Welcome Sports Haters!

Nonsense. That is not even trivial bullying, nor bullying of any kind.

Actually, my dad treated the concrete pourers and hod carriers with respect. I know that for a fact. I saw it. He was just as far from being a bully as you could imagine. In fact, he probably was bullied himself when he was a kid because of the stutttering problem he had. Because of his own humble roots, he respected the dignity of all people.
Even after he became wealthy, he would tell me,
"Don't trust rich people."

My dad rejected racism before any civil rights legislation was
passed and punished me the very few times I used the n-word
when I was in elementary school.

My parents once hired a black lady to work for them as a maid.
My dad demanded that I treat her with respect, which was unheard
of in those times. She was treated as an equal by both of my
parents. He taught me by his own actions to detest arrogance.

Having a high salary didn't prolong his life. He still had health problems:
heart attack, diabetes. It's quite possible the stress of all his responsibilities
actually shortened his life. Your advice to loosen the chip on my
shoulder is respected, but you don't know me in real life.

That 's right, but don 't trust anyone ELSE, either.

Do you watch Corrie Rebecca?

I actually read every word, twice. I told you I didn't doubt you, I gave you real world example of other people who felt the same way and splashed it across our tv screens. I gave examples of how PE was handled around my neck of the woods, not for NIMBY reasons but because I wanted to show that there are better ways of doing things than torturing little kids for some he-man ideal. I didn't walk a mile in your shoes but I did go to school with kids who didn't like PE. I wasn't one of them but I can sympathize.
I don't know what else I can say. I'm sorry you think I'm being dismissive, I'm not. I can only speak of my own experience, in my own backyard.

So do I! I read a post by another poster a week or so back
in which she expressed the truth that she doesn't trust a person
until they prove they can be trusted

and I thought to myself then that I'm just the opposite -
I trust everyone until they show me they shouldn't be trusted.

David - why do you find it so hard to trust?

It sounds like it's not due to your P.E. teachers -

so to what do you attribute that lack of ability to trust?

My own theory is that it's due to the line of work you pursued -
although it sounds as if you had trouble trusting from a very early age -
long before you chose your career.

if this is too personal - ignore me - but if not - I'd find it interesting to explore.

ANYONEcan be trusted; no one shoud be trusted.

Spendius has already revealed which group includes him

I was 11, when against my better judgment, I trusted another kid not to steal my property.
Upon his betrayal, I resolved to stop trusting, but in its purest application, that proved not to be viable,
so I modified it to: "don 't trust anyone with more than u r willing to lose."

the non-reliability of gratitude

I would assume there's a marked difference between parochial schools and public schools. The particular experiences I related in my posts all took place in public schools. Ordinarily, I would expect more emphasis upon moral standards in parochial schools, not to mention teaching morals in the classroom. Generally speaking, kids with moral standards are considerably less likely to engage in bullying than those who see no use for moral ideals. Hence, the difference in our observations..

ANYONE can be trusted; no one shoud be trusted.

Even a person who has proven him or herself trustworthy to you?

Do you think it's fair not to trust someone who has been totally trustworthy as far as you're concerned?

How would you maintain any relationships with such an obvious lack of trust toward someone who deserved your trust?

Spendius has already revealed which group includes him

I've been communicating with Spendius for around four years,
and I'd be hardpressed to identify which Spendius is with any certainty-
I definitely don't think he's a fool and I'd have been tempted
to label him a cynic until tonight when he said he trusts everyone
he meets as a matter of course. So I'd be interested to know
which group you believe Spendius has revealed himself to be
included among, owing to the fact that at this point, I have no idea,
as I'd have to say it's six of one and half dozen of the other.

the non-reliability of gratitude

What do you mean by this?

Such proof is near impossible.
U have failed to apply the criterion of time to the question.
U have failed to apply the criterion of change in circumstances to the question.
If we know that someone was trustworthy on Monday
that does not prove that he will be trustworthy on Thursday.
If he proves that he will not steal $1000 of your property,
that does not prove that he will not steal $1,000, 000.
If he has proven that he will not steal your money,
that will not prove that he will not steal your wife (or vice versa).

Gratitude wears out quickly; it has a short shelf life.
As a general rule, u 'll get little mileage from gratitude;
i.e., u can do people a lot of major favors, but it is human nature
for them to forget them or to mentally devalue them, with the passage of time,
tho there R a few people (very few) who r sufficiently honorable to pay u back appropriately.

Sorry, I couldn't figure out how to insert your post.
I'm new at this.

As per not trusting anyone else either, that would depend on initial impressions
and what you may have heard about that person from others.

I hate the sin, love the sinner. I don't know spendius personally;
so, I'm not able to make a judgment.

After learning the hard way, I now try to avoid being confrontational at websites. In this very topic I immediately reacted in attack mode in my first post, crashed and burned, and ended up making a public apology in this thread. Referring to my refusal to engage in name-calling in posts and trying to reason with hateful people at another website, a friend of mine has told me on more than one occasion, "You're too polite."

Actually, I wasn't apologizing to spendius (sounds like a username for a liberal, just kidding). And I did defend myself, and pointed out how my dad did not fit spendius' model. You must understand. Although I was born in Texas, both of my parents were Oklahomans who were restrained in their behavior and their reactions towards others. I guess I just don't fit the stereotype.

And here's a shocker to come out of the lips of a Texan:
I don't even know how the game of football is played. (scandalous!)

OmSigDAVID, you're a funny guy. Keep posting.