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Bullying SUCKS

I'm writing this post because of some disturbing news. This past week a local teenager committed suicide, a result of being bullied. According to word on the street, he was bullied because he was different. In what way was he different? I don't know. Does it matter? No.

This coming Friday is the 3rd anniversary of my brother's passing away. He was epileptic and developmentally disabled, today's politically correct term. He was also a target of much bullying because of the fact that he got upset easily. I had the same problem because I never learned how to defend myself without causing more trouble for myself. And my dad told me that if I ever got into trouble for fighting, I would be beat when I got home.

Thing about bullying is that the bully always goes after those who can't defend themselves, for whatever reason. And nowadays, with schools adhering to a "zero tolerance policy," most of the time those who do the bullying get off scott free.

And most bullying is mainly about mental cruelty. Ask anybody who grew up with a weight problem, a physical, or mental disability. I spent a good part of last year making amends with some who hurt me and others that I hurt while attending high school. You might say that "we were just kids". Don't matter. I felt better afterwards.

One friend that I feel very fortunate to have now is Johanna. She was given a very cruel nickname from one of my so called friends. Like the immature kid I was, I followed the pack and teased her unmercifully. We became very good friends our senior year and Johanna was a very valuable help in putting together our class reunion last year. I thank God she knows how to forgive.

There were some students in church this morning when our pastor addressed the bullying problem. Before the service ended, I got up and said that one of my favorite phrases in the Bible is "and it came to pass". In God's eyes we are all unique and special.

My next post will be a classic from last year, the turning point of my adolescent years.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Excellent post. My daughter was a victim of bullying. At 5'3" she decided to take it upon herself to put a stop to this boy's merciless taunts in a physical way. She was suspended from school for a week, but he never bothered her again, and he himself became an object of ridicule for letting a "little girl" bloody his nose in front of all their classmates.
Michelle said…
Excellent post Cliff. I was bullied a lot in school and everytime I hear a story like that it makes me angry.
Mike Golch said…
A great posting.I might add that bullies are nothing but a coward in disguise.
Like your late brother I was a target as well due to my getting upset easily as well.Not to mention that I had and still have epileptic seizures only no one makes fun of me any more.
Ben said…
This seems to be an age-old problem and we have not figured out how to nip it in the bud yet. I wish I could re-do some of the things I went along with as a kid. We need to figure out how to make parents more aware and responsible for raising their kids.
Syd said…
Thanks for posting this Mike. I do agree that bullying is so destructive.

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