Romney's Bullying/Gay Bashing High School Days

[Ed Anger]

They pick victims who are socially "weak", e.g. have no friends to call on/are unpopular etc. I think anti-bullying actions should focus less on punishing these brutes and more on teaching children how to overcome these "weaknesses" - and where this does not happen, parents are usually to blame.

Does it sound more acceptable?

Martinus' posts, like so much bear shit, oftentimes requires some time to sift through the crap before you get to the berries.

In the age of hover-mothers you're seeing a lot of kids whose, shall we say, "more sensitive aspects" of their personalities are being exasperated by their parents' inability to let them stand on their own two legs, to let them experience success or failure on their own terms and to learn from them.

I have a good friend whose son is 12--very intelligent, very sharp in school, big participant in Cub Scouts, and quite frankly, a complete and total weenie.  I've known her long enough to watch it all happen.  She'd let him watch her get dressed until he was 8.  She "cuddles" with him.  Still has a need to be tucked in. 

Of course, once it got bad enough to the point that he had a melt down bordering on clinical before going on a camping trip with his Cub Scout troop last summer, because he didn't want to spend the night away from her. 

Naturally she bristles at the criticism when I've told her how completely damaging her behavior has been with her lil' snoogums;  after all, what the fuck do I know, I have a cat.

But in short, every mental attachment need for this kid has been terribly arrested by Mommy.   Emotionally, his needle is fucking skipping.  And the other kids see it at school--and that causes problems.

Now, she's got him going to a behaviorist because honestly, she totally fucking broke him.  She realizes that now, but it's a little too late.

Holy crap.

Toss a box of pap tarts in the middle of the floor and let the kids scramble for them. You don't get a pop tart? FIGHT HARDER.

THIS IS SPARTA!

[Razgovory]

Ah, bullies. We had a couple of those. One got his ass kicked by a girl, the other died of heroine OD when he was 18 years old.

Must be a different culture.  Here, one of the bullies went on to play for the Tennessee Titans.

[Martinus]

I guess I should clarify/refine my position in that I am not claiming that bullies are "good" or "correct" in what they do. They are dumb and primitive, but neither they are morally evil - just more "lower brain functions" in their social responses.

They pick victims who are socially "weak", e.g. have no friends to call on/are unpopular etc. I think anti-bullying actions should focus less on punishing these brutes and more on teaching children how to overcome these "weaknesses" - and where this does not happen, parents are usually to blame.

Does it sound more acceptable?

Then you'd say that parents should teach their children to reign in their gay tendencies (as that would naturally make them a target for bullies)?

There is nothing about being gay that makes you talk with a lisp or dye your hair neon blue.

[Admiral Yi]

The limp wrist, however, seems inevitable.

[Syt]

Holy crap.

Toss a box of pap tarts in the middle of the floor and let the kids scramble for them. You don't get a pop tart? FIGHT HARDER.

THIS IS SPARTA!

[garbon]

I guess I should clarify/refine my position in that I am not claiming that bullies are "good" or "correct" in what they do. They are dumb and primitive, but neither they are morally evil - just more "lower brain functions" in their social responses.

They pick victims who are socially "weak", e.g. have no friends to call on/are unpopular etc. I think anti-bullying actions should focus less on punishing these brutes and more on teaching children how to overcome these "weaknesses" - and where this does not happen, parents are usually to blame.

Does it sound more acceptable?

Then you'd say that parents should teach their children to reign in their gay tendencies (as that would naturally make them a target for bullies)?

There is nothing about being gay that makes you talk with a lisp or dye your hair neon blue.

That doesn't really answer my question. So are you saying it is okay to be gay in certain ways but not other?

[CountDeMoney]

Holy crap.

No kidding.  I've told her many times that the way she has engineered her son, he will fall in love and marry the first pair of panties he meets, and she will treat him like utter dog shit.
For some reason, she believes my hypothesis is faulty.

[Martinus]

I guess I should clarify/refine my position in that I am not claiming that bullies are "good" or "correct" in what they do. They are dumb and primitive, but neither they are morally evil - just more "lower brain functions" in their social responses.

They pick victims who are socially "weak", e.g. have no friends to call on/are unpopular etc. I think anti-bullying actions should focus less on punishing these brutes and more on teaching children how to overcome these "weaknesses" - and where this does not happen, parents are usually to blame.

Does it sound more acceptable?

Then you'd say that parents should teach their children to reign in their gay tendencies (as that would naturally make them a target for bullies)?

There is nothing about being gay that makes you talk with a lisp or dye your hair neon blue.

That doesn't really answer my question. So are you saying it is okay to be gay in certain ways but not other?

There is only one way to be gay - it's about being attracted to people of the same sex as you are. Similarly, there is only one way to be black - it's about having a dark(er) skin color. Everything else is not about being gay or black or whatever, but about acting in a certain manner. And I see no reason why we can, say, make fun of hipsters or goths for acting a certain way that we find silly, or weird, but cannot make fun of a stereotypical behavior of a lispy, outrageously-dressed "nelly gay" guy (and you know very well that despite this being "just a stereotype", you and I both know people who are exactly like that) or a stereotypical ghetto thug.

I think in our attempt to remove discrimination based on sexual orientation or race etc. we get into the area of subculture - and that's where it becomes unfair, because other subcultures (which are not overlapping to such a degree with protected minorities) do not enjoy the same protection. I think everything that is (sub)cultural should be fair game for mockery and ridicule.

[merithyn]

I think in our attempt to remove discrimination based on sexual orientation or race etc. we get into the area of subculture - and that's where it becomes unfair, because other subcultures (which are not overlapping to such a degree with protected minorities) do not enjoy the same protection. I think everything that is (sub)cultural should be fair game for mockery and ridicule.

So you're saying that it's not only acceptable but preferable for the bully to decide who and what a person should be? Someone you've already identified as a troglodyte? Yes, that makes sense.

[garbon]

I'm not really sure how you can remove cultural/sub-culture from said traits as that's exactly how they become identities.  And then what Meri said.

[Ed Anger]

Holy crap.

Toss a box of pap tarts in the middle of the floor and let the kids scramble for them. You don't get a pop tart? FIGHT HARDER.

THIS IS SPARTA!

wut.

[Habbaku]

Transmetropolitan.

[Martinus]

I think in our attempt to remove discrimination based on sexual orientation or race etc. we get into the area of subculture - and that's where it becomes unfair, because other subcultures (which are not overlapping to such a degree with protected minorities) do not enjoy the same protection. I think everything that is (sub)cultural should be fair game for mockery and ridicule.

So you're saying that it's not only acceptable but preferable for the bully to decide who and what a person should be? Someone you've already identified as a troglodyte? Yes, that makes sense.

The bully does not "decide" that - the society (or a community/group in which the bully operates) decides that. The bully is simply a tool enforcing the general consensus of that group. If the bully targeted a person who is not already ostracized but instead targeted someone who is popular, he would himself face ostracism.

[Martinus]

I'm not really sure how you can remove cultural/sub-culture from said traits as that's exactly how they become identities.

So what? I'm not really sure I can see your point. Are you saying that anything that makes up someone's "identity" should be exempted from being mocked? That's a ridiculous position to take.

[Octavian]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vFiwHk2paE