Nerds Still More Likely To Get Bullied 480
trashbird1240 writes "Reports on a recent meta-analysis of bullies and victims found that bullies and victims have similar personality traits, but that bullies tend to do poorly in school, as opposed to those who get bullied. Both bullies and victims are poor social problem solvers, but they resort to different tactics to handle their social ineptitude. To me this represents a huge leap forward in understanding nerd psychology."
That makes me feel so much better (Score:5, Funny)
That makes me feel so much better about being beaten up.
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I stopped doing that when I started banging your mother.
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Time you stopped doing that, Sis.
Re:Hahahahaha (Score:5, Funny)
No, I'm still mad that the jock who beat me up banged the girl who sat next to me who let me hold her comb. I protected that comb like it was a baby. I cleaned it, I bathed it, and she wouldn't go to prom with me!?!? Then I found out I went an all boys school... talk about awkward.
In other news... the sky is blue, and the sun is hot.
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and the sun is hot.
No no no, it's very hot! [wikipedia.org]
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I don't believe I ever popped a girl's bra strap.
Re:Hahahahaha (Score:5, Funny)
It means you put all your stats into Dexterity.
Re:Hahahahaha (Score:4, Funny)
No that would be opening the bra strap with her facing you. Popping the strap is generally considered clumsy, but a sign of someone who maybe spent his points everywhere but wis or dex.
Re:Hahahahaha (Score:4, Funny)
No that would be opening the bra strap with her facing you. Popping the strap is generally considered clumsy, but a sign of someone who maybe spent his points everywhere but wis or dex.
I keep telling you people charisma is not a dump stat!
Re:Hahahahaha (Score:4, Funny)
Lisa Simpson already showed (Score:2, Insightful)
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Lisa needs braces!
Animal psychology (Score:3, Funny)
So basically, if you can't develop social skills you do what every other animal does: Become a predator. And if you fail at that, you're dinner.
Re:Animal psychology (Score:5, Insightful)
So basically, if you can't develop social skills you do what every other animal does: Become a predator. And if you fail at that, you're dinner.
FTFA:
Victims share much of same, negative attitude, conflict in the family.
It looks as though the victims are the other side of the same coin.
And what's not mentioned in the article is how the ramifications of bullying stick with someone for the rest of their life - there the "mousy ones", the ones without "self confidence", the ones that "don't fit in", etc....
It wouldn't surprise me the least if many of the permanently unemployed are part of this group. So, I think it costs society too.
Re:Animal psychology (Score:5, Insightful)
The kids that got picked on were the small kids with napoleon complexes and would seek out fights.
I really can't blame the small kids. Size matters in this society. I don't remember if it was Crick or Watson who said this, but when asked if they were for genetic engineering of children, they responded with this (to paraphrase):
Ninety percent of CEOs are over the height of six feet. A man who's five four and a woman who's five foot even may want something a little more for their kids.
His point being that tall people have an edge, of course - not that every parent want's their kids to be CEOs.
I once worked for a guy who insisted that he got where he was by hard work. He was 6' 3", handsome Italian guy who was also a Yale football star who graduated with a degree in Economics - I don't know how well he did. Anyway, business opportunities just came to him - yes, he was a multi-millionaire. I saw his books. He was always telling me that I need to develop some "self-confidence". Easy for him to say.
When Dave Chappelle was on the "Actors Studio", he kind of chewed out a white guy about the opportunities he got because he was white and he probably never even realized what they were.
I understand. People are basically primates. The taller you are the better. The whiter you are the better.
It's not blatant. It's just how folks react towards you on a subconscious level. Blacks do it to other blacks - ever hear of the "brown paper bag" rule?
Here's an example that's a little more conscious: hot chicks. Everybody kisses the ass of the hot chick.
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This is much more prevalent in public schools where we train the sheep than in private schools where we train the wolves.
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For essentially the same reason that we don't send rape victims to jail along with the rapist. It's just not what our social meme believes is just.
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So basically, if you can't develop social skills you do what every other animal does: Become a predator. And if you fail at that, you learn to write code.
FTFY.
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Hence, the 'nerdserker' (copyright me)
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Or you're just so freaky you scare them.
No Berzerking necessary...
Re:Animal psychology (Score:5, Informative)
This is actually interesting from an anthropological perspective. Most pack mammals use a form of mock combat to establish position with the pack. They fight until one individual is defeated, then the winner takes the higher position in the pack hierarchy. This same behaviour is common among children (and some adults, although the 'combat' is typically less physical - adolescents typically do it by trading insults), and is incorrectly diagnosed as bullying.
When two animals from different pack meet, the combat is more serious. The loser must be completely defeated, rather than just back off. When you see this behaviour in humans, it is real bullying. The aim is not to establish dominance within the pack, because the aggressor does not see themselves as being in the same pack as the victim, so does not have the evolved responses to avoid permanently damaging members of the same pack.
I only ever encountered the first kind of conflict at school, but I responded as if it were the second kind, which is probably why I never had a problem with bullying. It sounds like you had a similar reaction.
WHAT?! (Score:5, Funny)
The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:5, Interesting)
Work out. A lot. Throughout middle school and high school, I was a huge geek (and dressed like one)...but I was also huge. In high school, at only 5'6", I weighed around 200 pounds, and could lift what the varsity football team lifted in the weightroom (and, in some cases, even more.)
I was a dork, but no one dared fuck with me. A good thing, too...I had no idea how to fight :p
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Oh yeah? Well my dad could beat up your dad!
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I remember getting into one of those kinds of arguments in kindergarden, and my response was "my dad would turn your dad inside-out!"...which grossed out both of us, lol :)
Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:5, Interesting)
Playing the borderline psycho route is also good. (Although these days you'll probably end up on some watch lists.) I can't really point to any single thing I did nor do I remember why they actually thought I was. (I guess critiquing what previous school shooters did wrong in an English paper was one thing...)
But when I skipped the senior photo in the gym, I guess one of my friends told me some people were joking I was in the rafters with a rifle.
Top of my class, BSME, going back for my MSME. I think >90% of my class is still at home drinking at the one bar in town and partying like they're still seniors. It's sad, but if they're happy, what ever.
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Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:5, Insightful)
You both completely failed at learning jack, and resorted to the threat of violence. NERD FAIL.
Learn social skills. THAT'S the lesson. They aren't hard and a handful of social cues makes all the difference.
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You both completely failed at learning jack, and resorted to the threat of violence. NERD FAIL.
Learn social skills. THAT'S the lesson. They aren't hard and a handful of social cues makes all the difference.
Wouldn't this also apply to the bullies?
Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:4, Insightful)
yes, but bullies are too stupid to learn better.
That's kinda've the point.
That's the part I don't understand, since it appears the ones getting bullied may also be incapable of learning better.
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I didn't resort to anything. While ACs method would work. I didn't wear all black. I didn't talk about visions. I didn't get my fists bloody. I just had one paper on a topic and I liked to blow things up on my farm. (Who doesn't?).
Most people have no clue how to debate or what a "devil's advocate" is. The second I state a fact or a side on a subject. They instantly that must be my position on the subject. My back to back papers in one class one Pro-Abortion and one Pro-Life confused the hell out of some of
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Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:4, Interesting)
You don't. You socialize with other people, becoming part of the herd. You're less likely to be picked off by a predator then.
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...unless she is a member of your D&D group, of course. Then that might be the specific topic of discussion, or it might be something else entirely, or she might just want to jump your bones. One of those is probably right, at least.
Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:4, Funny)
I was a dork, but no one dared fuck with me
I'm confused. Is this good or bad?
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I have to admit, it was great to know that I could walk around the halls nerd-snorting about something with impunity. Since I hung out with both the "popular" nerds as well as the "reject" nerds, many of them were protected simply by proximity, which they appreciated.
I found the whole thing to be amusing, personally.
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You weren't the only big geek. I was 5' tall in 5th grade and was around 6' by the time I was 14. Still, I was picked on until, that is until the time I flipped open a locker door into someone's face. Best of all was the fact that they got in trouble for starting the fight. Nothing happened to me because I was the one being picked on.
After that no one hassled me or my immediate friends, they knew that I wouldn't start anything but I would finish it.
At least it wasn't like when a "bean pole" (MAYBE 120lbs
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My buddy Mike used a similar tactic. 6 foot by the time he hit 9th grade, had horrible acne (ironically, he now has model-like good looks)...basically, a punching bag for a lot of people. He got tired of it one day, and as a kid was pointing and laughing at him, he grabbed the kid's finger, bent it back (obviously breaking it), then hit the kid in his face with his own hand, breaking his nose.
People left him alone after that.
It's just like prison...either you mess someone up, or you become a bitch. The c
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You're lucky you didn't try that today. You'd be expelled and probably have criminal charges brought against you. Kids today aren't allowed to defend themselves thanks to zero-tolerance crap.
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We never really had the "nerds get beat" up thing going in our high school anyways. Maybe it's an inner city thing. Who knows. I went to a rural high school, where just about everyone's free time (even the nerds) involved some form of outdoor activities. I was probably the biggest Star Trek fan at our school. I played Magic the Gathering. I was 2nd in our class at graduation. I had the highest SAT score of our graduating class. I attended various academic competitions for the school.
I also hunted, f
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In our school, the jocks were actually really cool people (as evidenced by the fact that a short dork who was as strong or stronger than them was still allowed to work out in the same weightroom at the same time). The people that did most of the bullying were the true outsiders...the "cool" rejects didn't want them because they were assholes, and the popular kids didn't want them because they weren't popular.
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Work out. A lot. Throughout middle school and high school, I was a huge geek (and dressed like one)...but I was also huge. In high school, at only 5'6", I weighed around 200 pounds, and could lift what the varsity football team lifted in the weightroom (and, in some cases, even more.)
I was a dork, but no one dared fuck with me. A good thing, too...I had no idea how to fight :p
Sometimes working out can have the opposite effect. I was quiet, tall and muscular in school and was attacked a lot because of it, the bullies figured I'd be a fun challenge. It wasn't until I literally threw the biggest one over one desk and into another that I was left alone.
I've never been in a fight since and I hope I never am again but I don't regret my actions in those moments. And honestly, I think if you're getting beat up for no good reason (i.e. didn't instigate) and you're going to get in trou
Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:4, Insightful)
Even the most amazing street fighter who has gotten himself into hundreds of fights can still loose an eye against an amateur. Street fights are not a sport. Various environment props and even weapons are more than likely if the opponent is stupid enough to pick a fight in the first place.
The best way to win a fight is by never fighting at all.
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You know what they say: you are what you eat.
Keeping that and the fact that I never got in a fight in mind, I may have been a dorkus malorkus in high school...but I still got my fair share of the ladies :-)
To any high schoolers reading this who want tips on how to be more popular with girls: give them three times the attention they give you, in all areas. You'll be in like Flynn.
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It should be noted that this only works if you are just looking to get laid. Obviously, if you are looking for an actual "companion", my advice won't work.
Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:5, Funny)
I may have been a dorkus malorkus in high school...
And judging by that sentence not much has changed. ;-)
Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:5, Interesting)
Aikido is more fun. It's the closest most mortals get to being utterly invulnerable... I don't mean you can win fights because nobody can really hurt you; I mean you don't even have to care.
It's one thing to bloody someone up, really; but when you pretty much stand there, and just quietly move and draw them along, that's different. Judo works great for this, but it's more aggressive; you react sharply, roll their weight and motion out the way you want, and wind up hurling them spectacularly through the air or locking them hard into a submission. Aikido... the motions aren't combative; you basically take a step out of the way, and lead them to the ground, mainly in ways specifically designed not to injure. It looks like your opponent is just tripping over his own stupidity, rather than getting owned.
Seriously, who the fuck wants to mess with that? The less aggressive you look while utterly dismissing your opponents, the more confused and frightened people become.
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Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:5, Insightful)
I think the biggest challenge in Aikido is finding a club that offers unrestricted sparring. Without that, you can never learn to actually defend yourself.
I briefly practised Aikido having trained in Sambo and Muay Thai. What shocked me (and caused me to leave every club I joined) was that everything was very slow and everyone always knew what was coming; as a result everyone thought that they were great because they didn't know how little they actually knew. This is in contrast to the other arts I have trained in, where (mostly) free sparring from the very first lesson means that you're acutely conscious of the limitations of what you know.
If you can find an Aikido club that shares premises with other martial artists and lets practitioners of different arts roll together then I can see Aikido being an effective discipline. Unfortunately this sort of practice, which isn't uncommon for judokas (who often spar with BJJ fighters or crosstrain for MMA), seems to be unheard of in Aikido, at least everywhere I've tried. It's similar to the problems in Karate and Taikwondo - if you don't allow any influence from outside the ecosystem then you can easily end up with an art that is useless when the rules of that ecosystem are removed. (That's not to say Karate or TKD are useless by nature, just that in their modern form they are normally taught by someone who has never learnt the weaknesses of the art. )
Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:4, Informative)
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I'm not into martial arts of any kind, but I gotta disagree with the meme that Aikido is somehow non-violent or nicer than other arts.
Okay so some idiot comes at you and you flip him over your head... now if he's not trained on how to land he's likely to break his neck or arm.
Now on the other hand, if you throw a controlled punch or kick you can hit him just where you want and as hard or soft as you want... "just enough".
I'm sorry but the Aikido thing is like saying "I didn't hit you, the FLOOR did".
Re:The key to not getting beaten up as a nerd (Score:4, Insightful)
The problem is that for some people, basic hand to hand to hand fighting or grappling (preferably a bullshit free low fat type such as boxing or jiu jitsu) is preferable because you can pick up the basics quickly and not invest huge amounts of time if you are content with knowing the basics of fighting and self defense but don't find it to be an enjoyable hobby. On the flip side, you can work your entire life to master akido.
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Working out a lot" by definition means you spent considerable time doing a sporting/physical activity, rather than spending all of your time at academics/computers/etc.
On the contrary...most of my working out was spliced with gaming. Loading screens, traveling during MMOs, etc. Instead of just sitting there, I'd pick up a weight. Or, if I was doing some serious weight training that day (three times a week), I still only worked out for 30 minutes or so. Nearly every second I didn't spend exercising was spent playing games, reading comics, doing brain teasers, taking things apart to figure out how they worked, etc...I assure you, I was quite nerdy :-)
You might as well have said "they key to not getting beaten up is NOT be a nerd" - ie. have some outside interest beyond typical "nerd" activities.
I always scheduled
Not exactly what TFA said. (Score:2)
TFA said
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Did that link utterly break, or were you meaning to link back to this article?
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On the other hand (Score:2)
Nerds are still more likely to have a better job.
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Damn, I'd hate to work where you work.
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aggressive incompassionate sociopath lands you a career in management.
A very poor one. Besides, I have never had a bad boss I could isolate from key players, and imply poor management in milestones.
If' your smart, start using your head.
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Being an aggressive incompassionate sociopath lands you a career in management.
That's true, but using physical force to solve problems with other people is generally not acceptable in most businesses. If you can abandon the physical bullying and learn the mental and emotional bullying, as well as learn how to suck up to your own bosses, then you have brilliant future in management.
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Here... here you go, sir. *cries*
Perhaps... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Perhaps... (Score:5, Funny)
Hey, they call us software pirates, right? Give the nerds flintlock pistols. This solves several problems:
a. They can defend themselves from jocks
b. They can't go on a rampage and massacre the school
c. They will have a realistic accessory for their pirate cosplay!
Somebody give fffungus a metal! And a handgun! :D
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Yes. Let's make jokes about bullied kids bringing guns to school.
Because things have turned out so well when *that's* happened.
Re:Perhaps... (Score:4, Interesting)
Seeing how far you can push somebody wouldn't be such an attractive hobby if the risk of being the guy who pushed them just a little too far were there in the back of your mind...
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Too bad Eric and Dylan weren't nerds or goth kids or any of the other stupid stereotypes the media tried to paint them as in an attempt to turn a good old fashioned psychopathic killing spree into an emotional portrait of teenage angst.
Doom and Marilyn Manson weren't relevant either, btw
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Um... what about NerdBullies? (Score:2)
Um... what about NerdBullies?
Re:Um... what about NerdBullies? (Score:5, Funny)
I think they call them "channel ops" or "moderators" depending on the context.
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They're usually just hyper, put them on Ritalin and they'll be fine.
I think ... (Score:5, Interesting)
That the problem is that people are so hard-wired to find social ineptitude a problem.
There are times where I wouldn't want to hang out with people because I didn't like the people. At one point (it was between grade 8 and 9) I realized that I could be whoever I really wanted to be, and was not relegated to any kind of social outcast or nerdy clique for the rest of my days. I went out, bought some clothes, got a haircut, and emailed someone I didn't usually hang out with, and asked if they wanted to go Skateboarding. I - however - had never been great at skateboarding. However, this new friend of mine took my motion as a kind gesture and proceeded to teach me a bit so that I could hang out with him and his friends more. He understood that I had wanted to get out of any antisocial tendancies I might have had and wanted to have fun with more friends. Obviously, he was not the bullying type.
However, after a year or so of this, I began to miss the old things. Playing LAN Starcraft till 5 am, reading Fantasy Novels, and programming. Things I never had time for when there was a party that weekend, movie night at a friends house, or hanging out after class. Eventually, I went back to my old tendancies, and I really didn't care if I was labelled a nerd because I liked being alone a bit more.
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Re:I think ... (Score:5, Interesting)
That the problem is that people are so hard-wired to find social ineptitude a problem.
Social ineptitude is a problem. You are confusing being an introvert (preferring not to spend time with other people) with being socially inept. Not all introverts are socially inept. Sometimes people are labeled "nerds" because they choose to be socially uninvolved. However, the term originally (and in this context) referred to people who wish to be socially involved but are outcasts because they do things that are socially viewed opposite of the way they intend.
Confusing social bullshit (Score:2)
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First step, don't over think it. Be an emotional creature. Indulge in being an animal for just a bit.
Re:Confusing social bullshit (Score:5, Funny)
This is the loaded term (Score:4, Interesting)
What does this mean, bullies not knowing how to interact are pent up with rage, and take it out on others. There’s one problem with this bullies are very good at reading people. Quite often they can bully under every bodies nose without arousing suspicion. They even have good mechanisms to handle tense situations (like being investigated), they can even lie effectively under these tense situations. How do you think they can get away with it.
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very good at reading people.
no, they are good at recognizing a stereotype. No better the chipmunks, really.
"How do you think they can get away with it."
parents and teacher don't want to address the issue. That's how they get away with it.
Re:This is the loaded term (Score:5, Insightful)
parents and teacher don't want to address the issue. That's how they get away with it.
More strictly(at least in my experience), parents and teachers, and admins are actually very interested, with occasional exceptions, in addressing the issue(When I was in school, they were constantly emitting pious anti-bullying PSAs, having observed administrators in an occupational context, their bookshelves and seminar schedules are packed with mentions of the issue, written by assorted well-meaning education Ph.Ds).
The problem, though, is that they generally aren't willing to face the reality of the issue. They cling to the illusion that, with the right magic words and social niceties and apologies and shit, everyone will just be able to get along and be nice to each other. The fact that "X is a bully" implies "X is a sadistic bastard who derives pleasure from inflicting pain on those weaker than him" was just too unpleasant to enter their analysis of the situation. Oh, no, if we just call in one of X's victims and have them talk over their differences(nice way to let X know who squealed on him, assholes, that isn't going to go badly), we can all come together and sing "kumbaya" in joyous harmony. This basic failure made all their well meaning efforts utterly futile, and not infrequently counterproductive.
The trouble is, the sort of well-meaning softies who care the most about bullying are the ones who have the greatest difficulty wrapping their minds around the fact that they are dealing with genuinely crafty, vicious people. A bully/victim dynamic is not a "misunderstanding". There is no "talking over" to be done. It is an application of power and violence, just because they can, and because they enjoy it. The sort of person who is all empathic and becomes a guidance counselor or whatever just isn't very well equipped to understand that. They have such a long(and vicerally immediate) history of caring, and feeling other people's pain, that they have difficulty imagining the inner lives of people who don't care, and who enjoy others' pain. Even if told, the abstract model is so alien to their emotional experience that they just can't take it seriously and grapple with its implications to a useful degree....
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I'm amazed that this got modded up so highly. I guess people on /. really were bullied quite a bit. Bullies are not sadists, they just prefer being the bully to being the one being bullied and belonging to a group, even if that group is not really based on friendship or anything stable.
Re:This is the loaded term (Score:4, Interesting)
If it is a mistake you make when you are supposed to be working on somebody else's behalf, as in the case of school staff, parole boards, and the like; it can have major consequences for others, which makes you either negligent or incompetent.
Could not read the article (Score:3, Funny)
Easy problem (Score:2)
News at 11 (Score:2)
To me this represents a huge leap forward in understanding nerd psychology.
Really? Bullies don't attack the "cool" people, so they bully those that don't manage to turn popular opinion against them. Well doh of course neither bully nor victim have huge social skills...
That's not the whole story though, because there's definitively people that were not smart, not popular and not bullying. Being a bully is a choice all of its own.
Stand up for yourself (Score:5, Insightful)
I was the typical introverted high school nerd (5'4 at the time), and had a 6'5" upper-class psychopath following me around and finding new ways to harass me.
I talked to my principal over it (God bless you Roger Hood!). He told me next time it happened, kick his ass and he (the principal) wouldn't punish me.
A few days later at PE we were playing soccer, and whenever I had the ball he would "accidentally" kick me in the leg as hard as he could. For days, it felt like a knife every time I put weight on that foot. Hurt so bad it took my breath away.
Two days later I spotted him in the hall. I kicked him in the jewels, and laid him flat on the ground. I proceeded to spend the next 3 minutes kicking and punching him in the balls, the sides, the head, anything I could hit. I didn't feel any pain in my foot at all during this. Eventually he was bawling so loud that the girls in a nearby classroom came out and rescued him (and had the gaul to ask why I was picking on the poor psychopath and being such a mean person).
Two things happened: the psychopath transferred out of the school a week later, and *no one* ever messed with me again.
I wish we could all get along. But some whack jobs only understand the language of violence, and you have to be willing to speak their language to teach them a lesson.
Re:Stand up for yourself (Score:5, Interesting)
I don't know how our dutch schools compare to high schools, but for this story, it is comparable enough.
I was in my 2nd year and for the first 6 months a group of kids kept teasing, annoying, harassing me, etc. It was horrible.
I remember being in shop class reaching out for a tool that I needed to continue my work. One of the kids grabbed it after I did and tried to pull it out of my hand, I told that person that I was using it, then the kid spit on my hand.
That was the moment something snapped in my head, everything went dark, I was smart enough to drop the tool and I said one little thing: "Run."
The kid knew I was serious and started running, as did I. I jumped over chairs and desks while in pursuit only having one goal, to destroy that person.
It took 6 people to grab me and hold me against a wall until I calmed down.
That experience made sure that they didn't bother me anymore but it scared the fuck out of me.
I have learned more patience, more forgiveness and more understanding since then since I do not want to repeat an episode like that.
You are correct when some people only understand violence, I wish that was different.
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One day at a school assembly one of my personal bullies pushed me just a little to far. I saw red (I am color blind) and set about beating him to death in front of the whole school. Fortunately I came to my senses before that happened, but not before breaking his nose, and jaw. Also breaking 3 ribs of the, very large, PE teacher who tried to stop me.
Word got aro
Re:Stand up for yourself (Score:5, Insightful)
No, very fucking cool. It's what those fuckers deserve. If you pick on those smaller or weaker when you get your balls mashed you deserve it. If you don't want to risk your balls don't pick on those who have no choice but to resort to ball breaking.
Re:Stand up for yourself (Score:4, Insightful)
Three minutes of ball kicking is nothing compared to the physical and mental abuse these kids put up with. Try putting up with having shit dumped on you constantly for months or years at a time and tell me you wouldn't snap.
At least for that guy it only lasted a few minutes, the pain a few days. People who are bullied have to live with the consequences for the rest of their lives.
I don't know about this (Score:2)
When I was a kid, I was somewhat socially inept*. Quite definitely a nerd from a science, math and other geek pursuits. But I didn't like getting pushed around. Get in my face and you'd get your head pushed through the wall. But I never sought out victims.
* I think it comes down to the school social structure attempting to pigeon-hole everyone into some sort of pecking order. In their eyes you either rank high or low. But that sort of tribal culture has a problem dealing with people who just don't want to p
Terrorists and buttsecks (Score:3, Interesting)
Interesting interview on NPR a few weeks back on a woman (who had been raped as a teen) who had studied middle eastern terrorists and came up with the thesis that many had been seriously sexually abused as children in the training camps. Pointing out that the common thread with terrorists and other people who went postal or Columbine was that they had been subjected to some form of grave humiliation and didn't really have a support group or other form of outlet.
Not excusing their means of retaliation, but it was interesting to draw the connection between humiliation and people who eventually snap violently. If the world had less humiliation going around and bystanders who are complicit with it, we'd all probably be better off, bullies and nerds alike.
no self-worth (Score:3, Insightful)
Investigate Columbine and you'll find Eric and Dylan were badly bullied, including specifically by some kid who went by, I think the name was, "Rocky".
Humiliation can be a big part of it. More fundamentally the issue is feeling devalued. Ruin someone's sense of self-worth and they become a serious danger.
No one ever bullied me (Score:2)
Of course, that's because I spent most of my high school years stuffed in my locker...
Comment removed (Score:3, Interesting)
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