayers—Republicans—as “racist pedophiles”?
A Captive Clientele
Unlike private businesses, public schools don’t operate on a “take your money elsewhere” model. Rutland families are a captive clientele: they fund salaries and pensions through taxes whether they agree with staff views or not. Parents and taxpayers who feel maligned by a public employee’s rhetoric cannot withhold their contributions or choose another district.
So another question arises: Should taxpayers be expected to keep funding an employee who openly disparages a large portion of the very community he serves?
District Policy on Safe Schools
Rutland City’s Policy 7400 on Harassment, Hazing, and Bullying requires the district to maintain a “safe and supportive school environment” and empowers it to impose “serious discipline” up to termination when conduct—on or off campus—substantially interferes with a student’s ability to access education.
Which raises yet another question: If conservative students now feel chilled from speaking up, or fear being mocked if they form a Turning Point USA chapter, does that meet the district’s own threshold of “substantial interference”?
Students vs. Staff: A Mixed Message
Rutland students have a history of pushing back on bullying—whether rallying against cyberbullying apps or running school-wide positivity campaigns. The district itself has partnered with outside groups on anti-bullying programs.
Charlie Kirk founded Turning Point USA in 2012, the same year he graduated high school at 18. Over the next 13 years, until his assassination, he built it into a movement with chapters on more than 3,500 high school and college campuses. TPUSA says its media team and ambassadors now reach over 65 million followers across platforms, while Kirk himself had 3.8 million YouTube subscribers.
Given that reach, isn’t it fair to assume that some Rutland High students—and even younger teens—were familiar with, or fans of, his work? If so, what message do they take when an adult in their own school publicly dismissed Kirk’s life and labeled his supporters’ families “racist pedophiles”?
Doesn’t it undercut the very anti-bullying lessons schools are trying to instill?
First Amendment vs. School Function
As a public employee, Wasserman has First Amendment rights. But those rights aren’t unlimited: courts allow districts to weigh an employee’s speech against the need to maintain an effective, trusted school environment. If community trust and parent cooperation are undermined, or if students’ willingness to participate is chilled, the district has leeway to act—even for off-duty speech.
So the question becomes: Has this speech crossed that line from private opinion into public disruption?
Online Reactions Include a City Official
The controversy hasn’t been limited to school employees. One Facebook comment—celebrating that Kirk would “never spew his garbage views ever again”—was “liked” by Rutland City Board of Aldermen member Kiana McClure. For taxpayers funding both schools and municipal government, that raises yet another question: How are conservative residents perceived by those elected to represent them?
The Larger Implications
Whether RCPS disciplines Wasserman or not, the fallout is already broader. In the span of one week, both a school employee and a city alderman signaled contempt for conservative residents—roughly half the city’s population and half its voters. Taxpayers have no choice but to keep funding the salaries of public officials who speak this way, and parents have no choice but to send their children into classrooms run by the same system.
For conservative students, the impact is sharper still. Some admired Kirk, some follow Turning Point USA online, and some may even have considered starting a chapter at Rutland High. After this, would they feel safe doing so? Or would they assume the adults in authority will view them as “racist pedophiles” before they’ve said a word?
Schools teach anti-bullying every year. Students themselves have led campaigns against cyberbullying in Rutland. What lesson do they take when the adults—who are supposed to model that standard—seem to excuse or even celebrate contempt aimed at their peers’ families?
The unresolved question isn’t whether Howard Wasserman or Kiana McClure are entitled to private political opinions. It’s whether public officials in a city divided nearly down the middle can afford to write off half the people they serve—and half the students they are supposed to support.
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Categories: Local government
Should be dismissed.
So much hatred, I’m betting someone like Howie will be the next one to take up a gun and start shooting those who disagree with him.
Unstable. And one who is in direct & frequent contact with children.
And Charlie Kirk was a “racist” and a “POS” HOW exactly?? You neglected to elaborate, Wasserman. But of course.
The ONLY racists I see all over Vermont are those who advocate for the slaughter of unborn babies in the womb – blindly following the founder of Planned Parenthood and eugenics advocate Margaret Sanger herself who advised “…invest in ghetto abortion clinics” and “BLACKS, soldiers, and JEWS are a menace to race” amongst other notable quotes.
I would propose therefore that the actual RACIST is one Howie Wasserman.
Still waiting for the rest of the story about this shooting of Charlie Kirk. Comment from Richard Day.
sadly this mIght be awhile…still waiting for the rest of the story about the shooting of J. F. Kennedy.
The comments say much more about the commentator than whom they are talking about. They are so filled with pride, their opinion is right and we’ll prove it, and if we can’t debate it we’ll kill you or support those who do kill you, such that you’ll be afraid to speak out in public.
What this statement really says is, I’m an even bigger coward and a bigger intellectual midget than the shooter of Charlie Kirk.
It says way more about the commentator, and what it says is not flattering at all.
The argument or discussion rapidly descends into , you’re a nazi, or racist or sexist in about 30 seconds. It’s really becoming quite trite, boring and all too predictable.
Don’t condemn and cancel. Let’s demonstrate by our gracious comments that we think better of the value and worth of this person than they think of us. Ultimately, we want to change minds, not destroy. Everybody should have a chance to grow and mature in their views. I know I’ve been uncharitable toward liberals and I’m not going to disparage people groups any more. I’ll debate ideas.
They’re telling us who they really are. We should believe them.
I have known who they were for a long time.
Whoever made these statements, should not be in our schools openly spreading such beliefs on the taxpayers dime. This person should have kept their views to themselves and because they did not, in my opinion they need to be relieved of their duties within the schools.
I agree that the statement was vile, but it was an “inflammatory post on Facebook”, and the 1st amendment applies to him as much as it does to, say, that teacher in Randolph who disagreed online with the school’s decision to let a boy play on the girl’s soccer team.
It’s ‘the taxpayer dime’ – that’s the issue here. Not the expressed belief.
The problem with this issue is not that a public-school teacher or employee posted a personal remark on Facebook with which some of us disagree. The problem is that our current education system forces those of us who disagree to transact business with that person… ‘business’, in this case, being the education of our children.
If I disagree with Mr. Wasserman’s opinion, I should be able to send my children to a school, or home school, where Mr. Wasserman’s opinions aren’t forced upon me…. petty or inflammatory as they may be.
This is why School Choice is essential today. School Choice is the civil rights issue of our time. A free market in education is the only institutional governance that can reasonably accommodate the multitude of opinions we have in our ever more complex society. It matters not on what side of the aisle one sits. Disagreements are a certainty of human nature.
But a voluntary relationship ensures that anyone entering into an association with someone else has decided that they will benefit from that relationship to one extent or another. And when a more beneficial circumstance arises, they can take it.
The problem isn’t that we all think we’re correct. The problem is that we persist in forcing others to do what we think … typically by forcing one person’s definition of ‘diversity’, ‘equity’, and ‘inclusion’ on another…. a certain recipe for conflict… as is becoming more and more apparent every day we continue down this one-size-fits-all path to destruction.
To repeat what is becoming a common idiom: I’m careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. On one hand, I can and do strive for excellence every day, in my own way. On the other hand, I also understand that perfection is God’s work.
Educating our children is the field in which seeds are planted. As the Pilgrims figured out in 1623, when confronted by the starvation of half their number…
“The experience that was had in this common course and condition, tried sundry years and that amongst godly and sober men, may well evince the vanity of that conceit of Plato’s and other ancients applauded by some of later times; that the taking away of property and bringing in community into a commonwealth would make them happy and flourishing; as if they were wiser than God. For this community (so far as it was) was found to breed much confusion and discontent and retard much employment that would have been to their benefit and comfort.
At length, after much debate of things, the Governor (with the advice of the chiefest amongst them) gave way that they should set corn every man for his own particular, and in that regard trust to themselves; in all other things to go on in the general way as before.” – William Bradford, Governor of Plymouth Plantation
Can this low-information hateful person provide the exact text of any racist comment Charles James Kirk EVER made?? JUST ONE?? NO. he can’t. That’s because it doesn’t exist and never happened.
To answer the question “How are conservative residents perceived by those elected to represent them?” We know how they perceive us. They hate us and only love our wallets.
The good die young but evil goes on forever.
God buries His workers and continues His work
This dirtbag should be dismissed and prohibited forever from working at a school or any organization that involves children. He is a disgrace and a loose cannon with serious anger-management problems. Fire him before he explodes,
How do people like this get hired in the first place?
What if a student were to write on their personal FB page that Howie W. was a POS. How do you think that would play out?
How dare we disagree on anything anymore. That’s what it’s come down to, that and being able to speak on it. I remember a time when we could disagree on something and after discussion, we could just leave it there if we couldn’t come to an agreement. Disagree now and the other side, whoever it is, will refer to you as a bigot, racist or whatever. My how we have gone backwards in evolution.
The ironic thing is that more likely than not both of these public employees are 100% in favor of gun ownership restrictions, but apparently as long as they’re used in a way that achieves goals they support then they’re just fine with it. Which illustrates two key points 1) gun ownership regulation has never been about public safety rather just plain old control, and 2) they’re hypocrites to the fullest degree!
Vermont schools, go not be soft and dismissive and tell me this district employee didn’t really mean it. This person needs to be removed. Their behavior should not be tolerated ! What they do on social media is not exempt.
Howie Wasserman and John Bossange a retired schoolteacher whose anti Trump communist screeds are often published in the VDC are the kind educators who are teaching your children how to hate America. Is it any wonder who is creating a nation of vipers.
Great point. If we can’t rid our schools of poisonous influences like these, parents should pull their children out of these public institutions of indoctrination and home-school them.
Companies and government around the country are immediately firing employees for their despicable comments. Public servants must be immediately fired as well. The taxpayers have to demand it loudly. The left talks about safe spaces all the time, but only for their interest groups, never mind those groups of people they disagree with.
NPR and Soros organizations are complaining now that any action against these people is a violation of the 1st Amendment and are victims or the MAGA ‘radical right’ .
Van Jones on CNN related that white people have a racist virus in their head – in some cases laying dormant, but it is there. White people have a racist virus in their head was his assertion.
Brian Kilmead on Fox stated that if homeless people refuse help, they should receive a lethal injection.
TMZ broadcast of their journalistic peanut gallery cheering upon the news of Mr. Kirk’s passing – Harry Levin and Charles Latibeaudiere tried to cover it up by saying the cheering was about a car chase – either/whether or not –
All this exposure can’t be covered up or explained away like a zagnut in the litter box. God’s will be done and wow – He’s bringing it to the forefront for all to see and hear.
It is an operation – pyschological warfare to distract and divide by conjuring self-imposed labeling to instill fear, hatred and distrust – where none is warranted or proven – it’s all lies and it’s all a plan by the most wicked in the highest of places – with the biggest bank accounts.
In the shadows, a vicious, dangerous, deadly game is being waged and playing out. Some see it clearly – others keep falling for the psyops – spoon fed by a corrupt and complicit machine of reprobates and fools. Our country is being destroyed from within – by design and by a covenant made with and for evil. (notice that word in reverse is live – interesting)