I sympathize with kids who are bullied, I got bullied as a kid for years on end. I was bigger than a lot of kids, but clumsy and withdrawn, and wore the black plastic glasses that seem to be bully magnets for some odd reason. I used to have a kid wait for me at a certain point every single day for several years as I walked to school.
But, in my opinion, it is far, Far, FAR more important to teach kids how to withstand bullying than it is to eliminate bullying.
Because just like there will always be criminals, deviants, thievery, and violence, there will always be bullies. Always.
It isn’t easy. It isn’t fun. It is painful, and sad.
But, it is a microcosm of life itself, which sometimes isn’t easy or fun, and often painful and sad.
It is a liberal construct to try and put people in a bubble to protect them. And it is damaging, destructive, and even dangerous to do so.
I agree. There will always be bullies. And sometimes victims of bullies can be bullies themselves if the occasion develops. Best to learn how to deal with it early. I only had it happen once. I still have bitter memories and occasionally now I run into the mother of the bully. A nice old lady but I still feel like telling her she raised a nasty bully!
Teaching kids to "withstand" bullying doesn't really prepare them for life after school. In the adult world, it's a crime for someone to attack you physically, or stalk you, or threaten you, or harass you. Today, would you "withstand" having a coworker or a neighbor "wait for you at a certain point every single day for several years"? I rather doubt it.
For a variety of reasons, I got picked on.
At least till I locked the starting quarterback in his locker. Then the work got out that Red is just not the guy you really want to make mad.
Found a path, but that is life. You need to deal with people that will hate you for no reason.
I was never a big kid, and I got bullied, but I quickly found out that you fight back. I still wasn’t big, but was strong and really quick, by the time I was in HS, I had a reputation as one to not mess with.
My discovery was that if someone started something, get the first punch in...and the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, then a couple more while they were on their back. Bullying isn’t something new, quit being pussies.