The Long and the Short of It

Most teachers love a good visual aid to drive home the point of a lesson, and Gary Weddle, a science teacher at Ephrata Middle School in Ephrata, Washington, has a hell of a visual aid: his beard. The lesson, though, has nothing to do with science.

Weddle was so caught up by the news in the days after 9/11 five years, he forgot to shave. And when his thoughts finally did turn again to shaving, he decided to use his stubble to make a statement and vowed to let his beard grow until Osama bin Laden was killed or captured. According to the Associated Press, Weddle thought he'd only be growing out his whiskers for "a month or so". The beard is now over a foot long.

Considering the Washington Post recently reported that there is no one in the U.S. government with overall responsibility for capturing bin Laden, it's unlikely Weddle will be picking up a razor anytime soon. Let's just hope that that none of his science classes involve bunsen burners.