Monday, June 20 2011: Bullies
I'm dropping noteworthy Notes from my Facebook profile before it is deleted.
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Dear Alanis, this is ironic:
"Although it might seem paradoxical, bullies try to overpower others because '[Bullies] are people who feel weak,' says Barbara Sabbeth, a psychologist in New Rochelle, NY. Picking on someone else gives them a momentary feeling of strength.
Often family problems--parents at each other's throats or divorcing--are bothering a bully. Or a parent is bullying him. 'They're aggresive because they've been hurt and want to get back, because they've been made to feel vulnerable themselves,' explains Sabbeth.
Similarly a boy who calls another a 'crybaby' likely feels ashamed of his own wish to be babied. A Scout who calls another boy 'gay' may be embarrassed about his own sensitive side and underconfident in his own masculinity."
-- "Scouting", Sep/Oct 2010 issue, 'The Troop Bully', p 33
"Scouting" magazine is the official publication of the Boy Scouts of America and is sent out to all registered adult leaders in the BSA. The above referenced article is giving advice about how to deal with bullies in one's Scouting group (pack/troop/crew) and is apparently oblivious to the fact that the BSA itself fought tooth and nail in a legal battle that rose all the way to the Supreme Court defending the organization's "right" to discriminate against gays because homophobia is part of the BSA's "expressive message".
Since when is hatred friendly, courteous, or kind?
---
Dear Alanis, this is ironic:
"Although it might seem paradoxical, bullies try to overpower others because '[Bullies] are people who feel weak,' says Barbara Sabbeth, a psychologist in New Rochelle, NY. Picking on someone else gives them a momentary feeling of strength.
Often family problems--parents at each other's throats or divorcing--are bothering a bully. Or a parent is bullying him. 'They're aggresive because they've been hurt and want to get back, because they've been made to feel vulnerable themselves,' explains Sabbeth.
Similarly a boy who calls another a 'crybaby' likely feels ashamed of his own wish to be babied. A Scout who calls another boy 'gay' may be embarrassed about his own sensitive side and underconfident in his own masculinity."
-- "Scouting", Sep/Oct 2010 issue, 'The Troop Bully', p 33
"Scouting" magazine is the official publication of the Boy Scouts of America and is sent out to all registered adult leaders in the BSA. The above referenced article is giving advice about how to deal with bullies in one's Scouting group (pack/troop/crew) and is apparently oblivious to the fact that the BSA itself fought tooth and nail in a legal battle that rose all the way to the Supreme Court defending the organization's "right" to discriminate against gays because homophobia is part of the BSA's "expressive message".
Since when is hatred friendly, courteous, or kind?
grotto wrote:
~Dan