(no subject)

[primroseburrows]

Dear Rick Mercer,

You know what I wish? I wish you'd been around back when I was in junior high. I could have used a kickass GBF like you to keep the cretins away.

Just when I think my adoration for you can go no higher, you get even more awesome.

What I'm saying basically is that you rock so hard the neighbours can't sleep. I'm just sayin'.

Even more love,

Me

"[F]or a lot of kids out there going to school doesn't rank right up there as the best days of their life. No, because they're different in some way, they look at it like some sort of prison sentence. And you can't blame them really. I mean you walk in the door when you're five years old, they keep you for twelve years, you're not allowed to leave. Cripes, in this country, you do less time for murder."





It Does Get Better

So last week was National Bullying Awareness Week in Canada. Now, for those of us long out of school, it's very tempting to treat that one like National Nutrition Week and just ignore it altogether. But unfortunately, if you Google "bully", "Canada" and "suicide" you'll get more hits than if you were searching for "Paris Hilton" and "hotel room".

And we're not talking about just one or two horror stories here - we're talking about hundreds. And the more you read these stories, the more you realize the greatest thing about being an adult is that no matter how bad things get you never have to go to grade nine ever again. Because for a lot of kids out there going to school doesn't rank right up there as the best days of their life. No, because they're different in some way, they look at it like some sort of prison sentence. And you can't blame them really. I mean you walk in the door when you're five years old, they keep you for twelve years, you're not allowed to leave. Cripes, in this country, you do less time for murder.

Now of course, the minute you leave school you immediately forget how bad it can be for some people. But you want to say to these kids who are being bullied, you know what? You're right. These are not the best days of your life, in fact, these are probably the worst. But after this, they get better, and then - believe it or not - they get great. Trust me: I'm one of the smartest guys I know.

And if you're being hassled because you're a geek, believe me - in a few years, you will inherit the earth. The biggest geek I went to school with was 76 pounds, he got hassled every day. The poor guy, he couldn't walk up a flight of steps without falling over to the left or getting a nosebleed. I have no idea how he got through it - in hindsight, he is the bravest man I know - and these days he's as happy as Larry. He runs a video game company in California. If I had his money, I'd burn mine.

And if you're being harassed in school because you're gay, believe me, in a few years you will have more friends than you know what to do with. You can be as open as you want. You'll be the funniest guy in the room and plus when you fly standby on Air Canada you'll get a free upgrade to business class because the guy behind the counter, he's gay too.

So if you're being bullied in school because you're different, please, tell someone about it, and remember, even in a real prison, eventually, everyone gets parole.

Original blog post is here.

I need a Rick Mercer icon, yes I do.

Comments

[nmalfoy.livejournal.com]

The thing that gets me about bullying is that teachers just. don't. care. They see it, and they're aware of it, and often very subtly sort of encourage it. Parents just tell you to suck it up, or to talk to a teacher, which does no good. It sucks, but I learned the hard way that I was just going to have to suffer through school. That's a great post. He's absolutely right. I wish, though, that kids had someone in school who would actually do something. Because they don't.

[primroseburrows.livejournal.com]

Parents just tell you to suck it up, or to talk to a teacher, which does no good. It sucks, but I learned the hard way that I was just going to have to suffer through school.

I think it's because parents really don't realise how bad it is. I couldn't have been loved more by my family, and I was still told to "grow a thick skin" and "boys will be boys" (and if that's the case, what was the girls' excuse?) and other platitudes like that. Even when parents are bullying survivors themselves, it's so far in the past for them that they don't see it any more. Or maybe that's all bullshit, because I sure do remember it.

My kids were raised that saying something unkind to another person was right up there with lying and stealing in Mom's Book of Bad Things. Sure, they rolled their eyes at me sometimes, but they listened because I wouldn't shut up about it, and also because they knew I'd been on the recieving end of the same sort of unkindness. If parents can just be shown exactly how damaging bullying is, maybe things will get better.

Things don't seem to have improved much since I was a kid; it's even worse, I think, because of the whole cyber-bullying thing.