[fabsroman]

Val and GD,

What you guys are missing about my post is that there are a million activities out there that a parent can think are more important than school. Heck, a lot of parents don't even care if their kids go to school.

The issue is where does the school system draw the line regarding abscence from school. How many days can a child miss for hunting? Can children miss school to go to concerts? How about ballet outside of school. Can they miss school for ballet lessons or competitions? The list can go on and on. I think my high school had a pretty good system. A student was allowed a certain number of sick days with a note from mom and dad, a certain number of sick days with a doctor's note, and 5 unexcused abscences. However, if a student had more than 5 unexcused abscenses, they failed the semester. A semester was 90 days long and 5 days was more than 5% of the school days.

Can children really afford to miss more than 5% of their education? A line needs to be drawn that accomodates the parents and children, but also ensures that the children get an education. I am all for hunting, but not at the expense of an education. There aren't many people out there that become professional hunters, just as there aren't many that become professional athletes in comparison to the population. Plus, even if they are professional hunters and athletes, I still think it is better to have an education even in those professions.

Simply put, if you make an exception for hunting, you have to make an exception for a lot of things. However, I don't think a parent should be fined for letting their child go hunting, but guidelines need to be set and enforced.