To throw or not to throw
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Heather and I have been arguing over this scenario for years now, so it’s time we finally settled it on OD:
Many years ago, when I was a 10th grader in high school, I was playing a basketball game during my weightlifting class. Now, I was playing in the school gym and on a shared court where on the opposite side of the court other students were playing a game of volleyball. Now, while we were playing our basketball game, occasionally our basketball would bounce “out of bounds” and onto the volleyball court. Each time this happened a certain bloke named Phillip (who is now a history teacher at the same school, ah what a world!) would grab the basketball and throw it across the gym.
Now, naturally since we were sharing a court not only did our basketball bounce onto their volleyball court but their volleyball also bounced onto our basketball court. So after Phillip had established that he was going to continue to throw our basketball across the court each time it bounced on to their volleyball court, I responded by grabbing their volleyball and tossing it across the gym each time it bounced on to our basketball court.
This led to a brief confrontation with Phillip “getting in my face” and then backing down, but all of that is rather beside the point. The question is, did I act wrongly? Should I have not thrown Phillip’s volleyball to the other side of the court even though he was bullying me and my fellow basketball players by tossing our basketball? Would it have been better to turn the other cheek? Or was the more moral action to not allow Phillip to ruin a basketball game for everyone?
This is doubtlessly a moral dilemma for the ages. Please share your thoughts.
So that’s why you have to work out.
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I think to be the ‘bigger person’ you should have turned the other cheek, maybe verbally abused him a bit, but to return the favor just brings you down to his level. All that said, I think you acted the way any tenth grade high school boy would have, and that’s an important part of growing up. I think that now you wouldn’t exhibit the same behavior. Yes? ~I’ll be
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i think you should have asked him to hand you the ball. if he continued to be a cock you should have asked him what the matter was. if he continued to be a cock you should have mentioned it to a teacher. if that was not possible then you should have commenced the above.
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Stories like this just make me feel like a complete alien. Even when I was 11 or 12 and still AT school, all I would ever do during PE is go find somewhere to smoke (in the days when I wasn’t addicted, hahaha.) This removes all moral dilemmas, so that’s my answer. heh. I see Heather is trying to be everyone’s friend again, you’re not doing the online dating thing again are you!! I want to say summat about possibly meeting cool girls at work, though I worry your type would be more the girls you’re teaching! What age kids are they anyway?
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You were in the right … see, you could get into the whole argument of do unto others or teach by example or something … but all that gets thrown out the window when a volleyball-playing pansy starts shit with anyone. you should have aimed at his face. 🙂
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Eye for an eye. There was less crime when that law was accepted. It works. Most jack-*sses like him wouldn’t have listened to reason anyhow. I agree that you should have aimed for his face too. Any man who plays volly ball is pretty fruity and needs a volly ball in the face. Love, Lidia
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Eh, better to turn the other cheek. It’s not like you were in a position of authority where you could teach him a lesson by punishing him. Two wrongs don’t make a right, and all. Plus, by throwing the ball you inconvenienced the rest of the volleyball players too.
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RYN: That’s what I’ve been doing for 20 years …
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ryn// it seems to be the day for football rivalries. what’s your school? i just saw that georgia tech won…
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People like Phillip aren’t interested in diplomacy. I would’ve launched his volleyball as far as possible every time it wandered over. Look at it this way, everyone got more exercise in class that day because both volleyball and basketball players had to jog further to track down their respective balls. That’s what she said?
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ryn// we did too. at least ya’ll made it on to the scoreboard, mmmk? 🙂
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You did the right thing. He was not mature enough to reason with you or he wouldn’t have begun throwing your ball in the first place. I’m glad you stood up for yourself in the only way he would understand.
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wait a minute. how long ago was this? you and heather need to give it a rest.
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THROW!! 🙂
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What about option C? I’d punt it into the rafters, if your gym had any. But seriously. There’s being moral, and being weak. He already established he had no intention of being reasonable, so showing why throwing the ball across the gym was a dick move by doing it yourself was the safe option. RYN: Last time I went to that mall it seemed fine too. I know a lot of people who won’t go there though.
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RYN: Hey! I live in Orlando! Its not like that never happens! lol…infact there is music in a lot of bushes here! lol
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He’s never responded politely when I have been nice in the past so I don’t feel bad about being rude to him. If he wanted or expected people to be nice he wouldn’t e such a dick when people try to be nice. I’m not mean to people who are polite to me (like you were in telling me why michael was mean) Love, Lidia
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as in south africa? i guess it isn’t in the news much any more.
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RYN: You’re right: getting to know you was the most AMAZIN experience of my life. You are just AMAZIN.
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I know I’ve done that a number of times. My point is that the other person has to be aware that there are consequences to messing with me.
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I’m trying to sound positive, yeah.
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Matt, I would appreciate it if you deleted the note above. It was meant for the other entry; I tried to delete it from here, but apparently, my two minutes were up! I hate when this shit happens! Okay, anyway, focus on this entry. I believe you did the right thing. Philiph, (sorry Heather), was being a punk ass like most high schoolers were being. I imagined that he thought it was cool that he was doing–being the bully. As the girl who got bully in middle school and earlier high school, standing up to bullies is a proud moment for the victim. I am not saying that you were Phil’s victim, but I am saying that you call him out, actional, on his bullshit. I am glad that you are among the one who stood up to a bully. Yet, I hope that the chum has grown up and is a great history teacher. So, it gives me hope that bullies do stop their irrevelant and unnecessary crap and begin to do something really valuable with their time. ~Sophia
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