Bullying must end!

A couple of weeks ago, a fourteen year old by the name of Jamey Rodemeyer ended his life due to bullying he was receving for being gay. 

Around Labor Day, an eleven year old living in Canada by the name of Mitchell Wilson ended his own life after suffering depression and anxiety over being attacked by a fellow student who stole his I-Phone and slammed his face into the ground..  Mitchell had muscular dystrophy which makes the attack on him even more despicable!

A couple of days later, a seventeen year old by the name of Christopher Howell also took his own life after years of constant bullying.

When will teachers, principals, superintendents and even parents take more action?  How about lawmakers?  There is a serious problem here!  These kids are taking their own lives because they feel that there is no hope; many of the right people are falling down on the job and they need to get off their asses and be more attentive to these kids!  An anti-bullying program is not effective if it isn't enforced!

The following video is a slideshow of some of the lives lost due to this social disease!

Peter Dinklage

The other night, on a commercial break from football, I tuned into the Emmys on Fox.  At one particular time, I was able to witness a poignant moment.  Peter Dinklage, a little person and a great actor, was awarded the Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a miniseries or movie for his role in "Game of Thrones".

I don't have HBO, so I am unable to see it but it is great to see Hollywood finally giving some recognition to a little person instead of objectifying them as they have in the past by casting them mainly as oompa -loompas or a typical little person role (such as the ones in Wizard of Oz).

Little people are just as human as the rest of us and are just as capable!  They are not here for us to laugh at and ridicule.  Like some of us, they have families, real jobs and (In Mr Dinklage's case) can play serious roles.

Since Hollywood seems to have such an influence on many people and their prejudices, maybe this will help society look at little people in a different way; as humans!

   

ABC engaging in heightism? George Stephanopoulos too short for "GMA"

Well...I hate to say I told you so.

Acording to TMZ, ABC and Good Morning America, in an effort to boost ratings, are considering getting rid of George Stephanopoulos, who, according to insiders  at ABC doesn't quite measure up to his female co anchors and could lose his job to a former ESPN anchor who stands 6'3" and has sat at the desk of World News Tonight.

Oh no wait...height discrimination doesn't exist...lol.

Mr Stephanopoulos is a highly esteemed and revered journalist who worked very closely with President Clinton.  He has hosted "This Week" before being replaced by Christian Amanpour.

If  these rumors are indeed true,  ABC should be truly ashamed of itself for engaging in this form of discrimination.

Here is the TMZ artcle!

http://www.tmz.com/person/george-stephanopoulos/

"What right does a 5'4" woman have to be a police officer?"

   I have been listening to the Bob Grant program and he was discussing discriminatory policies with a caller.  Bob mentioned something about how he walked out of a building one day and saw a female police officer standing about 5'4" or so and wondered to himself  "What right does she have to be a police officer?" 

   Is he unaware that there is traning to be a police officer first?  If the woman he mentioned wasn't capable of performing her duties, she wouldn't have made it through the academy.  But because Mr Grant doesn't feel protected by a woman of that size, she should be denied the opportunity to serve....ureal!

Short man called "pipsqueak" by NY Post

    First, a little context to this story....

    According to news reports there has been a man, short in stature, roaming the Upper East Side (UES) of Manhattan groping and sexually assaulting women since January.

    A few days ago, on July 22nd, a hispanic man by the name of Eusebio Molina, was running in Central Park and had groped a 41 year old female jogger's buttocks.  He fled right after but was found by police and arrested.  This man was also short in stature (about 5'2") and was put in a lineup to see if he had been the man wanted in connection with the UES attacks.   They brought the victims in but they did not identify him as the attacker.

   Now, no one is condoning his actions of course and he should be imprisoned, along with the other pervert who is still roaming the UES of Manhattan.  However, the characterization of  him as a "pipsqueak" is what I question.  If you look at the article, is it surprising that it was written by two women?  Would those same women refer to him (meaning Eusebio Molina) as a :"wetback" or a "spic"? What do you think?  I bet not!  Yet, it is perfectly acceptable to attack his short stature!
Here is the article....

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/pipsqueak_ruled_out_as_groper_WZ9zjHaRNxtLnVGpCd8mtN?CMP=OTC-rss&FEEDNAME=

"Small people...can turn out to be a pain"

   So, just about a week ago, an article came out suggesting that fact that tall people are at a higher risk of cancer.  Then, in response, real quickly, another article came out from the BBC making sure that tall people were cuddled and basically said  "Don't worry, though you may be at a higher risk of cancer, you still are superior to the shorties!"   Here is the article:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-14233727

   Specifically, have a look at this quote from the director of a Tall Person's Club, a 6'3" woman named Louise Ross-Foden:

Louise Ross-Foden, a director of the Tall Persons Club, is 6ft 3in. She says there are lots of advantages to being tall.

 "I can always get a good view at concerts because I can see over everyone else's heads. If you're tall there's automatically a 'wow' factor, people notice you and if you're a confident person like me then you carry yourself better.

"Small people constantly want to prove themselves - and they can turn out to be a pain as a result."          

  Gee Ms Foden, do you think perhaps the idea that shorter people must try harder could have anything to do with the fact that you have a sense of entitlement about yourself and have such a negative view of  us "small people"?  Sadly, we have to try harder because we aren't treated as equals, especially by people like you!

***Update***

   Today (7/28/11), I received an email from the Tall Person's Club about this particular quote and it has since been removed due to complaints from others to the BBC as well:

Hi Chris,

Thank you for your email.

I appreciate that the article you mentioned caused you some distress - we're
not very happy about it either as it is not a true reflection of Louise's
comments. What she actually said was "Tall people get noticed more easily,
shorter people have to work harder to stand out", which is something I have
always found to be true and not necessarily in a beneficial way - I
personally rarely want the extra attention my height gives me.

Louise never said that "short people can be a pain" - she doesn't believe
this at all and neither does the Club. The purpose of our Club is to
provide practical, medical and social support for those of above average
height, not to in any way denigrate those who are not.

I hope this answers your query, if not please feel free to contact me
directly.

Helen Porter
Admin
Tall Persons Club GB & Ireland

To: Webmaster

From:
Chris Hamre

Message:
Dear Ms. Foden-

My name is Christopher Hamre and I am the president of NOSSA
(National Organization of Short Statured Adults) and I want to respond
to your comment in a recent article about small people being pains
because we have to prove ourselves.

Since women have not been treated equally either, would it then be
fair to label you in the same fashion? Women also have had to work
harder to prove themselves but I wouldn't then refer to them in a
negative way. I wouldn't penalize them and stigmatize them unfairly as
you have small people.

Short people are not treated equally, so why attach blame to us when
we have to work harder to succeed? I guess if we were treated equally
(as we should be), we would cease being "pains" then.

So, which is it, are we equals or not? If so, then we need similar
measures to counter the prejudice we face. If you don't think of us as
equals, then why be surprised when we have to try 10x harder to make
it in life?

Thanks for your time

Cyber bullies = cowards

   Just like their brethren, the physical bully, a cyber bully is a coward, even more so because they don't have the cajones to confront their victims face to face.  They use the internet (to cloak their identity), cell phones for texting nasty messages or emails at work to harass their victims. 
  
   Cyber bullying and cyber stalking are pretty pathetic acts when a adolescent partakes in them but they are much more so when full grown adults can't seem to shake their adolescent/pre pubescent inclinations.  They will attack others via the internet, engaging in character assassination, nit picking, name calling like they are five year olds, and spreading lies (doesn't sound like an adult does it?);  all this in a vain effort to empower themselves because they are insecure about their own, unfruitful lives.  Perhaps they need to look at themselves first before they try and dismantle someone else's life.

   Cyber bullies and stalkers are usually mentally unbalanced or psychologically scarred, possibly from years of abuse they have suffered at the hands of other bullies.  Since they more than likely fear physical confrontation, the electronic media becomes their platform.  They will unleash verbal hell at anyone they dislike and all those years of having their feelings suppressed now become expressed and they erupt like a volcano!

   Once this behavior is recognized, that person will more than likely be ignored, which hopefully will result in an end to their attacks or they will, sadly, become even more belligerent.  Sooner or later the attacks will cease, either a good friend will intervene on the bullies behalf and recommend counseling or the bully themselves will just reach a breaking point.

  It is unfortunate that some people feel the only way they can communicate effectively is through constant verbal attacks, when, in reality, those do nothing but indict the character of the attacker.

  Cyber- bullying (as well as physical bullying) must end and, if you engage in it, please stop it!  If you are truly angry at someone, do not blog, send them a nasty text or a malicious email.  When you become rational or less emotional, then send them a message, phone them or speak to them face to face.  Don't let hate consume you or it will destroy you eventually!

  If you are the target, try to ignore the bully as best as you can.  Just as easily as they use the internet or cell phone to hurt you, you can ignore them by deleting any message they have or by just ignoring whatever webpage they use.

  For more info about cyber bullying please visit:  http://www.nossaonline.org/hgh/antibullyingprograms.html