Poll: Do you want an apology?

[Aeshi]

I'd much rather have revenge instead, preferably in the form of said bully's loved ones being raped, roasted alive in front of him and then ending with him being force-fed their remains until his digestive system gives out.

 

[raankh]

some of them are now my friends.

 

[Diddy_Mao]

Emotionally I don't really care. I've moved on as have my bullies. While a heartfelt apology would not be turned down I don't hang my happiness on it.

Physically. If they're willing to pay for the chiroptactic sessions and probable shoulder surgury I would require to recover from some of their more spirited bullying that would also be welcome...but I shant hold my breath.

I can't in good faith tell others to "get over it" because I know full well how emotionally damaging a childhood of bullying can be.

 

[Nokturos]

I'd rather just beat the living shit out of them. Don't really care for apologies from idiots, sincere or not.

 

[Troublesome Lagomorph]

No. I really, really don't care anymore.

 

[boradam]

If I was ever bullied, I never realized it. Apologies are nice, but even if I never realized I was being bullied, I can forgive them if I ever realize I was even without an apology.

 

[Cheesy Goodness]

I had a bully that messed with me all through high school. It was for the dumbest reason that we even got on bad terms with each other. I had just moved and started going to a new school during my freshman year.

He mentioned on my first day that I was a fairly "big" guy and suggested I join the football team. I'm not sure what he was talking about, as I was about as thin as a bean pole. I told him that it didn't interest me in the slightest, and this somehow offended him or something. He bullied me everyday in one class together since then.

I finally had enough one day and had it out for him. We exchanged a few punches, but nothing changed whatsoever. He bullied me the next year too, because I was wearing a heavy metal shirt he didn't much care for. I had two classes with him that year, and the teachers were either oblivious or didn't care. It makes me a tad angry to reflect on those feelings again, and I doubt an apology would solve anything.

I found out in my mid 20s that he was a homosexual and ended up having a very serious gay relationship. He had a MySpace page that contained some very lewd photos. It all kind of makes sense now that I think about it. Were I to meet him now, I would probably tell him to leave the past well enough alone and leave me be. I'm a few weeks from getting my second belt in Krav Maga and took a year of Brazilian Jiujitsu classes. Not only that, but I'm in the best shape of my life. I know that I could severely hurt him if I wanted, and that thought alone gives me enough satisfaction.

 

[XMark]

I'd much rather just never see past bullies again. It's a waste of time to even think of 'em.

 

[Trueflame]

Definitely not. People move on, and bullies and their victims certainly don't stay friends and remain in contact, so why bring things up, dredge up the past, just to apologize when you're never going to see each other or interact again? It's pointless and a waste of time, and just a way for the former bully to feel better about him/herself. If someone in such a situation feels sorry, then they should channel those emotions toward becoming a better person, not asking for forgiveness for things long forgotten.

 

[GoaThief]

One of the things that I've taken from this thread is that some bullied people have turned into absolute monsters, far far worse than their former bullies ever were. To see such a widespread lack of basic humanity is quite sickening to say the least.

 

[zidine100]

i dont care, mostly because it wasn't that bad and i Wouldn't know who to ask to be quite honest, if someone tried to apologize out of the blue, i more than likely wouldn't know who that was.

 

[RaikuFA]

I'd like to but I doubt the school would admit that they hired/encouraged bullying.

CAPTCHA: usual suspects. They're really not.

 

[Nadia Castle]

It might sound daft but I'm not sure my school had bullies per say. It just seemed to be every man for himself. I think all our mostly white school psychos got it out of their system by going to have a punch up with the other mostly Asian school psychos down the road. Say what you like about racial division, it seemed to do a good job of keep nerds from two ethnicity's well protected.....

 

[Suzy Queue]

Personally, an apology from those who bullied me throughout middle/high school would be completely unwanted and unwelcome. It's been six or seven years since it was an issue, and I've since moved on. I feel that I could handle being in a social situation with these people if I had to, but if they were to reach out and apologize to me, it would be akin to picking open an old wound. I've chosen to forgive if not forget, and I'd like to keep the past where it belongs.

 

[Beautiful Tragedy]

there's one person i want an apology from. it'll never happen.

 

[sageoftruth]

Hard to say. Honestly, once I got to middle school, I got better and blamed my former self for being such an easy target. I do have some people I'd like to apologize to. My bitterness towards my former self led to some sour relationships between me and people who acted like my former self.

 

[mattttherman3]

I was on both ends of this spectrum. I have never been apologized to by my former bullies, in fact, while I was at college, one of my bullies recognized me, stared and walked right by without a word. But I have apologized to one person I bullied a few times, she appreciated it believe it or not.

 

[Ishal]

I wouldn't give a damn. I was picked on a bit but not particularly badly, or for long. The thing is bullying can have different effects on people, depending on the severity, frequency, disposition of the victim, physical/psychological, how widespread it is, etc.

Teenagers in particular, in their mission to become adults, form opinions, gain acceptance from their peers, rebel against the man, attract the opposite sex and get a "status" of sorts. Some like to find niches to belong to, like the arty kids, the skateboarders, the athletes, the musical kids, the heavy metal fans, etc. but for most they simply are. And there's always a pecking order and it's very hard to break out of where you fit in that order once it's established. If a kid is the victim early on, they will remain so for the entirety of their school careers.

Kids bully other kids, but at teenage age, it can cause victims to grow up with severe depression, lack of confidence or self-esteem, loneliness and more. Some run away, move/change school, cut themselves, some kill themselves (or in America, they shoot other kids with Daddy's arsenal). As teens become young adults and they become more mature, bullying kinda grows out. There's little to none in most workplaces (good ones at any rate) and adults are much more confident anyway. But if it happens during those formative years, like 10-20ish, it can mess people up for life. For some, maybe the apology helps. It might not matter to you, maybe you were never bullied, or you're more thick skinned, but for some it can be traumatic.

The more of the following you meet, the less likely you ever knew bullying: white, straight, good looking, middle-class, Christian/no-particular-faith, male, slim, dark haired, good vision.

meh I don't know about the good looking part, but I fit all that other criteria pretty darn well. I was bullied, but not in any serious sort of way. I just took it like everyone else had to. Apologies? Mmm perhaps... though I'm more interested in knowing why they were bullies in the first place.

 

[Mr Fixit]

No, I wouldn't give the attention whores the satisfaction. I was never bullied until I had to move to redneck central, hell I was one of the "cool" kids when I lived in Florida. Fucking redneck assholes treating me like shit just because I'm a "city boy". By the time I got to high school I was bigger than everyone else, so bullying wasn't a problem anymore. So no apology needed or wanted, but some revenge would be quite nice.

 

[BathorysGraveland2]

One of the things that I've taken from this thread is that some bullied people have turned into absolute monsters, far far worse than their former bullies ever were. To see such a widespread lack of basic humanity is quite sickening to say the least.

I just read through the whole thread, and I have to agree. I can only hope most of them are joking, or exaggerating their feelings. I can understand a desire for revenge, even if I don't agree with it, but to turn into a psychopathic, remorseless bastard... nah.