Is it possible to stop bullying?

[Tahuti]

Bullying isn't a really stoppable, not with the current human psyche at least. Some people seek to be "leaders" so they can coerce others in doing their bidding as parasites, in part by making it appear cool to do so, and in another part by attacking those least fit to do their bidding in order to keep unity within the gang.
Politics works basically in the same way, except on a larger scale. In short, bullying is totally a human thing.

 

[Tarquelne]

I have the answer: Ninjas.

1) Send in domineering bullies to organize the bullies.
2) Send in gangs to break up the bullies.
3) Send in mobsters to break up the gangs.
4) Send in bad cops to break up the mobs.
5) Send in ex-KGB mercs. to take out the bad cops.
6) Send in ninjas to take out the mercs.

And everybody loves ninjas, so the problem is solved.

Short of that, I think Winston Hughes has the right of it.

 

[Artifis]

As long as Humans are what they are today, bullying will never end. We are a despicable species.

This. Bullying will always exist. It's not good to experience, but hey, it tends to give the bullied a certain maturity.

 

[Artifis]

Extend the right to bear arms to children.

In a classroom where every child is lethally armed, bullying will be reduced, one way or another.

Probably because there'll eventually be less children all round.

 

[luiz]

Depends how we define it. If we take any particular incidence of physical or psychological harassment or abuse as bullying, then, no, it can't be stopped. People are always going to be mean to each other.

But if we narrow the definition to those cases where there are ongoing campaigns in which certain individuals or groups repeatedly target the same victims, then, yes, the overwhelming majority of cases can be stopped. The key is giving those victims the confidence to report what is happening to them. Above all, this means that the relevant institution (be that a school, a business, or the police) must be ready to take such reports seriously, and to follow up on whatever action it takes to ensure that the problem does not resurface.

This.

Bullying is kind of a natural part of life. Humans are animals, and animals prey upon one another.

The only solution is to stand up for yourself. If I had a son that was being bullied I'd encourage him to get even, but only when the bully makes the first move; never be an instigator otherwise you are no better than the bully himself. Bullies don't like picking on people who fight back and make them pay for their actions.

Sad that many school authorities nowadays punish the bullying victim when he snaps and retaliates. Great job schools, you're teaching the next generation to be helpless victims whose first instinct is to run for the authorities!

And this.

No, we can't.

Our perception of what "bullying" is will change along with social norms.
Say, we succeed in that kids actually stop giving each other mean names.
Next thing, unpopular kids start getting real emotional traumas when friends don´t "like" their Facebook updates. Etc.

And also this.

So:

-Some degree of bullying will always exist and is a natural part of growing up;
-The most vicious bullying "campaigns" can and should be stopped by schools;
-We may be getting too sensitive about it. Not all mockery should be qualified as bullying; kids will always make fun of each other and that's not bad as long as there are some boundaries.

 

[Patroklos]

We can at the very least keep it non physical, and otherwise curtail it when it becomes obviously unhealthy in other ways. Like football, some hits are allowed, some are not, but the game is still rough as hell.

This is all a part of growing up, learning to either best such attacks with wit or performance or just ignoring them. The fact is that in adult life bulleying is very often just considered good old every day competition, and if someone lives coddled and protected from such challenges until game day that person has been done a disservice.

 

[Monsterzuma]

can stop bullying.

 

[Save_Ferris]

I go to a school that has 1,500 people and little to no bullying. I'd say it is possible to not reduce it completely, but make bullies such a minority that it is minimal.

@Monsterzuma: Er, why does Smokey have a shovel in that picture?

 

[Neonanocyborgasm]

Bullying can be stopped if schools actually do something about it, as opposed to the absolutely nothing they do now. The only reason this has even gotten attention is due to many recent suicides reported by the press, even though bullying has existed for thousands of years. That should tell you how little schools actually give a damn, and only began recently to care due to scrutiny and pressure against them. What I predict is that there will be pretend gestures to ward off all this attention, and once the heat is off, it will be business as usual.

 

[Monsterzuma]

@Monsterzuma: Er, why does Smokey have a shovel in that picture?

to incentivize taking his friendly... advice.

he's very serious about bullying.

 

[Tahuti]

I go to a school that has 1,500 people and little to no bullying. I'd say it is possible to not reduce it completely, but make bullies such a minority that it is minimal.

You're hitting the nail on its head: Bullies are - like their victims - always a minority. The majority follows them.

Bullying can be stopped if schools actually do something about it, as opposed to the absolutely nothing they do now. The only reason this has even gotten attention is due to many recent suicides reported by the press, even though bullying has existed for thousands of years. That should tell you how little schools actually give a damn, and only began recently to care due to scrutiny and pressure against them. What I predict is that there will be pretend gestures to ward off all this attention, and once the heat is off, it will be business as usual.

This

EDIT: Though this indeed only applies to schools

 

[downtown]

In a hierarchical, competitive system like public schools (most schools really) it's going to be more common though. The dumb kids are going to resent the smart kids (who get more status from teachers due to good grades). There is no incentive to get along or work together, only to sit back & watch while some kids excel & some don't. This is a recipe for resentment & bullying is inevitable (not to mention kids being resentful in general to have minimal control over what they learn & go home to vastly different economic/domestic situations).

Theoretically though, I belive it is possible to have a school (a small one) with very little bullying.
.

Yeah, I think you're on to something here. It's a lot easier to manage this sort of thing with smaller schools, and ones with specific, buildingwide cultural buy-in. I attended a small elementary school sponsored by Quakers, and had the idea of non-violence kind of beat into everybody at all levels...and since just about everybody in the building bought into it, we had almost no violence.

Then again, the school where I taught in Louisiana wasn't much bigger, and was completely fraught with violence at every level. The "fight back if disrespected" ethos taughts by their parents certainly didn't help any.

You can't stop kids from completely being douchebags to each other...but you can make your schools physically safe.

 

[Azash]

That's like asking whether it is possible to stop drugs, or terrorism. It's a question of scale; whether bullying is widespread, or socially acceptable.

Drugs are neither stoppable nor socially acceptable.

 

[Oruc]

Yeah, I think you're on to something here. It's a lot easier to manage this sort of thing with smaller schools, and ones with specific, buildingwide cultural buy-in. I attended a small elementary school sponsored by Quakers, and had the idea of non-violence kind of beat into everybody at all levels...and since just about everybody in the building bought into it, we had almost no violence.

Then again, the school where I taught in Louisiana wasn't much bigger, and was completely fraught with violence at every level. The "fight back if disrespected" ethos taughts by their parents certainly didn't help any.

You can't stop kids from completely being douchebags to each other...but you can make your schools physically safe.

I read that as Quackers

 

[galdre]

I'm surprised to see so many people say that bullying can not be stopped. Of course it can! People have an amazing ability to curb and even reexamine their behaviour if there are consequences.

 

[Bestbank Tiger]

I'm surprised to see so many people say that bullying can not be stopped. Of course it can! People have an amazing ability to curb and even reexamine their behaviour if there are consequences.

That's generally the problem right there.

 

[Synobun]

Drugs are neither stoppable nor socially acceptable.

In some spots maybe. A lot of places these days it's becoming a norm that drug farming and usage is often promoted within the family.

I'm surprised to see so many people say that bullying can not be stopped. Of course it can! People have an amazing ability to curb and even reexamine their behaviour if there are consequences.

Bullying is in human nature. Unless we as a species change, bullying will be immortalized in our history. Hell, even Vulcans bully.

 

[CivCube]

If you don't think schools have the responsibility to look after childrens' well-being eight hours a day, then no. Keep on stuffing thirty kids in a classroom with endless lectures and let them cannibalize themselves.

Bullying however is a symptom of a larger problem in American education. Much like healthcare, we don't really have a system thanks to long-term budget gutting. Instead we have administrators who are too scared to work on problems like this because they're afraid of blowback from parents, or worse, they encourage bullying.

Bullying is in human nature. Unless we as a species change, bullying will be immortalized in our history. Hell, even Vulcans bully.

It's only natural if the environment supports it or allows it to happen. Active steps to create an actual community by involving more students in more diverse activities; actually disciplining emotional/sexual/physical abuse (because that's what it is) when it happens; and giving more outlets for expression from students can go a long way.

 

[NickyJ]

Darn, I hit the wrong option. I clicked that it can, when I meant it can't.

 

[Mechanicalsalvation]

"A Boy Named Sue"

My daddy left home when I was three
And he didn't leave much to ma and me
Just this old guitar and an empty bottle of booze.
Now, I don't blame him cause he run and hid
But the meanest thing that he ever did
Was before he left, he went and named me "Sue."

Well, he must o' thought that is quite a joke
And it got a lot of laughs from a' lots of folk,
It seems I had to fight my whole life through.
Some gal would giggle and I'd get red
And some guy'd laugh and I'd bust his head,
I tell ya, life ain't easy for a boy named "Sue."

Well, I grew up quick and I grew up mean,
My fist got hard and my wits got keen,
I'd roam from town to town to hide my shame.
But I made a vow to the moon and stars
That I'd search the honky-tonks and bars
And kill that man who gave me that awful name.

Well, it was Gatlinburg in mid-July
And I just hit town and my throat was dry,
I thought I'd stop and have myself a brew.
At an old saloon on a street of mud,
There at a table, dealing stud,
Sat the dirty, mangy dog that named me "Sue."

Well, I knew that snake was my own sweet dad
From a worn-out picture that my mother'd had,
And I knew that scar on his cheek and his evil eye.
He was big and bent and gray and old,
And I looked at him and my blood ran cold
And I said: "My name is 'Sue!' How do you do!
Now your gonna die!!"

Well, I hit him hard right between the eyes
And he went down, but to my surprise,
He come up with a knife and cut off a piece of my ear.
But I busted a chair right across his teeth
And we crashed through the wall and into the street
Kicking and a' gouging in the mud and the blood and the beer.

I tell ya, I've fought tougher men
But I really can't remember when,
He kicked like a mule and he bit like a crocodile.
I heard him laugh and then I heard him cuss,
He went for his gun and I pulled mine first,
He stood there lookin' at me and I saw him smile.

And he said: "Son, this world is rough
And if a man's gonna make it, he's gotta be tough
And I knew I wouldn't be there to help ya along.
So I give ya that name and I said goodbye
I knew you'd have to get tough or die
And it's the name that helped to make you strong."

He said: "Now you just fought one hell of a fight
And I know you hate me, and you got the right
To kill me now, and I wouldn't blame you if you do.
But ya ought to thank me, before I die,
For the gravel in ya guts and the spit in ya eye
Cause I'm the son-of-a- that named you "Sue.'"

I got all choked up and I threw down my gun
And I called him my pa, and he called me his son,
And I came away with a different point of view.
And I think about him, now and then,
Every time I try and every time I win,
And if I ever have a son, I think I'm gonna name him
Bill or George! Anything but Sue! I still hate that name!