Bullying Has Strayed Well Beyond The Playground

I remember as a kid some of the worst fights that I have ever seen occurred on the school playground. Those infamous words of "fight, fight, fight" was a warning that a fisticuffs was about to take place as we all clamored to be a spectator of the event. Somebody was mad about what somebody else had said or someone had looked at someone else's girlfriend. Or it could have been many other logical and perfectly good reasons to head to the playground and try and beat the snot out of each other.<br /> <br /> Looking back, the incidents that occurred right after the fight, which were usually instigated by our principal, had much longer reaching effects than the fight ever did. It was an ugly day when you were pulled by the ear to the principal's office. The bloody nose or black eye paled in comparison to the next beating that would soon occur. This beating came first from the principal and then by your parents. After all of that, the fight hardly seemed worth the effort. But, the fights of my childhood in comparison to how kids work out their differences today were a walk in the park.<br /> <br /> School officials have decided, and I would agree, that the playground is no longer a suitable place for our little angels to work on their anger management. There are plenty of opportunities now for kids to be exposed to all sorts of violence without bringing it to school. The ramifications for school violence are very severe and students know full well that by violating the rules, they may very well find themselves without a school to go to. But kids have adjusted to the new world of non violent schools and have adjusted accordingly. There are still a few old fashion fights, but they just move them to another location. A new form of retaliation, when kids find themselves at odds, can cause damage that the swinging of a fist was never capable of. Many kids have resorted to cyber fighting or cyber bullying.<br /> <br /> Quite simply put, kids go online and send brutal messages often through popular sites such as Facebook, Myspace, or just a string of malicious e-mails, text messages, and cell phone messages that can cause unmerciful damage to the reputation and the psyche of a student. No need for blood and guts when a tap tap tap on the keyboard can be even more hurtful. Kids who participate in this practice post information about their apparent "opponent" that is often made up of lies, innuendos, and a campaign to smear who ever they have taken on. The "sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me" mantra that we used as children is no longer valid. In these cases, words can be devastating and even deadly in the worst case scenarios where kids have become so distraught that they resort to suicide.<br /> <br /> Experts at i

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