President Teddy Roosevelt coined the term “Bully Pulpit” because the platform of the presidency gave great power for doing good - bully - as in, “Bully for you!”
Today, we have an entirely different definition of bully, casting the "bully pulpit’ of the presidency in a new, unflattering light.
From the Department of Health and Human Services' website comes this advice about fighting back against bullies:
Look at the kid bullying you and tell him or her to stop in a calm, clear voice. You can also try to laugh it off. This works best if joking is easy for you. It could catch the kid bullying you off guard. If speaking up seems too hard or not safe, walk away and stay away. Don’t fight back. Find an adult to stop the bullying on the spot.
More on that last line later. First and foremost: "Don't fight back!" (And, yes, there’s an app for that!) You should... let them have their way?
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Ostensibly, this is the government’s advice, implying less condemnation of bullying behavior and more support of it. No surprise there - for this is from HHS, which previously was headed up by none other than Kathleen Sebelius, in charge of the implementation of Obamacare. Facing tough criticism from millions of people who lost their health care she casually commented, “The majority of people calling for me to resign, I would say, are people who I don’t work for...” (See Rule 12, below.)
Recently, the president of New York's United Federation of Teachers, firmly warned Common Core apponents, "I will punch you in the face and push you in the dirt because this is the teachers’!"
This was in reference to his newly adopted standards – the untested, unproven overhaul of public education. The vehemence with which they defend Common Core is proof it is an effective (and necessary) distraction from the unions’ own culpability in our failed education system.
Unfortunately, it simply isn't surprising that a union boss might openly and proudly bully his adversaries. The close connection that unions have with communism and communist tactics has been well documented for decades, and seems almost banal at this point, though not at all trivial.
What is alarming is the very vocal and positive reaction of the cheering crowd, the teeming mob of teachers. That our children's educators are fully embracing of tyrannical, bullying tactics effectively explains how bullying behavior has infiltrated our schools, why bullying is the new and pervasive threat to children (of all ages), and finally, how ineffective we will continue to be at combatting and eradicating it, Common Core or no.
Six out of 10 teenagers say they witness bullying in school once a day, and 160,000 students miss school every day due to fear of attack or intimidation by other students, according to bullying statistics.
But bullying behavior only begins on the playground. It is now pervasive in our government, too. Bullies just want power, and leftist-progressives can certainly identify. From Saul Alinsky's "Rules for Radicals":
Notwithstanding the sexism inherent in the wording of Rule 5, remember Hillary Clinton, who wrote her senior thesis on Alinsky, scoffing at the Congressional committee, “What difference, at this point, does it make?”
Remember the IRS scandal? Rule 9.
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File
The government sent intimidation letters to groups and taxpaying individuals asking for information about members and their prayers (i.e. their thoughts). The Internal Revenue Service has the power to commandeer private bank accounts, shutter businesses, and literally ruin lives. Asking an inappropriate question is intimidation - bullying behavior. HHS, while actively employing Rule 12, would have advised the persecuted taxpayers to simply answer all the questions - don't fight back.
The main stream media is in on the strategy as well.
“But a cover-up of what?” David Gregory demanded, challenging Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) to prove any conspiracy existed as the Benghazi scandal broke (Rule 5). Gregory allowed no skepticism about the arrest solely of an American filmmaker in the aftermath of an attack which took place in Libya, and the subsequent denial it was terrorist in nature.
Two books debuting this month may show the world some of the truth, but the bully media, in that case a renowned news anchor, effectively silenced at least some of the outcry. McCain weakly shot back, “Do you care whether four Americans died?” but it fell on deaf ears.
After witnessing the disgusting, illegal behavior of the rioters in Ferguson, Missouri, my husband, Kevin Sorbo, who played the ultimate anti-bully as TV's "Hercules" for seven years, posted this tweet:
"Ferguson riots have very little to do with the shooting of the young man. It is an excuse to be the losers these animals truly are."
The bully media immediately misquoted Sorbo as criticizing the protestors, instead of the thieving looters. Cyberthugs took to the airwaves and social media, smothering him with vile and nasty epithets, calling him, of all things, a "hater" (Rule 12 - Personalize it!). Sorbo backed down in the intense heat of the outrage, though all civilized people agree that looters are criminal.
The QuikTrip in 9400 block of W. Florissant Avenue in Ferguson, Mo. burns after being looted by rioters on Sunday, Aug. 10, 2014. The riots were sparked after community protests over a fatal officer involved shooting in Ferguson the day before. (AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch, David Carson)
Well, bullies are not civilized.
According to StopBullying.gov, here is the top way to avoid cyber-bullying:
Always think about what you post. You never know what someone will forward. Being kind to others online will help to keep you safe. Do not share anything that could hurt or embarrass anyone.
In other words, appeasement. (Because that's worked out so well in the past.)
So, our government tells us how to avoid bullying or resist it through appeasement and submission. Apparently, there is never an acceptable occasion to resist the bully in their determination.
It’s no wonder they have absolutely no idea how to address any of the international crises we face today. From the heavy-handed, land-grabbing Vladimir Putin or girl-napping Boko Haram, to the beheadings of journalists and persecution of Christians, Yazidis and Muslims, Obama and his minions are clueless.
In this image made through a window of the Oval Office, President Barack Obama speaks on the phone to Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah from his desk at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2014, ahead of his address to the nation regarding Iraq and Islamic State group militants. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Obama even admits to the bullies that he has no strategy - because he advocates submission in the face of bullies.
This is called knowing how to dish it out, but not how to take it.
Between the IRS and the other alphabet agencies, the government sure knows how to bully, but combatting others who bully the United States is anathema to them. That’s why, when asked whether we are at war with the Islamic State (a name the president evidently disagrees with), Josh Earnest (who gave him that oxymoronic name?), White House spokesman (and who gave him that position?), answered with a resounding “No.”
It’s tough when the bully becomes the bullied - and the bully pulpit is suddenly powerless and cowardly. Perhaps the president is just too full of awe at their exceptional tactics, but this administration, as well as their complicit media, equivocates, golfs, ignores, kite-boards, and speaks calmly about their disapproval.
Vice President Joe Biden’s rant about Islamic State “We will follow them to the gates of hell!” sounded suspiciously like, “I’m telling the teacher!” (And, as teachers cheer for bullies these days, good luck with that.)
They’ve tried saying "stop," laughing America’s foes off as “a JV team,” and they’ve tried not fighting back. They’ve even tried hash-tagging, with the ridiculous #BringBackOurGirls campaign. Nothing seems to work!
The only reasonable course left for them is to find an adult to ask for help...
Sam is the founder of TrueFeminist.com and host of The Sam Sorbo Show, which is nationally syndicated, and airs live each weekday 9-noon EST. Download the app!
Feature Image: AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin
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