84 Responses to:
A MOTHER FROM BUS 784

# 1. 7/3/12 7:36 AM
Thank you for printing this. What a group of irresponsible people on that school board. They only acted when the eyes of the world were upon them. Granted those kids treated the bus monitor wrong, but she should have reported these kids long before the you tube video. If she was as altruistic as she is perceived to be she would donate all the money she has received to anti bullying programs or better yet to help pay for a bus monitor who could do the job he or she was hired to do.

# 2. 7/3/12 7:58 AM by Diane - Utah
The parents should be outraged at whoever hired her. She did not do her job and she didn't appear to be physically able to do anything to help any child on that bus. Did she receive any training about bullying, how to handle abusive children? Sounds like she was getting a paycheck for riding a bus. The school board should be on trial for the incident and she shouldn't receive any money for this. It's ridiculous. Those boys should not be allowed to ride the bus for a year and if another incident occurs, they should be banned permanently.

# 3. 7/3/12 7:58 AM by Scott - Henrietta, New York
Bullying is not limited to the Greece School District buses.

Happens a lot in other districts too. And not just on the buses, but in the schools too.

My son goes to a Rush-Henrietta school. When he reported (several times) to school officials that he was a victim of bullying they told him, and me, since there was no evidence they were not going to take any action.

# 4. 7/3/12 8:03 AM by Larry - Virginia
As a former teacher here is what strikes me about this whole story: The monitor, regardless of what kind of job she was or wasn't doing, was not going to report even this major incident. That tells me that she knew there would be no backing from the administration, no punishment for the kids, etc. If this had not hit the national news nothing would have been done by the school.

Editor's Note: agreed

# 5. 7/3/12 8:03 AM
The last person they needed on that school bus as a bus monitor was a former, 20 year veteran of driving school bus.

You know that she was used to bad behavior from children that age and simply tuned them out as she had experience doing from 20 years of driving school bus.

Nothing against Karen Kline or her accepting money for what she went through. She has the right to do what she wants with her celebrity and with the money.

I do think she should have known better than to let a small group of punk kids run the inside of that school bus.

# 6. 7/3/12 8:06 AM by hc
This was perfect, and needful.

It's what's been missing in all of this mess. The purpose of ALL school employees is to serve children!

Whether it is to serve them by imparting into them an education, protecting them with safe transportation, or teaching them justice by silencing them with suspension; the adults are supposed to be there for the kids, and not the other way around.

And those of us who do this right don't need the $600,000. We see the kids we've helped along the way growing up up bright and honest, and we are content with our reward.

~xp

# 7. 7/3/12 8:20 AM by John - Penfield, NY
This mom is the perfect "whine" to go with the cheese that is her "bullied" son. It's just the jealousy about the money that finally gives her the "courage" to speak up for her precious son?

Her big effort was to write a letter to the superintendent because of the mean things that kids say. Lame...

Where's the dad to teach the kid to kick the crap out of, say, that weasel with the OKC jersey?

# 8. 7/3/12 8:21 AM by Mike R - Livonia, NY
Heeeeeeyyyyyy Bob,

Sorry, lady. She did not do the job because she was not allowed to do the job. She is a monitor. Look up the definition. Her job is only to watch and document and only take any action if one kid is literally about to kill another kid. If she so much as looked cross-eyed at a kid, the parents will be humming a popular lawyer jingle on their way to the principal's office.

The children of the 60's and 70's have failed to teach the current crop respect for their seniors. And, because our society has labeled corporal punishment as child abuse, our children will continue to run amok until the day comes that school buses get banned because it's too dangerous to put that many kids in such a cramped setting.

It's not therapy or suspension that these kids need; it's a good whack across the bottom.

Keep writing.

# 9. 7/3/12 8:22 AM by Poplar Beach
I still want to know what the rules/guidelines are for the monitor and the bus driver on these buses.

So many folk (and I agree with them)say the monitor and the bus driver were not doing their job!

I know the shame is with the kids and their parents, but the old saying you give them an inch, and they take a mile comes into play here.

Can some real reporter get a copy of the job descriptions and the rules of the road for Greece monitors and bus drivers so we can see if it was the administration, the monitor, the bus driver, or, as I suspect, all three, letting these kids turn into monsters.

It is not only the kids who should be shamed and punished here!

# 10. 7/3/12 8:26 AM by pp
Greece is a trashy suburb in many ways. Most of Monroe County knows it, and it starts from the top. Crooked political leadership, the wrong people being appointed to positions, crooked police force, and a large number of trashy citizens. Seriously, I have no idea why anyone would want to live among the trash, especially some of the good people I know that live there.

# 11. 7/3/12 8:35 AM by Christopher - Newport News, VA
Two of my 3 children were assaulted on school property about 20 years ago. Fortunately they were capable of defending themselves. It was and I believe still is the school districts policy to suspend both students. Even the one defending themselves. The district wants to suspend both and sweep it under the rug. The problem is that there is so much crap under the rug it is unsafe to walk on the rug.

Advice to parents is the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Do not give up until the district corrects the problem. Talk to the principle, the superintendent, a lawyer. Talk to the bus driver. Ride the bus. Sit in the class room. harassment, assault? Call the police.

I grew up in the town of Greece. It is sad how it has declined through the years. The lack of leadership is second only to that of Rochester.

Hopefully the "bus monitor" will take her windfall, retire and fade into the sunset.

# 12. 7/3/12 8:44 AM by Mark - Rochester
Why is the answer to a child being bullied, "just punch the bully in the nose", that is not the solution. Not every child has that in them and because the child is the victim of bullying now he must retaliate with violence. Thus being victimized twice. Why doesn't the parent of the bullied child punch the parent of the bully in the nose? Why, because that would be assault! Great lesson to teach your child, when dealing with adversity just punch someone in the nose.

# 13. 7/3/12 8:47 AM by Mark
Exactly what I've been saying!

# 14. 7/3/12 8:51 AM
Kodak execs seek millions in unsecured claims....

Just a matter of time.....

What comes around, goes around...

# 15. 7/3/12 8:52 AM by FSB - Rotchester
KK was in the right place at the right time, and is now reaping the rewards. People donated of their own volition, regardless of the facts. Deal with it and move on - life isn't fair, and crying about it doesn't make it any better.

All this anti-bullying BS needs to get thrown in the trash, along with rewards for everything, up to and including "having a pulse". Life is about competition, if you commit suicide because some retread bullies you, then sorry but you didn't cut it at the game.

I got $%^& all through high school because I was small. I fought just about every day on the bus, came home with black eyes and fat lips, bleeding, but I got through it. Adolescence is not for the weak hearted, neither for that matter is life. Hard times make hard people - words to live by.

Everyone complaining about KK and Greece needs to shut the h*ll up and do something about it if you're that concerned. This means beating the heck out of your kids if they get out of line, which none of you seem to be doing. News flash, you weren't a little angel and neither are they.

Stop coddling people (kids AND adults), and the understanding of how life actually works will begin to become evident.

# 16. 7/3/12 8:52 AM by S J - Rochester, NY
Perfect. Klein failed to do her job. The people who hired her for this job made a mistake. And it appears that these kids regularly crossed the line from adolescent teasing to brutal mockery. And from within this basket of losers comes the biggest viral video ever to be released in June, 2012.

Regarding the fundraiser: the letter in this column hits it on the head. Klein said something like "keep the money coming," and that's exactly the impression I got from seeing her on some other talk show. She showed no gratitude and no grasp of the ridiculous nature of receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars for being made fun of on a bus. Maybe she showed different emotions elsewhere - I didn't follow this particular media parade.

$5,000 for a vacation? Ok, that's cute. I get it. But $500,000+? That's obscene. Those who donated could have given money to any of hundreds of better causes if they need so badly to assuage their guilty consciences.

# 17. 7/3/12 8:54 AM by Rocky - Campbell, NY
The way I view this(a personal view): 1. Parents are afraid to be parents. Maybe their parents never modeled the way. As I was growing up, not only would I go to the woodshed when I got home, the neighborhood mothers would have stepped in to give it to me twice. It was had to get away with anything! Now a days, the parents either think their kids can do no wrong, or just don't pay attention. 2. The school employees on the bus know that if they say something, do something, or physically intervene, they may be attacked by the parents, the children, the courts, and by the school officials themselves. I don't know what the answer is but if someone knows, please share so that we may all learn! Actually I know what I would do, but it would be politically incorrect. I actually care but that is somehow wrong. Thanks for listening.

# 18. 7/3/12 8:54 AM by Dave B - Fairport, NY
Thanks for printing this, Bob. I think it's a point of view everyone needed to see. It's quite obvious that the school district dropped the ball here, and I'm also sure Mrs. Klein's hands were tied as to what actions she was allowed to take. But there is a big difference between limited actions that are allowed, and taking no action at all. Had it not been for the video going international, this obviously would have been swept under the rug.

My issue is that I believe these kids got suspended from the school for the year, is this correct? Yet in NYS, we are required to give even the low-life, non-interested students an education. So doesn't this mean the taxpayers are now going to foot the bill for all these kids to be tutored for the year? What will that cost? If it cost $16-$18K a year in school, it has to be 2-3 times that for independent education. The parents obviously had no control over these children, so they are partly to blame. Why not teach them a lesson too and send them the bill for this!! If I found out my child was acting in this manner, he'd already be signed up for military school!

And Greece, maybe it's time to get bouncers on your buses, rather than retirement age monitors.

# 19. 7/3/12 9:06 AM by J - Rochester
Just because this monitor was bullied, it doesn't obligate her to become an advocate or spokesperson for anti-bullying campaigns.

While many may not agree wih her receiving those donations, the simple fact is that people who donated DID think she deserves something.

I can sympathize with this mother, but she needs to concentrate less on what is going on wih the monitor situation and more on what is/was happening with her son. She has obviously taken the right steps to true to force the district to help her son and give her an explanation, which is about all anyone can do for their child- advocate for them.

It seems her jealousy of the $ that was received by Karen Klein is what is upsetting her more now.

While bullying is an awful and offensive thing when it happens between pers, the utter lack of respect this enervation shows heir elders is sickening, and I think Karen deserves every dime she's been given.

# 20. 7/3/12 9:09 AM by Annie - Rochester, NY
Yesterday, I heard that many of our military are returning home and there are no jobs for them. Wouldn't it be great to have a Marine, Army soldier, or National Guard person be assigned to a bus for a year That person could use its best drill Sergeant voice and withering glance, call each kid by its last name and just be loud. All without doing an objectionable thing other than to keep order. May make a world of difference for every kid on the bus.

# 21. 7/3/12 9:09 AM by Chelsie McEnroe - Rochester, NY
Bob:

I think this may start an interesting trend. Fake sensational youtube videos followed by fake charity collection web sites.

# 22. 7/3/12 9:12 AM by Chris
My son, who is mildly autistic, used to ride the bus until we finally gave up because of the bullying and nothing being done. The first thing he said when he saw the video was "that happened to me every day."

# 23. 7/3/12 9:25 AM by Huh!?!
Let me get this straight. The bus monitor was documented on camera NOT doing her job. She then collected, unsolicited or not, extra money while she was already being paid to do her monitor job. Were these extra funds an incentive to treat someone else differently or in a special manner than her clients (the school district and students). Was it effectively a political bribe looking for special treatment? The money she has collected is way in excess of anything of value that she is able to provide. We sent astronauts to the moon. Because of the high risk, do you know of anyone who donated a reward fund to them? And if they did, wouldn't they be required by law to turn the money over to NASA?

Just wonderin'.

# 24. 7/3/12 9:29 AM by Abner D

A class-action lawsuit against the bus manufacturer for failing to provide 'Time Out' chairs on every school bus would go a long way towards preventing a recurrence of the Karen Klein Incident. So would purging liberals from the educational system, the main stream media, and the courts.

Elect me your President and On Day One, I'll ramp-up my shovel-ready program introducing liberals into the food chain on the Serengeti Plain!

Problem solved.

Freedom and prosperity for all Americans into the next millennium and beyond -- guaranteed.

# 25. 7/3/12 9:45 AM by Lyle - Lehi, UT
Shame, that is what is missing from this letter. It is what is missing from the school, parents and the kids.

When I went to Jr. High in the early 80's I was suspended from school and from the bus for throwing a snowball. I remember the shame I felt at being called into the vice principals office and the shame that my Mother had to come and pick me up from school. I never did that again.

In this case, did the kids feel any shame? Were they shamed when they were called into the vice principals office? were they called in? how long did it take for them to be called in? Did they feel shame when their parents picked them up? or did their parents go on their defense and assured them they were the victims?

I saw the video. It was a sick thing to watch. What is even more sickening, is the way the parents acted after.

The Mother who wrote this letter. Shame on you for making the bus monitor the bad person. Will you feel any shame?

# 26. 7/3/12 9:48 AM by Jodi - Wayne County East
#4 Has it right.

When the administration won't demand proper behavior of the students and properly discipline wrong behavior, or worse yet, doesn't know what proper behavior is the teachers, bus drivers, monitors, and cafeteria staff etc. will stop reporting it.

The ones that still do then simply becomes targets of the administration for making their school look bad.

One reason the admin. won't act is because the court system often won't support them and it goes up the ladder to deaf ears.

The atheist, flower child, don't spank my child, if it feels good just do it, rights without responsibility crowed has done this to our children and our nation without remorse.

Has anyone asked who will be tutoring these kids during their one year expulsion and at what cost.

Another reason schools simply won't do anything is because it cost them a lot more money to suspend and then tutor someone than it does to keep them in main stream classrooms.

School vouchers for parental choice would fix these problems immediately. The public schools would either fix themselves or go broke.

# 27. 7/3/12 10:15 AM
That sum of money is now at $677,496 as of this morning. There are 18 days left to donate. Here's the address...

http://www.indiegogo.com/loveforkarenhklein

I said from day one that Ms. Klein didn't do her job. It's a sick public that rewards her for that.

# 28. 7/3/12 10:16 AM by Mark
#8 is an idiot. She did not do ANYTHING. She did not report any incidents. Stop making excuses for inaction. This is clearly a case of pension padding.

# 29. 7/3/12 10:29 AM by Scott - Irondequoit
A previous comment was that a bus monitor's job is to OBSERVE and DOCUMENT inappropriate actions.....1st, OBSERVE: during the video, most of her time was spent OBSERVING outside the bus window or lookin at her purse!!!! 2nd, DOCUMENT: I saw no evidence of her doing any DOCUMENTING what was happening on the video....was a formal report ever submitted of the incident??? Do people think this was the ONLY incident on that bus because its on video? Cmon people, stop being ignorant like her, she CLEARLY didn't do her job!!!!

# 30. 7/3/12 10:33 AM by Tom Bastian - Fairport, NY
If a cook couldn't cook he would get fired. If an athlete couldn't play his sport he would be cut. When a person assigned to maintain order on a school bus is incapable of working with her bus driver to maintain that order, she is rewarded with $600,000 in sympathy money. It a wonderful country.

# 31. 7/3/12 10:53 AM by Daydreamer
It's great to hear "the other side of the story". Thanks for printing this, Bob.

# 32. 7/3/12 11:10 AM
It is a shame to me the way Kids behave these days,not saying we were angels growing up but let me tell you there was a lot more respect for our elders than there is today!!!!!! and that my friends is what the problem is here,we all had our fair share of being teased,but unfortunately it has gone beyond that and that is what we are talking about, we were taught to defend ourselves growing up and we did and if little Johnny went home with a nose bleed or a black eye his Mom would call and say hey what happened between the boys today? the boys would then quickly get over it cause they were both going get it anyways at home!! so there you have it this all beginning at the home.. teach your child to respect others or there will be major consequences for their actions!!! that is a big problem today I believe to many parents are just to damn busy to watch their kids and see what's going on, this is a we will sue society and that needs to end too!!!! KK sorry those kids did that to you ,I am sure I would have handled it differently but that's me!!! and as far as excepting all that money I would be embarrassed to take it all,I did hear you were donating to a charity and that is very nice too, but to hear you say things like keep the money coming I can't believe I hear greed once again!!just a resident

# 33. 7/3/12 11:18 AM by BSP
Since this story broke, I've been saying that Klein wasn't doing her job and should be fired. Simple as that. And it's not only one day she wasn't doing her job, as there were videos of this behavior for several days. She should be fired just as I would expect to be fired for sitting on my butt and doing absolutely nothing.

And what about the other kids on the bus? What was Klein doing to watch over them? Was there other bad behavior in another part of the bus that she was ignoring? Was there a kid with a bad leg that needed her assistance getting off the bus?

Klein ought to take the money that was donated to her and re-donate it to a worthy cause. A fat, incompetent bus monitor is NOT a worthy cause!

# 34. 7/3/12 11:19 AM by Concerned Liberal
Will KK be paying taxes on her winnings?

# 35. 7/3/12 11:41 AM by prick - webster
Bobby-boy'

Ms. Klein needs to button her lip and let "her agent" handle quotes to the media. She has made several comments that make her out to be a greedy old lady.

# 36. 7/3/12 11:41 AM by Beth - Beautiful Canisteo Valley
BINGO! #25

# 37. 7/3/12 12:02 PM by Mike - Macedon, NY
Hi Bob,

You just confirmed that which I was afraid was true. I wondered how many other children were bullied on that bus right under her 'bus monitoring' nose. Her job was to protect the children but she can't even protect herself. She makes me sick. She's on every show and now a millionaire for failing our children, what a joke. She should have to answer to why she wasn't doing her job.

I'm sorry to hear that your child was bullied

# 38. 7/3/12 12:28 PM by U.S. Taxpayer & voter
I certainly hope that the Greece School District and other districts are reviewing their requirements for school bus monitors. Seems like Ms. Klein was really not qualified to handle some of the undisciplined youngsters in today's society. If she felt she needed to work for the school district, why not read books to the kindergartners or assist teachers in the lower grades? A nice, grandmotherly presence for some of the little ones who don't have a grandmom in their lives.

I do hope she donates some of the "embarrassment of riches" she received to some our local charities who work with kids who have behavior problems: St. Joseph's Villa, Hillside, etc., to name a couple that come to mind.

# 39. 7/3/12 12:30 PM
I wonder what the parents of Jamey Rodemeyer are thinking, right about now. Or the parents of ANY child who has been bullied to death......................

# 40. 7/3/12 12:48 PM by John - SLC
Sorry, Mom, you are comparing apples and road apples.

I have no problem with the lady accepting gifts voluntarily given.

I feel bad that your kid was a victim and that nothing was done.

However, the fault is not the bus lady or driver, but the school board and the sorry state of society today. They are so much terrified by the thoughts of lawsuits, or even angry phone calls, from other parents whose "little angels" are disciplined in any way that they have written "rules of engagement" that keep bus drivers and monitors from actually doing anything.

Years ago, the cretins in the back causing trouble would have been thrown off the bus, and/or given a good paddling. However, the ACLU and their ilk have made that behavior unacceptable, and consequently bad behavior acceptable.

Frankly, public schools with their wussified leadership, and apathetic (at best) unionized employees do a great disservice to all students and parents. Home or private schooling is not an option for everyone, but it is far superior in nearly every case to the chronically failing "government skools."

How about if YOU run for the school board and see if you can help fix the problems?

# 41. 7/3/12 12:54 PM by "Joe" - Rochester
Idea: Lets publish the the job descriptions and salaries of the Greece school district leadership. These folks get paid a lot of money to do what exactly? I brought a serious and recurring issue to their attention and the response was "we have nothing in writing, so we can't do anything..."

Uh, don't they get paid to document problems, and then to follow up with increasingly harsher disciplinary action (maybe a "three strikes and your out" rule)?

This is probably why the newly created NYS Anti-Bullying laws, are NOT about going after the bullies (harassment and assault are already crimes)! Rather, the new laws require the schools districts to act.

Isn't this NYS acknowledging how dysfunctional the school districts have become? Its time to leverage these new laws and simply hold these high-salaried "experts" accountable.

Law-suits are a fact of professional life, so the school districts should accept that the parents of miscreants will threaten civil litigation when confronted. If a parent (of some miscreant) threatens you with a law suit, offer up names and numbers to good lawyers--hell, offer to dial the phone for them. Say it in the nicest way, with a big smile on your face.

Question to the school-board: Wouldn't you rather get sued for standing up for whats right, than for burying your head in the sand (because that law suit would look a lot worse in the media)?

Suggestion: Go after these bad-apples, even when there is no video evidence. Stop trying to cover up serious conduct violations, at the direction of misguided influencers in Greece (fill in your own example here).

I bet you'd have more support than you think for going after these issues.

This is a leadership problem, not a kid problem or a teacher problem or a school bus monitor problem. In the private sector these school administrators would have been gone years ago.

Verbatim from Section 13 of the SENATE BILL - S 1987B:

S13 POLICIES AND GUIDELINES. THE BOARD OF EDUCATION AND THE TRUS TEES OR SOLE TRUSTEE OF EVERY SCHOOL DISTRICT SHALL CREATE POLICIES AND GUIDELINES THAT SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO:

1. POLICIES INTENDED TO CREATE A SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT THAT IS FREE FROM DISCRIMINATION OR HARASSMENT;

2. GUIDELINES TO BE USED IN SCHOOL TRAINING PROGRAMS TO DISCOURAGE THE DEVELOPMENT OF DISCRIMINATION OR HARASSMENT AND THAT ARE DESIGNED: A. TO RAISE THE AWARENESS AND SENSITIVITY OF SCHOOL EMPLOYEES TO POTENTIAL DISCRIMINATION OR HARASSMENT, AND B. TO ENABLE EMPLOYEES TO PREVENT AND RESPOND TO DISCRIMINATION OR HARASSMENT...

# 42. 7/3/12 12:54 PM
If someone bullied my kids, I would put the fear of God into them.

I'm a mom, so I might be able to get away with it.

# 43. 7/3/12 1:46 PM by Tony - Rochester, New York
The problem on the bus is mostly the fault of whiny over protective parents. Who don't belive in teaching their kids to stand up for themselves when they are bullied. They may get hurt, or they may be taken to task and punished by a spineless school administrator but a good kick in the nuts always teaches bullies who deserves respect. A kid who won't take on a bully will not deserve respect and will be bullied the rest of his or her life. There are consequences for a persons' actions and lack of action as well. My advice to the whiny mom is teach your kid to fight back or lawyer up as sue those adults who you think are responsible for protecting your kid on the bus. Who knows, you might be able to get a piece of that old lady's seven hundred grand?

# 44. 7/3/12 1:57 PM by Sally Anne
It would be a great idea if returning veterans rode school buses, but I don't know how many of them would ride for the princely sum of about $8.00 an hour{padding their huge union paychecks!} PLEASE!! There IS a lack of enforcement of disciplinary issues in most districts. Most administrators are afraid of parents and will sweep stuff under the rug (and for the most part, it seems to be working for them). Most employees have learned that if they complain about a situation, even repeatedly, not much will happen, so after awhile, they stop complaining, even though they know the situation is wrong. They will get far more immediate attention if they do something to impart discipline and someone is offended. Trust me. I have heard of an instance of a parental complaint, and the supervisor sent the complainant a job application. IF YOU THINK YOU CAN DO A BETTER JOB, BETTY, HAVE AT IT!!

# 45. 7/3/12 2:27 PM by Tru - Cleveland, Ohio
I can see people being a bit disconcerted that Karen Klein appears to have lucked into the biggest payday in the history of the world merely by being cruelly taunted on a school bus...something that has happened to many of us at some point in our lives. And yes, at this point it would be nice to see her decide to do something charitable with most of the money raised on her behalf, rather than just accept it all as her rightful due. Then again, what some people need to remember is that she didn't ask for any of this. She never told anyone to start any kind of "vacation fund" for her, nor did she have any control over how it grew into such a disproportionate-to-the-situation size. Also, she's become a celebrity overnight, and it's not as if she had any training for it. If she's said some unwise things like "Keep the money coming" that make her sound greedy, well, I'd like to see the majority of people be in her place and fail to commit any faux pas.

What I'm noting is this: Just as with the other insta-celebrities our modern world has made, people seem to be tiring of her quickly. When most of us first saw her, she was everyone's grandma being attacked viciously on a school bus by a bunch of punk kids. People's hearts went out to her. Then the money started to flow in like Niagara Falls, and after a few weeks it's: "What did she ever do to deserve all that money? I got abused on the bus as a kid and I never got paid for it!" "MY kid got abused on her bus and she never did a thing about it!" "Why are we handing such a huge reward to a fat, incompetent bus monitor who didn't do her job?"

Ah. So a few weeks ago people felt sorry for her, and now she's just a "fat, incompetent bus monitor"? I think I see where the kids learned their bus-riding behavior.

Karen Klein is raking in money not because she asked to, but because of pop-culture forces beyond her control. Is that her fault? No. Is it all her fault that she couldn't control these kids? No. I think we have to look at the parents who didn't teach them any better (no, not by whacking them on the butt, but by teaching them respect for others and making wise use of punishments that fit the crime). We also have to look at the school district, which may have essentially made her a toothless tiger, a performer of "bus monitor theater" rather than someone with any real power to enforce order. That happens when school districts care more about appearances than about reality, and become too afraid of parental reactions to do anything serious about disciplining unruly students. (No, folks, bullying is not a necessary means of providing kids with life skills. Do we all need to learn to stand up for ourselves and be assertive? Yes. Is bullying the fair and proper way to teach us this lesson? No.)

Is there a huge difference between the kids ridiculing Karen Klein on that bus and the adults calling her "fat" and "incompetent"? I don't think so. On the other hand, this may explain the cruelty of the kids.

# 46. 7/3/12 3:06 PM
First of all the entire town of Greece is NOT trash. Shame on those who say that. Secondly, bullying is a problem that happens everywhere and this incident is just as horrible as the rest that aren't captured on video. Thirdly, Karen Klein was definitely not fit to be a bus monitors and should not have applied to a job she wasn't qualified to do. Lastly, hundreds of thousands of dollars is way way too much. Fine if she wants to take a vacation using a small portion of the money but the rest should be donated to a fund that helps kids bullied in schools. She should be an advocate for them...not take the money and run.

# 47. 7/3/12 3:18 PM by little john - Mt.Morris,N.Y.
This was a very good column, thank you for presenting a different perspective. The comments are intriguing and cover the spectrum of people who have probably never had a child in trouble; BIG trouble. And then that child's lawyer, an attorney at law, an officer of the court, tells that child,

"Your Father violated YOUR rights by compelling you to tell the truth to the Sheriff's Deputies. If you would have stayed silent, I could have gotten you off."

It may not ring any bells in Mount Morris, but it should... The rest is history...

# 48. 7/3/12 3:33 PM by Mark - Avon, NY
There is a huge amount of blame to go around, beginning of course with the little monsters and their parents. While it was terrible to see Ms. Klein treated that way, it is also clear that she did not do her job. This may be partly because she knew the school system would not support her, but it still doesn't justify her receiving a king's ransom as compensation for failure.

One solution might be to put a couple of cheap video cameras in each school bus. If a monitor reports misbehavior the principal can simply review the video evidence and issue the appropriate penalty. I would suggest a one-week removal from the bus for the first offense, a month for the second, and permanent removal for the third.

Video evidence of the bullies in action would limit complaints and lawsuits from their parents. It would also do a lot to nip this stuff in the bud. Once the parents of such miscreants found themselves inconvenienced by their little darling's behavior, I'd bet that corrective action would be rapidly forthcoming.

# 49. 7/3/12 3:38 PM - Rochester, NY
While I think that the students on Bus 784 were beyond rude, unkind and out-of-control, there wasn't anyone on that bus that doesn't bear some form of blame. * The monitor should have asked for some assistance from the driver. She apparently had let this behavior 'slide' previously. Her allowance of bad behavior set the precedent that resulted in this incident. * The driver should have known what was going on. Aren't they entrusted with the safety of the students? Then why did he allow so much noise on the bus, that he couldn't hear what was going on? Order on the bus is his responsibility. He had options available to him including pulling the bus over and calling for assistance, returning the bus to the school, plus others. I believe he should have been checking the mirrors that are placed and positioned so that the entire bus is visible to him. * The other students on that bus could have used one of their cell phones to call a parent, 911 or the school. (with internet access on their phone, they could have easily gotten the number)

Neither adult on that bus was doing their job. God forbid that there had been some form of emergency, the safety of these students would have been compromised, at best. Then there is the administration and their stance..or lack of..regarding bad behavior, both in school and out. The 'hands-off' method is clearly NOT working, at home or at school. The parents also have a measure of guilt in this. Bad behavior tolerated at home will eventually become second-nature and demonstrated in public. It may be that some of the parents are trying to raise respectful children, to them I say keep it up. However, the day this story broke, my 13 year-old niece had a post on her Facebook wall saying 'well, she is fat' and that there is too much being made of this. I recently found out that this was posted by a mother. She needs discipline, too.

I have lived in Greece for 30 years and the district has gotten progressively bad,,,it starts at the top.

# 50. 7/3/12 3:51 PM by RC - Innsbruck Austria
We teach our kids to just point at the bully and laugh, get your friends to laugh as well. If necessary point out that a small dingy is what causes bullying and laugh some more.

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