Is It OK to Say 'Bless You' in Class?

by SodaHead News Posted 2011/09/30 18:39:13

Related Topics: Bless You, God Bless You, Sneezing, Sneeze, Religion, God, School, John, parents, High School, Teacher, Student, Fashion, Superintendent, High School Teacher, Fox

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	Yes	1,702 votes	89%
	No	116 votes	6%
	Undecided	99 votes	5%

Saying "bless you" or "God bless you" when someone sneezes is a part of American tradition, but one California teacher isn't a big fan. No, it has nothing to do with religion. Steve Cuckovich, a high school teacher at William C. Wood in the Bay Area, says it's just a disruption to valuable class time. And what's he doing about it? Taking points off of student's scores when they say it.

Cuckovich, who teaches health of all things, is adamant that the blessing is outdated and pointless. "The blessing doesn't make any sense anymore," he told FOX. "When you sneezed in the old days, they thought you were dispelling evil spirits out of your body. So they were saying 'God bless you,' for getting rid of evil spirits. But today, what you're doing doesn't really make any sense."

Well, as you can imagine, some parents got pretty upset, so the quirky teacher has stopped deducting points for now. And as of Thursday, the district's superintendent John Niederkorn commented in slight defense of Cuckovich.

"The teacher believed that students were dramatically sneezing and responding in repetitive fashion..." Niederkorn said. "Certainly a blessing by one individual to another after a sneeze is a welcomed acknowledgement of a social norm. Hopefully it is not abused as a disruption of classroom instructional
activities."

The superintendent says the school district is "continuing its investigation of this reported classroom disruption." Sheesh, can everyone just relax? It was just a few "bless you's!"

What do you think about saying "bless you" in class? Could it be a cause for disruption -- or is it just a friendly gesture wishing someone well?

+41

Add a comment above

TheMadChameleon 2011/09/30 20:53:31

Yes

+17
It's not really a disruption, and it CERTAINLY doesn't merit a point deduction. I say it on reflex, myself.
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More polls by SodaHead News

dennis m 2012/10/05 05:17:33

No

i dont see the point of saying it at all

reply
nbarton2 2012/07/25 05:36:47

Yes

It is just politeness, why does this have to be a big deal. I swear sometimes these things get in the news because people want their 15 minutes.

reply
Ade 2012/04/25 22:09:39

Yes

Bless You

reply
Erik 2012/04/19 14:19:11

Yes

I can NOT believe how IGNORANT some people are these days??????????

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frozenKmadness 2012/01/20 23:57:17

Yes

Blessing somebody is good, there is nothing wrong. And how long does it take? A second for the "Bless you" and another second for a 'Thanks". Not a big deal, is it?

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stevegtexas@aol.com 2012/01/09 23:03:54

Yes

Yes, but if you say curse you they might call the ACLU on your butt! 2012.

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Joe 2011/12/25 15:06:00

Undecided

It's okay as long as it isn't distrupting class.

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allikatnissD12 2011/12/23 22:50:57

Undecided

+1
its nice to whisper it but I've heard people go
*ACHOO*
"Bless you"
'Thank you'
"You're Welcome"

you'rre wishing for someone to get better NOT ttrying to start a conversation

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Liberals Are Brain Dead 2011/11/25 20:16:46

Yes

The teacher should be fired for infringing on the student religious rights.

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kobidob... to Liberal... 2012/05/30 22:32:31

That is not religious.That is being thoughtful of another. Blessed are the peacemakers. The teacher is not contributing to peace.

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Beccy 2011/11/15 01:16:42

Yes

+1
It is the polite thing to do

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Erik to Beccy 2012/04/19 14:16:36

+1
oooooh I am soooooo sorry, I flaged the wrong one and it wont let me take it off, u forgive me?????

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Beccy to Erik 2012/04/19 23:31:46

+1
yes

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Erik to Beccy 2012/04/20 14:44:13

+1
Thannnnnnnnnks, sorry bout that, just stuff they(schools and all) they are doing these days reallllllllly make me furious.........................

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Beccy to Erik 2012/04/21 00:02:40

+1
It's sad that people being civil to their fellow man is being questioned.

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Erik to Beccy 2012/04/23 14:49:45

+1
SOOOOOO sad but true??????????

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jere.chievres 2011/11/10 00:24:35

Yes

I used too.

reply
aaroneb63 2011/10/27 02:35:57

Undecided

There are actually a couple more reasons why "Bless you" was started. But it all boils down to superstition. There's no point to it because it is a natural bodily function, the same as flatulence. You would never say "bless you" for that or if someone burped.

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nbarton2 to aaroneb63 2012/07/25 05:38:09

I usually say "Good one"

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Rachel Roggow 2011/10/23 21:39:56

Yes

+1
I mean, even if someone did have something religious against it, it has become more of a polite thing to say than anything having to do with God. I'm not sure why anyone still says it now, though, maybe just tradition. Who knows.

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jeremy kuhne 2011/10/23 18:08:44

Undecided

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««zamboni»»Hellsoldier-BN0 2011/10/23 17:04:57

Yes

I don't see anything wrong with it.

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Chaika 2011/10/23 11:54:44

Yes

But even ın Muslım they say ıf you sneeze Çoc Yaşur! the answer almost sounds ın Englısh lıke send the gırls quite funny when İ fırst heard thıs

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siara many 2011/10/21 23:28:55

Yes

+1
omgeeeee!!!! of corse u should say bless you...well only if u want to i think its polite but u certainly shouldnt get in trouble for it

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Bettina 2011/10/17 03:10:40

Yes

+1
Of course. Say it long, loud and often!

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Bess 2011/10/16 02:29:23

Yes

I read the article. I think it's insane that a child got in trouble for this. But maybe we should teach or children to say Gesundheit (German for health) may refer to gazuntite

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Sarah 2011/10/15 18:11:17

Undecided

it's OK to say bless you but sometimes in class so many people say it at once and it kinda disturbs the lesson and I find it annoying...some of my classmates even use it as an opportunity to disturb the class.I myself say gesundheit whenever some one sneezes but I don't say it loud in class,just murmur it!

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Brady 2011/10/14 04:18:55

Yes

+1
Well why the heck not? Sure it could be interpreted as a religious thing, but I'm sure the are much more pressing things to stand against. A person would have to be socially uncivilized to take offense to that.

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Andrew 2011/10/14 02:51:42

Yes

why not

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shygurl 2011/10/13 22:14:38

Yes

of course its okay thats messed up

reply
sami 2011/10/13 15:42:06

Yes

+1
in fact 'BLESS YOU' is not enough,where is the word ''''GOD''''...

I know we can get it from context but we shouldn't be ashamed to say it !!!!!!!!!!!!!???????!!!!!!!!!...

i think we have to say it loudly GOD BLESS YOU,where is the problem,who refuses to hear this is seack and needs cure.

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EJ 2011/10/13 11:40:09

Yes

+1
Sounds like a bunch of crap to me. Saying "Bless You" is no more of a disruption than the actual sneeze. I'm not an Atheist, but I'm no perfect Christian either and you'll still hear me say "Bless You" every time someone sneezes.

reply
disclaimer 2011/10/13 07:45:41

Yes

Hey, twitface, it's not about God's blessing. It's about the fact that it's a proverb and a social norm.

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sapphire_love_life 2011/10/13 06:04:12

Yes

+1
-_- wow. come on people really? taking offense over bless you? and takin off points for saying it? its a habit and something that is said to show politeness... next will he take points away for sneezing because the loud noise disrupts him? hes a teacher, things will interrupt him and if he cant handle God bless you then he needs a new job... lame

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Mille peña 2011/10/12 15:12:03

Yes

lol. I could understand that there is no point anymore, ok, but to deduct points off ur grade, that is extreme

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EricVanSingleton 2011/10/11 05:23:04

Yes

Whenever I say it, I get a thank you in response.

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philly 2011/10/10 21:59:19

Yes

Of course you say bless you it is polite.Any teacher that has a problem with that needs a new job or commit yourself.What does he want us to say instead.They need to let this teacher go and ban him from teaching

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Dynamic... to philly 2011/10/11 17:19:55

+1
Lol yeah, ban him form drinking too by the sounds of it :D

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kenny 2011/10/10 18:37:32

Yes

+1
One wonders what exactly happened in that classroom that encouraged the students to "sneeze dramatically" and receive the many blessings therefrom. Some teachers can be resourceful preachers of their own ideologies in very subtle forms (or not so good at it as perhaps in this case!)

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selenafan224 2011/10/10 15:12:03

No

+2
I only say bless you to my family.

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