Eden Prairie and the rules...

Marion Jones cheated, and she was punished. She serves as an adult example why it is important for athletes to follow the rules set before them.

Students in Eden Prairie decided they were above the rules governing after school activities.

Unfortunately, the Eden Prairie students are only acting like the athletes they admire. However, notice a couple of things about the Athletic Eligibility Code linked to above... the parents have to sign it, too. So, the parents were aware of the rules and the punishment as detailed above.

Why do we have "rules" governing athletic eligibility? We have these rules so the playing field is as level as possible. No one is using drugs to their benefit or to their harm. An athlete is, in theory, not sacrificing ones education for their sport. School districts are not willy-nilly recruiting players across district lines. Small schools with small budgets do not compete with big schools with big budgets. This is not about a school district saying, "I don't want you to have fun." This is about a school district saying, "We want to participate in a competitive league, these are the league rules, and we will enforce them."

Note in the penalty section, point number 20, the stipulation is that this pledge goes YEAR ROUND. You are a freshman who signs the paper in September, drink on July 4th and get caught, you have to pay the following school year. And a student has to sign this pledge each year.

This is not about the district going overboard. This is about the district maintaining its status. And I would be willing to bet, if the district didn't enforce the rules, they wouldn't be able to compete in the league.

Oh, and a note to these students: I had to pee in a cup to get my current job. You'll have to go through more important drug screenings in the future. Just because Bill Clinton got away with it, doesn't mean you will.