posted on Dec, 5 2021 @ 12:49 PM
a reply to:
TonyS
Kids get singled out by bullies for bullying for two reasons:
- Establishment of a pecking order. That occurs in practically any social species.
Every kid who shows up in school is trying to figure out where they fit in the societal hierarchy. Unfortunately, not everyone can be in the top
slot, and we need to learn to accept that fact.
- Simple insecurity. The bullies in school are always... always... cowards. They try to cover that up by picking on smaller and weaker kids.
That's really not so much different than any other segment of society; there are always those who prefer to tear others down to improve their lot in
life than build themselves up.
The real problem is that when they get away with bullying for so long, it becomes more than just insecurity... it becomes habit reinforced by
insecurity. That's where most of the criminals come from. Some manage to escape that fate (usually when they come up against someone who fights back),
but some do not.
What we have done recently is the exact opposite of what we used to do, and what we used to do worked on a lot of the problem.
If two kids had a problem (usually because one of them was a bully and the other had just had enough), the coach would put them both in the middle of
the gym surrounded by the other kids, with boxing gloves on, and let them just beat on each other until they either gave out or one (usually the
bully) gave up. That did two things: it made the bully feel shamed and made him think twice before bullying again, and it made the bullied more
confident in his decision to fight back against the bully. And no one got hurt... kids in boxing gloves are not going to injure each other.
Instead, we have instituted this "no violence zero tolerance" policy. Bullying still happens, because the bullies know when they can get away with
it. But those being bullied? When they finally snap and fight back, the bullies have gotten very good at attracting attention and getting them accused
of bullying. So anyone who tries to stand up to a bully is immediately branded as a bully and usually expelled, while the real bullies are free to
continue since no one else wants to be expelled for opposing them.
Of course, when anyone brings this little bit of inconvenient truth up, it is scoffed at and poo-pooed... by people who used to be bullies! Go
figure...
TheRedneck