Don't abuse it.

Hey guys, and welcome to my seventh blog entry. In this entry I will be talking about cyberbullying. In case some of you are unaware, cyberbullying is the use of technology, such as cell phones and computers, to harm and torment someone else.

Cyberbullying is a growing problem among teens and young adults. Over 40% of kids have been cyberbullied and ¼ of them have been cyber-bullied more than once. Cyberbullying happens more often than face-to-face bullying. A lot of kids find cyberbullying to be the same, if not worse, then being bullied physically.

Cyberbullying and actual bullying are very much alike. They both cause some kind of pain to the victim and the outcomes are never positive. The difference between the two is that real-life bullying only happens for a certain amount of time during the day. However, with cyberbullying, there is no escape. The Internet and phone are always available and the remarks online can bounce around and linger. The victims of both types of bullying may experience low self-esteem and changes in personality. In dire situations, the victim may even commit suicide.

Is this what we want in life? To know that people, children mostly, around our age are hurting others for their own pleasure? Should a child go through pain and sorrow just for the sick satisfaction of another?

There are a lot of things we can do to prevent cyberbullying. One example is to watch the fictional movie “Cyberbully”. It is basically about a young girl who gets bullied over the Internet. She also gets bullied in school and fears what her friends will think of her. I am not going to tell you everything that happens because I don’t want to be a spoiler, but it is very good. Just put yourself in the shoes of the victim or the bully. Would you want to feel the way the characters in the movie do — hopelessly depressed or sickly satisfied? Another thing you can do is detect if a person is being bullied or if a person is a bully. You can look up some tips on the Internet.

Overall, any kind of bullying is wrong. We should not misuse and abuse technology to satisfy ourselves by tormenting others. Please be careful with what you write on the Internet. Think before you speak, and don’t let your emotions affect your actions.     

~Love, KitKat~