In a perfect world, and in my heart of hearts, I would ask every citizen on the planet to take to heart and action this checklist from Child Psychologist Dr. Lynn Namka.
Here are my responsibilities for
making our world People Friendly.
_____ I have the responsibility
to treat others with kindness and compassion.
_____ I have the
responsibility to respect others as individuals.
_____ I have
the responsibility to not treat others unfairly because they are fat
or thin, tall or short, boy or girl, weak or strong, bigger or smaller
or have a different color skin.
_____ I have the responsibility
to make my home and school safe by not threatening others.
_____I
have the responsibility to respect other people's property.
_____I
have the responsibility to learn about myself and practice self control.
_____I
have the responsibility to own up to my actions which are harmful
to others.
People make choices about how they act towards each
other. People who hurt others forget that they have other choices.
What would this world be like if everyone lived according to this
Bill of Rights and Responsibilities? How would your school be different?
What would be different at your house?
As my young nephew packs his bags to go home, he says he can’t wait to try out his new punching and kicking techniques on the bully at school. He hopes this kid will “just try and do something” so he can beat him up this time. “Like the Samuri Warrior,” I say, “practice your technique so you are ready, but hopefully you will never have to use it.” I remind him that he hasn’t learned any techniques yet, but was merely shown some. “It will take time,” I say. “A lot of practice.” He tries out a few punches in the air, leaving his face open and his balance too far forward. “Never allow your face to be un-guarded and keep your core balance,” I remind him. “It’s important to know when to strike.” It’s important to know when to use force, when to pull back, and when to try diplomacy. That knowledge and timing is how some of the most important social changes have been carried out in our world. (Rosa Parks did not just walk on that bus one day. She trained for years with other freedom fighters for that carefully planned maneuver.)
Thanks to George W.
Bush’s reign of tyranny, and the results of his ill-planned, selfish,
dishonest, and destructive business, our country has earned, across
the globe, the moniker of the biggest bully on the block. This administration
is effective at frightening their foes, and the Democrats in Congress
spent six long years walking around with bloodied noses and giving
their lunch money away. The American people have allowed shock, disbelief,
or fear to dictate thoughts and (in)actions over these years. We have
let the Constitution take a beating. The outcome of the last election
speaks volumes from the American people who are now off the floor.
Breathing has resumed. In this last election, the American people
have shown that we are ready to use our responsibility wisely and
courageously. The new Congress need not act with timidity. George
Bush is planning an escalation of this war, and he can without a majority
in Congress to overturn his veto power. We have to help Congress on
both sides of the isle know that we have their backs because they
will not vote against the escalation of troops or the end of this
war without us. We have to tell them that we don’t want more people
to die so that the fat cats can get rich by building oil pipelines,
while risking World War III and urging on “Armageddon.” The only hope
we have to stop this crazy machine is to put down the weapons and
begin talking to the bullies in
Just think what kind of role models we would
be if our leaders acted in good faith toward each other. Maybe, just
maybe, my nephew and his bully could learn from our example.
Works Cited:
Huebner, Angela, and Erin Morgan. “Adolescent Bullying.”
Extension. April 2002. Virginia Polytechnic Insittute
and
Namka,
Lynn. “PeaceBuilding Skills: Bully Behavior Curriculum.” Talk, Trust
and Feel
Therapeutics.1996. December 2000 <http://www.angriesout.com/skills2.htm#learn>
