Give Marvel credit where it's due... Guardians of the Galaxy anti-bullying covers

[icon_uk]

Marvel have a LOT of publicity going for their Guardians of the Galaxy characters, and with the likes of Chris Pratt (who kept the Star Lord costume so he could make Hospital visits to sick kids in it), some very good PR, so I can only applaud them for this



From Comicosity, Marvel are teaming up with Stomp out Bullying in October, which is also National Bullying Prevention Month.







Well okay, this one's not Guardians of the Galaxy, but it's Captain America, who was bullied a lot as kid Steve Rogers, and who so he gets a pass.



This ones not Guardians of the Galaxy either, but Bruce Banner was also canonically a bullied child and the Hulk has little time for bullies either.

Comments

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[icon_uk]

Those are some very sweeping statements, could you elaborate on what you mean?

Surely letting kids know that they aren't as alone as they feel they are is a GOOD thing?

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[bencomicgraphics]

anti-bullying is the latest 'feel good' movement that's less about empowering those bullied and more about acting like you're doing good things, while in actuality you're making the situation worse.

I say this as someone who has been bullied. The ability for me to find my own voice and defend myself was instrumental in my development as a person, and anti-bullying establishes a 'free fire' zone that bullies exploit; getting right to the edge of what is punishable, but never crossing it; counting on their victims to cross that line and in return be punished for it.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[cainofdreaming]

How does this it do that, exactly? There are some programs which are made for controlling bullying in schools, which I think is what you seem to disagree with if I get you right (and I readily admit that there's a good chance that I don't), but I don't think that anti-bullying as a concept is just that. This example certainly isn't.

And as another bullied person I'd have been grateful for something like that in my school. Standing up to bullies... yeah, didn't work so much for me. Only makes you a bigger target in the long run.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[md84]

It's "funny" how people always keep telling victims of bullying to "stand up for themselves" without telling them how to do that in a way that doesn't encourage more bullying. Most ADULTS don't know how to do that, so how can anyone expect kids to do it?

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[janegray]

Fucking seriously.

Not to mention the part where, if by some chance you actually do manage to fight back, you get punished by the authority figures for being unruly.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[bencomicgraphics]

And anti-bullying will make that punishment worse, not better.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[janegray]

I very much doubt that.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[randyripoff]

I don't disagree with you about the anti-bullying thing being something that's a nice "feel good" thing that accomplishes nothing. I also agree with you that encountering bullying and pushing through it are important things for personal growth.

That being said, I'm a little confused as to how these covers reflect anything along those lines. I don't think there's anything wrong with standing up for someone else and befriending loners.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[icon_uk]

I think you'll find that, given our nature and composition, a lot of s_d members will relate to a past that involved bullying. That's not to dismiss your experiences, just to note that you are not alone.

The covers here seem to emphasise, not so much standing up for yourself, but realising that you are not alone.

One of the worst things about being bullied (from my own experience, is the sensation that you are alone, that no one can help you. This emphasises that there are adults (or other people their own age) who will understand the position that a bullied child is coming from and CAN act on their behalf. It can take a while to find that person Lord knows, but they are there.

Also the implication that stopping someone else from being bullied is the act of a hero (particularly the Captain America cover).

There's also perhaps an element aimed at the bully here, showing that their actions are not the sort that their own heroes might endorse. It's a long shot, but it's worth a try.

Just my idel musing as I look at them.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[bencomicgraphics]

But bullying isn't a badge to carry; it's an event that happened, was dealt with, and can be moved on from. The idea of carrying around a badge of perpetual victimhood does little to help and does less for the person's mental health.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[icon_uk]

I'm not quite sure where you get the implication that this encourages victimhood, but I might be missing something there.

Some people can put bullying behind them but others, unfortnately, never do.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[punishermax]

Rad story but I hope you realize that, and I know this may shock you, not everyone deals with things the same way! ~gasps~ I KNOW!

It's super cool you stood up for yourself, but lots of kids can't. Life isn't an episode of Punky Brewster where you stand up for yourself and the whole cafeteria slow claps for you, there's a good chance you get beaten up even worse.

So maybe save your anger for the things that aren't about, ya know, helping kids not kill themselves.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[bencomicgraphics]

Life isn't clean; and standing up to one bully doesn't always makes all the bullies go away. However, all anti-bullying does is educate bullies on:
A) How to be more effective, simply by the virtue of listing bullying tactics and saying "Don't do these", you're in actuality giving them more ideas on what they can do.
B) Create a 'free-fire' zone where strict guidelines are given as to what they can get away with; so they will always push it to that threshold without fear of reprisal or punishment from authority, because that's what the guidelines say. The victim, on the inverse, now, if choosing to stand up for his or herself becomes the punished since the victim crosses that threshold first.
C) Creates a victim mentality for those bullied. I was bullied in school, a lot, but I rarely chose to see myself as a victim. Doing so gives the tormentors what they want: power over your life.

I've seen documentaries like "Bully" and what i see is an outcome that will do to bullying what DARE did to casual drug use.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[punishermax]

You sound like a 45 year old man with literally no knowledge of how bullying has changed at all and are trying to apply your wacky childhood to other peoples lives while being woefully ignorant of every single issue.

You have absolutely, positively not a single clue what you're talking about.

Hope this helps.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[bencomicgraphics]

I'm actually 31. But it's nice to know if you don't like someone's opinion, you can merely attack it with personal attacks versus addressing what they laid out before you. ;)

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[punishermax]

Hey man Im just teaching you to stand up for yourself, no need to act like a victim. God, it's just like that Bully documentary.

Mod Note!

[icon_uk]

This is an entirely inappropriate attitude to take on Scans-Daily.

You do NOT get to tell someone how they should have managed something in their own past.

You do NOT get to make judgements about a person or their approach to such matters, nor make demeaning comments about same.

On scans_daily, you may disagree on matters, but we insist upon civility when you do.

I would recommend you end this part of the conversation right now. I will freeze the thread if it continues in this manner.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[md84]

A) How to be more effective, simply by the virtue of listing bullying tactics and saying "Don't do these", you're in actuality giving them more ideas on what they can do.

Like most bullies don't already know those tactics. At least this way they can't feign ignorance about their wrongdoings if caught.

B) Create a 'free-fire' zone where strict guidelines are given as to what they can get away with; so they will always push it to that threshold without fear of reprisal or punishment from authority, because that's what the guidelines say. The victim, on the inverse, now, if choosing to stand up for his or herself becomes the punished since the victim crosses that threshold first.

I agree with this one. There shouldn't be a 'free-fire' zone at all. Any bullying, no matter how 'minor', should be punished.

C) Creates a victim mentality for those bullied. I was bullied in school, a lot, but I rarely chose to see myself as a victim. Doing so gives the tormentors what they want: power over your life.

Congrats on finding a way to handle it. It is a real shame that you had to deal with something like that in the first place.

Re: Anti-Bullying is Bunk

[sadoeuphemist]

What are you actually proposing as an alternative here? That schools not have any anti-bullying rules at all and just let kids run wild on each other?