“But dad, she wouldn’t let me finish, she kept interrupting me” the young lad said, pleading his case as calmly as he could.

“Son, you shouldn’t have reacted the way you did though’ his father said, sternly but with understanding.

“But I kept trying to tell her that there are, that they kill thousands every year and that they shouldn’t be allowed.  She kept telling me the same thing though, she was SO stubborn and just wouldn’t listen” the boy continued.

“And what did she say?”

“That it is the law, that it’s protected by the Constitution or something like that.”

“Well, that’s not really 100% true” his father said in return.

“Is she lying to me?” the boy asked.

“Son, I don’t really know what she knows so I can’t say if she is lying or not.  The important thing is that she isn’t completely correct, not necessarily” he tried to explain.

“Then who’s right?” the boy wondered.

“Tell me again what happened” his father suggested.

“Well, we got into a discussion on social events and we each needed to pick one as something to discuss.  I took that one, which you and I both believe in, and figured it was a good topic since so many were dying and that it was easy to stop.  We were supposed to disguise our topic and see who could guess what it was by asking questions and the person with the best questions, the best answers, and the person who disguised their topic the best would all win prizes.  Before we finished she suddenly just got real mad, her face turned red and she just started almost yelling at me with things like the fact that it was the law, protected by the Constitution, that we should all just stop arguing it and get on with real issues and stuff like that.  I couldn’t believe it dad!  It was so unfair and I wound up getting sent to the principal’s office.  It just isn’t fair!” he said, now with tears falling from his eyes.

“Take it easy son, now calm down.  I need to call the school and will get this fixed.  Go play for a while” he said, giving his son a calming half-hug as he rose from the couch.

“Ms. Lambertson?” he began when his son’s teacher came on the line.

“Yes, Mr. Gray.  I was hoping that you would call- I wanted to explain my position-“ she began herself but was interrupted.

“Look, I probably don’t need to take up much of your time but can you just tell me why you treated my son as you did?” Mr. Gray asked.

“Mr. Gray, the topic your son chose- and I hope he properly explained the lesson- was not one he should have chosen.  It isn’t relevant as a current event topic.  It’s the law- surely as a lawyer for our civic action committee you should know that” she said, her voice beginning to crack a bit.  She was finding it a bit harder to have the same discussion, the same potential argument, with an adult.

“Well not necessarily Ms. Lambertson.  Perhaps by local statute, yes, but to say it is the law from a constitutional perspective, did you really say that?”

“Maybe I did but I guess I meant that it was defended by the Supreme Court-“

“Yes, but only on a case by case basis-“

“It’s the federal law!” Ms. Lambertson almost screamed into her phone.

“What?” Mr. Gray countered.  “Look I know that almost ten thousand are committed per year and it should be a federalized law but still-“

“Did you say committed?   That’s an odd way to put it.  And your numbers are off by a good bit Mr. Gray but that doesn’t matter…” she said, her voice trailing off a bit before Mr. Gray responded.

“It does matter Ms. Lambertson!  That is what makes it an issue worth fixing, a ‘current event’ worth discussing.  What numbers do you use?” Mr. Gray asked, trying to calm himself and the conversation at the same time.

“Not that it matters, again, because it IS the law but there are over a million performed every year with the last data that I heard-“

“A million?  Performed??  Um, Ms. Lambertson, what are YOU talking about?”

“Choice of course Mr. Gray.  A woman’s choice, a woman’s right to choose.  And it IS the law and WE need to all just realize that and get on with life.  Why are you allowing your son to question it Mr. Gray?  I thought you were of a different mindset, this is rather disappointing to me as a woman and a teacher and certainly since it is coming from a member of the Protect Our Rights Committee” Ms. Lambertson asked.

“Billy’s topic wasn’t abortion Ms. Lambertson.  It was, um,  gun homicides and the moral need to change that law.”

“Oh….my.”