RE: Justified Outrage?

"...they say "well the principal said it was okay". Of course the principal said that, because... they didn't consider all of the things their decision could potentially break...:

Sometimes an analogy helps. Ask them: "So if the principle tells me I can bake a cake with a cup of salt instead of a cup of sugar, that's okay? You would eat it?"  Then sometimes they begin to understand. 😉