h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

After hearing the news story of a 23-year-old woman in South Wales who's been awarded £20,000 for the five years (age 4-9) of bullying she suffered at school. (I can't find the story online)

I want some compensation for the 8-9 years of bullying I suffered, as well as the sexual harassment from a male pupil I suffered at the age of 15, though it wasn't called that then, it was called "that's what boys do" that's the disgusting answer I got from the headmistress, (the person supposedly responsible for my care) after I plucked up the courage to tell her what was happening in the store room in the art classroom.

Anyone else want some compensation

Emmily

I'm not sure money could make up for how bullying makes you feel. Hope you are ok now Emmily

The 'compo' was a kinda tongue-in-cheek comment/question. I'm sure many people have suffered far worse in their childhoods/teenage years, in a way I think that's what gives us the mental strength we have as adults, and also our compassion.

I'm fine now thanks Tabitca, though for many years I did allow myself to be a victim of my past, but the ghosts are well buried now.

Emmily

What were you doing in a store room with the headmistress?

Is she still alive? Do you know where she lives? If so, go give her a piece of your mind she obviously needed some mind to fill her vacuous head.

Theres 'bullying' and theres *bullying*. The former is just kids being gits the latter is kids being evil, vindictive spawns of satan. Hopefully, any compensation should be for the latter.

The former is merely, as you say, character building.

The store room in the art classroom is where the boy was sexually harrassing me. The art teacher lived near me, I got a lift to school with her sometimes, I was most often asked to get the art eqipment out of the store room, he often followed me in, but I couldn't tell her, is that clearer

And no, the headmistress was old, I'd guess she's long dead.

'Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me' Sorry, but B*ll*cks...after the bruises have healed, it's the mental scars that you take into adult life!

Emmily

Here's the link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_east/4731946.stm

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Now, speaking as someone who was bullied from 7 to 15 (for reasons including, but not restricted to, being overweight, wearing glasses, and having poor parents) it seems that Ms Amor is massively overreacting to this. Looking at the school picture included in the article she wasn't overweight, being spat at is something that just happens... when I was at school I witnessed kids who I knew for a fact weren't being actively bullied get spat at simply because the person doing the spitting thought it was big and clever... and if being pushed over and needing stitches (something which happened to me in primary school, and which was wasn't done maliciously) is the worst example of physical violence she can offer then I say she got off lightly.

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I agree totally, I think there's a far more selfish reason for this (because, getting a big wodge of cash that could otherwise be spent combating bullying is, as far as I'm concerned, selfish).

My teachers were blind to the bullying (and blamed my lack of motivation to come into school on laziness) and my parents just used the 'stand up to them' cliché (even after my one attempt at standing up to a bully resulted in me being quite brutally beaten up).

Another example which suggests this is an overreactionL

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Who hasn't been pushed out of the way at school... Jaysus, I remember seeing even the cool kids get barged out of the way in corridors.

This isn't some kind of 'my life was harder than yours' competition you know, if she was bullied (and you have no way of know how bad it was) to the extent that she tried to kill herself then she had a bad time.

The ethics of the compensation culture is something else entirely, but you don't have any right to say she is 'overreacting'.

If this ruling forces otherwise complacent schools to re-examine their anti-bullying policy then it may be a good thing. If it opens the door for everyone that had a hard time at school but who wasn't resillient enough to get over it then it may be a bad thing because of the drain on council coffers.

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But, having had personal experience of quite severe bullying (and yes, I did try to kill myself once... I don't think I've ever told anyone that before!), this sounds like there's some other problem at work which she's hiding from (or is possibly unaware of) and she's using the (apparently quite minor, but you are quite correct with the "we don't know how bad it was" thing) bullying as a means of rationalising things.

I've just decided that I'm probably overreacting to what I'm seeing as her overreaction... it's just that the compensation culture that's developing in this country is absolutely appalling and I've got a stonking headache and no painkillers.

for Mr D.

Thanks Kelli... although a couple of paracetemol wouldn't go amiss as well, I wonder if you can send painkillers by e-mail?

Hope that helps

Hello, to intrude, but I just incase anyone reading this conversation is being bullied, here's a website you can go to...
http://www.bullywatch.org/victims.htm

again for the intrusion...

No need to apologise! This is a public forum and as such is open to all assuming they've signed up).

Ok cheers mate...

to be honest how can money make up for all the years of pain and anguish she has already suffered, life just isn't that simple, if it was, we'd all be happy, thered be no depression n so forth

Yes but amy, there's compensation, and there's compensation hun... Think about it...

Why am I talking to you like this when you're on the next computer to me...?

I can't believe how your headmistress reacted! If a child in your care tells you something like that you react to save them....