Discussion for the Day: On-line Bullies

I have been thinking about writing an article on this topic as it is such a growing phenomenon in our on-line world.

Used to be that you had to contend with bullies in the school playground or perhaps in later years in the workplace. But now technology has given people the power to harm others through the medium of emails, chatrooms, public comments and so forth. While some people on-line can merely be irritating, some can be downright dangerous with threats, cyberstalking, and even identity theft.

I feel sorry for our children in a way...they are growing up in an age where computers are part of life. And frequently this computerized life comes equipped with cyber bullies. And the effects of such bullying can be devastating to the victim including emotional distress, fear, and at the extremes even suicide.

I have zero tolerance for bullies of any kind. But yet how does one prevent or deal with bullies who can hide behind the distance that the internet provides?

What on-line behaviors do you feel cross the line into harrassment?

What can on-line communities or individuals do to prevent this sort of thing from happening to begin with?

What strategies can one use to deal with on-line bullies?

Have you had any personal experience with being the victim of on-line stalking, harrassment, or bullying?

We live in a technological age where so much good comes from our advances...in the form of obtaining information at our fingertips, being able to communicate with people from all over the world, and to form supportive communities. But there is that dark side to our cyber evolution which reminds us all to keep a watchful eye. It is interesting to note that despite any great technological advances we make, people are still people. There will always be the good and the bad among us. The trick is that with the anonymity of the internet, it is sometimes difficult to know who is who.