* With me out of work, and our lawsuit against debt collectors hitting a key point in discovery, someone caused Mrs. Schnauzer to be cheated out of her job at Infinity Property and Casualty--a company that just happens to have close ties to one of the law firms defending the debt collectors.
When you add it up, the past 10 years of our lives have, for the most part, been spent battling bullies. And we are hardly alone.
The political prosecutions we've covered here--the Don Siegelman, Paul Minor, Gary White cases, and more--boil down to corrupt judges, prosecutors, and political operatives trying to bully people who are innocent or have been targeted for unconstitutional reasons, or both.
What about whistleblowers, such as Jill Simpson and Tamarah Grimes, who who speak out about wrongdoing that they have witnessed. Simpson experienced a fire at her home and a mysterious automobile accident; Grimes lost her job. Both became targets of bullies.
The record is clear that Republican strategist Karl Rove and/or his acolytes are at the heart of many bogus Bush-era prosecutions. That makes Mr. Rove and his henchmen (and women) Exhibit A of adult bullies.
In our view, adult bullies are different from their youthful brethren. Young bullies, while misguided and possibly disturbed, tend to be relatively direct and honest about their attacks. Their victims know exactly who is terrorizing them. Adult bullies often use more indirect and dishonest tactics. They try to hide behind someone's "skirt," making use of organizational or official cover. They often abuse power or associate themselves with others who abuse power.
Youth bullying tends to be very personal and "in your face." Adult bullying can be more impersonal, involving the very systems that are supposed to ensure equal protection of the law. Some of the most egregious adult bullying comes from lawyers, judges, police officers, sheriff's deputies, FBI agents, and others who operate under cover of the "law."
Adult bullies are, beneath it all, cowards. They often don't have the courage to bully their victims up close. But give them a badge, a robe, or a law license--or protection from someone in power--and their "inner bully" surfaces quickly.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
