Poll: Should Bullys be Prosecuted? (Poll)

[DANEgerous]

Prosecuted, no get them out of the main crowd somehow if you must like say they are taught in a separate classroom, but as for criminal prosecution no.

I was heavily bullied I never gave a damn until it got physical, even then I did not seek the charges I could have it happen 3 times all would be considered assault yet still all i did was go to someone who could get them my of my classroom or me out of theirs. Problem solved.

 

[DANEgerous]

You're not allowed to verbally harass adults, beat up adults, steal adults money or publically ridicule adults.

Why should the situation be any different for children? Why is bullying tolerated at all?

Laziness. I've seen bullying occur while teachers were present, but to stop the incident would involve pausing their conversation and getting up out of their chairs. Can't have that. I never really was subject to bullying myself, but the outright negligence on the teachers' part always pissed me off.

I must attest to this truth i was tossed out of my chair and had staples slammed into my arm, the teacher did nothing. My attacker lunged again I hit him in the thought then remarked "What the fuck, you best do something about this it is assault!" by this time fear had it my opponent and he randomly said things about how he can not go to jail this finally got my teacher's attention, legal trouble possibly for her and the attacker now terrified and furious was restrain by my classmates out of the door and then locked out soon escorted out by the cops.

This was easily the most severe attack but in this an 2two other cases it was classmates not a teacher the ended the fight. As I stated preciously my only request was to never share a class with him again, no legal charges.

 

[Risingblade]

If there's physical abuse then yes, last time I checked battery was illegal. We have do have a place for young delinquents so send them there, and for those of you who say they should just get over it. If a guy came up to you in the street, beat the shit out of you and took your money wouldn't you report to the cops? It's the same thing here.

 

[Wuvlycuddles]

Yeah... that's not bullying you are describing there, it's abuse.

There is a distinction that I think people should recognize as the general feeling toward schoolyard bullying is to grow a thick skin and just deal with it and for your run of the mill bullying that is exactly what you should do. But what these kids are going through is outright abuse, but it's being called bullying therefore it is perceived as something less severe than it is.

And the danger of not recognizing this distinction could lead to a single idle insult leading to incredibly severe punishment. I wouldn't want to see anyones life fucked up over a few "bad words" said in the heat of the moment.

 

[SenseOfTumour]

I do think the schools can bear some of the blame as some don't wish to even take on board that it's happening, because there seems to be this idea that bullying only happens at 'bad' schools, and therefore if they acknowledge it, they're a worse school.

In these times of testing schools and ratings and inspections, they're under terrible pressure. What needs to happen is that reported bullying should not affect a school's scores in any way. What should affect it is bullying that keeps on happening. If they can show that they're dealing with it, that to me would be a school I'd be happy to send my kids to.

Most of all, kids need to feel that if they approach a teacher, it'll be handled seriously and professionally, as they've probably already been either threated with violence, or there's some kind of blackmail hanging over their heads if they report the bullying.

That of course being another reason why bullied kids don't just 'man up and tell someone'.

No, I don't think jail time is the right answer, but I also don't think we have two options, ignore wrongdoing in society or jail people. The same happened on Question Time this week about the racist twitter trial. No I don't believe he should have been jailed for offensive tweets, however I don't think it's just fine and dandy either.

There's fines, community service, other angles. Of course fines to parents are not ideal, as often bullies come from crappy backgrounds and neglectful parents, and punishing the parents is probably not going to improve the bully's viewpoint on life.

After school work, like community service however, makes them pay for their wrongdoings, AND keeps them away from their victims for a few more hours a week.

 

[Ekit]

No, that's absurd. It sucks that some people are assholes but you can't make being a douchebag against the law. It's just not feasible.

It's not about being a douchebag. It's about physical and mental abuse.

OT: I was never bullied so I might not be the best one to speak but, yes, they should. Maybe not kids, but if you're over the age of 13 I think you should be able to be prosecuted. But I think you already can be?

 

[Laurie Barnes]

Simply put. I do not condone any form of mental or physical abuse, because sch things infringe on basic human rights. People who bully others should be treated with the same manner that we treat those who violate human rights.

 

[imnot]

but as for criminal prostitution no.

Might want to fix that there!

OT: I think there should, however it could be abused by pretending you are being bullied.

 

[DoomyMcDoom]

I would not say prosecuted, I would however consider teaching bullied kids how to deal with bullies propperly, most bullies are just sad wussy shits who like to make themselves feel big by hurting other people's feelings, or by misdirecting attention towards others in a negative way(making fun of someone to get a buncha people to join in on the laughter), most bullying comes from insecurities in the bully.

If you know how to make yourself less of a target, and you stand up to people effectively, you can avoid most bullying, I was bullied hardcore had no friends and was generally treated like shit, until I started boasting and backing it up, and I confronted one of the bullies, got in his face and shouted his wimpy fucking ass down, pinned him to the wall of the gym and ranted at him full shout right in his face for a good 10 minutes, I finished by simply saying, in a calm voice after I was done shouting, "This is me, annoyed, you have yet to see me angry, and I swear to you if you continue to torment me, I will not be held responsible for my actions." let go of his collar and walked away, after that point most of the other bullies backed off, and that specific one avoided me like the plague after that point. Only wish I'da done it sooner.

 

[Tiamattt]

but as for criminal prostitution no.

Might want to fix that there!

OT: I think there should, however it could be abused by pretending you are being bullied.

If this was a actual law then I would presume that it would be treated as such and be investigated like any other crime. It's not like I can claim you kicked my ass yesterday despite the fact we never met and get you tossed in jail, I would get in trouble for wasting the police's time as I'm sure any person crying wolf would.

Ideal situation would be the schools being able to take care of bullying by themselves, but facts are they can't do anything significant due to spinelessness and not wanting to get sued. Just like we get protection from violence and abuse I don't see why our kids shouldn't as well.

Oh and while jail would be useful in the worst cases of bullying they don't have to be the only answer. I'm sure a nice big fine to parents would greatly motivate them to ensure their kids stops pulling their crap.

 

[Seanfall]

AS someone who went threw school before it got as bad as it was. Yes I think they should be prosecuted under the law. It's not something you can shrug off, I have pretty thick skin but some of these people will keep at you for no reason. And for some reason telling the teacher's that this guy is going out of his way to make your life hell is being a 'taddle-tale'. I can tell you that I wouldn't be half as introverted and anti-social as I am today if all threw elementary and two and half years of high school hadn't been filled with being picked on cause I was fat, smart, wore glasses and was a geek. I fully admit to being a geek/nerd. I almost got thrown out of school the one time I stood up to one of these jack asses. Didn't stop me from being a smart ass to them. I got good at verbally defending myself. And that's the problem that often you feel like your the only one who can help yourself. The Teachers either ignore the issue or wave it off. We need better laws and rules.

Also I think the Zero Tolerance rules did jackshit to improve school life. I got jumped once and defended myself and yet I was in as much trouble as the assholes that jumped me.

 

[ryo02]

A lot of the methods used in bullying are already against the law (e.g. assault, harassment, slander, hate speech, inciting hatred) so I don't see why bullies can't be prosecuted under existing laws.

What does your concept of "prosecuting bullies" entail that isn't already covered by existing, long established laws?

well for a start we could somehow get the schools to actually act and let these ilegal acts be known to the propper authorties instead of worrying how their funding will be effected by losing a student.

so that they will be prosecuted and not have what they did swept under the rug the alternative is for what? students to take matters into their own hands one way or another?.

 

[Aeonknight]

Hate to say it, but no. The kid needs to learn how to handle people like that, otherwise when he grows up and becomes responsible for his own actions he won't know what to do. And who knows how much more psychologically damaging that could become down the road as an immature adult.

It also may actually increase bullying, since it'd be against the law and the prick is probably all about doing that to be cool.

Finally, anything severe enough to actually deter bullying could be considered cruel/unusual punishment. They don't deserve juvy/jail time for giving someone a wedgie, no matter how much the bullied want it.

 

[applesandoranges]

edit

 

[Seanfall]

Nope , i have no sympathy for anyone that doesn't seek help under any circumstance . I don't mean to sound like a jerk but, if someone won't help thenselves then i don't care what happens to them it's their own fault. People talk about bullies like they are some unstoppable force or something . There are many options you have when deig with bullies , ranging from talking to an adult to defending yourself .

Now about suicide in general , now one can make you commit suicide , if they could it wouldn't be called suicide. I truly believe that no matter the circumstance, once you willfully for any reason you harm youself causing death , it is no longer murder.

Now because i know the escapists hate to hae people that don't agree with their opinion i will get quoted , i'm telling you guys right now , i will not respond to quotes.

I have to agree with this. People sending you messages isn't an excuse to go and off yourself, especially when you can just ignore, delete and move on.

If someones getting physical with another person there's already a word for that, and it's assault. You can defend yourself right away or prosecute them.

A vast majority of people who get made fun of don't go on to kill themselves,

I don't see why special protection should be offered to those who do. Yeah, it's the whole "Imbalanced hormones of a teenager" thing but that's still not an excuse.

Besides that, you'll have to define what you consider to be bullying, which could take any shape or form to the point where saying you don't like a band someone else does could be considered insulting and bullying.

Personally, I'd rather people are given the tools to deal with someone, like laughing in someones face if they call you a no-life having virgin nerd.

I agree as well.

People would be better served if they just confronted their problems, not have another social safety net put into place to catch them.

People are douchebags in the real world, you need to learn how to deal with such people.

Unfortunately a lot of the bullied kids confront those problems with a gun. Not all school shootings are bullied kids getting even, but a not Insignificant number are.

 

[JochemHippie]

Yes, they bring far reaching emotional damage on their victims and often this "bullying" far surpasses what is acceptable within the law. So yes, I think bullies should be prosecuted.

 

[Sean951]

You can't prosecute children.

You also can't prosecute people based on what they say.

Done.

Should bullies be punished? Absolutely.

Incorrect, they can and have sent people to jail for cyber bullying and probably physical bullying.

Link [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1208147/First-cyberbully-jailed-Facebook-death-threats.html]

 

[DANEgerous]

but as for criminal prostitution no.

Might want to fix that there!

OT: I think there should, however it could be abused by pretending you are being bullied.

Thanks for that... but on the note of just pretending you are bullied it is more than that, not that it is not a valid concern it is just tolerance for when you consider yourself bullied. Some people take mere disagreement as bulling, Some people take any form of rejection as bulling, many people take what most of us consider harmless as bulling. These people truly believe they are bullied they will defiantly come across as falsely reporting being bullied yet will never give up the chase as the genuinely feel bullied despite not being so at least not in the manner most of us would consider a problem.

From here the problem worsens even further, people like me do not report anything as bulling we get bullied mouths on end even years and once they finally do provoke a response who gets all the blame? The victim, not the bully who has been at it for years but the person that gave a single outburst yet was hounded by this person for what may be years.

 

[Seanfall]

Yeah, they should be. I've been bullied a lot in my life. Even when I got older... I don't know, but people tend to have a problem with me. I've moved quite a bit too, but it still happens to me. It's not happened lately... I've tried to avoid people, even my classmates.

I also find gossiping to be the part of bullying I hate the most. Like when people start spreading lies about you, behind your back. If I hear someone as much as say my name, to someone else... Well, that's the kind of people I'd avoid no matter what. Not saying that all of them do it, but gossiping still says a lot about a person.

You ever turn and ask them why their talking about you? I often got told 'it doesn't concern you.' Then stop talking about me....