I Shudder to Think...

This could have been me.

At this stage in my life I don't often think about my teenage years. I operate with the assumption that pretty much everyone between the ages of 13 and 23 is experiencing some sort of adolescent angst. Mine extend well into my 30's, and I think in part at least it was because of my inability to deal with bullies in school.

I always knew I liked boys, but it wasn't until I was in high school that I was able to put a name to it. And once I did, I didn't really feel ashamed. I always sort of thought of it as adolescent embarrassment. But I did know that my attraction wasn't typical and that it was really going to have to be something I dealt with once I'd move out of my home town.

Still, I had moments of brutal harassment. I was beaten once or twice by a gang of boys. Once an announcement was made over the loud speaker from the principal that the harassment of a student would not be tolerated. Only later was I told that the announcement had been made because there had been an obscene poster put on my locker before school. As luck would have it, I was late that day and never saw the poster.

But I the beatings and harassment I endured was nothing like this. It seems to me that tying up a kid and repeatedly beating him over several hours could be interpreted as attempted murder. A four-year sentence isn't enough. But what's worse is the continued harassment this poor boy suffered after the beatings.

It will be amazing if this boy isn't dead within a year.