I grew up in Chicago back in the 1960s. I learned how to shoot in Boy Scouts, partly to get my Marksmanship merit badge, but also because being able to hit what you were shooting at was considered a survival skill.

My introduction to bullying happened the first day of school in 7th grade, when a kid came after me with a switch blade. I kicked the knife out of his hand, then proceeded to kick the bloody crap out of him. From then until Junior High graduation two years later, he left me alone.

I have no sympathy whatsoever for wimps who don't know how to fight, or kids who would rather live in the adrenaline-charged world of fear instead of taking charge of their lives and beating the bullies out of it. People who are scared of being bullied, or who simply need to learn basic fighting skills, NEED TO GET THEMSELVES ENROLLED IN BASIC SELF-DEFENSE AND KARATE CLASSES, AND THEY NEED TO USE THAT INFORMATION TO BEAT THE BULLIES INTO BLOODY LUMPS.

Bullies, for whatever reason, are scared, insecure, and afraid, and they express it by seriously hurting others. They only understand the language of force; no fancy words or psycho-fad lingo will do. After they've been on the ground unconscious once or twice, they'll get the idea.

If states really want to do something about the bullying "problem," they'll require all children beginning in the fifth grade to learn basic self-defense. Parents have no one to blame for the problem but themselves. If they want to end it, they need to teach their children to fight effectively.