This image was lost some time after publication.

It feels like we've read this story before. Caitlyn Casseday called her assistant principal an "obscene name" and has been suspended for it. No one would care, except she didn't say this to his face. Instead, she wrote it in a comment on Facebook. A student was suspended for getting into a fight and a video of the "altercation" was posted on Facebook. Caitlyn believed the suspension was unwarranted and made her feelings known. Her comment made its way to the principal she insulted who had her suspended for violating the school's code of conduct.


Whether this is a First Amendment issue is best left up to the courts, who we assume will be involved shortly given the lawsuit-happy nature of American society, but we aren't surprised at this turn of events. This happened when email first became common, and again when instant messenger spread; only the media, endlessly looking for a fresh angle on an old tale, treats it as something new. Facebook walls are the locker rooms of the 21st century, where students gossip and slander one another ad nauseam. Why would you have any expectation of privacy when you write things publicly — yes, even on "private" boards on Facebook? The principal learned of the comments when a tattletale student printed out the "private" thoughts and handed them in. So much for Facebook's vaunted privacy controls. (Photo by lilazdad)