BULLY BE GONE!
ACTION AGAINST VIOLENCE
May 5, 2009
BULLY BE GONE
In a recent post I appealed to damned near everybody to do their part in shutting down the Bully Train. Parents, teachers, school administrators, bullies, victims and even those kids who stand by and not only watch their buddies get bullied, but sometimes even jeer the victim from the sidelines. Over 65% of us have been bullied, but, in my estimation, well over 80% have been victims of bullying when you count the bully her or himself in the ranks of the victim, simply because, in the long run, even the bully ends up being scarred by his or her own actions.
Over 56% of bullies eventually end up in our prison and/or probation/parole rosters. Bullies, just like their victims, get caught up on an endless mental and emotional treadmill; and, like their victims, lead themselves by virtue of their own pathology into an emotional swamp filled with sleepless nights, drug and alcohol addiction and reliance on violence as a solution to many of life’s common dilemmas.
This post, then, is another likely unheeded plea to parents, teachers, police and kids themselves to take this issue seriously and to consciously act against its proliferation.
PARENTS AND THEIR CHILDREN
Parents might start with two main strategies. (1) Talk with your child. Ask germane questions and observe for signs of depression, sadness, a change in behavior and hygiene, etc. that might indicate he/she is trying to deal with the anguish and shame of being bullied. Always be supportive. Of course, if you do learn that your child is a victim (of either physical bullying in the school environment, or cyber or telephonic bullying, take action by talking with the school, perhaps the bully’s parents, etc. (2) Be a Safety Coach to your child. Teach him or her how to stop a bully in his or her tracks. Stop the bully the first time, you can stop the bully forever. Not only that, bullies have a Grapevine. If Bully #1 tests your child and he or she gets a “Free Lunch,” or an easy target, he will tell other bullies, and your child’s life will be miserable. Not only that, your child will have etched a life pattern in steel and the chances are he or she will be a victim forever!
IN the next post I will present some effective counter-bully strategies that will work. At least they have worked over 90% of the time in the past. Until then, please Stay Safe.
Hammer