Never make your threats openly.
Day trip to ACEN tomorrow! Looking forward to it. đ Sorry to be mentioning it so frequently, but since I am squatting in a common area instead of the Artists Alley I just wanna be sure people know to look for me if they want to find me.
Also, I’ve decided to add a Like/Dislike feature to the strips and comments on a trial basis. Enjoy!
-EDIT- Fixed an artwork slip with Tommy’s accusing finger-poke
Putting the novel in "graphic novel"
I guess he’s growing a pair. Better late than never.
Iâm sorry to contradict you Dave, but in my personal experience, itâs virtually impossible to fire a teacher on a whim, even with Scott Walkerâs reforms in effect. (Iâm a native of Milwaukee.)
I recently knew this really nasty teacher who wasnât just demeaning and unhelpful, but also downright incompetent at his job. It wasnât just me; virtually every other student kept complaining about how they never learned anything, and how abrasive he was. The real Kicker though? He cussed me out in front of class, (Fâk you, William!) and got away with it scot-free! When I went to the head of the graphic design department about this, he said heâd âTalk to him about itâ but that there wasnât anything else they could do about it.
That was the primary example, but Iâve seen my fair share of lousy, teachers ranging from incompetent to petty to spiteful, all who have been teaching for years and will likely continue to do so. (The example above had been teaching for 20 years!)
If a bad teacher can get away with bullying a student in public, I find it hard to believe that a good teachers can be sacked for defending their students from a bully.
“If a bad teacher can get away with bullying a student in public, I find it hard to believe that a good teachers can be sacked for defending their students from a bully.”
Well you see, it’s not two different sides of the same coin, it’s the same side of the same coin. It’s still pure abuse of power, just aimed in a different direction from a different position.
It’s nearly impossible to fire a teacher with tenure for anything short of sexual abuse. New teachers though? Gone at the drop of a hat. We lost a new teacher at my university because she wrote us a crazy email, while my untreated bipolar disorder teacher was throwing us out of the classroom by the dozen for sneezing or writing while his back was turned… but then he gave us real diamonds and amethysts for Christmas so it was all okay!
You’re talking about tenure, but that’s basically a university concept. While administrators may get tenured at a place like an elementary school, the same usually won’t apply to the teachers. While I agree it’s extremely rare for a teacher to get sacked, it sounds to me like after getting sued the old school went through a complete staff overhaul which is a possibility if the administration changes. The Board of Education may have viewed the old school’s leadership as a liability, leading to a replacement of management which in turn could have led to a replacement of lower level staff. That said, usually old teachers can then find new positions elsewhere.
However, as previously stated this almost never happens, but that’s probably also why the principal said “God only knows how, but he WON”. For anyone to win a case like that, especially with the old school having multiple comments from teachers (which is considered hard evidence), is pretty much an impossibility.
I suppose there is the possibility that, back then, Trunchbull was still in the Sarnothi project, and somehow used his influence there to pull some strings or something. Men In Black visiting witnesses to convince them of the wisdom of saying or not saying certain things in court – that sort of thing.
(AntiDragon’s example said he complained to the dept head so I assumed his anecdote was university/tenure related.)
I’m not sure HOW he would have won since schools have been documenting fights extensively since about 1997 when “Zero Tolerance” came into effect. They take pictures of any and all injuries and file copies of medical reports for any treatments from the nurse or ER to cover everyone’s behind. Testimony alone has never been enough for some parents – the Trunchbulls will be all “You’re just some frazzled teacher, we KNOW our precious little angel would NEVER do anything like that!” or “The administration put you up to this, didn’t they? They’re just out for vengeance against our innocent baby since they couldn’t expel him!”
I think the answer lies in 2 part. One is that we don’t know what kind of school this is (if it’s standard public, magnet, etc), or what kind of school Tommy went to. The different schools have different rules. I know this because one of my closest friends teaches English at a k-12 magnet school, and from the things he’d told me that scenario with being sued and fired is likely. Though you can get tenure after some time, beforehand apparently it’s very easy to get fired- UNLESS you belong to the teacher’s union. However, for the reasons stated above (hard to fire bad teachers) a lot of good teachers REFUSE to join those because it’s the unions who protect those lack-luster administrators.
The other detail is in Trunchbull himself. When we saw his office, he seemed to be in a fair position of power, someone deeply involved in children’s affairs, especially orphaned ones, and in their treatment of them and such. It’s very likely he threw his weight around, perhaps has members of the administration board in his pocket. It’s also likely that a man like that would do his best to get his child into a magnet school; a type of school which is known to be more sought after (usually magnet schools have better funding and better paid teachers, so they have better results). And when the incident with that school happened, it’s also likely he was able to put him into another one. Especially one that was already supporting many of the orphans which he helped work with.
I’ve known of worse cases than that in the past, but it’s getting easier to fire teachers these days within school administration, according to federal legislation and teacher evaluation. But otherwise there are literally billions of dollars worth of coverage in lawyers fees for any teacher who is a member of nea (most are). there is a huge amount of backing to support teachers who are wrongfully accused of anything by students or parents. when the principle says “god only knows how they won,” that would be for sure. they would need some sort of hidden ties or who knows how much money to overcome the entire school system like that. i mean, the case of something like this happening is… well i’ve certainly never heard of it (i’m a teacher).
A lack of “hard evidence” on behalf of the teachers without any hard evidence on behalf of the trunchbull’s would never be enough to dismiss teachers. A judge would never take the word of one clear bully over multiple teacher accounts, all of which would certainly have been documented and submitted to higher authority within the education system. It gets handed to the principle if it’s a big deal, and so forth, if it’s a big *enough* deal. There is a system for the school to protect itself. Because these types of things have been attempted *many* times. There is also a system to protect children. But the teacher are also at the mercy of every person who puts their kid in the public school system.
If our comic maker is familiar with these facts, that would mean Mr. Trunchbull would probably be a very powerful person, in one way or another.
I think I can say without damning myself TOO much that some deeper research into the finer points of school administration would serve me very very well.
You’re going fine. It all makes logical sense as the plot moves forward, and us picking things to pieces won’t matter one bit in the long run.
Even so, it IS your comic, and your (fictional?) town. Different states have different laws. Tommy could have previously went to a different school in a different state (or even counties have different jurisdictions) where the teachers either ignored the threat or were backed down by blackmail/lawsuit, etc. Not only that, but the teachers could have very well been ‘dismissed’ for several other reasons. Ever been at a job where your co-workers are terrible and everyone knows it, but aren’t fired? All it takes is ONE mess-up or slip, and the boss will FIND a reason (superfluous or not) to fire them.
You’d be surprised just how easily it is to get around the law with influence, a well paid lawyer, and possibly even a paid off judge. Think about it. When your regular joe drunk drives, what does he get? Jail, prison, fines, etc. When a celebrity or a person of influence drunk drives, what happens to them? “Rehab”. There have been celebrities that have -literally- gotten away with murder.
However, in this case when a possible repeat offense is committed (such as a minor being violent), a judge will take a closer look into the case, ESPECIALLY if there are multiple teachers involved, and even MORE so if that pink object behind Selkie is what I think it is. Recordings/videos/sound clips are permissible in court depending on the area/law.
Real Life Example: A new principle came into my school during junior year. She was a horrid, pathetic, terrible excuse for a person, a huge bully. Yet she had influence and donated much to the school system, so she was given the job despite there being MANY other well-qualified candidates. Everyone hated her, but there wasn’t enough pull or evidence to fire/punish her.
She even got teachers fired/dismissed for stupid reasons, such as budget cutting their program/claiming they’re incompetent, etc..
Why? Because she didn’t like them and she is a bully.
That is, until recently. One of my old teachers (who is a wonderful person) has cancer and had to take time off for chemo. Upon coming back she was pulled out from class in front of her students without an excuse to have a meeting with the principle. This convo ensued: “Giannandrea was asked why she came back to work and told she was incompetent. She says Gatto, without asking, told another teacher to take her students outside for a fire drill, then asked her what else she couldnât do. Gatto told her she is seen as weak, the students are not her âtherapyâ and she was told she should go home and âthink about how I was going to change.â
Her behavior had been like this with -multiple- people (parents, students, teachers), but this time other teachers overheard her conversation (purposely) and banded together to fight her.
When something goes on long enough and there are repeat offenses, it catches up to you.
Aha! If Selkie IS recording Tommy’s boasting, the principal might actually welcome the evidence.
It better be video. Audio isn’t permissible as evidence unless the individual consents and is illegal to even do given how easy it is to fake.
It depends on the location actually. Different states have different laws regarding hidden recording devices and the like.
Texas, for example, is a “one party consent” state.
ah, texas.
Selkie didn’t need to do that. I think there is a Security Camera in the Library that is already recording
Can you find a panel that contains one? While it’s more likely than not these days, we can’t count on it.
Also, do security cameras usually have sound?
No, but it could be combined with Selkie’s audio. It would be pretty easy to demonstrate that the audio matches Truck’s body language perfectly.
And also, if Selkie is hit or damaged, he will be catched in the camera
You know what, I’m actually expecting his dad to freak the hell out at Tommy. I think he might honestly believes he was protecting his son against false claims.
My brother is a very big guy and often got in trouble for fights the smaller kids started because he was bigger. Trunch may believe his sons in a similar situation and was honestly looking for evidence.
But thats unlikely as the Trunchbuls have been very clearly depicted as ‘villains’ and will probably continue acting like such regardless of evidence. Even though them acting like humans would be a nice change to the bad guys in bullying stories
I wouldn’t say ‘honestly’ looking for evidence. After the earlier fight with Selkie, he dismissed out of hand the eyewitness accounts of two teachers, refusing to even hear them. What he’s looking out for is ‘enough evidence to stand up in court’. Anything else he’s going to blatantly ignore, because he can.
And while it would be nice if they’d act like humans, I know all too many people who don’t.
He did not refuse to listen to them The principal threatened them with dismissal to stay quite. Trunch told Todd he spoke to no one, not that he did not believe witnesses, that he did not speak to any. He was not told by the principal there was any.
Hm, you’re right. I read one of the panels wrong the first time.
“What he’s looking out for is ‘enough evidence to stand up in court’.”
Not even that. In court, you have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt. Unreasonable people like to twist that into “I am a reasonable person, so you have to prove it to me; and if you haven’t proved it to me beyond a shadow of a doubt, you haven’t proved it to be reasonably true, because I am a reasonable person.”.
One other thing, though– you complain about the Trunchbuls not acting human. If you have never in your life met someone who consistently acted EXACTLY the way they are portrayed in this comic, you are the luckiest person I’ve ever heard of. Don’t ever work in customer service.
As someone who worked 3 years in retail as a cashier, I have to agree. Nothing but insane troll logic, bad pay, and corporate management that wants super results without time or investment. Its why I am glad I now work with numbers and file cabinets. They make more sense and you can correct problems without overemotional fallouts.
Yes, like you say, “the Trunchbuls have been very clearly depicted as ‘villains'”. But so were Agent Smith, Heather and Amanda, and later on Dave showed us their point of view and now they don’t look like monsters anymore.
Even principle hobbit starts looking more human in this page.
With that in mind, you shouldn’t be so sure that the Trunchbuls will keep being villains forever.
All true points I suppose I should change the word ‘human’ to ‘Humane’ and reiterate that I said unlikely not impossible and that Dave has proven to be more then just competent at this writing stick snf i do have high hopes.
I would “dislike” this comic page only because Tommy is being such a jerk, and how the principal acted previously.
Here is a lesson for you, Trunchbulls all.
There was once an oak, standing by the riverbank. A reed was growing nearby, and the oak boasted to the reed, “Hah! I stand strong and tall no matter what is blown at me, while you bend in everything! Surely I am superior!”
The reed smiled shyly, and said, “We shall see.”
That very night, a great wind blew up. The reed was tossed this way and that, but she remained anchored to the bank. But the oak groaned and creaked, trying to prove that he was superior.
And in the morning, it was the oak who was lying in splinters on the ground.
Be like the reed, not the oak. Know when to bend, to flex, for that is how you will survive.
And for God’s sake, Tommy, don’t say things like “I don’t care if I shook her” or “You gotta do what I say, or my dad’ll get you in big trouble.” You think those are threats? Those are not threats. Showing the hero the view from the monitor from the room in which his family lies captive? That’s a threat. But what you’re saying are boasts, and boasts have a funny way of coming back to bite you in the butt.
“And for God’s sake, Tommy, don’t say things like “I don’t care if I shook her””
ALL of these children are terrible supervillains! And they never listen to my advice either!
And that, of course, is the worst crime of all…not listening to your advice. đ
Well, I can respect anyone, except the person that doesn’t want to improve.
Also – Dave? Will you accept some constructive criticism?
In panel 3, Tommy’s hand looks off. In my humble experience, when you’re drawing a pointing finger, the thinnest (furthest from the camera) finger should be farthest away from the arm, not closest, as you have it. I don’t think human wrists can move the way Tommy’s appears to.
If you’re willing to change the panel, I would suggest changing Tommy’s arm position so that his right arm comes up from under his hand, not above, as you have it now.
I am willing to change the panel if needed; I’ve done it before. >_>
I’ll double check my mugging in the bathroom mirror.
what is up with the thumbs up and thumps down thing on the comments?
Like and Dislike buttons.
yes whats up with that now?
Many people have been asking Dave to put them in. I’m surprised he did, but not displeased. It’s just a quick way of showing appreciation for a comment without adding your own.
Reread the last paragraph of Dave’s commentary above.
I looked back at the hand and it definitely looks wrong. We should be seeing the top of his hand I think and not the bottom. First pass I honestly didn’t notice, I was too caught up in the story đ
Actually that’s not entirely true. The teacher is taller and therefore tommy is pointing up at her. In which case you would see the bottom of his hand and not the top. I think what’s off is more of the shadows. It makes the pointer finger’s view crooked and there aren’t defining knuckles for each finger.
Also the pinky finger would be bent into the palm so youd see the palm bottom instead of a long pinky.
Other than that the position IS correct. His anatomy is getting better and better each panel. Shadows/light creation to show depth and lines is a skill incredibly hard to master. Even the best most experienced artists don’t get it right every time.
A compliment on your storytelling style: I love how you donât tell a liner story, so much as you set a point and then circle around it, like a labyrinth, adding depth and character development and parallels and plot points. Your storytelling ability is one of my biggest personal draws for âSelkie.â Thank you so very, very much for sharing your talents with us! http://www.sacred-texts.com/etc/ml/img/fig053.jpg
It takes a while, but the trip is worth it.
So Tommy has now given a full confession, complete with a statement that amounts to “I am like this because my parents are bad parents.” And unless Dave has completely faked us out, Selkie has a recording device of some kind. All that remains is to find out how the Trunchbulls will react.
The chances that they’ll realize “Oh no! We’re bullies who’ve raise our son to be one!” are virtually nil. Given today’s little revelation, I more than ever expect them to be the type of parents who will sue over the recording rather than deal with the contents, thus reinforcing the lesson to Truck that there is no right and wrong, only power. Alternatively, they might be hypocritical enough to be shocked and horrified: “Where did you learn to behave like this? We taught you better!”
“Given today’s little revelation, I more than ever expect them to be the type of parents who will sue over the recording rather than deal with the contents”
That’s why, possible spoilers, Todd will reveal the recording at the PTA meeting, completely bypassing the authority structures that the Trunchbulls are so good at abusing and getting all of the other childrens’ parents on his side.
It’s not a spoiler unless you have some kind of inside scoop from Dave.
If you’re right, though, what would that really accomplish? The Trunchbulls don’t care what other people think as long as they have the power to get their way. Playing a recording in public just gets Todd sued for defamation or something.
But keeps the T-bulls from turning the parents against the “vicious monster” Selkie who “lies and attacks unprovoked”.
Wouldn´t “defamation” involve him making claims in public? If he just played back the recordings of the event, he wouldn´t be claiming anything – Truck would accuse himself of attacking Selkie, in his own words.
Plus, I´m guessing Todd and Mina are probably not the only one who are fed up with the T-bulls´ antics at the PTA. If their “subdermal GPS chips” thing is any indication, they´re already well-known to be idiots.
A PTA meeting would count as “public”.
But defamation is spreading lies and slander with the intention of damaging their reputation. Being a recording, it wouldn’t be false, and it would come from Tommy’s own lips rather than Todd or Selkie’s.
But playing back a recording does not count as “making claims”.
even if you don’t say anything, yourself, playing that sort of recording out of nowhere, and without context would be random, and plainly trying to lead the audience to a certain conclusion.
It´s still not him making a claim – it is Truck himself, on his own accord, admitting to the attack on Selkie.
Calling this defamation is like saying a defendant admitting to the crime he is accused of is defamation on part of the prosecution.
The question is not “could this reasonably be considered defamation”.
The question is, “could unreasonable people like the Trunchbulls claim it is such, and make Todd’s life a penniless hell by dragging it through the courts for years on end”.
Actually, giving it to a Fed that cares would work. He could say that he received a tip from an anonymous source that someone under his watch got seriously hurt and he can put some harsh harsh pressure on the Trunchbulls with little chance of revenge afterwards.
I’m really hoping Tommy Trunchbull is ready for his closeup, Mr. DeMille…
please tell me selkie is recording this, or something.
A dreadful thought. There was a recent press report of a bullied kid who made a recording of being threatened—and then was expelled for making a recording of the bully without permission! Bad business…but I thought from the first time around that Selkie might be better off somewhere else…
It depends on where you are. The bullied kid in the news story lived in a state where in order to make a recording of people, everyone being recorded has to know about it and give permission. In other states, only one person needs to know (ie, you can’t just record a conversation by random strangers).
Hm, it seems that his level of emotional maturity and mental development are really coming through here. He seems around five or so. How old is he supposed to be?
10 I think possibly a little younger …Hey Dave could we pretty please get a an age section in the cast page that could be wonderful. The question of age is coming up a lot I noticed.
Really the whole cast page needs an overhaul at this point, if I’m being honest.
But Tommy is nine, a year or so older than the rest of the kids. Give or take.
What a shame that Todd doesn’t know anyone – a Federal agent, perhaps – that might be interested in a recording such as the one we all hope is currently being made.
To go back to the bad teachers being fired point… Look up Dance of the Lemons for a bit of eye opening antics. School districts pass bad teachers around like playing cards to hide the damage they do.
I’m really liking the look of this arc and the way it appears to be going. I’m currently in a college program to become a drug counselor and after I get that degree I want to take it further by adding some training with youth so that I can get into child therapy. Not only helping kids who may be struggling with drugs, but help their family as well if possible.
As a counselor hopeful, I really look forward to the end of this. Professor Trunchbull is a clear sign of many things that are going wrong in the fields related to counseling and psychology. Even knowing this is a fictional character, I am more grateful than ever to my instructors who were long-time counselors before teaching for their open minds and willingness to show compassion to anybody regardless of personal opinion. Tommy’s father reminds me that the wrong kind of person with the kind of power behavior specialists wield is dangerous indeed.
With less than two years of teaching and only halfway through my Motivational Interviewing course (No joke, my instructor for that class made everyone take an oath swearing to never use MI for personal gain or evil purposes), I could probably spend a couple of evenings studying some local legislation and argue my opposition to tears in a court and twist their very beliefs against them. Professor Trunchbull will certainly know much about human behavior and, unless he is a critic of the uses of MI, will know how to twist a courtroom–or nearly anybody for that matter–against anybody but himself. As aggressive as his behavior is toward Todd, Trunchbull shows a lot of signs of being frighteningly intelligent. He doesn’t use that energy against people like Todd or Principal Ashton because he can strong arm them. He thinks he can intimidate them without it. In court, he probably turns silky smooth and more appropriately assertive where he knows he has people he can’t afford to look down his nose at. If the Professor is half the person I credit him to be, he would not presume to screw with someone who has the authority to–in the worst case scenario–revoke his license(s) as a practitioner.
If Tommy doesn’t get a reality check soon he’s well on his to become a domestic abuser.
So turns out even John the bad boss was just afraid. Sweet.