On Bullying

There is a column by Karol Markowicz in the NY Post about bullying, which I started to comment about on their site, but they wanted to peruse my email account. Nope.

She wrote:

The bullies of our youth could be stopped with a surprise punch. The ones of today have protection from that, thanks to our zero-tolerance policies. We’re raising a generation of superbullies.

We don’t give the good kids a fair chance to stand up to the bad ones.

Here is the reply I would have made:

Is the official policy to just quietly surrender when you’re being pummeled?

Yes. The consequences may well last a lifetime: Our schools teach passivity in the face of assault. Just how does one break through that lesson when one is later being attacked by a rapist, gay basher, or just plain nut? Answer: One usually doesn't. Learned passivity is a mental illness we demand our children learn, and learn well.

The best response to a bully is usually to punch him in the nose, and keep punching until he is either down on the ground or running away. Nowadays, of course, the head bullies run our school boards, and they are hard to beat. They like it that way.

You shall be passive, or else. You shall not take responsibility for your own safety, or else. If you defend yourself, you will be treated exactly like the bully, because you challenged the authority which says "Submit, or Else."

Schools are teaching children to submit to violent, criminal assault, and to wait for an authority figure to someday review the event.

Just soak up the violence, kid, or else.