The Anti-Bullying Movement

Having just sat down with a couple students about the issue of bullying in schools, I wondered how many of us really remember what being in High School was like. It can be tough, everyone trying to fit in and fly under the "bully radar" and most importantly achieve the ultimate "cool status."

When I first met these two students, they honestly took me by surprise. When kids raise issues of being bullied in school, you imagine a skinny little boy getting called names-maybe slammed up against a locker (Napoleon Dynamite style). Over the past few years the term bully has become less male-oriented and has taken more of a Mean Girls image.

Both girls I met with were attractive young women, well spoken, and seemed to have a very un-High School like sense of themselves. They contacted KTAB wanting to take a more proactive approach vs. getting angry or even. There's clearly a reason bullying has gotten national attention recently. Bullies in school are not a new phenomenon, however the increase in teen depression and suicide is alarming. It's incredibly sad that insecurities, jealousy, or hate could lead a teen to consider suicide.




There used to be a notion that "boys will be boys" and now it's "you know how girls can get"...there IS a level of this all being growing pains, however the extreme level bullying has reached is now being called to attention. Kudos to all the teens who are deciding to make a social change when it comes to bullying, your actions and causes are helping bring that change about.

I will add this, if I only knew how different life was going to be after High School, after College...if I only realized that most of what seems huge at the moment really doesn't matter in the long run, I would have had a lot more time to relax and have fun. Teen years are really too special to spend worrying about what people say about you, or think about you, or maybe even do to you.

Teens-know this: There will always be people who say hurtful things. Some days that person could even be you. The best thing anyone can do is set the example-open the door for the handicapped kid, for any kid. Smile at a stranger in the hall, even if you just failed a math test and don't know their name. Change does start small, why not start today?

The Surprising Crud Journalists Sometimes Deal With...

It's a stinky job (sometimes)...but somebody's gotta do it.

Recently a viewer called our station telling us about some horrible living conditions she'd been struggling with. Ranging from plumbing problems that ended up in her entire bathroom covered in human feces. Yes, human feces were clogging this couple's shower and toilet.

She'd also used 20 something towels to try and contain the mess and when we walked into the hallway from her bathroom, she opened the door to show me the piles of mouse droppings covering the floor. A mixture of dirt and mouse residue...then the tour continued to her kitchen where within seconds, cockroaches were seen scampering up and down her walls and all throughout her dishwasher and sink.
YUCK!

After visiting this particular tenant, we made numerous attempts to reach her landlord. All of those calls went unanswered, but there was a particularly "upset" message left by an anonymous caller saying we didn't have the other story.

So, after a few calls--we went back out to visit with this landlord who owns several other properties in town. He and his assistant introduced themselves and at first seemed to be pretty professional about the issue.
This professionalism quickly disappeared and we were told we had to interview numerous residents who they said "really wanted talk on camera." I have a hard time believing anyone would want to be videotaped while answering questions about their boss or landlord-who's standing just a few feet away.


Nevertheless, we interviewed one of the girls, who didn't seem like she wanted to on camera at all. When I returned to the station, a fellow reporter informed me the "tenant" management wanted me to interview didn't live there at all.

So, who do you believe? Who takes responsibility for the entire "cruddy" situation?Video doesn't lie...When you claim to take ownership in something, it's your job to make sure you take FULL responsibility for any issues that come up. I'll say this though, management aren't house keepers and they aren't responsible for any dirt problems that arise from not cleaning. A backed up toilet and shower full of poo--ya, maintenance you need to take care of that, especially when it's a 1-bedroom apartment.

Yuck.