Bullying

September 29, 2011



There seems to be a lot of coverage on the news about bullying, anti-bullying laws and "cyber-bullying" these days. Since when did we get so concerned with what happens in our kids schools other than education (and food)? I get that there are claims that bullying leads to lower test scores, but I can't believe that the two truthfully coincide.

It's hard for me to say how I feel about all of the bullying in the media without vehemently claiming to side with Darwinism, but I do believe that people are starting to care too much about controlling every aspect of our natural lives, to the point where this younger generation is completely oblivious to the world and their own existence in it. If I make the analogy that life is like a playground and it's the survival of the fittest, people will take that the wrong way and think of me cold and ignorant--especially when things like this happen, because in no way am I saying that gay-teens are not fit to live in this world.

I don't condone bullying, but I don't condemn it. I do believe that it's part of growing up and everyone has either been victim or culprit to it. I think that both make up a person and excluding that form of fixed human nature takes away that natural sense of self that, I believe, we are destined to become. Human Nature is one of the most beautiful things in the world. Instinct as a new mind in the world is unbelievable. I will reiterate that bullying can be awful, hurtful, and lead to situations that break your heart, but.. (I'm scared to finish this sentence so I'll give you another one). But, a situation like this happens and you believe in the system. You can believe that children can take care of themselves, and letting them learn on their own is the only way for them to be able to exist in this shitty world.

In most aspects, I'm a romantic. But I don't believe in "the noble savage" or that we are all Blank Slates. You can be brought into the world a shitty person or a good person. In most senses, we are socially constructed individuals, but our instincts are the same. There is a natural order to the world that we can't suddenly decide to shift. And this has nothing to do with feminism or sexism or anything too political. It has to do with letting kids play without adults getting involved. School, whether you're the bully or the bullied, is awful and stressful. Being a kid is tough, especially these days, which is all the more reason to let them deal with things on their own--the way we did, the way our parents did, the way they all did. These new kids aren't special.

Note: Please click the links and please read Steven Pinker's book The Blank Slate