Hillsdale
Re: Hillsdale High School bombing suspect:
I'm very glad nobody was hurt, etc. But:
It bugs me a bit to hear the teachers described as "heroes". The word is accurate: The adults' actions were brave, risky and they prevented a much more tragic outcome. They deserve full praise and gratitude for their quick thinking and brave, effective response.
But that word "hero" puts the emphasis in exactly the wrong place.
For starters, no adult wants to be called a hero. They all say the same thing - "anybody else would have done the same thing". This is partially because it's socially risky to claim the credit everyone is thrusting upon them, but it's also because the situation looks different from the position of the rescuer than the bystander.
The irony is that the youthful desire to be proclaimed a hero is easily transformed into the anti-social revenge fantasy. If heroism is not an option, anti-heroism is always available for those desperately seeking a poisonous injection of self-esteem.
So handing out hero medals, in a way, only encourages this type of behavior. Just as with Columbine or any similar incidents, kids who are desperately troubled will only be further isolated - and perhaps, encouraged to act out in an equally destructive way - by the typical response to this event.
And the word hero bothers me for one other reason: real heroism would have rescued the attacker as well as the attacked. I don't blame the teachers for not identifying and resolving every kid's problems - I've had classmates who easily might have shown up at school with bombs and chainsaws, and damned if anyone knew what to do about it. But when the "good guys" are the teachers and the "bad guy" is a former student, something's been going very wrong for a long time.
Tragedy was not averted at Hillsdale High School - it was only contained.
I'm very glad nobody was hurt, etc. But:
It bugs me a bit to hear the teachers described as "heroes". The word is accurate: The adults' actions were brave, risky and they prevented a much more tragic outcome. They deserve full praise and gratitude for their quick thinking and brave, effective response.
But that word "hero" puts the emphasis in exactly the wrong place.
For starters, no adult wants to be called a hero. They all say the same thing - "anybody else would have done the same thing". This is partially because it's socially risky to claim the credit everyone is thrusting upon them, but it's also because the situation looks different from the position of the rescuer than the bystander.
The irony is that the youthful desire to be proclaimed a hero is easily transformed into the anti-social revenge fantasy. If heroism is not an option, anti-heroism is always available for those desperately seeking a poisonous injection of self-esteem.
So handing out hero medals, in a way, only encourages this type of behavior. Just as with Columbine or any similar incidents, kids who are desperately troubled will only be further isolated - and perhaps, encouraged to act out in an equally destructive way - by the typical response to this event.
And the word hero bothers me for one other reason: real heroism would have rescued the attacker as well as the attacked. I don't blame the teachers for not identifying and resolving every kid's problems - I've had classmates who easily might have shown up at school with bombs and chainsaws, and damned if anyone knew what to do about it. But when the "good guys" are the teachers and the "bad guy" is a former student, something's been going very wrong for a long time.
Tragedy was not averted at Hillsdale High School - it was only contained.