Your comments on 'The best protection isn’t legislation'
finally, a constructive observation to
by i love Ms. Wente's work.10/16/2012 12:37:37 PM
Classic blame-the-victim mentality.
by FDionne10/16/2012 12:42:12 PM
Insightful as usual, Ms. Wente, but I don't think the school board's offer of "counselling"and anger management is any answer in these matters.
by june conway beeby10/16/2012 12:47:04 PM
Nice to see 'blame the victim' mentality alive and well. How crazy do you need to be to actually think her suicide was not a direct result of bullying?
by TrueChaos10/16/2012 12:52:18 PM
Did anybody using the "blame the victim" retort actually read the column? The ENTIRE column?
by Fishyguy10/16/2012 1:00:01 PM
While I'm sure mental illness is a factor in bullying (and most definitely in suicide), it's a mistake to think that it's the sole cause. Ms. Todd's bullying was extra cruel -- she had a stalker (and if it's true this man was in his late 20s, early 30s, a pedophile stalker) who goaded her into flashing him on the internet and then blackmailed her with those pictures, eventually following her around and attempting to ruin her life. Which he did.
by KDR197910/16/2012 1:03:33 PM
^Not crazy, just a bully yourself to blame the victim.
by Anonymously10/16/2012 1:04:25 PM
How crazy do you need to be to actually think her suicide was not a direct result of bullying?"
by Anonymously10/16/2012 1:04:27 PM
The internet has become the new platground of bullying. If kids internet lives would become less important and less of a priority cases like amandas would not happen. It is time to get back to reality.
by fred10/16/2012 1:13:40 PM
Great points here about factors outside of direct bullying. This is most certainly not a blame the victim piece people...
by Mama10/16/2012 1:14:07 PM
The only problem is today aggressive, ambitious, greedy Canadian adults are no role models for good conduct and emotional empathy.
by The Work Farce10/16/2012 1:16:15 PM
It’s the constant, close involvement of responsible adults – parents, teachers, coaches, bus drivers, aunts, uncles, neighbours – who’re aware of their role in modelling good conduct, empathy and emotional regulation.
by The Work Farce10/16/2012 1:16:16 PM
Good column maggie. I fully agree with you. Frankly, I wasn't fully aware of the details of the BC girl's tragic suicide. I hope that this provides a reminder to all of us that have young children of the dangers of the cyberworld. And yes, we as parents need to just spend some time and talk to our kids.
by Osmotic Self-Realization10/16/2012 1:17:19 PM
Thank you Margaret for articulating so well what has been roiling around in my mind since this tragedy occurred. It is not up to the schools to "fix" bullying. Morality begins at home and it is time for moms and dads to the accountable for what they are modeling at home (and in the workplace) when it comes to bullying. As parents and community members, we are going to have own a large part of this problem. It would be so much easier if we could just hand it off to teachers or, heaven forbid, bureaucrats and politicians, but that would just be the illusion of a fix...not a real solution. Keep stating the obvious Margaret; don't let us hide from our collective responsibility in this case...
by Julie O-C10/16/2012 1:23:22 PM
No matter how you slice it - it is a sad event - one that I think in this case was preventable. The real question now is - how do we make Amanda's death the last of it's kind? That is the aim of everything that has gone on since her death. Support from parents, teachers and other groups is certainly part of the solution for the victim. Perhaps though there is another aspect that needs to be explored that is more controversial - a proactive, preventative measure. Turn the tables and "out" the cyber-bullies. They feel safe in their attacks mostly due to the anonymity of the internet but would probably be less willing to cyber-bully if they knew that the chance of their identity being publicized was greater than it is now. Fighting fire with fire is occasionally the way to go.
by sanddemon10/16/2012 1:33:32 PM
Straight from the mouth of a bully. Classic.
by ross henderson10/16/2012 1:42:14 PM
It's one thing to talk about education programs...quite another to put them into practice. Virtues education and dialogue with students is PARAMOUNT ...we have two ears to listen one tongue to speak...unfortunately loose fingers rule the schools.
by Bats 10/16/2012 2:00:35 PM
Maybe the point is simple. If we treat government as a rug under which we sweep the debris of all our social failures then maybe we will also assume some positive result will follow without the need for anybody else to do anything. How convenient is that?
by Thomas Scott10/16/2012 2:00:41 PM
It is a sad story any way you turn it.
by Gabriel10/16/2012 2:00:44 PM
It's time they started standing up for themselves ..... Period. If you standup for yourself they themselves (bully's)don't like the confrontation... Now I don't mean kick their butts but take charge and show your better than these idiots. Kids are bubblewrapped in all aspects of life today... Time for them to fight back