Pro-bullying?

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I cant believe even in today's so-called "anti-bullying" climate, so many people can't recognize bullying when they see it. Note, it does not look like it does in the feel-good anti-bullying videos, people!

Also I have recently been introduced to a phenomenon where people believe that if someone is acting "off" they need to be taught a lesson. I had no idea that this mentality existed in such an overt way.

I talked to a co-worker the other day who seemed to believe this. If someone is "out of control" (which translates as, they don't live up to an expectation of arbitrary social norms that you have set for them) then someone needs to taunt them. It just has to be done.


And we somehow wonder why we have stories like this:
http://www.ksl.com/?sid=29576819&nid=14 ... d=queue-10

**** Edit: ****
I feel like I've confused everybody again. Just to set the record straight, what I'm talking about in the 2nd and 3rd paragraph is:

I have found there is a subculture of people who in my view are sort of "pro-bully". That is, when they see something that is "different" they feel as if they are tasked with the righteous job of "teaching the guy a lesson". (pranks, teasing, etc. -- try to get the guy to react, and the more the poor guy reacts, the more relentlessly they do it. They seem to think it is a learning process for the victim.)

I think it is terrible. But these are grown men, (maybe women too, I can only assume) who just think that this is some sort of "tough love" for people who need it. I find it twisted and destructive but they seem to think that there is nothing wrong with it or that it is a good thing.

Last edited by b_edward on 22 Apr 2014, 2:20 pm, edited 2 times in total.

We can experiment with different methods of low-key, informal leadership, as long as we realize it doesn't always work. Just like formal leadership doesn't always work.

For example, in this case maybe saying something like, 'Okay, someone needs to talk with him.' 'Well, it's not really my job, but sure, if I get a chance I'll talk to him.'

Let me clarify. "something needs to be done" was referring here to "somebody needs to tease him. play pranks on him. Try to get a reaction out of him. Maybe even play keep-away. They think he deserves it and it is just something that needs to be done."

Last edited by b_edward on 22 Apr 2014, 2:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Yeah bullying is still out of control in some cases.

why would his parents turn him into the police
thats not going to help in anyway, they should have quietly got him psychiatric help, now hes marked for life for something kids do. I had a "hit list" growing up to help me remember the people who wronged me and I knew a few others that had them too

With the workplace situation, I mean someone might be able to re-characterize the situation in a mature, adult fashion.

Now, you need to have something going in your favor, such as being a middle-aged individual, or as a relatively long-term worker with a reputation as a good worker, or a physically larger individual (shouldn't be this way but probably is).

And then the way to look at it, you say something with matter-of-fact confidence and it had a 50% chance of working, and that's okay. You don't invest a lot into it, on this occasion.

You are basically taking irresponsible talk of bullying, and taking it as a workplace grievance, which you then try and address in a mature way.

One of my oldest friends thinks the best thing that ever happened to him was that he had been bullied early on, which he thinks made him a tough guy in later life.
It certainly didn't have that affect on me.

who died and made these aholes god?

In that story the usual thing happened: the bullied person goes to another school, the bullies can stay. Feels so unfair.

Ah yes, the nebulous "out of control" charge. I see this getting use a lot to discredit people.
Once I asked someone who had accused another person of being "out of control" to define the state of control and the criteria for being out of control. I wasn't f**king joking when I asked but I got a look as if they thought I was stupid for asking such a question.