From E-Hell blog: Cheeseburger Incitement

[Brentwood]

Doesn't surprised me. I've heard of worse when there is no offense committed - some kids are just bullies.

I agree. And I think people tend to make a common mistake when they assume that bullies are poor souls with low self esteem from bad/poor backgrounds. The bullies I grew up with were affluent and confident, and the bullying stemmed from what their parents drummed into them; that they were *better* than other people because of that affluence/social status.

In this case I agree the religious angle is a red herring but only because I know - again from experience - that there doesn't have to be a 'reason' and if one is given it's usually only as a way of recruiting sympathisers and other bullies.

I can also very much see the difficulty in taking this to court; unfortunately too many people don't take bullying and harrasment seriously. I can very easily see where the camp people could convince themselves that 'Maggie' was over-reacting, and I could see how they could easily convice a court of the same (especially if the attackers were 'nice white kids' of good families).

I think the real problem is that people do respond to over the top incidents/stories like this, but not to the more common, almost 'mundane' bullying that can damage a person for life.

Even if the camp director thought the victim was over-reacting, it is not plausible that he would continually call and harass the girl's mother.

[Kaylee]

This line make me suspcious that the story isn't real, or at least is exaggerated:

However, since she got home, Maggie’s mother has been inundated by phone calls from the director of the camp, on her personal cell phone, even after dinner, complaining that the parents of the other girls have been calling HIM, complaining that their daughters’ expulsion from camp has ruined THEIR lives. 

It just seems like the over-the-top detail that marks a "shenanigans" story, as if the writer couldn't leave well enough alone.  A real camp director would be too worried about a possible lawsuit to repeatedly call the victim's mother and complain.

I agree. No camp director would do that.

Not only would no camp director do that, what would be the point?  What would this director be calling to complain for, or about?  

Add me to the skeptical column on this one.

Cathy, you posted again while I was writing this, and yes, exactly. 

[Paper Roses]

I've got to say, if it is an April Fools joke, it's not a particularly tasteful one.

And it certainly isn't funny.

[Fluffy Cat]

I've got to say, if it is an April Fools joke, it's not a particularly tasteful one.

And it certainly isn't funny.

Not only is it not funny in a general, most people wouldn't find it funny sense, its not even funny from a sarcastic, obnoxious, off-color, or any other less usual brand of humor sense.  Its just not funny to the degree that I don't even see the point of such a joke.

That's assuming its a prank.  I don't think its real because it reads way too much like an urban legend to me, but judging from the forwards my Mom sens me, I can believe the OP thought it was real.  Maybe.

I'm also not saying that such an event is impossible.  Just highly unlikely given all things consideration.

ETA: Man I really screwed that up.  Amongst other things, "off-color" NOT "of color". 

[Mrs. Pilgrim]

Do we look at this possibly as an April Fools' gag (is the code there an indicator of the date the story was sent?), or do we shake our heads and wonder what this world is coming to?

Just to point out my question. 

[PeterM]

Even if the camp director thought the victim was over-reacting, it is not plausible that he would continually call and harass the girl's mother.

I disagree. I have no idea if the story is true, and I certainly hope it never happened, but I have learned never, ever to underestimate the sheer stupidity that might be present in otherwise normal people. Real life doesn't have to be plausible. Real people do all sorts of ludicrously idiotic things every day. How many stories have we had here that deal with people in positions of authority over children who do horribly cruel things to them, even things that any sane person would never allow others to know about them?

I have no problem believing that a camp director might act that way. There are too many stupid, petty, cruel and self-centered people in the world for me to even think it's all that unlikely. At least 99% of all camp counselors would never act that way even if they wanted to, sure, but that still leaves room for many, many exceptions. And any camp where the counselors don't bother to check if it's screams or laughter they're hearing probably doesn't have the best management anyway, so the odds of there being a crappy director would be higher than usual right off the bat.

[Vegemite Girl]

Doesn't surprised me. I've heard of worse when there is no offense committed - some kids are just bullies.

I agree. And I think people tend to make a common mistake when they assume that bullies are poor souls with low self esteem from bad/poor backgrounds. The bullies I grew up with were affluent and confident, and the bullying stemmed from what their parents drummed into them; that they were *better* than other people because of that affluence/social status.

In this case I agree the religious angle is a red herring but only because I know - again from experience - that there doesn't have to be a 'reason' and if one is given it's usually only as a way of recruiting sympathisers and other bullies.

I can also very much see the difficulty in taking this to court; unfortunately too many people don't take bullying and harrasment seriously. I can very easily see where the camp people could convince themselves that 'Maggie' was over-reacting, and I could see how they could easily convice a court of the same (especially if the attackers were 'nice white kids' of good families).

I think the real problem is that people do respond to over the top incidents/stories like this, but not to the more common, almost 'mundane' bullying that can damage a person for life.

Even if the camp director thought the victim was over-reacting, it is not plausible that he would continually call and harass the girl's mother.

I disagree, I think it's very plausible. Not only as a PP suggested (that people don't act rationally; that's why sites like this exist) but also that many people believe that victims attract bullying in some way, and bring it on themselves. When I was being bullied my mother was told by teachers that it was her fault for bringing me up the way she did. There is also the strong possibility that the director is a bully themselves, and/or wants it all just to go away.

[Kaylee]

What doesn't make sense is that it HAS gone away.

In this story, the mother hasn't sued, and the punitive action (kicking the offenders out of camp) has already taken place.  Camp is over.

What, pray tell, would this camp director be harassing the mother for?  What possible outcome would he be trying to achieve?  Going back in time and rescinding the charges?

[Merry Mrs Martin]

What doesn't make sense is that it HAS gone away.

In this story, the mother hasn't sued, and the punitive action (kicking the offenders out of camp) has already taken place.  Camp is over.

What, pray tell, would this camp director be harassing the mother for?  What possible outcome would he be trying to achieve?  Going back in time and rescinding the charges?

Yes exactly , if it was "the camp director is calling for me to pick up my daughter , so he doesn't have to punshies the offenders" or even" the director wants me to pick up my daughter because she offend the bullies and deserves to be punished too."  If someone isn't threatening a lawsuit you don't wake sleeping dogs.

[Diane AKA Traska]

You know, April Fools jokes *themselves* are most often rude, and tasteless, and without humor.

Maybe that's the point EHellDame is trying to make?

[whatsanenigma]

What, pray tell, would this camp director be harassing the mother for?  What possible outcome would he be trying to achieve?  Going back in time and rescinding the charges?

I'm wondering if maybe the parents of the other girls are very prominant members of the community and that has something to do with it. It sounds like the girl in the story was at a camp of mostly members of a certain religion of which she was not a member, so it might be a "clique" thing with the families, like maybe she just happened to offend just the wrong girls, who have told the story as a bigger deal than it is, and it's worse because the one girl is an outsider.

Otherwise, yes, the story does sound a little off.

[Yarnie]

Where would have the girls gotten the duct tape?  I doubt its the sort of thing someone would pack, or have hanging around camp.

Plus, given how gun shy folks are about naming religion at all here, the idea of posting on the official blog something that reeks of anti-semitism just seems.. off.

[Brentwood]

What doesn't make sense is that it HAS gone away.

In this story, the mother hasn't sued, and the punitive action (kicking the offenders out of camp) has already taken place.  Camp is over.

What, pray tell, would this camp director be harassing the mother for?  What possible outcome would he be trying to achieve?  Going back in time and rescinding the charges?

Exactly. I stand by my previous statement.

[Kaylee]

What, pray tell, would this camp director be harassing the mother for?  What possible outcome would he be trying to achieve?  Going back in time and rescinding the charges?

I'm wondering if maybe the parents of the other girls are very prominant members of the community and that has something to do with it. It sounds like the girl in the story was at a camp of mostly members of a certain religion of which she was not a member, so it might be a "clique" thing with the families, like maybe she just happened to offend just the wrong girls, who have told the story as a bigger deal than it is, and it's worse because the one girl is an outsider.

Otherwise, yes, the story does sound a little off.

Aside from anything else, the girl was described as being a member, at least a MOT.

And the main question remains:  what would be the point of harrassing the mother after the fact?  What would the director be calling ABOUT?  "I already kicked these girls out of camp because of what they did to your daughter...but it's such a problem I want to keep telling you about it"?  What possible up side could a campaign of harassment have?  All it could possibly achieve would be for the mother to go ahead and press charges--if not for the original assault, then for the harassment itself.  There's no THERE there.

Just not plausible.  All any camp director would want would be for it all to go away as rapidly as possible.  Or what, once again, Cathy said.

[whatsanenigma]

Well, ehelldame has responded on the original post:

To all who thought this post was an April’s Fools Day punk, it was not. The numbers at the end of the story indicate the date it was email submitted which means this one was sent August 9, 2008. If the original writer witnessed these events during the summer, a submission date in August seems plausible. I schedule the stories to be published a week in advance and I didn’t pay much attention to the date of April 1st and what story should be published on that date. I edit for typos and formatting but rarely ever edit for content and the story was published exactly how it was submitted. The blog allows for a greater degree of freedom for readers to then comment on the submitted stories.

The main point, for me, in this story is that the parents of the bullying girls failed completely in teaching courtesy and respect to their children. When the basics of civilized behavior is overlooked, like a building with a poor foundation, the net result is an attitude of entitlement to act in any manner one chooses with no regard for how it will impact others or society. The parents of the bully girls are doing them no favors by protecting the poor dears from the consequences of their actions or reinforcing their faux victimhood.

So, she obviously believes it to be real. Did someone sneak something by her? Maybe. But she believes it's real.