OMG! This is unbelievable! I don't care if the raccoon died quickly (apparently according to witnesses) or not, that was cruelty! The poor baby was scared and was definately traumatized! And the fact that the sub didn't stop it is unbelievable too! I just don't know what to say! This should have never happend!

How horrible for the baby racoon!! People never cease to amaze me!!

The substitute teacher should be fired for allowing the killing of the raccoon. I will start a campaign to get the students punished and the teacher fired.
Those who support me, contact me at:
peewee_91762@yahoo.com
My name is Patrick Greene.
This incident cannot go away and be forgotten.
I live in San Antonio

I teach in the school district in question. To my knowledge, this class does not have curriculum that involves killing live animals in class. The boys do NOT represent the type of people that live in this town. These boys should have been punished severly and charges need to be filed against them. I cannot believe that this type of behavior is ever tolerated. How sad for Columbus and how sad for our great FFA program. This is not what it represents!

I live in Columbus, and I am stunned that the raccoon story has made it to TV. There are a lot of worse things happening than a beaten raccoon (such as a noose incident that took place). Those two boys do not represent Columbus as a whole. We are not a bunch of rednecks looking to kill/slaughter/eat anything that walks in our path. The class is meant to help students learn how to survive in the wilderness.

You can go ahead and place judgement about people from Columbus, or Texas, or the South, but this incident is tearing our town apart. Thank you, media, for not only putting Columbus on the map...but for giving us a reputation of the "Columbus Hillbillies". That is NOT what we should be known for.

None of you know what you are talking about.

Nobody said anything against Columbus. We're just appalled that it happend. And would be had it happend anywhere. I don't see where anyone said this represents Columbus.

First of all, the media needs to get it's story straight. The raccoon was not a baby, and it was not tortured. Was the situation handled in the correct way? Absolutley not. But even so, is it on the news every time a couple of stupid kids, and sometimes even adults, catch a wild animal or even a 'family pet' and kill it? No. I myself being a student from the high school, none of my fellow classmates were "terribly tramatized" from the incident. The students involved were punished, and parties uninvolved need to let it go. The students have learned from their mistakes. If at any point the students of CHS have been tramatized, it would be after this incident was aired on the Houston news. There are cops walking our halls because of all of the threatening phone calls we are recieving. Columbus is very capable of taking care of it's own problems with out every other large city getting involved and distrubing our community.

The raccoon incident was a terrible one, yes. But the media blew the entire story way out of proportion, and now our entire town's reputation and saftey is jeopardized.

WHY do you need a class to learn how to survive in the wilderness? You would have to go a LONG way to find "wilderness". There is a Stop N Rob on every corner and you cannot walk very far without stumbling over a Starbucks. Having a class like this was ludicrous to begin with and what those students did was wrong on so many levels. Why do people think they have to kill anything and everything just because they can?

Why not have a class about responsible pet ownership? Something that many people in Texas need to learn to begin with.

To Taylor:
Obviously, you have never been to our town. We don't have to go very far to find wilderness- it is our backyards. We don't even have a starbucks.
The class is not ludicrous, just smart. It is very possible that somebody would have to "survive in the wilderness" out here. Come visit Columbus. If you walk ten feet from the Wal-Mart, there's wilderness. Try to survive.

Not representative of Columbus? An adult teacher and an entire class of students did nothing to stop 2 kids from stomping a baby raccoon to death while joking about it and you consider this an aberration and not representative of your community?

So is a substitute teacher in Columbus of sub average intelligence in addition to totally lacking in compassion if he or she "didn't know better"? A substitute teacher is allowed to not know the guidelines and curriculum of what is to be taught and that is considered an acceptable excuse? If that is acceptable I can see why not having a compassionate moral center is considered acceptable of the "substitute" teacher also. Sounds like a substitute human being.

No, the national media didn't paint you as a bunch of redneck hicks, you did a pretty good job of it yourselves with your flimsy excuses.

As for "Columbus Resident", if you need to torture and eat baby raccoons because you have ventured 10 feet from a Wal Mart to "survive", I see the gist of your problem now. Again, the "national media" is not doing anything but observing and documenting natural selection at its finest.

When I heard this story I was outraged and nauseated. How could the teacher allow such brutality to happen in a place of higher learning? These students need a class in Human Management because it seems they have lost a very important element in their character...Compassion. Animals are not here for our entertainment and if stomping on an animal to kill it and nonetheless joking about it is fun, it is a sorry day. When I was younger, I took a wilderness survival class. We were taught the sacredness of life and our connection to all beings. A life is to be taken in a sacred manner and killing is never fun. I cried when I took that animal's life and after I did eat it. That was 15 years ago and the impression it left is still as vivid. I suggest that class be taught by people who have an awareness of the value and meaning of life.

I just want you to all be aware:

Beef: killed by running a metal stake through the back of the animal's head.

Chickens and Poultry: heads are litterally popped or electrocuted off.

Pigs: Undergo electrical or carbon dioxide stunning, forcing them into a state of immediate epilepsy. And while the animal is unconscious, it is suffocated.

Would any of these methods of killing an animal be considered less cruel than hitting it twice in the head with a 2 by 4, which is what really happened with the raccoon?

...I did my research, something that KHOU obviously did not do before putting the story on the air.

Also, I would like to note the high level of editorialization that was delivered with this story. Maybe KHOU should check the JOURNALISM CODE OF ETHICS pertaining to news pieces before running another story such as this.

I am a student (Senior) at Columbus High School and I would like to say that I do know what happened. First things first- it was NOT a baby raccoon! Second off I can speak for CHS Students when we say we love our ag teachers it is not their fault that it happened when they were gone. We are ranked Nationally as the Number 1 FFA 2nd year in a row for a reason. -Because of them. They are the kindest people I know and for them to get fired for something that a sub did wrong is NOT right. Yes it is bad we the students - or the majority of us know it was wrong but that doesn't mean that it should get our Ag Teachers fired. "The boys do NOT represent the type of people that live in this town." ---Posted by: Terry. Simple as that! "We are not a bunch of rednecks looking to kill/slaughter/eat anything that walks in our path." I personally think that as a Columbus Girls Athlete and a Columbus 4 year FFA memember that we are better than that and we are only human - we make mistakes - that is a part of learning and a part of growing up. Thank you, media, for not only putting Columbus on the map...but for giving us a reputation of the "Columbus Hillbillies/Rednecks". That is NOT what we should be known for. -Expecially when we were on the news a month ago for going to San Marcos to the State Volleyball Tourney for the first time in Columbus High School history. I can promise you that we weren't out killing and eating some nasty raccoon!

-If you have any comments for me please email me.
eighth_w0rld_w0nder@hotmail.com

What kind of teacher--sub or otherwise--allows for such unruly students to kill, jokingly, an animal of any kind. If the other students were stunned, then the sub should have at least noticed this disruption and stepped in to end it. What kind of subs are just dropped into a class like that? And to toss it of as the sub "didn't know better"? My 12 year old would know better. Pathetic. Red neck.

Okay, I'm not sure how many of you actually read what has been posted before you make a comment of your own, but for the last time (hopefully) the teacher was not even around. Should he have been? Absolutely. But the teacher was not standing there watching the entire event. Action against the teacher should not be taken; there is no way that he can be every where at one time. It is understood that students SHOULD be supervised at all times, but honestly, these are HIGH SCHOOL KIDS, and they should know how to handle themselves better than that. The killing of the raccoon was terrible, and we are all so sorry that it ever happened, but no one can be blamed for the event taking place except the students involved.

As for the comments of us being "pathetic red necks," - all I have to say is, please, for the sake of every one, grow up. Killing an animal of any sort is part of life, it doesn't make any one a 'red neck.' If it didn't happen, you wouldn't eat. So unless you're a hardcore vegan, I really don't think that you have any right justifying how the meat on your plate at night is killed. (see my other post as "High School Student" if you want to know about how more of your 'traditional' meat is killed. I wouldn't have to say that is any more fair or any less cruel to the animal.)

Concerning the point of "the teacher didn't know any better..." (and 'Myk', I am so glad that your twelve year old knows better...) once again, he wasn't even there, and knowing the sub personally, I'm going to have to say, he knows better.

...also please note; (one more time for those of you who have a problem comprehending what you read..) the story was reported INCORRECTLY. Bad journalism. How hard is that to understand? KHOU needs to check the journalism code of ethics, and actually do some research on their stories before they air them. That would have saved a lot of people from getting angry when it was one hundred percent unnecessary, and would have kept Columbus out of harm's way from the threatening phone calls, and threats to have our wonderful staff fired.

As for this class being "ludicrous," that might have to be one of the most arrogant statements that have been made on this story the entire time. Responsible pet ownership? That is whats wrong with this country, people are so afraid to get down and dirty and learn how to survive when they need to. Sure, it might be unlikely that you'll ever be stranded in the wilderness, but why not have the skills to survive if it's needed, and if it's offered to you. I understand that to most of the residence out side of Columbus-like cities, that this seems illogical and perhaps a waste of time, but come live here, and see how much we actually do on our own, with out big industries. We do make and process our own food, live on farms with actual live stock, not just "Fluffy" and "Fito".

Perhaps a better way to kill the raccoon would be to bring a gun to school...that way we could fit in with all the other high school drama that goes on.

I am still so proud to be from Columbus High School, although I don't agree with the way that some of my fellow class mates have handled themselves. But, honestly, if you look at the judgmental statements made by "adults" on this site, some would have to agree with me, that most of you are just as immature and oblivious to what the difference is between right and wrong.

I have read the curriculum for the wildlife management class in question. No where in there is it described as a survival class. It is to teach kids to be game wardens and work with wildlife- not stomp it until it is tender. I am not a vegan and I do eat meat. However, what I think some of the Columbus students have lost sight of is that school is not a slaughterhouse. What TEK was followed that says students will harvest and proccess meat in class. This was an 8 pound raccoon or so I have been told. That qualifies as a young raccoon. I was also told that this was the second raccoon the boys trapped. The first one was freed by another person the day before. I'm sorry the second one was. As for the police being up at your high school. Perhaps it was the small NOOSE that was found in the senior hall. I'm surprised that wasn't reported by the media and I am equally surprised that all mention of it is off the CISD website. After thinking about this, perhaps the raccoon incident is indicative of the behavior of many Columbus residents.

Thanks Kylee, I agree with you 110%. Yes some terrible things have happened in our school recently, but that does NOT give anyone that has never met ANY of us the right to critize our town. Its obvious you arent even interested in the raccoon anymore, but only arguing with us. But you know what...im not really sure we asked you did we? NO. We didnt.

This does not go out to all of the people in this blog, only the ones who seem to feel the need to put down Columbus as a WHOLE to make themselves feel better. And do you know how many people took part and the raccoon killing AND the noose hanging in all? 3. How many people are in Columbus? About 4,000. Need I say more?

Once again, thank you to all of the CHS students who have the spirit to come and defend our town. Some horrible things have happened in our school recently, but we have still managed to continue to be one big family, and THAT is something we call ALL be proud of!

I'm really tired of this! So our little city made a mistake... it was only a couple of students! We don't all eat raccoons! We're not all rednecks!
It happened... So what... GET OVER IT. Not all of us are perfect

Great. Not only does this reflect poorly upon current and former CHS students...but A&M as well?

Thank you Columbus. Maybe you need to reinforce Darwinism in your Science cirriculum instead "teaching" courses in Wildlife Management.

Progressive...I know.