Posted on 03/05/2006 11:42:03 AM PST by Pikamax
Student 'starting to get crucified,' his dad says By Julie Poppen, Rocky Mountain News March 4, 2006
Sean Allen's dad says he isn't handling this week's media attention and threats as well as his son.
"Sean has handled this way better than his father," Jeff Allen, Sean's dad, said in an interview with Sean Hannity, syndicated talk show host with Fox News Channel's Hannity & Colmes.
"To read some of these e-mails that are attacking Sean is just devastating," he said. "It looks like the tactic is to turn it around, to make it about Sean and not about the comments (Jay) Bennish made.
"Sean is already starting to get crucified."
Sean Allen, who also was on the show Friday, said he has received anonymous e-mails "cursing" him. Even Overland High School students he considered friends are calling him spineless and gutless, he said.
But Jeff Allen, 50, who works for Buena Vista Games, the video game arm of the Walt Disney Co., said the family is strongly behind Sean, a budding stand-up comic who lives in a typical, covenant-controlled neighborhood in Aurora. He said that even Sean's mother, Patti Allen, 52, a registered Democrat, is supporting her son "100 percent."
"She's a Democrat; she's not a lib," Allen said, responding to Hannity's comment that his wife was a "lib."
"Regardless of party affiliation, there are certain things that don't belong in the classroom," Scott Thornton, Sean's 24-year- old half-brother, said about his mother's position. "Mr. Bennish's comments were inappropriate and radical. She feels ultimately that Sean made the right decision."
Neither Sean, a 16-year-old sophomore at Overland High, nor his parents returned repeated phone calls for comment Friday.
On -MySpace.com, Sean Allen makes numerous references to his comedy acts and notes that he performed at the Redfish New Orleans Brewhouse in Boulder.
"Seano" or "The Sean" writes that he is influenced by comedians Andrew Dice Clay and "the one and only" Richard Pryor.
He describes his favorite movies as Blade Runner, the Alien series and The Thing. He lists his heroes as God, Jesus, Moses, Thor and Dane Cook.
He describes his major as football.
Sean Allen posted some of his comic routines on MySpace.com but they were removed by Friday afternoon. However, KHOW-AM (630) posted some of the material on its Web site.
The following is from Allen's sketch lampooning Jehovah's Witnesses. In the bit, he describes a fictional Jehovah's Witness coming to his home with magnets of Jesus "at a disco club" and "at the driving range."
Here's the punch line: " . . . but this guy came to my house and i just - lost it on him. i took him into my house and beat him to death with his own bible . . . so now, im in the johovas witness protection program."
Thornton said he was proud of his younger brother.
"Teachers are bestowed the honor of educating our youth. If they take advantage of that by going on these types of tirades, I think they should be held accountable."
In the Hannity interview, Sean said he had received numerous supportive e-mail messages from parents across the country.
"It really makes me feel really, really good this has done something and changed things so teachers who are like this start to think twice," Sean Allen said.
But neither Sean Allen nor his father, who initially distributed the recording to the media, want Bennish fired. They just want him to stick to the curriculum and stop with the political commentary. Jeff Allen said firing Bennish would send a negative message to good teachers, who would be afraid to say the wrong thing.
"We want them to give their opinion," Jeff Allen said. "We want the other side as well."
Because of the heated debate the Bennish affair has caused, Sean Allen said he may transfer to another school. "I'm working on putting my safety and my family's safety first," he told Hannity.
Hang in there, kid. You know you're over the correct target when you're taking flak.
Liberalism on display at its finest.
Not surprising. Isn't that what liberals do? Prayers for strength for Sean and family.
This is badly written. Who is Jay Bennish, and what did s/he say, and how does that relate to the kid's comic routines?
Orwell was such a genius. Wish he and McCarthy were still around.
This tactic by liberals is a disgrace. Aren't they the ones who always glorify "whistlblowers?" Aren't they the ones who value and promote "challenging authority"? Their reaction to this reveals their utter hypocracy.
Jay Bennish is the kid who tapped his geography teacher politically indocrinating his students -- about as far left as you can go really.
You can listen to the teacher here: http://www.850koa.com/cc-common/podcast/single_podcast.html?podcast=news_worthy.xml
Read more about it here: http://michellemalkin.com/archives/004689.htm
Gee, why don't you search on "bennish" and you just might get up to speed!
I didn't think it was unreasonable to expect an article referring to somebody to explain who the person is and his/her significance. Figuring that out shouldn't be an exercise left to the reader. But maybe that's just me ...
Sean Allen is the student.
Jay Bennish is the insane "teacher".
I saw him on TV. He seemed a smart, capable young man. I'm sure good things are in his future.
Who would curse a 16-year-old kid? Terrible. I wonder if there is a way to protect Sean's grades from possible retribution from teachers?
They've been doing this for decades, and the GOPers just sat and took it. Conservatives have fought back and it's scaring the lib-dem trash that we have spines and can give it back to them.
Remember, it's "their way of the highway". No room for anyone or anything that contradicts their mantra and agenda.
I agree with you.
Upon finishing the article, I was left wondering what the heck to whole stink was about.
Only whistleblowers who expose repubs - those who expose the dems/libs/old media are BAD.
That's right. He stood up courageously. He should just go on to college; he's getting flak from twerps.
Any threatening e-mail and the dad could have come commies arrested. That would be more fun! Don't whine, dad. Go after the pigs.
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