Bullying is not just kids’ play

Nonfiction literary compositions

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Bullying is not just kids’ play

Postby The Madame X » Fri Feb 21, 2014 12:36 pm

Bullying is not just kids’ play
By Madame X © 2014

Unfortunately a great place to find bullies is right here in the Online Vampire Community. That’s right, not only are we all legal ‘mature’ adults, but we also claim to be ‘enlightened’ and more ‘evolved’, and yet somehow, some individuals never learned the first thing about social graces, proper social interaction, or mature social behavior. This is a serious problem in Our Community, and one many do not dare speak up about.

We are involved in a community were egos are encouraged and powerful allies prized and the combination of these two, plus add the safely of sitting behind a computer screen and the flexibility to create a new persona or batch of secret identities at will, and here we create the perfect landscape for bullying to thrive. The bullies in Our Community want to portray themselves as dominant alphas and gain power over others by falsely discrediting, humiliating and antagonizing their targets privately or publicly. With this behavior, they hope to show everyone involved just how powerful, dominant and connected they are. It behooves each and every one of us to pay attention and learn to identify these bullies and steer clear away from them.

While physical bullying happens in the local communities, it is the verbal and cyber bullying that is more widespread, less controlled and possibly in our circles, all the more damaging. Often local communities aren’t happy with just physical and verbal attacks and decide to up the ante by bringing it onto the Internet. Most of us are here to learn and grow, some of us want to pass on to others what we have learned from our very special experiences so that we may help those who walk the same path. Unfortunately, this kind of hostility is so prevalent in our community that it not only affects the targeted but also reduces Community morale and distracts everyone from any productive growth or learning.

Some may think that the best course of action is to ignore them, avoid them and simply ‘block’ them on our social network pages; but actually this is not enough. Certainly we cannot reason with them, reach an agreement or some sort of compromise. They will not apologize or retract their words. Nor are they interested in making amends. Bullies are simply interested in putting others down so that they can feel important, and so that they get recognition from others as the more powerful and dominant. There really is very little you can do to within The Community to stop bullies, but the first thing we should do is: document the issue and communicate that this individual is a problem to The Elders of the community. Elders are here to help, and won’t be at all surprised; bullies follow a pattern and they move from one target to another, leaving a trail of yuck wherever they go. Elders may be able to address the issue directly with them and recommend possible legal and civil procedures that specifically address bullying and harassment.

The most prevalent bullies in Our Community are those who don’t care about any possible consequences or ramifications of their words and actions, quite the contrary, they benefit from the attention. Destroying others simply makes them feel good; in fact this may be the only way they can get any real pleasure out of life. They have nothing positive to offer The Community, so instead they criticize and condemn others work, deliberately attack those who create, and attempt to destroy others’ reputations and credibility. They feed not only on the discomfort of their targets but also on the attention of their buddies, who eagerly root them on.

So let’s talk about these bully buddies. Generally they are not the ones who start the trouble; instead they quickly latch on and join in on the fun, egging on the bully, offering advice, added plans, manpower and support. These people are just as bad, if not even worse. They feed on the chaos and confusion and want to prolong it for as long as possible, getting as many people involved as possible, often taking turns at beating the target when its already down. Maybe at the core of it all lays the fact that they are just scared and would rather side with the strongest voice to insure that no harm will befall them. If that sounds cowardly, well, it’s because it is.

Sure there are those that are more spontaneous in their bullying who simply cannot restrain their bad behavior, their poor form, or their constant belittling of others. They are often very proud of their bad form, and call it blunt honesty. In reality, it’s a desperate projection of their unsolved personal issues, frustrations and unrealized dreams. These individuals lack tact, maturity and for all their bluntness, they would benefit from learning how to be constructive in their continuous vulgar criticism.

I would like nothing more than to say that there are no physical confrontations in our Community. Unfortunately, that is certainly not the case. I have seen this happen time and time again. Theft and property damage are often regarded as disassociated to the bully but they are part of the bullying. Physical confrontations happen, at the point of a gun or knife, during what some consider initiations, and as ‘acceptable’ ways to resolve or atone for issues. No! Not only is this unacceptable bad form for any community member, it is also very ‘illegal’ and it must be reported regardless if you have to tell the police that is was a vampire issue, a therian issue, or not. These individuals feed from the adrenaline rush of such engagement and lack the ability to physically engage in a nurturing way. Walking away is simply not enough. The rest of the community must be aware that these individuals are dangerous.

Physical or not, harassment is illegal, in or out of our Community. Many resort to threatening to harm, humiliate, they may start unfounded rumors as an attempt to undermine the credibility or reputation of their target. Sure sticks and stones don’t break our bones, but individuals who engage in this of this type of malicious verbal attacks be it on or off line need to be identified, isolated and excised from the Community. These individuals know that derogatory accusations and threats catalyze serious emotional and psychological responses and they feed on this. They know that if the rumors are well crafted that their buddies will buy into them, but most importantly having a target will give the bully a much needed scapegoat and common ground, something they could otherwise never have.

The sad part is, that more often than not, the bullies in our community were bullied as children or in their formative years were spectators to verbal bullying in their own homes. Unfortunately, understanding and compassion can only go so far. Document, report and, if necessary, take legal action against these individuals. We’ve had enough.
Ex Somnius Scientia
Madame X
Matriarch, House of the Dreaming

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Re: Bullying is not just kids’ play

Postby KarlaVermouth » Wed Feb 26, 2014 5:18 pm

I agree with you...but just because someone as been bullied
in is childwood and come from an abusive family background it doesn't give them the right
to bully others whatever if is in school,in a job,online etc...In Facebook alredy people killed themshelfs
Because they were suffering online bulling ...In manny countries bulling is
Still accepted and there's no law to stop it...In Portugal 2010 in the Algarve a kid died because his
Bullies etc ....
Karla Vermouth
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Location: England {UK}


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