Poll: Should Bullys be Prosecuted? (Poll)

[BodomBeachChild]

No. That's a dumb idea. Yeah try and get them in as much trouble for harassment as possible.
If that shit don't work then fight it out. You can't just prosecute someone because they're being a big ol' meanie-head to you.
I took a lot of crap from people growing up but I never would think of gettin' a lawyer 'cause someone told me "you're a fag lulz". If you think the things people do/say in high school are mean and rude wait until you get into the real world.

 

[Assassinscreed548]

Absolutely not. I don't even feel like elaborating since there have been plenty that did it better than I would have.
Going back to the suicide statement, however.. I must say that anyone who commits suicide over something like bullying is pathetic and weak. I'm sorry if you know someone who couldn't handle life, but I'm afraid that's modernized natural selection at work. Since humans have evolved beyond the point where they need to survive in harsh circumstances, our evolution must be sought out in other ways. People who can't handle the hardships of teenage life would never have been able to handle adult life anyway, and they're doing the world a solid by offing themselves. Suicide has been glorified in today's society and I think that's horrible. If anything, our attitude towards suicide today is probably causing more people to do it, seeing as how they'll be portrayed as martyrs and heroes as soon as they do it.

 

[orangeban]

You're not allowed to verbally harass adults, beat up adults, steal adults money or publically ridicule adults.

Why should the situation be any different for children? Why is bullying tolerated at all?

 

[J Tyran]

If "bullying" crosses the line and becomes harassment and assault yes they should, if its just teenagers calling other teens names no.

 

[Something Amyss]

Depends on bullying. If its a random "hey jerk go jump off a bridge" bullying then that guy really just needs to grow thicker skin.

I've never heard something on that level being called "bullying" before. Seriously.

 

[Something Amyss]

You're not allowed to verbally harass adults, beat up adults, steal adults money or publically ridicule adults.

Why should the situation be any different for children? Why is bullying tolerated at all?

Because "boys will be boys" or something like that.

 

[trooper6]

You're not allowed to verbally harass adults, beat up adults, steal adults money or publically ridicule adults.

Why should the situation be any different for children? Why is bullying tolerated at all?

This is also my opinion. Harassment, assault, theft...these things are illegal for adults...shouldn't be any different for kids.

 

[zelda2fanboy]

No. As soon as we start prosecuting a new group of people, then that means innocent people will also get caught in it, especially with a concept as potentially amorphous as bullying. Two friends could be kidding around and then to merely stab the other in the back, somebody cries bully and sends some kid to jail. You think juvy is a place full of rainbows and sunshine? Yeah, we'll show all those bullies how to treat people. Send them to a place where they have to avoid being shivved and raped. That will make them function like normal human beings.

I'd say that most of the bullies I had to deal with in school (male bullies, anyways) had come from shitty and horrendous environments and that was where they learned to treat people the way that they did. So much of these bully thread reek of revenge and malice, often against particular 12 year olds who no longer exist. Deal with your own shit and don't take it out on others. And if you can, let it go.

 

[Fappy]

I think many people in this thread are overestimating the judgment of children.

 

[Aprilgold]

Yeah, you should know the drill by now. Giant wall of text below.

Spoiler

EDIT: A few people may think I am talking about simple bullying. I am not talking your momma jokes or four eyes comments. I'm talking hardcore hatred. Your a fag, your a whore, kill yourself no one cares, etc. Getting beaten up after school for your beliefs.

Maybe kids do need to get a thicker skin, but when you deal with the same insults day after day wouldn't it cut deep after a while?

And here I thought I was one of the very small minority that realizes this exact thing. Guys, bullying isn't just "YO MAMMA SO FAT SHE KILLED RONALD MCCDONALD BY EATING HIS HAMBURGERS TILL HE STARVED! LOL!!" But can really be "Yeah, I broke that fag kids arms, both of them. Had it coming for being a ******, its his choice." Which actually did happen a while ago.

We need to remember that all bullying isn't teasing, but can be full on harassment and assault.

A lot of the methods used in bullying are already against the law (e.g. assault, harassment, slander, hate speech, inciting hatred) so I don't see why bullies can't be prosecuted under existing laws.

What does your concept of "prosecuting bullies" entail that isn't already covered by existing, long established laws?

I think hes getting at being more harsh on the kids and not dissmissing every kid saying that their getting their shit rocked every single day as "Boys will be boys."

I had the shit kicked out me when I was younger; i got over it. The school system is ridiculous, we are constantly told to make children feel as though they are all perfect and special, all it does is make coming into adulthood one big trauma conga line when they realize that no, they are not special and there are about thirty thousand other brats who could fill their role in society.

Good way to put it is that every child is not you. Just because you got through that type of treatment mentally fine does not mean that another child can. Kinda like how every human is not the same is actually different from every other one out there, at least to some minor degrees.

I semi-agree that kids shouldn't be treated like their perfect, but simply saying "Hay kid, you go deal with it yourself" will more then likely continue the same exact trend being seen right now, won't help anyone and won't stop anyone from hurting later. One common thing among sociopaths was, essentially, a rough childhood, and I mean rough. As in Dad sees the kid doing his homework instead of yard-work and literally beats the shit out of him.

Nope , i have no sympathy for anyone that doesn't seek help under any circumstance . I don't mean to sound like a jerk but, if someone won't help thenselves then i don't care what happens to them it's their own fault. People talk about bullies like they are some unstoppable force or something . There are many options you have when deig with bullies , ranging from talking to an adult to defending yourself .

Now about suicide in general , now one can make you commit suicide , if they could it wouldn't be called suicide. I truly believe that no matter the circumstance, once you willfully for any reason you harm youself causing death , it is no longer murder.

Now because i know the escapists hate to hae people that don't agree with their opinion i will get quoted , i'm telling you guys right now , i will not respond to quotes.

Several cases that I saw where a kid basically had to up and leave county or the kid with the gun would shoot him. Teachers dismissed it and the kid had to up and leave. Honestly, I agree that you should try and help yourself first, but when that type of shit happens it doesn't always get a response.

Also, its technically man-slaughter. Murder is a act committed by one man to another, man-slaughter would be endangering someone without that being your intention. Getting drunk then driving, getting into a accident that kills a dude will most likely land you into prison for Man-slaughter. Of course there is always assault, another sentence that could land you in prison. Really, there are several among many actions that could be used against a person pushing someone to suicide, it isn't just one instance that causes someone to kill themselves, its many that have been piling, so enough digging could easily land several dudes in prison under the right lawyer.

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A lot of it is illegal, its just that teachers will often times tell kids that fighting back is not what you should do and you should go tell a teacher, but when you tell a teacher they say "Just ignore them" so your caught in a big circle of a kid wanting you dead and overly trying and maybe succeeding in doing so, you running off to a authority figure and then being dismissed.

It just has to be taken a little bit more seriously instead of being dismissed.

 

[Spritzey]

Learning to rise above bullies is far important than anything else

 

[Weaver]

Harassment and assault are already against the law; I just feel it needs to be enforced.

Perhaps we need to drop this idiotic idea that everyone is an innocent flower who has no idea what they're doing and can get off on being a minor until age 18. I say let's start adult trial at, say, 14.

I'm not saying I didn't do stupid shit at 14, but I knew right from wrong and I knew the kind of stuff that would hurt people.

 

[Eternal_Lament]

As much as kids killing themselves is a serious and disturbing issue, prosecuting bullies isn't an answer to this. As much as I'd like to say that I feel sympathy for these kids, it's hard for me to do so. I think this is because I was sort of in high school when the whole bullying thing started to ramp up (20 now, turning 21 in December), and I remember that I didn't get off light. I was made fun of and teased, but I got over it. I found ways to make fun of them and found friends who I could count on. When they tried to bring me down further, I either embraced things to the point that they no longer wanted to bother or I just ignored them, because I didn't need them. I don't accept arguments of "They can't escape online bullying though because they'll only be outcasted even further" because that is a flat out lie. The only way you could be cyber-bullied by people who give you shit at school would be if you willinging gave your information out and added them as friends on Facebook, at which point you're only really bringing on yourself. Besides, why care if you're outcasted even more by the people who make your life miserable? It's not as if they visit every single online community you visit, surely there must be at least one place where you can find solace.

Now, I'm not denying that bullying can't have consequences on someone. That said, I don't think prosecuting bullies will somehow serve to limit this. It will only create more anamosity amongst the bully and the victim, the bully giving less respect to the victim because they see them as weak for having to hide behind such a law. It will only bring more vicious acts. That's how bullies usually pick their targets, they don't go for the strong or sarcastic that can easily deflect their attempts, they go for the weak. This only strengthens that desire to bully, the victim seemingly more weak and therefore more fun to see suffer. I look back at previous generations and see how they deal with bullying, and I start to wonder if all these social safety nets we've created in order to "consol" rather than to "strengthen" the victims of bullying seem to only intensify the degree of bullying.

I don't have the answer as to how to stop all of this, but I can give some suggestions. For one thing, standing up to the bully. I don't mean standing up and telling the school to deal with them, I mean confronting them. Whether alone or with friends, the moment you take the initiative you send a sign that the bully isn't as strong as they think they are, that they may in fact be the weak one. It won't be easy, and it won't end there, but it's certainly a start. Hell, two of my close friends today were people who bullid me relentlessly in elementary school, and it only got worse when I resorted to weak defenses. When I stood up for myself and confronted them, I was given some respect, and that respect helped to form a friendship between us. If you're the type that just can't handle the confrontation, find solace in others. Just because you may not be popular at school doesn't mean there isn't someone out there who will accept you.

 

[darksakul]

Bullying it self, no let schools and parents short that out.
Or teach your kids to fight back

Harassment and assault that comes from bullying, yes.

 

[Sean951]

I think these articles do a better job on this topic than I do.

Gay Students [http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/one-towns-war-on-gay-teens-20120202]

Cyber Bullying [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/01/ycteen-story-the-facebook_n_1124241.html]

More Cyber Bullying [http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/us/05bully.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all]

Cyber Bullying causing suicide [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/03/amanda-diane-cummings-of-_n_1180889.html?ncid=webmail1]

If you don't feel like skimming these articles, then they essentially point out that bullying is not harmless, and sometimes there is no escape. When the teachers won't help you or even join in on it, what are you supposed to do? I'm not saying jail time should be a punishment, but I do think giving out fines, community service, and possibly time in Juvenile Detention for the worst offenders would be appropriate. In many places, it's already happening. One of the articles linked mentions a kid who lost his rights to use a computer for anything but school, though it was left to the parents to enforce the ban.

 

[Scars Unseen]

You're not allowed to verbally harass adults, beat up adults, steal adults money or publically ridicule adults.

Why should the situation be any different for children? Why is bullying tolerated at all?

Laziness. I've seen bullying occur while teachers were present, but to stop the incident would involve pausing their conversation and getting up out of their chairs. Can't have that. I never really was subject to bullying myself, but the outright negligence on the teachers' part always pissed me off.

 

[Strazdas]

Depends on bullying. If its a random "hey jerk go jump off a bridge" bullying then that guy really just needs to grow thicker skin.

I've never heard something on that level being called "bullying" before. Seriously.

ive seen "hey you loser" being called "bullying" and technically, it is bullying, by the definition of the term, thats why we cant use this term to jail people. because then we would have to jail 90% of populace, and thats simply economicaly impossible.

No. As soon as we start prosecuting a new group of people, then that means innocent people will also get caught in it, especially with a concept as potentially amorphous as bullying. Two friends could be kidding around and then to merely stab the other in the back, somebody cries bully and sends some kid to jail. You think juvy is a place full of rainbows and sunshine? Yeah, we'll show all those bullies how to treat people. Send them to a place where they have to avoid being shivved and raped. That will make them function like normal human beings.

yeah because thme being treated the same way they treat others is so bad.

I think many people in this thread are overestimating the judgment of children.

Juding from your posts in another thread i think you are underestimating the judgement of children.

And here I thought I was one of the very small minority that realizes this exact thing. Guys, bullying isn't just "YO MAMMA SO FAT SHE KILLED RONALD MCCDONALD BY EATING HIS HAMBURGERS TILL HE STARVED! LOL!!" But can really be "Yeah, I broke that fag kids arms, both of them. Had it coming for being a ******, its his choice." Which actually did happen a while ago.

I think you are mixing up bullying with assault.

 

[AbsoluteVirtue18]

Bullying someone until they kill themselves is a horrible, evil thing to do, but at the same time I can't help but think to myself that these kids should man the hell up. Nobody makes anyone kill themselves, some people are just weak enough to consider it an option.

I'm not saying the bully shouldn't be punished if their victim kills themselves, but I'm also saying that a least a small amount of guilt should be directed at the people around that victim for not noticing that "Hey, this kid is being f**king tormented, maybe we should DO something other than telling them to ignore it." Because ignoring the bully doesn't work for most, and the only times it does are when the bullied man the hell up.

 

[Malty Milk Whistle]

Because putting someone who theoretically could turn their lives around (It's possible) in an environment where only cruel and dick'ish survive is certainly going to improve everyone's lives.

That is, of course if you're talking about Juve'y
Personally, i don't think fines or community service would work, so this is on of those questions with no real correct answer.