Dec 7, 2012

Bullying: Enough is Enough (My Challenge To You)

Back when I was in Middle School, I was made fun of a lot. And it wasn't just words. I got beat up sometimes, and on some days, I would cry. Everyday I was called a "retard" and when I had warts, I would be called "wartboy". Looking back on those days, I still get the shivers. I'll admit, I did some pretty stupid things to try to impress people and be that "popular kid", and it all blew in my face. When I got to High School, this vastly improved, and soon, I rarely thought of it. But In cases such as Tyler Clementi, or the recent suicide of Amanda Todd, brings all of those memories back to full force, and I am full of malicious rage. So today's blog post won't be about books, games, or any of the things I cherish in life. This post will be about BULLYING, and the effects it can have on the victims.
First and foremost, Bullying is real, and it does not just happen in Schools and/or Colleges. It can happen ANYWHERE, at work, in your home, even in THE MILITARY, Bullying EXISTS EVERYWHERE. I have been bullied in school, at work, and in the military. ANYONE can be a bully as well. IT does not have to be the stereotypical jock or the perceived husky child. It can be your own father. It can be your own boss. It can be someone who is higher rank than you are, OR lower rank. These people can call you names that hits home, that make you feel like utter shit, that make you question your own existence, that make you hate your life and wish you did not have to leave your home/not be at home. Bullying also is not something that one can do in five minutes out of jest, then leave you alone. NO. Bullying is an imbalance of power between one or more individuals, and can spread quickly through rumor-mongering and public humiliation. The Bullies themselves, having said this, are also suffering as well, because Bullies rely on power physically and emotionally, Bullies desire CONTROL of something, specifically, someone. This means that something is wrong in the Bully's life, and is using the Victim as a scapegoat. However, not every case of Bullying relates to this notion. In the case of Megan Meier, a 13 year old teenager who committed suicide due to a former friend's mother having created a false account on the once-then-popular social media website MySpace, to gain information about the young teenager to humiliate her, due to rumors about the young teenager having spread gossip about the mother's daughter. Note, that the mother did not see that her ends would lead Megan to hang herself. So, Bullying can used as a means to gain untold power through peers, and using said power to humiliate others. In the case of Amanda Todd (whom I JUST read the story about her an hour before writing this post), a bully used her body against her. She and another friend went on a webcam chat room, where some boys asked for a flash. Amanda never expected the boy to pop out of nowhere sometime later, and threaten her to "give him a show" or else everyone she knows will see what she has done. Soon, after ignoring him, he sent the picture to everyone she knew. Even after switching schools multiple times, the boy was their, reaching for her new friends, making a Facebook page with her breasts featured, and no one respected her, everyone abandoned her. She had committed suicide. So, what do have on Bullying now? That it is an imbalance of power that can used to physically, emotionally, AND sexually control other people for the Bully to gain satisfaction in an area of life where life is not exactly perfect. Or the Bully can just be an arrogant asshole with a God Complex. Even myself, as I have said before, have been subject to harsh bullying. And on more than one occasion, I myself have contemplated suicide as my answer of choice to "get away from it all", to "show them I have balls", because "I HATE LIFE!!!" I was weak, puny, afraid to go to school, afraid to go home. This ultimately lasted until I was around eighteen. From fourteen-eighteen, at school, Bullying did not happen to me that much. But home was a different story, especially if I did something dumb... You might be thinking "WOW". Well, you should. Start thinking it now, because YOU, INNOCENT BYSTANDER, I CHALLENGE YOU!!
Whether your young or old, a guy or a chick, slim or big, black or white, I will not matter. IF, you happen across a case of bullying, STOP IT. Like, STOP IT RIGHT THEN AND THEIR. Even if you get beat up, called names, or something negative, as a human being, our basic nature is that of GOOD. Even if you so not have the physical power to do, words have always been more powerful than blows. Speak up! Report it! Even if you are branded as a snitch, it's not snitching if you have just potentially saved a life. It's not snitching if you have stopped it. So, my challenge to all of you who have read this is this: LET'S STOP BULLYING TOGETHER. To find out more about Bullying, and how YOU can stop it, go to , take a look, and together, let's make a difference :)