Who’s The Bully?

Everyday I watch the news and see politicians mud-slinging and trash-talking each other. I see people with guns fighting wars and killing people they have never even met. I see reality TV shows where the man picks the prettiest girl, and sometimes goes as far as to degrade the other women; or the woman picks the hottest guy, and finds ways to humiliate his competition. I see people get voted off stage because even though they are  often more talented, they are just not “as popular, or as thin, or as pretty.”

A majority of what I see on television depicts violence, anger and some form of revenge or harassment. Betrayal, jealousy and greed dominate the airways and that doesn’t stop at the local news. The news station will publicize for months something negative before they ever spotlight the great things happening around the world.

How do we expect our youth to ever overcome issues of violence, bullying, body image, or class warfare when we not only condone it, but are active participants? We tell them not to be mean to other kids, then go to a baseball game and yell profanities at the opposing team. Grown men and woman starting fires outside of hockey games. Corporate CEO’s stealing from their own employees.  I wonder how many decades of evolution will be necessary before we realize how awful we’ve become? Perhaps Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games wasn’t a fiction novel after all.

Wikipedia Definition:

Bullying is a form of aggressive behavior manifested by the use of force or coercion to affect others, particularly when the behavior is habitual and involves an imbalance of power. It can include verbal harassment, physical assault or coercion and may be directed repeatedly towards particular victims, perhaps on grounds of race, religion, gender, sexuality or ability. The “imbalance of power” may be social power and/or physical power. The victim of bullying is sometimes referred to as a “target”.