Reply #174: Horse hockey

[noamnety]

Being bullied and bullying is NOT an important part of growing up, nor is it a requirement for functioning normally in society. The opposite is true - those doing the bullying as well as those being bullied are LESS likely to function normally in society.

"Compared to their peers, kids who are bullied are five times more likely to be depressed. Bullied boys are four times more likely to be suicidal; bullied girls are eight times more likely to be suicidal."

"Nearly 60 percent of boys who researchers classified as bullies in grades six through nine were convicted of at least one crime by the age of 24. Even more dramatic, 40 percent of them had three or more convictions by age 24. Bullying is an early warning that bullies may be headed toward more serious antisocial behavior. Moreover, victims of repeated bullying can explode in ways that threaten not just the bullies but many others as well. For example, a Secret Service study of school shootings found that “almost three-quarters of the attackers felt persecuted, bullied, threatened, attacked or injured by others prior to the incident.”

http://www.fightcrime.org/reports/BullyingReport.pdf