Yeah, the threat that there might be someone with a gun would sure work as a deterrent for someone who plans to off himself in the end anyway...

They do? You happen to know who is innocent and who is not?

I can't really tell guilty from innocent just by looking at a face. I don't know who is the bully. I have to trust the judgement of those that go after them.

A school is like a mushroom farm. You're being kept in the dark and you're fed shit, and as soon as some bright little head shows itself, it gets chopped off.

Really? How so? Because it's a foot note in a blog?

Pffft. In a week, nobody talks about it anymore.

To make this happen, far too many things have to come together to actually make it at the very least not impossible. First of all, you'd have to find someone who is willing and able to be a suitable candidate, then you have to fund him. And convince a sizable portion of the people that voting for him makes sense. Especially that latter part is near impossible due to the first-past-the-post system in place. The only way this could possibly happen is if neither candidate from The Party looks like the lesser evil or, rather, when they have finally become so identical that it doesn't take looking at them from the distance the big pond affords me to not see a difference between them and people finally realize that either of them is useless, and that the only choice left is actually voting for neither of them and instead trying it with a third option.

That is the big problem. The third option is usually seen as simply not viable, unable to possibly win. So the only votes such a candidate will ever get is from those that are firm believers in his cause or those that simply don't give a shit anymore who of the two Party candidates wins and just want to make a statement.

And to avoid the latter (because the handful of people who actually believe in something a politician offers), the whole spectacle around the election exists. The effects can even be seen here on /., a place where one may assume the average IQ being slightly above the national average. Every time elections draw near, funny enough independent of what is being voted on, you'll find people from both sides starting to create a huge opinion storm, with people suddenly getting a strong opinion for or against issues that don't even affect them. It's actually amazing to see how people get worked up over trivial matters that simply don't matter, but they're the only difference between candidate A and candidate B, and they're being hyped up as if they truly mattered. One fine example of that is "Obamacare". With all due respect, and be honest, especially you that were so incredibly vocal about pro or con: How the heck does that really matter to you? Hmm?

But it works. People get riled up and feel the need to vote for "their" candidate, even though, when they took a moment and pondered over it, they would probably realize that they're just going to support that guy because they fear that the other one would implement/avoid $issue they were hyped up about, something they really don't care about that much if they gave it a moment of thought.

And now again: Do you think that in such an air of manipulation and hype a third candidate has a fighting chance?

Preferably the one where the victim survives, but a Columbine is acceptable as well, it's not really my position to make that choice for him.

One can only hope. I am sad every time I hear about the death of those that only want to get revenge once in their life.

Last time I checked I could beat the shit out of a 14 year old just fine.

Of course they play along. It's just so win-win, it's convenient AND makes the school look good to not do anything about the bullying problem. Because until you deal with it, the only one who has a problem with it is the one bullied.

That's also why YOU will get into trouble if you dared to fight back against the bully. Because 'til you did, everything was in order. The bully was happy and docile since he had his punching bag, you were quiet and nobody had to do anything. If you fight back, the bully might go to his parents and they might cause a stink.

Ever noticed how bullies are also the first to squeal?

Reason enough to end the life of bullies early on. Killing a policeman can really get you into trouble.

The one where the bully dies.

The difference is that if you notice that, you can quit your job and get the hell out of there. No such luck as a student. You can't simply quit school without severe problems. Depending on the town you're in you might have no choice but either go to THAT school or drop out.

And even in the worst areas it's not like you HAVE to work for that single crappy employer or live on the street.

That's the stress being put on our youth today. Anyone still wondering why from time to time one of them grabs a gun and redecorates his school?

A government that does what the people electing it want?

That's disgusting!

And the heap on my plate is dung, not shit. Yeah, that really makes a difference.

Why do you keep pointing out crap that means exactly zero? Whether the US is not a democracy or whether it's not a republic, does it really matter? How so?

And please don't make me laugh about the third parties and if you just believe in it you can make it bull. If you believe in that, you believe in the invisible hand and the trickle-down bullshit, too?

I think the NSA didn't give a fuck what we think about their action either way, so why the medal?