Three Students Charged After Setting Teen’s Hair On Fire Inside School Bus

Being a redneck isn’t something someone should be proud of being

you’re god damn right kid! sitting there quiet never got anything done.

Probably because the modern connotation of “redneck” is of a person who is aggressively ignorant. I’m familiar with the origin of the term… and that’s not what this mother was referencing. In that respect, I agree with runawayuniverse. There’s nothing pride-worthy about being uncouth and uneducated with violent tendencies.

That said, I don’t know this mother was expressing pride. The fact that she said the redneck was “going to come out” suggests she keeps it hidden most of the time.

You know I claim the title “Redneck” in the forums Athena, and I remember at one time there was a rather in depth discussion on exactly what a redneck is, or was, although I don’t remember the term “aggressively ignorant”.

Yes, us rednecks may lack culture and may be “uncouth” to some, but the rednecks like me would never look down their nose at someone else because they were different. We also stick up for what is right, and I’m guessing that’s what this mother was referring to. For that, yea, I’m proud.

I think I would be good friends with that mom; she sounds like a pretty awesome lady. And I hope her son knows how lucky he is! Stupid freakin’ kids; my daughter had some friends over for Super Bowl Sunday, all 14-15-16 YOs, and one of ‘em had a lighter. You BET I brought the redneck out and that kid didn’t see that lighter again ’til I handed it off to his mother… Heh.

I don’t ever look down my nose at people who are different. I will, however, gaze down that slope all day at someone who takes pride in a lack of education (whether that education is formal or not is a non-issue).

I understand that “redneck” seems to mean different things to different people. The problem arises, however, when your personal definition lacks any resemblance to the standard or generally understood definition. From Dictionary.com:

red·neck? ?
Informal: Often Disparaging .
–noun
1. an uneducated white farm laborer, especially from the South.
2. a bigot or reactionary, especially from the rural working class.
–adjective
3. Also, red-necked . narrow, prejudiced, or reactionary: a redneck attitude.

As you can see, the term “redneck” cannot be separated from the “bigot” and “prejudiced” connotations (the majority of online dictionaries list a similar definition). I understand why you’d want it to be, because over the years you’ve been here, I’ve not seen you be bigoted OR prejudiced. This is why I would implore you to describe yourself differently. To claim the redneck title is to falsely advertise yourself, in my opinion.

You freekin kill me Athena

Rednecks were originally coal miners in West Virginia fighting the corporations for safety measures and fair wages. I call that progressive.

Who cares what she said? Her kid was being fucked over and she, as any good parent should, stood up and protected her son… whom, btw, was going to school to get an education to improve himself.

I think it is hilarious that you called me uneducated. I probably have a much stronger higher education and literary transcript than you do, but you assuming I am uneducated doesn’t bother me. Why should I reply in technically correct English when I am making a point about my heritage? The best literary pieces in history contain improper grammar and slang, if it is good enough for Samuel Langhorne Clemens it’s good enough for me. (Bless your heart, I bet you had to google who that was)

I didn’t say she should go kick some kids asses, I did say that it’s a good paternal instinct to want to. There is a difference.

Have you ever talked to a New Yorker? They are reactionary, does that make them a redneck?

I am not sure why me saying it irritates me for other people to be hateful towards a certain group of people makes me bigoted. I’m sure my circle of friends is much more open and diverse than yours is.

Also, fuck yeah…I’m a redneck.

Buahahaha!

You know what’s brilliant, Andy… If your post wasn’t made in direct response to mine, people would have NO IDEA who the hell you were talking about.

I’m not “always attacking people with racial slurs”. I don’t have a “bandwagon”. I’ve never even referenced reparations or slavery on the front page, good or bad. In fact, I very vocally oppose Affirmative Action and hate crime legislation. And I find it HILARIOUS that you continually accuse my lilly-white ass (who is married to a white guy and just had a white child) of being racist… against my own race!

Who’s trolling who now, Andy? Yesterday, you invoke my name in a thread I haven’t even responded to, and today you come after me with straight up delusions.

…and all this from a guy who uses the term “zebra” to describe mixed kids in a derogatory manner and, when called on it, uses the cliche “I have black friends” defense. Do you even realize what a joke that is?

I was pointing out to Coyote that the internationally recognized definition of “redneck” is not noble or kind, and does not describe her very well at all. Be proud of being Southern. Of being American. Of being hard-working or willing to stick up for yourself. But being a redneck is synonymous with being ignorant… and that’s not Coyote, or anything to be proud of.

Thank you. Just because the negative connotation of a word is what is commonly accepted doesn’t mean it is right. The problem is people forget our origins and what our ancestors went through to get here. It is unacceptable to give up our own definition and pride in ourselves just because others see it negatively.

Gosh. Now, why would I assume you’re uneducated when you speak with improper grammar? That’s the thing, Ms. Rebecca – you’re not writing a book, nor are you a fictional character (you’re going to have to delve a little deeper than Mark Twain to get my Google juices flowing – I was in Hannibal, Missouri less than a year ago). You’re speaking for yourself, and your manner of speech gives a significant first impression. I’m plenty educated (and not done yet) and it would be a lot easier for me to assume the same of you if you made possessive apostrophies a habit.

As for the content of your initial reply to me, “If you ask me, more mothers should be ready to fuck someone up for their kids,” does not say to me, “I didn’t say she should go kick some kids asses, I did say that it’s a good paternal instinct to want to.” In fact, it’s entirely too ambiguous to make either point. I was stating my position… glad you clarified yours.

I was not being hateful toward a particular group. I was being observant. Surely, having an interest in literature, you could understand how powerful connotation and stigma are and how useless it is to use a word in a way contrary to its definition. If what you say is true about your level of education and your diverse set of friends, by definition, YOU ARE NOT A REDNECK. I’m sorry (and confused) that this disappoints you.

If you’ve got an issue with the definition of “redneck”, I recommend you take it up with the various publishers of dictionaries. I am only the messenger.

This is absolutely true – pro-union workers who were identified by the red bandanas they wore around their necks. The Battle of Blair Mountain was perhaps THE most impressive and progressive show of force against corporations in American history.

Actually, that’s true. I might argue that the Battle of Blair Mountain popularized the word, but, having not been around back then, I can’t say that with any certainty.

It makes me very sad to see the lengths that bullying has gotten to in the past 10 years. When I was in high school, we didn’t run around shooting each other, setting each other on fire, killing each other, stalking, and all the other bullshit that kids do now. Now, granted, if two kids didn’t like each other, they might have a fight, but that was about the end of it generally. If you didn’t like someone, you stayed away from each other. With that being said, y’all calm down. It is the internet, who cares who is smarter than whom, and who can use spell check and grammar better. This isn’t a job interview you are attending or a resume you are typing, it is a silly forum post.

I think you have such a hard-on for Athena. Seriously. You need to go wank off and get your frustrations out. Thankfully for Athena, there’s no photo of her available for ya. Allow me to reference a lady for ya…….

Enjoy

This is not new in the last ten years. I was tormented by bullies when I went to school. I finally made a deal with two of them to protect me by doing their homework in exchange.

Yes, I realize that the miners were called rednecks because of the red bandanas. The bandanas were also borrowed from the farmers for whom the term was originally used.

I am sorry if you think that my correction was mean. That wasn’t the intent. I was merely pointing out the facts from the link that you provided so that people that didn’t bother to read the article would know what information was provided. You felt the need to correct someone on the origins of this term, so I was merely correcting the erroneous information that you provided. If you don’t want to be corrected, then you shouldn’t be correcting others.

Nobody cares… unless someone makes an issue of it. Then discussion breaks out. Yes, discussion. On the internet. Been here long?

On a serious note, fucked up bullying has been going on for as long as kids have been attending school together. The guns issue has been going on for more than 30 years. I went to a pretty chill high school and it sounds like you did too. But that doesn’t mean this shit wasn’t going on elsewhere back then.

There’s not anything wrong with being a farmer and being poor.
Farm work is hard, dangerous at times and obviously belittled. My grandfather had 75 acres 50 head of cattle and raised tobacco back in the day. I spent every summer on his farm. I cut tobacco and helped the guys cure it by hanging it up on the rafters of a barn, picked rocks out of the garden, picked beans, corn, tomatoes, hilled potatoes- fed cattle and God forbid chickens (hence my hatred for chickens). I also happen to be a girl- I’d hate to have to depend on the land to make a living now as an adult with things the way they are today.
I just had to defend farmers when you work hard (physically demanding work in particular) all day to keep what you earned it tends to harden you a bit both inside and out.

Sorry. Just irritated by all the finger pointing and BULLYING on this topic.

Completely aside from the heated discussion by, for and about rednecks, I’m wondering how the bus driver missed someone’s hair being lit on fire on his bus. And why nothing was done about it if he did notice. I would be wanting to drag it all in front of the principal too, but I’d have had the bus driver’s ass right there along with him.

If people don’t choose to react aren’t they just allowing themselves to become victims?
Isn’t bullying about belittling/ beating someone into behaving the way you expect them too?
When people don’t chose to stand up for themselves even if it’s by pushing their oppressor into a corner aren’t they contributing to their victimization?
I think redneck is one of those words like the n-word (which I won’t type because someone will get mad) if we use it to describe ourselves it’s ok but if someone else uses redneck/n###er it’s not ok. IMHO

that’s rich. might want to memorize that information before you regurgitate it and try to spit it down another persons throat.

personally i find the knowledge people have absorbed over their life to be the more interesting than google (government statistics not included). anyone can google this crap – but if you can’t even type it back correctly, what’s the point.

i know nothing about the origins of rednecks, now if it were skinheads – i could come out and play.

“What was the bus driver do while this was happening?”

- probably driving the bus

Things like that can be over in an instant. It’s not like the bus driver can have full attention on the road AND every single kids at all times. If they want that to happen, they should have a bus driver and a bus monitor. One to drive and one to handle the kids. They aren’t miracle workers and sure don’t get paid like one. They take on the duty or making sure your kids get to school and home every day. If the bus driver did do something, they’d probably get fired. No one can win anymore. We all live in fear of our jobs or of getting sued. I hate to say it, but I’d rather have someone’s hair get burned a little than have the bus driver freak out and flip the bus in an intersection in order to calm shit down. You can’t always just pull over or stop the bus.

I hope those little shits pay for what they did and have parents who care like this boy’s mother does. Parents that care enough to kick their son’s balls up into their stomachs. It’s a different kind of love…

Standing up for ones self is completely different from being “reactionary”, which is generally a negative term, similar to “knee-jerk” or non-thinking.

I do agree, though, that “redneck” is similar to “nigger”, as I stated in an above post. Here’s the problem, though – “nigger” says something bad about a black person outside of black circles. I implore black folk to not use that word to describe themselves because, no matter how positive they want the word to be, it was created by people who thought they were better than you to make fun or disparage you. There’s no making that word – be it “nigger” or “redneck” – beautiful and noble.

Standing up for ones self is completely different from being “reactionary”, which is generally a negative term, similar to “knee-jerk” or non-thinking.

I do agree, though, that “redneck” is similar to “nigger”, as I stated in an above post. Here’s the problem, though – “nigger” says something bad about a black person outside of black circles. I implore black folk to not use that word to describe themselves because, no matter how positive they want the word to be, it was created by people who thought they were better than you to make fun or disparage you. There’s no making that word – be it “nigger” or “redneck” – beautiful and noble.

Aw, damn it. Well, that just takes the fun outta the zombie apocalypse since, now that you’ve dibbed Athena’s brain, you will surely be the last to die. Thanks for ruining it for the rest of us.

Or possibly we just know more about it because it now gets reported.

Back in the day when I was being bullied it was not something that was discussed much inside or outside the classroom.

That’s true too. I know many parents of my generation would have the mentality that you just deal with this stuff yourself or walk away. I don’t remember ever thinking of going to the cops or the principal for anything. Not because you would be tattling, but we just dealt with that crap ourselves, one way or another.

Who tha helll raises kids that think they can do whatever they want, whenever they want to whomever they want!??? The parents or whoever is raising the bullies NEED to get THEIR asses kicked too.

@Tundratot,
In my kids school district, the drivers have radios to communicate with the bus terminal AND have a written protocol to follow for such circumstances. In an incident like this, their protocol would have been to halt the bus have the terminal contact the police.

Now, whether or not drivers FOLLOW this protocol is another story…

Three Middeltown High School students charged in a bullying case entered guilty pleas Tuesday morning.

One of the suspects, a 17-year-old high school junior, pleaded guilty to attempted aggravated assault. The probation department recommended that the teen enter a juvenile rehabilitation program.

A second student, a 16-year-old junior, pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct, which was reduced from a charge of obstructing official business.

The third student, a 15-year-old freshman, pleaded guilty to attempted aggravated assault, which was reduced from a charge of aggravated menacing and aggravated arson.

Sentencing for all three of the teens was scheduled for May 27.

Read more: http://www.wlwt.com/news/27757808/detail.html#ixzz1LIxKBaYD