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I was walking down a hallway once in middle school and a kid I had never even talked to just walked up and punched me in the ear. Just an idea of the random vio

I was walking down a hallway once in middle school and a kid I had never even talked to just walked up and punched me in the ear. Just an idea of the random violence that happens, as well as the psychological warfare campaigns these kids are capable of launching. It is definitely not just a movie trope.

zozbot234 5y ago
Isn't that a pretty serious crime? I hope you reported it.
- GoOnThenDoTell 5y ago
  Teachers often won’t/can’t do anything about it, why would the child think the cops would care
  - snicker7 5y ago
    Teachers get a lot of (empty) praise in the US. But many of them allow bullying. Many ARE the bullies. I've known a teacher who sold drugs to students. I remember a classmate who was r*ped by a teacher.
    - DataJunkie 5y ago
      I had a few good teachers in high school. I had excellent teachers in middle school. It is a profession that should be respected but there is a chicken and egg problem: 1) teachers are not respected by parents, administrators and politicians, 2) so very few of the people that would make great teachers go into teaching And in some states like California, it's very easy to become a teacher on an emergency credential. In the mid to late 90s when I was in school, most of our teachers were like 23 or 24 and were on emergency credentials. They were not the good ones.
    - Tabular-Iceberg 5y ago
      Why r*ped?
- irrational 5y ago
  You will probably be suspended or expelled. I wish I was joking, but the schools usually have a zero tolerance policy which around here means both the bully and the bullied are considered equally at fault.
  - rriepe 5y ago
    They're then given a "fair and equal" punishment: An academically ruinous suspension for the kid that cares, and a vacation for the kid that doesn't. Every single problem America has, the kids end up paying for. This grew out of our sue-happy 80s/90s culture. School administrators basically opted out of their job because they were afraid of lawsuits.
- chrisseaton 5y ago
  Fights between minors are usually not treated as criminal matters. I think the formal mechanism is some wording about 'horseplay' or something.
  - giantg2 5y ago
    Depends on where you are. Many schools are required to report any criminal activity, including assaults (fights). Then there's the no tolerance polices too.
    - deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]
    - barry-cotter 5y ago
      The no tolerance policy is for the school’s benefit, not the students’. If you fought back you were fighting which means you will be punished too.
      - chrisseaton 5y ago
        ‘Fighting back’ isn’t defending yourself - it’s just fighting. People should leave and get an adult if they’re involved in a fight.
        giantg2 5y ago
        Lol it sounds like you've never been in a fight. How about if you're cornered or pinned? And how about if they're faster than you? Sometimes fighting is your best or only option. If it wasn't, then the corporate lawyers wouldn't allow 'fight' in the 'run, hide, fight' internal threat training. Not to mention, punishing people who defend themselves is counter to the laws and beliefs of society. So much for schools preparing people for life in the real world.
        chrisseaton 5y ago
        > run, hide, fight Can you see the order these are in? And people who think they're fighting back usually don't do the minimum to defend themselves. They very quickly turn into just brawling themselves as much as the other person was. Your right to defend yourself means doing the bare minimum to stop the threat against you or others. It doesn't mean 'standing your ground' and 'fighting back' like they think it does. You can see how when a teacher comes around the corner someone who's decided to fight back looks just as bad as the person who started it in many cases.
- eyelidlessness 5y ago
  To who? The crime police? They're the people who go around randomly punching people, a few years older.
- mypalmike 5y ago
  "Kids will be kids. Why are you causing trouble? Can't you just try to get along?"
- barry-cotter 5y ago
  It’s a school. If you go to the police they’ll do their best to make it a school internal matter and the school will do their best to make sure there’s no external record of it happening. Maybe someone will get expelled. Absent broken bones or severe permanent scarring that’s about it unless you’re going to lawyer up.
mmcgaha 5y ago
I was in 7th grade and a 9th grader did the same to me. I am happy to report that sometimes the bully regrets his decisions. For people wondering about police, this was around 1986 so no police got involved. Things did not work that way back then.
jimmygrapes 5y ago
Impulse control isn't particularly developed for long after high school ages. Kinda makes you question other things people that age claim as absolutely true like "true love" or "worst day ever" or "my biology is wrong"
- bawolff 5y ago
  That's bullshit. You don't need super strong impulse control not to punch randoms unprevoked. Teens will do impulsive things sometimes, that doesn't mean they get a blank cheque to hurt and assualt those around them.
- LordDragonfang 5y ago
  >Kinda makes you question other things people that age claim as absolutely true like "true love" or "worst day ever" or "my biology is wrong" In all of those cases, the best thing to do for a teen's mental/emotional wellbeing is to take it seriously and treat them with respect. Everyone has to gain lived experience by living it, and you shouldn't try to invalidate their feelings just because they've experienced fewer of them.

zozbot234 5y ago

Isn't that a pretty serious crime? I hope you reported it.

GoOnThenDoTell 5y ago
Teachers often won’t/can’t do anything about it, why would the child think the cops would care
- snicker7 5y ago
  Teachers get a lot of (empty) praise in the US. But many of them allow bullying. Many ARE the bullies. I've known a teacher who sold drugs to students. I remember a classmate who was r*ped by a teacher.
  - DataJunkie 5y ago
    I had a few good teachers in high school. I had excellent teachers in middle school. It is a profession that should be respected but there is a chicken and egg problem: 1) teachers are not respected by parents, administrators and politicians, 2) so very few of the people that would make great teachers go into teaching And in some states like California, it's very easy to become a teacher on an emergency credential. In the mid to late 90s when I was in school, most of our teachers were like 23 or 24 and were on emergency credentials. They were not the good ones.
  - Tabular-Iceberg 5y ago
    Why r*ped?
irrational 5y ago
You will probably be suspended or expelled. I wish I was joking, but the schools usually have a zero tolerance policy which around here means both the bully and the bullied are considered equally at fault.
- rriepe 5y ago
  They're then given a "fair and equal" punishment: An academically ruinous suspension for the kid that cares, and a vacation for the kid that doesn't. Every single problem America has, the kids end up paying for. This grew out of our sue-happy 80s/90s culture. School administrators basically opted out of their job because they were afraid of lawsuits.
chrisseaton 5y ago
Fights between minors are usually not treated as criminal matters. I think the formal mechanism is some wording about 'horseplay' or something.
- giantg2 5y ago
  Depends on where you are. Many schools are required to report any criminal activity, including assaults (fights). Then there's the no tolerance polices too.
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
  - barry-cotter 5y ago
    The no tolerance policy is for the school’s benefit, not the students’. If you fought back you were fighting which means you will be punished too.
    - chrisseaton 5y ago
      ‘Fighting back’ isn’t defending yourself - it’s just fighting. People should leave and get an adult if they’re involved in a fight.
      - giantg2 5y ago
        Lol it sounds like you've never been in a fight. How about if you're cornered or pinned? And how about if they're faster than you? Sometimes fighting is your best or only option. If it wasn't, then the corporate lawyers wouldn't allow 'fight' in the 'run, hide, fight' internal threat training. Not to mention, punishing people who defend themselves is counter to the laws and beliefs of society. So much for schools preparing people for life in the real world.
        chrisseaton 5y ago
        > run, hide, fight Can you see the order these are in? And people who think they're fighting back usually don't do the minimum to defend themselves. They very quickly turn into just brawling themselves as much as the other person was. Your right to defend yourself means doing the bare minimum to stop the threat against you or others. It doesn't mean 'standing your ground' and 'fighting back' like they think it does. You can see how when a teacher comes around the corner someone who's decided to fight back looks just as bad as the person who started it in many cases.
eyelidlessness 5y ago
To who? The crime police? They're the people who go around randomly punching people, a few years older.
mypalmike 5y ago
"Kids will be kids. Why are you causing trouble? Can't you just try to get along?"
barry-cotter 5y ago
It’s a school. If you go to the police they’ll do their best to make it a school internal matter and the school will do their best to make sure there’s no external record of it happening. Maybe someone will get expelled. Absent broken bones or severe permanent scarring that’s about it unless you’re going to lawyer up.

mmcgaha 5y ago

I was in 7th grade and a 9th grader did the same to me. I am happy to report that sometimes the bully regrets his decisions. For people wondering about police, this was around 1986 so no police got involved. Things did not work that way back then.

jimmygrapes 5y ago

Impulse control isn't particularly developed for long after high school ages. Kinda makes you question other things people that age claim as absolutely true like "true love" or "worst day ever" or "my biology is wrong"

bawolff 5y ago
That's bullshit. You don't need super strong impulse control not to punch randoms unprevoked. Teens will do impulsive things sometimes, that doesn't mean they get a blank cheque to hurt and assualt those around them.
LordDragonfang 5y ago
>Kinda makes you question other things people that age claim as absolutely true like "true love" or "worst day ever" or "my biology is wrong" In all of those cases, the best thing to do for a teen's mental/emotional wellbeing is to take it seriously and treat them with respect. Everyone has to gain lived experience by living it, and you shouldn't try to invalidate their feelings just because they've experienced fewer of them.