Buried in the subconscious of the American culture was the horrible event that occurred at Columbine where it appears two kids snapped, and killed many innocent students. Nothing grabbed the American consciousness more than that event. Nothing challenged our common sense more, than the realization that we live in an unsafe and unpredictable world. None of those children who packed up their lunches that day knew that that day would be their last day on earth.

And after this tragedy we saw grief counselors rushing in, and we saw a bewildered school principle who was as fumbling on national TV - trying to assure everyone that this event could not have predicted or prevented.,He was assuring everyone that the school was now safe, and that appropriate interventions in terms of security and medical treatment, were being provided.

But is it true that events like these cannot be predicted or prevented?

At no time did anyone come to any meaningful theories as to why this happened. I have a theory as to why it did. And I have what I think could be a reasonable preventive measure, if the reader will entertain me for awhile.

I propose the simple theory that these kids, the murderers, were once victims. They snapped and became victimizers. I suggest that they had been victims for quite some time, in subtle and in obvious ways - both at home and at school. On that fateful day they snapped and became victimizers. (This process does not divest the murderers of responsibilty. It only hopes to explain their behavior. and to offer a possible solution for prevention sake, This to reduce risk of future events like Columbine. As consciousness about the bully/victim behavior would be addressed, in this education proposal, on a daily basis.)

I suggest that a number of things contributed to this event: including a rising set of nihilistic values that they absorbed - growing up in a culture that propagates these values. (vis a vie violent media, and violent games.) These values, or absence of them, reinforced their judgments of their tormentors. These variables resulted in a hypnotic state which led to mass murder and suicide - carried out indiscriminately.

But what would have happened if one of the unnecessary classes in that school was substituted by another more meaningful class: a class which addressed the day to day victim/ bully behavior of the student body?

A class where that behavior was identified and discussed. A class in which the students themselves identified how they bullied that day, and how they have been bullied in the past. A class in which and the bullies were encouraged in a non judgmental way to discuss their bullying. (Discussion of how they can be bullied at home can be addressed as well. But obviously abuse at home has to be handled creatively, probably one of the stickier issues kids face...but there are ways to bring this type of abuse into the discussion delicately..)

Class examples could be discussed without naming individuals. And the emotional dimensions of the bully/ victim cycle could be plumbed.

There are no innocents in this class. Not even the victims. Because the victim has not learned, or sought out ways to stand up. How does the victim stand up on a day to day basis? How do they fail to stand up? Let's ask the students. What does the victim get out of being bullied? Do they deny it makes them feel bad? Do they get angry? Depressed? What does the bully get out of bullying?

What if such a class was mandatory – all students must attend.

In my day bullying was handled in following manner. This manner was very successful, but this type of handling is prohibited in the schools due to hovering mothers, and litigious lawyers. Here are a few of the old school methods of handling bullydom. In one case, I was the bully. In another I was the victim. Here's the first instance.

When I was very young, for some reason I decided to a fellow 4th grader a " dirty Jew." He asked me to meet him after school out back. His name was Black, I don't rememeber his first name. Thet kid kicked me all over the sports field and needless to say, I was reluctant to pick on him, or anyone again, for fear of the consequences. I don't know why I said this to him, and I don't think I understood what a Jew was at that time, or the degree to which it cut him. But I suppose I wanted "a piece of him."

Here's another episode:

.Once, during Catholic confirmation class, a kid named Bruce decided to pick on me. He said he wanted to beat me up. I didn't know this kid. And I had no idea why he had antipathy toward me, I doubt he did either. I guess he just wanted “a piece of me.” as the kids say today.

So I said “ok fine.” Meet me after class in the willow. So we met and Bruce took all of his friends. These were kids I was about to enter high school with. Well Bruce got his ass kicked. And none of his friends bothered me for the rest of my school years - in fact nobody bothered me, as word got around - you don't mess with him. This is the way it was handled then. Bruce thought to prove how tough he was to the student body, so that he wouldn't be bothered by bullies, and – he became a bully to secure his place in high school. But he wasn't going to use me to do it, in fact – he secured me from being harassed by bullies instead for the rest of my school years.

In the first case, I was the bully. In the second, I was the victim. But the injustice was settled quickly and efficiently in both cases.

Today we can't deal with these issues like this anymore in school, and so – the kids resort to psychological one up-man ship. Daily torment. Ridicule and name calling and encapsulation "he's gay" "she's a lesbian" etc. And then the victims become perfect fodder after such labeling.

Since physical repercussions were eliminated, nothing has taken it's place. And so, I propose we have a class to take the place of the old school manner of dealing with injustice - based on this theory that bullies and victims are part of a field and one is as responsible as the other. The victim is responsible for being a victim, and the bully is responsible for being a bully.

And there is a unity between them. That is the operational theory I am proposing here. And so how would such a class be taught based on this assumption?:

Niether the Victim, nor the Bully knows what they are doing, or even why they are doing it, except that it feels good, or bad as the case may be. But why does this behavior produce this feeling? For the bully - how long does it last before he has to do it again. How does the victim stop the theft of self esteem? And how does the bully steal it? The class may answer these questions. If there are no innocents in this cycle, e.g. the victims cowardice, and the bullies predatory feeding frenzy, then maybe even the bullies will stand up and admit their bullying ways. And they will, if they aren't singled out, or judged. What do the kids mean when they say "he wanted a piece of me," the typical response from psychologists would be " dominanation" or "control" and "power" but I demure, I believe something more substantial and misunderstood is transferred between bully and victim, perhaps a type of energy. But dominance and control, so as to pump up the ego, will surfice for now. Ill got and short lived gains, because both the bully and the victim are engaging in a sick and unhealthy game. Some victims become professional victims, and use their victim status for manipulative purposes. This is not dignity.

The curriculum would explore these questions and it be designed by the students themselves as well as by teacher. The students would be expected to come up with ways to identify the behaviors that are victimizing and bullying. They would design their own methods to test the effectiveness of stopping the behavior on an ongoing basis. If one method does not work, they would be challenged to come up with another. In other words, the class would be experiment designed to come up with the methods that worked. Students would be graded on their participation, and on the success of their own methods. The idea is imperial IMO, and should be co-opted by the schools . I sincerely believe that if such a class existed at Columbine High School, their would have been no tragedy.

In many ways we are "sissifying" the schools too much, Kids have natural aggressions that are being frustrated. I would suggest also if that students wanted to make an example of another child, let them do it under controlled conditions. Let the parents sign a release, and let them put on the boxing gloves and get in the ring - if that is the only solution. Remember some of these kids will one day serve in the military, a sissified military is not what we need.

We find these mothers attempting to sissify football in the same way, and where decreases unnecessary injury should be an objective in that high risk game...it should remembered that football is a war game as well as a sport. It is very much agreed that too many stupid injuries occur, barring their prevention - if the kids are going to be coddled they might as well stay home. But bullying and victim behavior needs to be addressed. And a class addressing it is a good idea.

The success of such a class would instill in students methods to cope with predatory impulses (bullies) and the sense of helplessness (victims) that carry over into work and family life. The class would be revolutionary as an experiment, and boon if it was successful and established a model that every school could use in all grades.

I think sex education for fifth graders could be suspended as it serves no purpose that has ever proved useful except to suggest the following: “You are going to do it anyway, here's a condom.” And that IMO is pretty much why they are doing it, and doing it at younger ages than ever. At no time since sex ed have their been so many teen pregnancies, or teen venereal disease cases.

And one cause IMO is the parental figures tacit approval vis a vie sex ed. Those of us old enough to remember will remember this was not a school topic. In the 1950's and 1960's there were very few teen pregnancies. The imebeciles who started that class and have made it mandatory, have not even done a comparitive analysis to measure it's effectiveness. It has done nothing except esacerbate teen age promiscuity and unwanted pregnancy. Meanwhile the bully victim cycle rages on, and sadly more Columbines are probably inevitable.(As a student nurse I had to spend a week teaching these rug rats human reproduction, and nothing in medicine seemed more inappropriate, or awkward. I wanted to say: "babies come from the stork," class dismissed. But it was about my degree.I did say at the end of the class, "God does not want you involved with this at your age." I had mentioned the awful G word in a public school. My one brave act. But the male teacher sitting in the back row, gave me a wink, and I knew I was ok.)

I suppose what class is omitted is a matter of choice anyway, if this class can't go - then perhaps ""study period" or any other subject that could not be learned independently. This class could take it's place.