Jerseygirl

Over $600k has been raised now.

HarryTheSpider

There might be some sympathy for that view if the vast majority of Congress, pretty much every banker and S&P 500 CEO & officers did it first.

And if it could be shown that the lady bus monitor had (a) been trained in dealing with such abuse, (b) demonstrated she was capable, (c) it could be shown that explicit instructions/policy/guidance etc on this kind of situation had been given to her by her employers.

The huffington post article raises an interesting point in my view - and we have all heard kids who know exactly what 'adults' can & can't do without getting fired or arrested... and they push things to the absolute limit. This is not about the lady who was abused. It's about the system she was in, and ultimately it's about the society we live in... what a complete shambles. The only consolation of sorts is that more of the world is considerably worse. Until we get in to the election proper... then we'll see...

dakota44

You pretty much hit it on the head. Everyone's hands are tied, teachers, bus monitors et al. You can't touch them, you can't get to verbal with them, you can't do bugger all except report them. If that happened when I was a kid, you probably would have gone home after a good paddling and your parents would have doubled up on it for good measure.

Jerseygirl

So very true. I can't remember getting into trouble for anything at school or out of school. This was because of the values instilled in me by my parents...but perhaps most of all I would have my mum to face and that scared the proverbial out of me.

Today of course we are not allowed to hit our kids...because violence breeds violence. The odd thing is...today there seems to be much more violence in younger people than there was when I was a kid.

My old mum said if a teacher hit me for something I didn't do...then I should walk out of the class and go home. She would then accompany back to school to see the headmaster. However...if I was to blame then I should take the punishment and hope she didn't find out about it.

Michael

I'm sure that happens in every western country in the world. It is just that American kids are dumb enough to film it and put it on the internet to show how macho they are.

dunroving

I think these days that is how it is viewed. I remember when I was young, there was a lot of importance placed on apologising (sincerely).

These days, it's almost a competition to see who can use the sincerest words (I apologise profusely, ureservedly, greatly, wholeheartedly, etc.).

You rarely hear people say "I am sorry" - saying "I apologise" almost seems to be a way of avoiding having to say that you are sorry for what you did (usually, because you aren't).

Lion in Winter

I disagree profoundly that it's about hitting children. It's about "bringing them up", ie setting examples, setting them straight, giving them a decent education, exposing them to examples of the way the world should be, etc.

My parents never hit myself or my sister once, and barely even had to raise their voices, although there were "punishments". None of my schools were hitting places, either. Nor have I ever hit my son, and he wouldn't dream of treating someone the way those kids were treating the bus monitor.

MostlyYank

It's awful. I see it in poor neighborhoods and wealthy ones. Kids seem out of control.

That said I was in a local college town and stopped at a gas station for beer. The kids were tattooed and pierced as seems normal now. But, one held the door for me, another moved and called me sir, etc. Dangnabit, how are you supposed to get your stereotypes right nowadays?

Pete

Bink

Doesn't she have the power to simply kick them off the bus and refuse to take them?
There does seem to be a worrying trend that saying sorry is enough...

Jerseygirl

I wouldn't think so. How can she kick them off the bus...they are minors...what if something happened to one of them ie accident, abducted etc?

What I think should happen is the kids involved shouldn't be able to use the school bus system for several years. When the parents are inconvenienced then perhaps they will parent their children a little better.

dakota44

Absolutely correct. Not to mention they would just laugh at her and tell her to **** off if she tried. A monitor pretty much is limited to doing what they can to maintain order, and then just reporting the ones that create problems. Reduced to being a witness.

MostlyYank

Way back when I was in 'middle school' (7-9th grades) the driver turned us around and drove to the police station.

Pete

Macca67

Collectively, in many situations the feckless little turds just don't seem to have an 'off-button' and that's regardless of how much money they have. Reminds me of 'Lord of the Flies'. A good boot up the arse or slap across the face is what's required.

Personally, I blame the useless parents.

DaveLovesDee

Bullied bus monitor picks up her cheque in Toronto

TORONTO - Karen Klein felt the love to the tune of $700,000.

The school bus monitor from Rochester was featured in a video that went viral — Making the Bus Monitor Cry — where she is seen being humiliated by a group of Grade 7 boys

Where do I apply for a bus monitor's job?