Anti-Bullying Statutes Won't Work

The Boston Globe, of the "shove a UMass Law School down peoples' throats crowd", has written two articles this week about a "push" for an anti-bullying statute in Massachusetts to protect students in schools and online. The most popular anti-bullying statute making the rounds in Massachusetts would ban bullying on school grounds and make bullying a mandatory reporting activity for teachers, similar to how child abuse concerns are treated. Who the teachers would report bullying to is another matter.

Yesterday there was a hearing in the Massachusetts State House where bullies, the bullied and "experts" got to talk about the supposed effect bullying has on students. My favorite quotes:

A girl who left Swampscott schools because of supposed bullying: ""I was pushed out of the town I spent my whole life in. I found a school that I feel comfortable in, but I wonder if the school had reacted in an appropriate way, would I still be a student in Swampscott schools?" she said."

Ignore the fact that her mother likely wrote her statement that she read from. Also ignore the fact that some teacher probably gave her extra credit for reading this statement at the hearing. She plays the victim well. I was pushed out... blah blah blah. Where were her parents? Where were her teachers? When I was in grade school and kids picked on other kids or me, the kids fought back or told their teacher, who put a stop to it. If that failed, the parents got involved, and it eventually stopped. Children don't interact anymore, they are allowed to speak to each other, but every type of interaction is micromanaged. Whereas twenty years ago, kids would have dealt with this reasonably, now the parents have conditioned the kids to think that if someone bothers them, to run away. Now on to what a bully says.

A "reformed bully": ""Last year, I was part of the problem. I was insensitive and I treated my peers without consideration,'' said the student..."

This kid cannot be serious. His statement reads like a court-ordered essay a kid convicted as a juvenile of shoplifting or some minor crime might be required to write to show remorse. This is faux remorse. Likely also written by the parents. However, these are still more believable than the professor's statement.

A Northeastern University prof: ""Bullying should be a red flag," he said. "The Virginia Tech killer was bullied and harassed and no one offered a helping hand. The origins of the Virginia Tech massacre can be seen in the killer's life, long before he got to college."

Professors, particularly the sociologists who love grouping people, have decided, based on specious examples and reasoning, that bullies are likely to cause mass murder. The Columbine killers were bullied, the Fort Hood sociopath was bullied because he was a Muslim, and so on. If only teachers had been able to find these troubled youngsters while they were getting bullied, and the world would be spared these cold-blooded killers, created by the taunts they received as youths. The professor also testified that bullying can make this happen, but does not always happen.

This is similar to claims that video games are responsible for violent activities. It sounds logical right? Bullying is hurtful to the bullied and they build up rage and eventually pop. Just as logical as the idea that growing up playing violent video games makes people want to be violent. Except studies do not show this to be true. The link between bullying and snapping just is not there. Sure, kids who get bullied may eventually fight back at those who are bullying them, but there's an argument to be made that fighting back is healthy behavior, at least 15-20 years ago the argument would have been made. Today, people isolate the children not getting along and make sure there is no conflict, because nobody's children should deal with interpersonal conflict... until it's too late, and they have to deal with conflict but have no clue how to act like a normal person. It is not that bullying is appropriate, it is that it is human, and depriving children the opportunity to learn and adjust to these behaviors through legislating away activity just makes for weaker children overall.

What good would the legislation do? Nothing. Bullying likely is not allowed on any school grounds currently. Making it against the law does nothing for anyone involved. Mandatory reporting requirements by teachers are also useless. Who do they report to? Social services? A school psychologist? Are parents going to have to go to behavioral training with their children? Nothing a statute accomplishes will be of any use of all.

This is just one more attempt to legislate everything away that might possibly be harmful. Even though they are kids, they should learn to grow up and accept that not everyone in life is going to be very nice, no matter what their parents say. If they pass anti-bullying statutes, why not force kids to play football in plastic bubbles? After all, it's just for their protection, just like protecting them from bullies.