It's not overblown, I assure you, it's widespread and "normal". In the US I saw kids getting thrown into dumpsters, or bullied over months - nasty psychological type, as well as physical beatings. Fortunately I was friends with older kids who protected me, but I felt sorry for some of my peers, who I'm sure were affected for the rest of their lives.
From my observation, it seemed bullying is group dynamics - it always involved a cluster of kids beating on a single child they picked out. It also reminded me of animal behavior, as a way of asserting who is part of the pack, and who is an outsider. And I think somehow it's related to the structure of institutions, like schools, sports, and military.
> It's not overblown, I assure you, it's widespread and "normal"
I always wonder how it is in the US. Based on movies and such, bullying is horrible in the US. But how widespread is that? I didn't go to school in the US (other than graduate degree in university) so don't have any direct experience.
I was the prototypical nerd in school (and old enough that it was back when being the D&D/computer/math nerd was not cool at all).
But I never experienced or saw any bullying. I sure didn't get invited to the cool parties and such, but everyone was always nice enough, including the "jock/cheerleader" types. Many decades later now, our whole class is still in contact and in friendly terms.
From my observation, it seemed bullying is group dynamics - it always involved a cluster of kids beating on a single child they picked out. It also reminded me of animal behavior, as a way of asserting who is part of the pack, and who is an outsider. And I think somehow it's related to the structure of institutions, like schools, sports, and military.