I have been in a couple of fights in my life---and all were with bullies.

[trumad]

I am blessed with good size--- 6:2---230 pounds...and a Dad who took me boxing when I was a wheee lad.

IE: I can take care of myself.

One thing I could never tolerate in school and when I was in the Army were bullies.

As a young man I met an befriended other young men who had a bit of a difficult time defending themselves.

Small in size--- not very strong--- a target on their back for bullies. That is one thing bullies will always do--- go after those who have a difficult time defending themselves.

I remember an incident when I was in the Army where I defended this poor guy from a douchebag bully.

The weaker kid---Skillman was his name--- was being bullied by a guy named Guillian. Both were in my unit and it had been going on for quite a while. I remember sitting in our barracks hallway cleaning our rifles one day when Guillian started in on Skillman. Slapping him on the head---calling him Faggot, just mean shit. Skillman just took it but was clearly upset.

I kindly asked Guillian to stop--- he did not... I asked him again---he did not.... I asked him one more time...

I then got up and kicked his ass all the way down the hallway until my other buddies ripped me off of him. He never fucked with Skillman again.

I bring this up because if I was in that fucking douchebag school that Romney was in---and I witnessed Romney doing what he did to that poor poor kid.... Romney might not look so pretty today.

I despise Bullies--- I despise assholes who take advantage of people or animals who can't defend themselves. Men who hit women---don't get me started!

I have raised my 3 kids to defend kids and others in need---and told them that if ever found out they bullied someone else---there would be hell to pay. So far so good.

And to my dying day--- It would be wise not not have me around if you're bulling someone.

[annabanana]

1. (somehow I knew this)

You don't back down much here either. . .

[teddy51]

2. You and I are on the same side of the page, Kudos.

Last edited Thu May 10, 2012, 04:56 PM - Edit history (1)

[joeybee12]

3. Good for you...this makes up for you being a Heat fan...knr

[Rex]

4. I was bullied off an on until junior high school.

I was the BIG kid that did not like to fight. My (soon to be best friend until the end of H.S.) new friend however, was different. We met in the 6th grade and Chris was far older then his years in life. He carried himself with a quiet dignity I always respected...oh and something else, he was a black belt in Taekwondo at the age of 14.

He is the one that convinced me it was OKAY to 'get in trouble' if it meant defending yourself from pain and suffering.

After that time (6th grade), I never allowed a bully to lay a hand on me or any of my friends and if it was someone I could not take, them my friend Chris would always step in and I must say...when he did fight, it was always to stop the opponent - not to humiliate them in front of their peers.

[trumad]

5. Punch a bully in the nose...

He or she is done.

[Rex]

7. True, until I actually built up the confidence

to fight one I had no idea they were actually cowards. It is the projection thingy they do that makes them look menacing...punch them hard in the nose and they will sitdown (right there on the spot) and bawl like a baby!

[trumad]

9. One of my favorite videos of all time.

[Rex]

11. WOW.

There are no words...amazing is as close as I can get. Thank you for sharing that!

[teddy51]

12. I had forgotten about this video, and yes it is very powerful indeed. Sure hope Kasey

is still doing well today!

[TlalocW]

17. My superpower

Finding online comics for a subject.



TlalocW

[SomethingFishy]

21. I printed that one up the day it was released...

It hangs on the side of my computer with the best Calvin and Hobbes and Foxtrot comics. Awesome.

[TlalocW]

18. Rewatching this

I'm reminded of a scene from the Avengers movie between Loki and the Hulk. If you've seen it, you know what I'm talking about.

TlalocW

[trumad]

23. Loki trying to bully Hulk.....

Classic moment in movie history.

[deaniac21]

6. Just hope the next bully doesn't turn out to be

Rampage Jackson.

[trumad]

8. Well---I'll go down swinging.

[Warpy]

10. I was a scrawny, undersized little girl

and after I sent the first one to the hospital, the rest would back down quickly once they realized I didn't care if I got hurt as long as I hurt them right back.

It's always a mistake to piss off the Irish...

[Rozlee]

26. I was really tiny too.

I wasn't bullied much, but my heart broke when I found out my daughter was bullied in high school. She was a shy girl and there was a band of mean girls (isn't there always?) that would go around singling out other girls they didn't like. They had a posse of guys that hung with them and egged them on. The girls would say that such and such a girl put out and the guys would claim that she'd put out for them. They told everyone my daughter was pregnant. When time went on and it was obvious she wasn't, they said they saw her going into an abortion clinic. It was SOP. They did it to other girls. My daughter didn't tell me about it until years later, but if I ever had gotten hold of those rhymes-with-witches!

[Smilo]

13. I found out some boys were bullying my little sister

at school, so one morning I waited with her and told them to quit - they asked what I was going to do about it - I then kicked one as hard as I could (I walked away limping, so I know he was hurt) and after that they left her alone.

[Edweird]

14. I, too, stood up to them. I encourage others to do so as well and I am disgusted by those

that would seek to punish a victim defending his/her self.

[Downtown Hound]

20. That's one of the biggest problems with regards to bullying

A school policy that punishes victims for standing up for themselves. The protections schools have for kids getting bullied are absolutely pathetic. You either have to go tell the teacher, which may, (but probably won't) result in some action being taken. But then that same kid will have to through all kinds of taunts for being a nark. Or you can fight back and get in trouble.

It's a no win for kids that are bullied. You're screwed no matter what you do.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

28. In our HS...

...we got into trouble if we DIDN'T take up for ourselves, but if we didn't throw the first punch we were fine.

[Edweird]

31. We even have teachers here on this board providing cover for the bullies.

It's truly pathetic.

[socialist_n_TN]

15. Same here. I despise bullies and always have........

I would stand up to them even when I didn't know how to fight. Now that I do know how, nothing's changed. I agree. If I had been at that school I would have stood up to him. At that age I might have gotten my ass kicked, but I would have done it anyway.

[TlalocW]

16. My parents raised me to ignore the bully, and most times they'll stop...

But when they don't, do what you think is right.

You wouldn't think high school band class is where you would find bullies as the stereotype is that we're all music geeks to begin with, but there were some popular kids in there, and some of them were bullies. The freshman initiation was, "red-bellies," where the non-freshmen dragged a freshman to the ground, lifted up his or her shirt and took turns drumming on their stomach. They never got me when I was a freshman, which pissed them off. While I wasn't big that year, a few of them got elbows in the teeth for their trouble when they tried. My sophomore year - after I had started lifting weights and was now much bigger than the shit who was the ring-leader and most enthusiastic of the red-belliers, who was standing near me (when the teacher was out of the room - happened a lot, stupid git), giving me shit as well as giving me a "physical tell" that he was about to go for my legs (I, to the surprise of my classmates, excelled in wrestling in gym class even when smaller). He went for them; I threw my legs out behind me, and landed on top of him and quickly got him immobilized... and held him like that for 5 minutes, making fun of him in front of everyone as he struggled until the teacher came back into the room. "James? What are you doing? Let him up. Everyone get out the National Anthem; we need to work on it." (Once again, stupid git). That was enough for him to not to try anything on me or anyone else for the rest of the year.

Junior year starts, and I'm now on a par with most kids in school and bigger than anyone else in band (and am on the wrestling team at this point). Teacher has left the room for a moment while we're all sitting in our sections with our instruments. I stand up and say, "I have an announcement I'd like to make. There are going to be... no... more... red-bellies in band." I look at all the upperclassmen as I continue. "Anyone have a problem with that?" ending with the asshole who tried to get me the previous year.

There were no more red-bellies.

TlalocW

[trumad]

22. Google FAMU Marching band.

Real bad hazing and bullying.

[Robb]

19. I've been wanting to trot this out

...And given the kinder gentler trumad we know today, it seems like the right time:



To lifejackets and fishing poles.

[bloomington-lib]

24. In a broader sense, conservatives are the bullies

and they won't stop until we fight back.

[Diclotican]

25. trumad

trumad

All kudos to you - it is easy to look the other way, when it is not you who is been bullied...

I just wish you had been on my school, then I might not had been bullied so much as I was... I still have nightmares about it, and it is many years since I got out of grade school... And even then, i was not bullied by slapping and beating, rather other vice, they did know early on, how to "push" the buttons - and get a reaction on it... And I guess it was very funny to se me angry as hell, trying to defend me from things that is not possible to defend against... I guess I was a very lonely kid for many years... Oh well, that is in the past, isn't it?

And it is great that you have raised tree kids, to defend others who are in need - or not able to defend for them self. Not everyone have been blessed with a ability to fight when needed... You sound like a person who know right from wrong - and also to learn it to the next generation....

Bullies sounds alike, even when they try to act different - and mr Romney absolutely sounds like a bully, and if half what is known is true - then you better watch out if he ever goes all the way to the white house.. He would not be any better there, than he have been elsewhere...

Diclotican

[polichick]

27. Good story! Even as a small lightweight girl, I took on bullies...

...most of the time it just took a hard eye-to-eye look and a clever put-down - bullies are nothing but cowards.

[Marr]

29. I am not a large man, but I've had several fights with bullies as well.

I always found that they were very shocked to be hit, and didn't handle the pain very well. I had my nose broken twice, and I didn't always cause more damage than I received, but it was always enough to put them off bullying me again.

[fascisthunter]

30. I Have dealt with Bullies my whole life

and I wasn't blessed with a large body. The main problem is, most of the time folks do not stick up for the person being bullied, because they are afraid. I can't tell you how many times I had to deal with people larger than me, who thought because I was smaller they could somehow justify their bullying. It takes character to deal with that, and at times I lacked that character.... I still have scars from it, but now I stick up for anyone who is being bullied. I'm a better person now, not for being bullied, but for seeing what it does to people. If I didn't have empathy, it would not have effected me so positively.

[radicalliberal]

32. Thank you, trumad, for revealing this side of your character.

Otherwise, I never would have known. Because on previous occasions you seemed to come down hard on DU members who said they didn't like football, I had you pegged wrong (at least in my mind); and for that, I apologize.

From the time I was in the third grade until I graduated from high school, I attended public school in the Congressional District of Texas that once was represented by George Herbert Walker Bush. Of course, bullying and general meanness were the norm (as is still the case in most school districts). Mandatory P.E. was dreaded every single school day. One reason I took band in high school was so I wouldn't be required to take P.E., which was a bully's paradise. Principals and coaches didn't care. In all those years, I never even heard of a guy like you in my school district or anywhere else.

Thank you for your empathy and compassion. Sometimes the weaker guy has strengths of his own, but most people won't admit that.

[trumad]

34. You do have me wrong---regarding football.

or sports in general. I have a teenage son who does not play or watch sports---he has no interest and I am perfectly fine with that.

It's when people use a broad brush against sports like football to make it sound like some Neanderthal activity.....

I think it is a bit snobbish.

[radicalliberal]

36. But we are in agreement. :-)

Last edited Sun May 13, 2012, 11:04 PM - Edit history (1)

Even though I never had an interest in any sport, I never viewed football as if it were some kind of Neanderthal activity. (Hey, I think being big and strong is neat. That's why I work out at a health club now.) I always respected anyone's participation in a sport. I just assumed that many of the football players at my high school viewed me as being some kind of a wimp just because I wasn't an athlete.

I repeat, we're in agreement. Two of my closest friends played football in high school. One of them played football at the university where he earned his degree in sociology. What's interesting is that even though their religious beliefs differ sharply, they're both gentle men who detest bullying. By the way, one of the leading liberal Democratic politicians in the state of Texas was a former university football player named Bob Gammage (who is now retired from politics).

As for me, even though I've never been an athlete, I'm still not sedentary (at least not at this point in my life). In my late fifties I hired a personal trainer at a local health club to start working with me on a bodybuilding program; and I love working out! At the age of 61, I have muscular development I never had before in my life! It's quite a change from the mandatory P.E. of my boyhood.

As a father myself (in this case, the father of two daughters), I commend you for the love you have shown towards all your sons, including the nonathletic one.

This is just a theory of mine concerning at least some of the guys who put down football, and I don't mean to whine. Young nonathletic boys frequently grow up in a culture that defines masculinity in terms of sport. At least that was my experience. They may experience profound alienation in traditional mandatory P.E., as opposed to classes that provide genuine fitness programs. Emotional pain is involved that may not be completely understood at the time. My own experience was that hardly any instruction was provided in any of the P.E. classes about the sports themselves, and exercise programs were not provided for those who needed them the most. Such boys may be bullied simply for having no interest in sports. I suspect that many of the guys who badmouth football have had this experience. They may use the snobbish argument to make themselves feel better. I do admit, though, that some of the people who put down football are snobbish and really believe the "bread and circuses" line.

If I had a teenage son who wanted to play football in high school, I would support him.

I've just about blathered enough. Board messaging is not the best way to communicate. There's always the potential for misunderstanding. Thank you very much for clarifying your own position so I would no longer continue to misunderstand you. This topic has made me very happy!

P.S. I wasn't clear, trumad. What I was trying to say was that I misjudged you, for which I am ashamed. You didn't need to clarify anything.

[madokie]

33. I knew there was something about you

That made feel me good when I'd see your moniker here on DU

[alarimer]

35. All bullies grow up to be Republicans.

The worst kind of Republican too.