Teen who was relentlessly bullied kills herself in front of her family - CNN

[TomSea]

It seems some adolescents, young persons are easily affected by social media. Fairly amazing. It wouldn't mean that much to say, most of us.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

It seems some adolescents, young persons are easily affected by social media. Fairly amazing. It wouldn't mean that much to say, most of us.

Probably because most of us were brought up without it, and so can do without it.  Also, adults just aren't as likely to say that kind of stuff to each other -- much too easy to be sued if you do.

[Gefn]

Back in the days when I was a professional writer I wrote a piece that was controversial. I was also on Facebook, for networking reasons.

Well, the comments I got on there were downright cruel and horrible. I just took myself off.

I'm not on any social media anymore and if I do go back to writing, it will be under a pseudonym

I can tell you it really did hurt my self esteem and made me feel like fecal matter. I can only imagine how something like this would hurt a teenager or someone a little more vunerable.

I know it sent me to a therapist for a few times after I cut the cord because I just couldn't wrap my head around how people I didn't know or slightly knew professionally  could be so horrible, just because they disagreed with my opinion.

I feel horrible for this teenager and her family. I wish I could have helped her.

[Applewood]

Back in the days when I was a professional writer I wrote a piece that was controversial. I was also on Facebook, for networking reasons.

Well, the comments I got on there were downright cruel and horrible. I just took myself off.

I'm not on any social media anymore and if I do go back to writing, it will be under a pseudonym

I can tell you it really did hurt my self esteem and made me feel like fecal matter. I can only imagine how something like this would hurt a teenager or someone a little more vunerable.

I know it sent me to a therapist for a few times after I cut the cord because I just couldn't wrap my head around how people I didn't know or slightly knew professionally  could be so horrible, just because they disagreed with my opinion.

I feel horrible for this teenager and her family. I wish I could have helped her.

Social media is full of kooks.  I've been threatened on Facebook more than once.  Others made fun of a photo I posted of my best friend and me.  I really think most, if not all, of these people are losers in life. Their lives are a mess, probably through their own fault, but rather than make positive changes in their lives, they attack someone else. I picture most of them as 40 years old,  living in their mother's basement,  probably using her computer, with no job and nothing else to do but go on Facebook and act tough. 

Just as I did in my youth, I ignored these losers.  And while I used my Facebook account regularly during the primaries, the election is over, so the account is now dormant   If I want to keep in touch with family and friends, I will call, text or email them.

[rodamala]

This is brought to you by a society of disconnected people fiddling with their smartphones, catching Pokémon.

Natural order is being obfuscated by "zero tolerance" policies that these kids have to deal with, where the checks and balances of THE REAL WORLD, puts bullies in their place.

When I was a senior in HS, my brother was a sophomore.  We had gym at the same time and one day some punk junior was hassling my little brother in the locker room after class.  Introduce me to the equation and that punk got slammed up against the locker by his throat.  Problem solved.

These days, I would have been expelled.

[Sanguine]

This is brought to you by a society of disconnected people fiddling with their smartphones, catching Pokémon.

Natural order is being obfuscated by "zero tolerance" policies that these kids have to deal with, where the checks and balances of THE REAL WORLD, put's bullies in their place.

When I was a senior in HS, my brother was a sophomore.  We had gym at the same time and one day some punk junior was hassling my little brother in the locker room after class.  Introduce me to the equation and that punk got slammed up against the locker by his throat.  Problem solved.

These days, I would have been expelled.

You would have been arrested and charged!

[rodamala]

You would have been arrested and charged!

Turns out the dude was the step brother of a girl that became one of my brother's very best and trusted female friends... the sorta girl that you take your girlfriend to for a thumbs up or down seal of approval.

[TomSea]

Good for Melania Trump for focusing on this problem.  Terrible!

Melania never killed another person in a car wreck like another first lady, I've got to add that in, some people shamelessly go after Trump for some reason.

[Smokin Joe]

I have to admit I don't understand this phenomenon at all. How and why do they pick a target?  And, why does the target get sucked into unwittingly participating?

Very sad story.

Social media gives kids the ability to slander another kid or otherwise make fun of them via cell phone. It is the lunch line writ large, and particularly vicious because it is done without anyone being able to see it like the old days when a teacher or parent or other adult could step in. Keeping in mind how lost some kids are in the social media and bereft of meat world contacts, it isn't hard to see how they could get lost in the emotions of being reviled by people who not only don't have the courage to do so face to face, but who also don't suffer the traditional repercussions of doing so, whether that be a lunch tray in the face, a fistfight in the hallway, or some means of the victim recovering 'face' and self-respect.
It is vile, and it is chewing up kids who are the target of the 'cool kids'.

[Smokin Joe]

This is brought to you by a society of disconnected people fiddling with their smartphones, catching Pokémon.

Natural order is being obfuscated by "zero tolerance" policies that these kids have to deal with, where the checks and balances of THE REAL WORLD, puts bullies in their place.

When I was a senior in HS, my brother was a sophomore.  We had gym at the same time and one day some punk junior was hassling my little brother in the locker room after class.  Introduce me to the equation and that punk got slammed up against the locker by his throat.  Problem solved.

These days, I would have been expelled.

You are precisely right. Part of adolescence is the process of finding a place in the social order of your peer group, whether that place is based on talent, intelligence, physical or athletic prowess, sense of humor, what have you. Part of that process includes the occasional scuffle. Unfortunately, zero tolerance keeps that angst bottled up until the top blows off, often with serious consequences. There is no substitute for backhanding the SOB who said something ugly about your mother, even if you know you will get your butt kicked for it. At least you retain your self-respect. Demanding you do nothing to address such insults and even more egregious matters is demeaning, and all the "self-esteem" in the world won't undo the degradation.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

You are precisely right. Part of adolescence is the process of finding a place in the social order of your peer group, whether that place is based on talent, intelligence, physical or athletic prowess, sense of humor, what have you. Part of that process includes the occasional scuffle. Unfortunately, zero tolerance keeps that angst bottled up until the top blows off, often with serious consequences. There is no substitute for backhanding the SOB who said something ugly about your mother, even if you know you will get your butt kicked for it. At least you retain your self-respect. Demanding you do nothing to address such insults and even more egregious matters is demeaning, and all the "self-esteem" in the world won't undo the degradation.

Punching back was an option back in the day when a bully had to be in your face to bully you.   But now, when a ton of it is cyber-bullying, that's not always an option.  If this girl was getting relentlessly mocked/harassed by people she didn't even know, some of whom were boys...punching them in the face isn't even possible.

[Smokin Joe]

Punching back was an option back in the day when a bully had to be in your face to bully you.   But now, when a ton of it is cyber-bullying, that's not always an option.  If this girl was getting relentlessly mocked/harassed by people she didn't even know, some of whom were boys...punching them in the face isn't even possible.

Agreed--see post 60. That is part of the problem, that people who have 'cool' on line personas can bully kids who are really far 'cooler', and have the social media herd follow them in doing so. Without the means to face their accusers or strike back, kids can't cope well with the result.
So much of a kid's development at that stage is related to feedback from people who know them, only that has changed to include, and then be overwhelmed by people who may never have said a word to them face to face.
This last election demonstrated the effectiveness of creating boogeymen via social media, and that is only one example of perpetrating and perpetuating exaggerations and outright falsehoods to the extent they become accepted by a significant number of people as "truth". From "Hands up Don't shoot", to "Lyin' Ted" to the nonsense spewed about "protecting water" at Standing Rock, this stuff can go from local to worldwide without a grain of truth, and the effects on young men and ladies trying to find their niche in the social order of things can be devastating.

[Sanguine]

If I found out that my daughter was being bullied, I would either have her cut off FB and Twitter entirely, or sign up under a fake name and only let close friends and family have access. 

If FB and Twitter are all that important to her that she would rather put up with harassment than not be publicly available - well, there's the problem, not the FB and Twitter.