Socialization

Via The Corner, a sad story from England:

Thomas was a highly articulate child, well-spoken, and without the usual local slur. He was overweight. He was easier with adults than children, and more confident around girls than lads. He preferred the Human League to Eminem. And because of this he was bullied, relentlessly. And because of that, on the afternoon of July 2, he took an overdose of painkillers and died later that day. He was 11 years old.
* * *
Sandra is still weaving together the details of incidents that her son blurted out to her with the stories that other parents and children have told her since his death. But it would appear that, travelling to a secondary school in a new area alone, with older children, Thomas experienced a new level of persecution. "Kids pulled his tie so tight it nearly strangled him," she recalls. "They'd tease him about not having fancy gear. They'd call him ugly. He was buying ciggies and handing them out at the bus stop so that he'd be left alone. But after Christmas he tried to give up, and when he didn't have cigarettes he'd get slapped across the face.

"No one wanted to play with him. No one wanted to be his friend. He got friendly with this one other lad and then he was accused of being gay. He just couldn't respond in the way that other kids expected him to."
* * *

Some smart-alecky and snarky thoughts come to mind here:

1. If you ever needed proof of the doctrine of original sin, look no further. With no training in evildoing, and despite the best efforts of their parents and teachers to civilize them, children still manage to be among the most hateful and mean creatures on earth. The only reason that children don't start nuclear wars amongst themselves is because they're not smart enough.

2. Don't you feel sorry for the homeschooled children who miss out on all the valuable socialization that goes on amongst school-kids?