Are teengers really that dense?

[Inglorious891]

If you define "stupid" as hateful, then yes, teenagers have always been stupid. It's not like bullying is a new concept in society; it's always existed and probably always will. That's not to say we can't fight it in an effort to at least curb its prominence, just that you can't totally end it.

Also, I just wanted to post this
http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/uk_news/Tech/article1298958.ece
What does this mean for the anti-cyberbulling efforts that have sprung up in the wake of Hannah's suicide? I really have no fucking clue. It'd be nice of another site could confirm it, because it'd make this whole story a lot more interesting.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

It is only this generation of teenagers that are dense.

Never before in the history of man has anyone considered teenagers dense.

Never. Teenagers were functioning, responsible members of society always before now.

Never, ever. Ever ever. It's all Obama's fault and gayhipstertwitterhashtagyoloswagonedirectionbieber, which are ruining our generation. (lol not me i like quen and arrowhead and lead zepplin and think beiber is the dumbs, dae?).

This is the first generation of dumb teenagers, not like every generation before.

 

[Wickatricka]

Wow if anyone really takes the internet that seriously and killed themselves over it then it doesn't really matter they probably would have done it over something else equally as stupid.

 

[Snazzymathematics]

Apparently they don't know what a "block" button is.

 

[PeterMerkin69]

I don't know how to teach kids Empathy but it occurs to me that teaching kids they have to be nice to everyone doesn't prepare them for true vitriol. And they expel it on other forums (such as forums ) But then if you tell kids to be themselves or not keep stuff bottled up things could blow-up (not just figuratively).

Can you teach people empathy any more than you can teach others not to be hurt by words? I don't have a whole lot of empathy myself, I mean I have cognitive empathy, I know what someone is feeling most of the time, but it just doesn't make me feel badly. And if someone like me actually enjoys picking on people, I don't see how you're going to change that. It's a part of who they are. Some people like ice cream, some people like toying with other people. No big deal.

 

[Saltyk]

As I recall, at least one girl committed suicide after she was raped and then taunted about it on some social networking site. I understand that some of the people who raped her have been arrested and are being charged with crimes related to child pornography and distributing it. So, I would say there is a lot more to many of the stories you have been reading than merely "Dumb teen is dumb."

Didn't Jim recently have a video talking about how much abuse people like him tend to get? I swear he practically admitted that every morning he wakes up, fully aware that several people have called him fat or retarded while he slept. And I kinda doubt every single one of those people are teenagers.

Really, the internet seems to give people a license to be complete dicks for no reason. Remember back when it was going to promote intelligent discussion, discourse, and understanding across the world?

Not that the average teenager isn't immature. That's kinda their lot. Trying to act like adults, but really just acting like idiots that make the adults shake their heads wondering if they acted like that at that age.

 

[KeyMaster45]

And as a final note, teaching teenagers to "ignore" bullying is what we've been doing for decades. I left school 12 years ago, and I was told to "just ignore them", as a result I had to leave school, forego my education and it has taken me until now to get my life back on track. If we keep teaching kids to ignore the bullies, the bullies are going to keep getting away with it. Kids should be able to be safe in their homes, but cyber-bullying is destroying that idea for many of them.

Yes, in the real world bullies need to be dealt with swiftly and without remorse, but on the internet they're nothing more than trolls shouting into the ether and it is very, very easy to ignore them. Different methods for different arenas of battle; ignoring them on the internet is your only course of action. It's why we have the saying "Do not feed the trolls" because without an audience for their ass-hattery they are swallowed up and forgotten by the devouring maw of the digital conversation.

"Cyberbullying" is the media buzzword for internet trolls, and can be dealt with using just as little legislation and real world intervention as trolls have required in the past; hover your mouse over the ignore, unfriend (though why you put a bully on your "friends" list in the first place is beyond me), or report button and apply a firm click. Bam, problem solved. No tax payer money is wasted ruining the life of some pathetic teenager with trumped up harassment charges, lawmakers waste no time debating ridiculous "cyberbullying" laws that are ultimately ineffective and overbearing, and the media is forced to find some other boogeyman to report on

And hitting IGNORE, while helpful, can be like patching a bullet hole. The hole is already been made, the damage is already done.

Bullet wounds do heal you know, and the burn from a nasty internet comment loses its sting after you have removed the problem from your digital periphery by blocking them.

 

[ZZoMBiE13]

And as a final note, teaching teenagers to "ignore" bullying is what we've been doing for decades. I left school 12 years ago, and I was told to "just ignore them", as a result I had to leave school, forego my education and it has taken me until now to get my life back on track. If we keep teaching kids to ignore the bullies, the bullies are going to keep getting away with it. Kids should be able to be safe in their homes, but cyber-bullying is destroying that idea for many of them.

Yes, in the real world bullies need to be dealt with swiftly and without remorse, but on the internet they're nothing more than trolls shouting into the ether and it is very, very easy to ignore them. Different methods for different arenas of battle; ignoring them on the internet is your only course of action. It's why we have the saying "Do not feed the trolls" because without an audience for their ass-hattery they are swallowed up and forgotten by the devouring maw of the digital conversation.

"Cyberbullying" is the media buzzword for internet trolls, and can be dealt with using just as little legislation and real world intervention as trolls have required in the past; hover your mouse over the ignore, unfriend (though why you put a bully on your "friends" list in the first place is beyond me), or report button and apply a firm click. Bam, problem solved. No tax payer money is wasted ruining the life of some pathetic teenager with trumped up harassment charges, lawmakers waste no time debating ridiculous "cyberbullying" laws that are ultimately ineffective and overbearing, and the media is forced to find some other boogeyman to report on

And hitting IGNORE, while helpful, can be like patching a bullet hole. The hole is already been made, the damage is already done.

Bullet wounds do heal you know, and the burn from a nasty internet comment loses its sting after you have removed the problem from your digital periphery by blocking them.

Bullet wounds heal? Yeah, sure they do. If they don't strike a vital organ. You need to watch less TV friend. "Only a flesh wound" is a crock. Bullets rip flesh apart. That's what they're designed to do. They flatten upon impact and turn muscle bone and tissue into hamburger meat. Bullet wounds heal in the movies, you respawn in a game, in real life they cripple, they paralyze, and they kill people. And even when they heal, it can take weeks or even months of pain anguish and often even physical therapy to return oneself to mobility after a gunshot.

But I digress...

Of course you and I can say "IGNORE" button works. I'm a confident grown man. You're obviously a more confident individual as well and good for you. But I'm talking about sensitive kids who are still learning how the world works. And if you're unlucky enough to have low self esteem or confidence problems or other more serious issues like many teens do, then hitting IGNORE after someone has already said something horrible and damning to you is a band aid on an open gash. And it's not always a case of some random kid you never knew. The whole point of social networks is to put you in contact with people who you may actually know in real life, in school or at work. All too often bullying online is a case of people these kids actually know in real life continuing the bullying digitally.

I never said there weren't simple solutions, but sometimes teens don't go that route, even when they should. Even when the obvious fix is staring them in the face. They internalize the issue, think they're worthless and shouldn't bother the people in charge or worse, they start to feel that the bully is right about the awful things they say or that they deserve the treatment.

Yes the media can blow this stuff out of proportion, but don't forget that it is a real issue and don't sweep it under the rug saying something like "They should have just hit IGNORE". It's a complex situation with more variables than that.

 

[Lieju]

Yes, in the real world bullies need to be dealt with swiftly and without remorse, but on the internet they're nothing more than trolls shouting into the ether and it is very, very easy to ignore them. Different methods for different arenas of battle; ignoring them on the internet is your only course of action. It's why we have the saying "Do not feed the trolls" because without an audience for their ass-hattery they are swallowed up and forgotten by the devouring maw of the digital conversation.

"Cyberbullying" is the media buzzword for internet trolls, and can be dealt with using just as little legislation and real world intervention as trolls have required in the past; hover your mouse over the ignore, unfriend (though why you put a bully on your "friends" list in the first place is beyond me), or report button and apply a firm click. Bam, problem solved. No tax payer money is wasted ruining the life of some pathetic teenager with trumped up harassment charges, lawmakers waste no time debating ridiculous "cyberbullying" laws that are ultimately ineffective and overbearing, and the media is forced to find some other boogeyman to report on

Assuming they are some anonymous trolls on the Internet and not people you know from school or other social group.
And that they DON'T find an audience. If you share the same social groups these bullies do, you know the same people and then they'll be telling things to them that aren't true, or spreading pictures of you that people will see on the net...

Some anonymous troll who flames you really has nothing on you, but if you know each other it's different.

'Cyberbullying' isn't really any different from normal bullying, except that it leaves evidence, so the chances are greater adults will see the stuff that's being said. And it can be horrifying.

 

[Varrdy]

Leave it to 2 Gryphon to tell it like it is!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_ZiRT8Nwkk

 

[IamLEAM1983]

You're surprised, OP? Really?

Teenagers are kids with Beta-phase adult bodies and a child's lacking sensibilities. Kids are cruel asshats, and most teens linger in that stage for several years. Pair that with peer pressure, and you get instances of honestly nice kids being forced into destroying someone else's self-esteem because the popular kid whose clique they want to ingratiate themselves to set that as a condition for admittance. It takes years before "Meh, she sucked anyway" turns into "Ohmigod, I've been an unqualifiable asshole!" - and that's IF it happens.

Some guys and gals my age are professionals and they take to their workplace like it's a Redux of Recess Hall. Blame that partly on the Greater Internet Dickwad theory and on the fact that our generation was partially brought up by spineless and well-meaning persons who couldn't say no to save their lives.

 

[NuclearDude]

Thanks sheldon cooper

Who?

What's it like living under a rock?

 

[Hazy]

Tyler the Creator summed up this trend the best:

Well put, Tyler. Well put.

 

[MCerberus]

An interesting facet of this is that currently, US schools are being run in a manner more and more resembling prisons (zero tolerance, random search, student tracking, controlled diet). We place into this hormonal kids that are craving social acceptance... and it gets ugly.

People that are in no way prepared for life dropped into a scenario that pretty well forces the most destructive form of clique creation and social dominance. And they can't escape it, since they're expected to continue acting in this context out of school hours via social media. But hey, current US school procedures have to be worth it be- oh, wait they aren't conductive to learning either.

 

[Foolery]

Thanks sheldon cooper

Who?

What's it like living under a rock?

Moist. Secure. Maybe a little dirty. Don't you think it's unrealistic to expect everyone to understand every reference?

 

[Funyahns]

Cyber bullying extends past just not reading what people say though. If you do something embarrassing you worry what people thing at that moment. Well make it worse when you are insecure as a young kid mixed with news of whatever happened spreading around the the net of all your classmates. You don't have to read everything to know that people are spreading your name around.

 

[Smiley Face]

People are dense. That should answer your question. The difference is that many teenagers have little experience of reality outside their social environment, and if it turns against them, they have little else to measure their self-worth - and unlike adults, they're not independent, so they don't often have the option of just changing who they spend time with, or just withdraw altogether. Given sufficient pressure, a small minority will crack.

Frankly, I doubt it's just teenagers today - I imagine the same has been true in all cultures for thousands of years.

 

[OldNewNewOld]

-snip-

I get your point, but can't you, you know.. block those mongoloids who are bullying you? Or simply not add them as your friends? Report them?
There are millions of ways of escaping cyber bullying and suicide certainly isn't one of them.

Your post makes it seem like cyber bullying is bullying on a whole new level, while in fact it's nothing compared to real life bullying.

OT: Yes, teenager are really that dense. It's probably a combination of the constant use of technology that dumbs them down and the overprotectiveness of the parents that makes them little crybabies and spoiled brats.
They can't use their brains properly because they are used to it that their tablets/smartphones/PC's do everything for them and they can't take some virtual insults over the internet because they never learned to deal with shit themselves.

Now, there were many teenagers like that when I was a teenager, but I would say that there are faaaaaaar more such cases now. Especially in the western part of the world.

While it's nice to protect your kids from shit, if you overdo that and your kid never gets to experience a fight, a simply insult is devastating.
While I hate to say "deal with it"... kids need to learn to deal with it. The world is a shitty place and it will never be without bullies and the other idiots. So unless you learn to deal with it yourself, you're screwed.
It should be mandatory for every 16yo person to visit /v/ once per week just to learn to deal with it. 10-16 could visit a SFW board.

 

[Frankster]

Well it's easy to call young people stupid when ya ain't in their shoes and compare them to an idealized version of your own teenage years. But don't be mistaken, we were all as "stupid" in our own little ways.

snip

"Spot" on, i was trying to find a way to basically say what you said in a much longer and poorly written wall of text but you nailed it straight on the head and avoided me the trouble of doing so.

 

[Sanshou]

The issue I see is that some teens these days (I should know, I am one) see it as so important that everyone on the internet absolutely loves them, this is why especially younger teens (who seem to be on more and more social networks) act so hurt when someone doesnt like them.

But I believe the media attack on these websites and saying they should be taken down is ridiculous. By their logic: If i was to write you a rude letter explaining things i had apparently done to your mother and how I would like you to be dead, if that letter caused you to kill yourself, would we all get up in arms and blame the royal mail for delivering rude letters? Ofcourse not. That would be fucking ludacris.

Its the imposition of this nanny-state government that tries to mollycoddle everyone and not allow them to face realities that will cause more and more of the youth to be so sensitive to abit of criticism.