Words...

Words are dangerous things. Often, stressing different words in a sentence can change the entire meaning behind what is being said. Take the following example: "I think you're right." "I think you're right." (Whatever anybody else thinks, my opinion is that you're right.) "I think you're right." (As far as I know, you are right, but I could be wrong.) "I think you're right." (You're right. The other person is wrong.) "I think you're right." (As far as I am concerned, there is no chance you are wrong.) Stress the wrong word or words by accident, and you leave the listener with the wrong impression. And yes, I know you think I'm right about this, regardless about which words you stress.

Writing adds the extra challenge of not knowing what word or words the author is attempting to emphasize. Unless the writer is going to do something incredibly inane, such as italicizing words, the reader has to use their own best judgment as to how a sentence is meant to sound. I know my readers are quite intelligent and can likely figure out how I meant to stress my typed words. (That's right. All three of you can pat yourselves on the back for interpreting my snark correctly.) Not every writer has the ability to assume such a thing about those reading their words.

I have been thinking about the power of words lately when it comes to the topic of bullying, particularly with middle and high school students. Back when I was still a student, bullying was a relatively confined affair. If you were bullied, you had to deal with the people bullying you and whoever was witnessing your mortification firsthand. True, the bullies might tell others about your plight, but most of the time, not that many people were involved. Nowadays, bullies often put their taunts out there in cyberspace. Their written words might be seen by hundreds or thousands of people, and those who put their bullying in video format might actually see them go viral. Bullying is no longer a relatively contained affair.

How does a teenager defend themselves against bullied accusations that have been heard by millions of people? How can someone ever feel whole again when something targeting them and put online takes on a life of its own? It's bad enough being bullied in person. Imagine that being multiplied by each online viewing. Even if the original poster takes it down, it's still potentially out there somewhere if copied or shared by anyone else. It does not end. It will be out there forever, or at least as long as the Internet as we know it exists.

Parents, monitor your children as they go online. Insist upon access to all of their online accounts as a prerequisite to them using the computer. Let them know you will be checking to make sure they are acting appropriately and that you will also be on the lookout for others who are not. Speak up against people using their words to attack others. If someone tells you your child is bullying someone else, listen to that person, do some investigation, and then discipline your child for their misbehavior. Lead by example, too. Don't tell your child to play nice and then go and bad-mouth your boss on a social networking site. Let's put an end to bullying in all its forms.

Oh, and if you find out your friend's mom once blogged about the joys of potty-training your friend, keep your fool mouth shut, your fingers off the keyboard, and do not mock your friend about that. You wouldn't want to be picked on for going through that stage in life either.