I really love Glee, and this week (horrendous Aretha mangling aside) was no exception. Finally we have a respectful, useful (if perhaps not entirely realistic) take on the how-to-deal-with-bullying issue that has been so overwrought and overdone lately! Bullying is obviously no joking matter and the idea that there are people out there who are so hurtful and cruel that kids are killing themselves is really despicable... but if we call the routine teasing we endured in primary and secondary school (one favorite incident I personally can recall is being offered a Snickers bar, only to discover - AFTER taking a bite - that it had been unwrapped and kicked around the floor of the bus and given to the first gullible kid that would take it) "bullying," it demeans what is happening to kids who are really being tortured.
Sorry, Demi Lovato, but "classmates pick[ing] on her because she was a working actress" to the point where "she turned to home schooling"? Gosh, how sad for her. NOT BULLYING. Physical assault is bullying, and even some verbal assault is bullying, but tough cookies y'all, getting made fun of is part of growing up. I went to private school and I was teased - no one is going to be safe from it unless they are the ones doing the bullying (and then we have to start delving into the deep-seated psychological issues/trauma that is at the root of one's desire to push his/her pain onto another). We are all expected to have tough skin upon finishing school and entering the "real" world, where there isn't always a sympathetic teacher or guidance counselor to help us when we're being picked on. Sometimes our bosses are the ones picking on us. (Right now I'm being "bullied" by my exceptionally hot boss, who is insisting that the Maryland Terrapins are better than my beloved Tarheels. BULLYING, Y'ALL. IT'S REAL.)
On a more serious note - if suicide becomes the best/most rational option for someone as a result of (1)rejection by peers/superiors and (2)the inability to deal with said rejection, it's a horrible thing. People SHOULD be more sensitive and kind toward each other. The "It Gets Better" campaign is really brilliant (although, come on - Hillary and Obama did ads? The point was for GAY people to talk about THEIR experiences. Being black-post-segregation/a-female-politician-slash-raging-bitch does not qualify you to speak on the matter) and will hopefully be a force for good, but overstating a serious matter only cheapens it.
So: Kudos, Glee; thumbs down, bandwagon mass media. The end.
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