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Sad, In Several Ways

From the Associated Press:

GIBSONVILLE, N.C. - A fire that began in a chemistry lab destroyed a high school, leaving more than 1,000 students without a school building for the rest of the year.
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A teacher spotted the fire around 2 p.m. Wednesday at Eastern Guilford High School and tried to put it out with an extinguisher, but then pulled the alarm. The school, which has 1,060 students, was evacuated, with students, teachers and other employees going to a nearby church.

The cause of the fire was under investigation.

The building was a total loss, said Mike Wright, deputy director of operations for Guilford County EMS.

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While it is wonderful that no one was hurt in this blaze, The above is sad for several reasons:

1. The students have lost their school.

2. The senior students, especially, will have a "senior year" that is very challenging.

3. The loss of the student records will wreck havoc for years.

4. The bigoted anti-science yahoos will twist this around to make more regulations on science and science education. It is hard enough to deal with all the political b*llsh*t that is heaped upon us as scientists and science educators (animal use committees filled with anti-science bigots, imbeciles, and power hungry bureaucrats; safety groups that stifle creativity, curiosity, and scientific progress because some mistake happened elsewhere; etc.).

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