Reminds of this kid I knew in high school named Kyle Sawatka (people used to call him Kyle Swastika). The guy was like a chihuahua, a pepped-up, loutish, little midget psycho who would terrorize everyone with his obnoxious behavior. Thing is, despite being so unpleasant and something of a bully himself, he was always being coddled by the school counselors as being a target of bullying. Why? Because nobody hung out with the guy.

At times I felt sorry for him, and I spun the theory that he made himself so alienating because he was too insecure to make friends, so he would push everyone away.

One of the girls at our lunch table invited him to set with us out of pity. Lemme tell ya, the pity ran dry in the span of one lunch period. No one should feel sorry for this kid. The second he came over, he started mooching money to buy food, despite already having some. He cut into our every conversation with his own opinions, which consisted exclusively of "That's gay." and "You're gay."

If you're like Kyle and can't assimilate to a school setting at all, then I don't think it's the responsibility of everyone else to do the extra leg work to make him feel welcome. I was bullied all throughout middle school and high school, and I still had a small troupe of good friends. My lunch table was the closest thing Kyle had to friends, and he treated us like garbage.

Oh, they were. Unfortunately this kind of parental behaviour, from what I understand from my mother's opinion as a teacher, makes it hard to distinguish between a kid who's bullied for reasons he can't help and a kid who's just an asshole who no one likes.

Most 'assholes' and bullies are bully victims themselves.

Just putting that out there.

Of course they are. I'm sure Kyle's dad was a dick. Knowing that wouldn't make me hate him any less though.

Jesus, guys. The socially awkward are always going to be bullied. No amount of trying to put a stop to it will actually put a stop to it. Kids eventually grow up, and usually grow out of this behavior. Some don't, and those people are usually ostracized in adulthood.

^ This.

It can't be stopped, but reduction is still helpful.

That's what your mom said.

I'd like to think my mother was anti-bullying, yes.

Is it bullying if you beat the living shit out of someone who bullied you for years?

That's called sinking down to a certain level.

Yes, and that's why the law (in Australia at least, but I'd be surprised if it wasn't similar elsewhere) doesn't define what actions are considered offensive; it's considered offensive if the victim was offended. Yes, it's all in the eye of the beholder, but that doesn't give you free rein to say and do whatever you like.

Well, I think that's the thing, it does give you free rein to say whatever you like however, there will be consequences afterwards...but then we solved all this in Burschenschaft so there's not too much point in devolving into that.