Kid bullies another kid, and bully's parents get a fine? I'm okay with this

[Cerim Treascair]

story link is here:  http://hypervocal.com/news/2013/wisconsin-anti-bullying-ordinance/


In short, Wisconsin's considering anti-bullying legislation that dings the PARENTS if they're shown to be dickweasels.  $114 for the first time, $177 for each SUBSEQUENT bullying incident!

As my roomie put it:  "that'll result in a lot of bullies getting their asses kicked... by their own parents!"

[R. U. Sirius]

Problem: This would first require the school to recognize that bullying was taking place.

In my experience, that's about as common as Fred Phelps saying something intelligent.

[Sleepy]

While it sounds like a decent idea at first glance, I would worry about the effects such a thing would have on the family. Kids who bully others at school are often bullied at home, in a low-income household. Taking their money certainly won't help the parents/guardians make improvements to provide a more stable household environment.

[Osama bin Bambi]

While it sounds like a decent idea at first glance, I would worry about the effects such a thing would have on the family. Kids who bully others at school are often bullied at home, in a low-income household. Taking their money certainly won't help the parents/guardians make improvements to provide a more stable household environment.

This. It sounds like a nice karmic idea, but I think the main thing that permits bullying to take place is the administration's reluctance to deal with the matter and the victims' fear to report it.

[Barbarella]

I think laws should tackle both the lazy-assed administrators AND the bullies' parents.

[Tolpuddle Martyr]

I'm afraid, as a teacher who used to work in high schools that this will turn even more parental venom onto teachers.

In my experience you'd often find that the parents of Brutus Headbutt were either completely indifferent or outright hostile to you and would often threaten you for getting their kid into trouble. I think if parents of bullies were fined you'd see a LOT more of the latter!

[R. U. Sirius]

While it sounds like a decent idea at first glance, I would worry about the effects such a thing would have on the family. Kids who bully others at school are often bullied at home, in a low-income household. Taking their money certainly won't help the parents/guardians make improvements to provide a more stable household environment.

This is actually a myth. I have no doubt that it's true in some cases, but more often it's confident, popular kids asserting their perceived authority over their peers. Not that different from bosses who bully their workers, or Christians who say "we're the majority, we should call all the shots."

http://www.stopbullying.gov/resources-files/myths-about-bullying-tipsheet.pdf
http://www.wecdsb.on.ca/pdf/cyberbullying/ten_myths.pdf
http://bullying.about.com/od/Basics/a/10-Common-Myths-And-Misconceptions-About-Bullying.htm

[Meshakhad]

Well, if they want to save money, they can just eat their asshole kids.

[RavynousHunter]

Now, if we would get rid of this "Zero Tolerance" bullshit, we'd damn near be home free.  Defending yourself should NOT be a punishable offense.  I'm sure that bullshit rule enables the little bastards, because they know their poor victims will be terrified of getting expelled if they defend themselves.  All it does is empower the wrong...people.

As for fining the fine...I can't find myself giving too much of a shit about the little shit's parents getting a financial whack.

[Sleepy]

While it sounds like a decent idea at first glance, I would worry about the effects such a thing would have on the family. Kids who bully others at school are often bullied at home, in a low-income household. Taking their money certainly won't help the parents/guardians make improvements to provide a more stable household environment.

This is actually a myth. I have no doubt that it's true in some cases, but more often it's confident, popular kids asserting their perceived authority over their peers. Not that different from bosses who bully their workers, or Christians who say "we're the majority, we should call all the shots."

http://www.stopbullying.gov/resources-files/myths-about-bullying-tipsheet.pdf
http://www.wecdsb.on.ca/pdf/cyberbullying/ten_myths.pdf
http://bullying.about.com/od/Basics/a/10-Common-Myths-And-Misconceptions-About-Bullying.htm

I don't really see anything in those links refuting what I said. I'm not saying that the majority of bullies are from low-income families, just that it's a frequent occurrence. I have no idea what the stats are for bullies and average family income. As for confidence, some are overly egotistical assholes, and others are superficially confident on the outside, while completely lacking self-esteem inside. It just depends on the person and the situation. Abuse cycles through generations, so its occurrence certainly isn't unlikely.

[ironbite]

Doesn't even have to come from a low-income family either.  Could be some rich kids dad who hits the sauce all the time and bullies him taking it out on what he considers his inferior and the fine causing the kid's dad to up the beatings.  It's a vicious cycle.

Ironbite-I'm both for and against this.

[Meshakhad]

Now, if we would get rid of this "Zero Tolerance" bullshit, we'd damn near be home free.  Defending yourself should NOT be a punishable offense.  I'm sure that bullshit rule enables the little bastards, because they know their poor victims will be terrified of getting expelled if they defend themselves.  All it does is empower the wrong...people.

As for fining the fine...I can't find myself giving too much of a shit about the little shit's parents getting a financial whack.

Agreed. Especially since I plan to personally educate my kids in basic self-defense techniques.

[Osama bin Bambi]

Now, if we would get rid of this "Zero Tolerance" bullshit, we'd damn near be home free.  Defending yourself should NOT be a punishable offense.  I'm sure that bullshit rule enables the little bastards, because they know their poor victims will be terrified of getting expelled if they defend themselves.  All it does is empower the wrong...people.

As for fining the fine...I can't find myself giving too much of a shit about the little shit's parents getting a financial whack.

Agreed. Especially since I plan to personally educate my kids in basic self-defense techniques.

One asshole school admin who tried defending the Zero Tolerance policy about bullying basically said reasons to the effect of, "The school doesn't have the interest, time, or money in investigating he-said-she-said complaints."

[RavynousHunter]

And I bet that asshole wonders why kids blow their fellow students and/or themselves away when they finally fucking snap.  People have their limits, and if you're stupid enough to break them, you shouldn't be surprised by the consequences.

[Radiation]

I'm on the fence about this. I was bullied in school all the time, kindergarten to 12th grade but I wasn't physically bullied but psychologically. On one hand, I think that parents should be held responsible for their kids' behavior as they are the ones upbringing them. On the other, this kind of rule will most definitely backfire in some way.