I myself was reared on the "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me" mantra, and I have found it a useful approach to many social situations.
That said, I worked in human resources for a small company and had to research the topic of bullying when complaints were made. I will just point out that "namecalling and insulting" can certainly form a pattern of bullying and this pattern can have serious repercussions on its targets, who (it turns out) are often found to exit the workplace in large numbers for various kinds of ill health, long before the bully behind their exits is even recognised as a possible reason. Very often companies who do not have strong protection practices in place lose a lot of good people this way. Bullying can have repercussions that are both broad and deep.
And THAT said, I do not think punishing or shunning bullies is necessarily a way to go, either. In fact, dealing with bullies probably requires wisdom and patience most of us lack. But bullies can wreak a lot of destruction without breaking any bones with obvious sticks or stones. And if we will not believe this, as even a first step, we will remain helpless to protect those who build, as against those who destroy.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2022-11-07 10:24 am (UTC)That said, I worked in human resources for a small company and had to research the topic of bullying when complaints were made. I will just point out that "namecalling and insulting" can certainly form a pattern of bullying and this pattern can have serious repercussions on its targets, who (it turns out) are often found to exit the workplace in large numbers for various kinds of ill health, long before the bully behind their exits is even recognised as a possible reason. Very often companies who do not have strong protection practices in place lose a lot of good people this way. Bullying can have repercussions that are both broad and deep.
And THAT said, I do not think punishing or shunning bullies is necessarily a way to go, either. In fact, dealing with bullies probably requires wisdom and patience most of us lack. But bullies can wreak a lot of destruction without breaking any bones with obvious sticks or stones. And if we will not believe this, as even a first step, we will remain helpless to protect those who build, as against those who destroy.