Bentonville School officials are struggling with student overcrowding. Stanford University conducted a scientific experiment where they put two rats in a bell jar and then corked the lid. When the rats breathing converted the air in the jar from oxygen to carbon dioxide the rats went for each other's throat and killed each other.
That experiment was played out using human beings when a sealed, overcrowded railroad boxcar loaded with illegal aliens got derailed in a train yard in Texas. Like the rats, the people in the summer heat used up all the oxygen and died of carbon dioxide poisoning. Autopsies showed that there were teeth marks on many of the dead bodies.
For those of us in the Air Force who were chosen to become aircrew members, we were required to go through several forms of physical, physiological and psychological testing. Eglin Air Force in Florida does the physiological testing. One of the tests involves an underground decompression chamber that mimics the condition of an aircraft that has lost oxygen at an altitude above the earth's atmosphere.
The brain cells need oxygen to function properly. However, the brain cells prefer alcohol over oxygen. That's one reason a drunk isn't thinking straight. We all know there are "happy drunks" and there are "angry drunks." The Air Force doesn't want to have an angry drunk on board if a hole in the skin of the aircraft causes the oxygen to get sucked out.
The idea of the underground decompression chamber is to find out who can control themselves and who cannot. So, in the chamber they had us play poker or shoot dice and without notice the cadre sucked out all of the oxygen and observed our reactions. Most of us acted silly and acted like giggling school girls, but some became apprehensive and violent and started turning over card tables, throwing chairs and hitting other candidates. This was a disqualifier for some.
Perhaps we have all noticed that when the ushers close the doors of the church sanctuary during the sermon at 11 a.m., the congregation is a kinder and gentler group than they are at 12 o'clock. Is it because there is less oxygen and more carbon dioxide at noon or is it just time to go to McDonalds'?
I'm not saying Bentonville students will be going after each other's throat anytime soon, but I am saying overcrowded classrooms are not conducive to developing a good education. I am suggesting the Bentonville School officials should work with my group, Bella Vista Kids Come First, and allow us and assist us in forming our own school district. This would relieve Bentonville of over 3,000 students, which should give some breathing room for Bentonville to resolve their current overcrowding problem.
Getting Bella Vista students out of the Bentonville schools would be a win-win situation for both cities, especially the Bella Vista children who have to get on buses at 6:15 each morning.
Jim Parsons
Bella Vista
Editorial on 01/14/2016