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Now, this wouldn't bother me if it weren't my sectionmate doing this.
Ok. One of the baritones has skipped his last two classes of the day (Chemistry and English) to go into the woods near the school with two non-band kids and smoke pot.

This guy is supposedly higher rank than me, though we're both freshman, it's his first year, and I've been proven to be the best player in the section. I'm going to be a section leader next year, if not the main one. (There was some conflicts with the guy who was supposed to be, he might not get it now.) So, this guy smoking in the woods and skipping two important classes is supposed to be our section leader. That's not the main problem.

So, he got in pretty big trouble when he almost failed Intro to Physics. If that had kept on going, he might have been kicked out. Now, he's skipping (and probably failing) Chemistry and English, so I think that alone would probably get him in a lot of trouble.

So, this last year, we were considered the worst section. Put the mellophones and the low brass together... God damn. The mellophones could keel over dead and they'd still be considered better.

And since I'm going to be a section leader, I'm going to make low brass the best section. I will not tolerate this guy (who's one of my closest friends... but I've told him what will happen.) messing up our reputation. And messing up the band's reputation. ('Pride' is our motto.)

I told him the following (and this is almost verbatim):
"I swear to God, Matt. You come into this band room high, with pot on your person, or go into one of the instrument rooms and smoke, I will get you kicked out of this band."
And I'm dead serious. Low brass may be the crap section, but I will not tolerate it. (And I'm sure there are other people in my section who smoke a lot, but they don't talk about it all the time. Matt is just stupid enough to talk about it, and get caught for having it with him all the time.)

And, I warned him today, and I even had a chance to do it today. And, every other day, I know I'll have a chance. I won't do it without good reason, but let me tell you what happened today.
The office called to the band room, and said, "Mr. Brown, is Matthew in there?" And myself, Philip to my right, and Ryan to my left all knew where Matt was at the time. Either one of the three of us could have said something, but we didn't, out of mercy.
(And I'll be telling both of the current section leaders why Matt wasn't at the pep rally today.)

But, I am being completely serious. I will not have him as my co-section leader next year if he fails his two most important classes for no good reason. He's done this before, over the summer one time.
It's absolutely ******** stupid. I just don't understand why he would do this. (or why people smoke pot at all)
If it happens how I am pretty sure it will, he will not be a leader, or maybe even in this band next season. And I'm not ******** around.


Discuss:
What the right choice is.

Just give him the boot. Somebody like that has NO pride and no prestige.

At this rate, it doen't look like he'll be a section leader. I can't see him staying in band much longer either.

And if he's your co-leader, the rest of the section will probably just listen to you instead of him.

But go tell his guidance counceller or parents or something. Whatever it takes, he needs help to turn his life around. But ask the counceller/parents to keep you annonomys, of course.

It is a evil world today. But to give up on a person, means you are just as bad if not even worst. As a person with a leader role, yes you are doing the right thing.

However, as a friend, you are lower then dirt. Have you done everything to help him? Have you? Most people who do drugs have no one to lean on and no support anywhere. All they get is an ear full of people, pretending to care, and no one really helping them. They always get "you are stupid for making you life worst," yet no would even give them the time of day to hear them out to them or even help them.

Not everyone has hope, family, home, food to come home too. I was luck, my friends, and god, helped me. When my parents couldn't give me the love that I need, shelter I need, clothes that I needed. It took them time and money, but they were willing to help me out. That is why I am in college, because someone helped me out they were willing to go the extra mile for me, when I couldn't. Thank god my life turned around.

If all you can is look down on people for the sake of reputation, then you fail as a leader. A leader will go out of his way to help a person that they have to work for. That means time money, and even their own lifestyle. They have to walk and live a life, that they are asking their fellow workers to fellow. Being a leader is much more then making the company, or whatever they work for, better. It's making sure that everyone is able to work, is able to point people in the right direction.

You can have the work hard attitude correct, and I beat you are a hard work yourself. You want to succeed in everything that you do. I can tell that much. I beat you make good grades and you probably would make a good leader. But the fact you look down on a person, calling them stupid do not have ability to understand what they are going through, you lack the thing that is most important in a leader. Compassion. Yes, you need to show people tough love, but if there is no compassion, then you will become no different a person with high power and no heart.

Forgive me for being too hard. I do have a leadership role at my home now. I have to be strong and guild my very own parents that have fail me in my youth, it not easy to do. I do give people tough love because I do care for them. The difference is, they know I do care for them. I wonder if that person you know, that you even care for them, when it seems like to me, no one even cares about a human.

If we care more about a stupid reputation then a person life then we all fail as human beings. We all lost the things that makes us human, compassion. Forgive me for being to harsh and ranting...when you get older it that is all you can do.