Why Criminalizing and otherwise Punishing Bullying in Schools is cruel and useless

This pre-supposes that those who taunt each other are, in fact, bullying; or that the names that some of them are called aren't deserved.

Cycloptichorn

I see no mention in the anti bullying rules/laws/haranguings that allow for a just cause exception....

Adults do all sorts of things that kids aren't allowed to do. While I appreciate adults acting as good role models, I think your argument is a little weak.

Not only that, but I think that it's assumed that adults have far better developed defense mechanisms and sense of self than children do. They simply aren't as susceptible to bullying, at least in the sense that their self-image doesn't crumble nearly as easily as those who are still trying to figure theirs out.

Cycloptichorn

wait, politicians act like douche bags

i'm shocked

This is not something that we tell kids is fine when they get older, we tell them that this is behavior that violates the civil rights of others, and is always extremely wrong. Your argument is so weak as to be nonexistent.

It’s not Bullying, it is Aggression!

As long as we address these issues as “bullying,” “conflict resolution,” etc. we will continue to be befuddled by reacting to them and their potential of violence. “Conflict resolution” presupposed conflict! You are reacting to conflict, not preventing it! “Bullying” presupposes someone exhibiting bullying behavior. You are reacting to bullying behavior, not preventing it. Only when we understand that “conflict,” “bullying” and any predatory behaviors are simply elements of an Aggression Continuum and that through this Continuum we can foresee conflict, bullying and any predatory behavior prior to an aggressor actually exhibiting these behaviors, can we actually prevent conflict, bullying and predatory behaviors. To learn more visit Edit (Moderator): Link removed

Don't be silly, adults do a lot of things that are not right. The illogic you espouse here is part of the nirvana fallacy, you might want to look in to that.

Just because adults are imperfect about social agression does not make it a bad idea to teach kids that it is bad. The easy rebuttal to your poor argument is that the elimination of social agression is not the goal, but that a reduction is.

Similarly intelligence-challenged argument for comparison:

It is pointless to teach kids not to murder, as there will always be adult murderers.

Your argument would have some validity if adults were honest with kids about adult social aggression, but we are not. Adults teach a Care Bear version of human relationship, one that we neigther make any attempt to follow nor follow. It is the disconnect between the ideal taught and the following/willingness to follow, and lack of honestly about following that is the problem here. When we take it to the next level, when we punish kids for doing what we do , for which we dont punish ourselves for doing, we lose forever the moral standing to teach anything. Once the teacher has been shown to be a fraud they are of no further use, because one can never know when the teacher is telling the truth and when they are telling another fable.

I should add that this problem does not get solved until we move off of our fable that human relationships can be and should be all sweetness and nice. Also, it will require that we admit the existence of Jung's shadow, that we humans at our core are not all goodness. It is this lack of self awareness and the dishonesty that follows, often in brutal forms (for instance though zero tolerance policies in the schools and the sex laws) that the kids see through. It is the proven inability of the adults to be honest and reasonable which distroys our ability to teach.

BTW-adult lack of honesty and reasonablness is on full display at A2K, let the PC laws lacks and we see what adults are pretty damn quickly. The kids know.

I think we teach the opposite in schools: strangers will abduct you, bullies are everywhere, hugs are evil, it's dangerous to cross the road. It seems we spend all of our time teaching children to fear. That doesn't mean we shouldn't curtain the worst bullying just to prove the point.

The issue and what we need to teach kids about is respect and tolerence.

It is fear that causes the bullying response. Fear and ignorance of someone/something different. Different thinking, different skin colour, different body structure. Different social disciplines.
Surely you can't agree that our children deserve to be kept in fear and ignorance althoug as an online bully yourself you may prefer kyour children subjugated by fear and ignorance.
You are correct however when you suggest it is human nature. It is human nature to fear things that appear different. This is a deep seated safety mecanism left over from the days of an underpopulated and dangerous world. However if we do not teach respect and tolerence the human race will eventually destroy itself with the very technology that allows us to raise our society above the level of hunter gatherers.
Respect is only ever given if it is asked for respect is earned not taken.

You cannot get respect with violence you only ever get fear.

And usually adults end up in jail or at least arrested when they hit other adults.

The kids an young adults up on charges for bullying Phoebe Prince did not touch her.

I don't know about other parents - but when an adult mis-behaves ie does some of the things you mention - I do point it out and let my children know how it isn't appropriate.

Even when I screw up (and I frequently do) and say or do something I shouldn't - they call me on it and I tell them yep, I shouldn't have done that - you are right even adults make mistakes and do things they shouldn't

Because we see SOO much respect and tolerance demonstrated in Washington today....or any day any where in America anywhere from the adults.

I did a bad thing - a little bit ago I was helping out at an academic competition and one of the girls got so stressed she starting crying after one leg of the testing. I went over to talk to her and calm her down and I oooopppps - hugged her.

They threw cans at her.

I don't think that is normal acceptable behaviour in adults.

This is exactly what we dont see enough of. It is not just in our personal lives that we need to see this, but we need to stop criminalizing behavour that we often do, even if we dont think we should. The zero tolerance policies and laws come to mind, where we exact vindictive punitive measure upon those unlikely few who get caught doing things than many people do.