Right, but if she had retaliated you know the parents of these idiots would have complained and threatened legal action. What a crock... By the way what happened to gallantry? Where is the person defending her honor?

2/2
Very sadly, Karen Klein’s experience is not the first time a bus driver or monitor has endured abuse on a school bus, but it is the first time this issue has been raised to this peak level of awareness. What we can learn from this? School bus personnel’s initial safety orientation and training should include bullying awareness! What do bullying behaviors sound like and look like? What are the school-wide expectations and policies regarding bullying? The same expectations and policies regarding bullying within the school should also apply to behaviors on the school bus. (Hopefully, there are effective policies in place in schools). Consistency in these expectations and policies is crucial. This essential training should include instructions, support, and procedures for bullying among students that occurs on the bus, in addition to guidance in the event a driver or monitor becomes a victim. Successful intervention depends on the drivers and monitors consistently reporting to school administrators the specifics of these incidents. The next crucial step is school administrators following through!

1/1
The school bus is a very common arena for teasing and bullying. Limited supervision, multi-aged students, and an unstructured environment can easily result in teasing, taunting, and bullying. The driver is almost always the only adult on the bus, and he or she has the ultimate responsibility of transporting the students safely to and from school. Bus drivers must have their eyes on the road and cannot effectively deal with disruptive behaviors occurring in the rearview mirror.
In a perfect world, every bus would have an additional adult whose responsibilities include supervising students and intervening in disruptive interactions. I have advocated for this additional adult for many years. In most cases, a bus monitor can make a significant difference in ensuring physical and emotional safety. Unfortunately, most financially strapped school districts cannot fit this additional supervisor into the budget.

Maybe, just maybe, parents should teah there children to be respectful... just a thought.

Oh of course... god forbid that some parent actually participate in the raising of their children. You know you are right, this elderly woman who is there to ensure the safety of these brat should not have been there. She should not care and let the little beasts tear eachother apart just like the rest of society.

Scott,
You really raise some very interesting questions! I have been speculating why these boys viciously and cruelly verbally abused Karen Klein. I have concluded that there is really no one answer. It is difficult to connect the dots because we don’t know if these kids have a history of bullying others. We don’t know the nature of the relationships of these 4 boys with each other, nor the status of their general social-emotional functioning. There is uncertainty about their prior relationship with Ms. Klein.
Many kids bully for the power, while others bully because they are imitating what they are living with at home. Some kids bully others because of peer pressure and believe that these actions will result in acceptance by peers. Others bully because of the attention they receive. In some situations they enjoy the laughter, admiration, and cheers from the bystanders. I have worked with so many children and tweens who do not realize or understand the power of their words! Sadly, many kids engage is these behaviors “for the fun of it,” and do not believe these behaviors are wrong. I wonder if the boys taunting Karen Klein escalated the outrageousness of their accusations to out do each other. Another key issue is the seemingly active display of disrespect in our society! We may never know their motivations or reasons for their ruthless acts, but we can hope they will receive effective consequences and therapy.

No, there is nothing wrong with these children, they are just jerks. If we had acted like that towards our elders we would have been diciplined maybe even smacked around a little. And we would have deserved it. This whole thing about abuse is crap, we know abuse when we see it. Spanking a kid for swearing, or hitting, or acting as these children did is not abuse.

OK, so no corporal punishment... however intimidation and verbal confronation... sounds like bullying. And what are you going to do when someone who does not know how things run in your house starts telling you that that is mental abuse and that it is wrong. Last time I checked my kids weren't bully-ing anyone and it is not like I am beating my kids. But, when my oldest called his mom a "choice word" for grounding him... yeah he got a good spanking. Last time he called her that.

Well, have the conversation first. then the woodshed if it doesn't sink in.

You're jumping from one extreme right to the other. I'm not naive enough to say hitting your child wouldn't work, but there are other ways as well. I think the fact that people want to be friends before parents now a days is the bigger problem. Growing up with no structure or discipline can lead to behavioral problems. By that point I feel that coming down with an iron fist will only cause more issues. I was never hit, a lot of people I grew up with were never hit. We turned out just fine as well.

And a comparison to Hitler, a delusional sociopath, doesn't really work. Beating someone predisposed to that kind of behavior never works and generally leads to more outlandish outbursts.

Apparently letting them get away with this behavior isn't exactly working either. As I said before there is dicipline and there is beating... we know the diference. If you don't, well ... My kids got a spanking... not smacked, not punched, not hit with the belt... and only as a last resort. However in my house, we do not swear, we say please and thank you and there is communication before a spanking occurs. In total I have had to spank my kids twice, once each. My kids are respected and respectful, they know they are loved and that I would die for them. maybe those are 1955 values, but the 2012 values I see result in young women dressing like prostitutes and getting pregnant, and schools getting shot up as well as crap like this on the bus.

Derirag,
It is my understanding that a student on the bus took the video and then posted it on Facebook, which instantly exploded on the Internet. Your question of "Why?" is wonderful. Many bystanders automatically photo or video what is happening and post it for the "sensationalism." Unfortunately, insensitivity and the apparent lack of empathy result in passive and ineffective bystanders. We need to continue to encourage bystanders to "stand up and speak out" rather than stand by and take videos!

As of today, I am not aware of any specific consequences from the school or parents. A dad of one of the boys involved in this incident said in a recent interview with media that his son's privileges and activities would be curtailed and/or removed. Karen Klein has decided not to press criminal charges. I am awaiting to hear the school's stand.

She's an older woman, probably could use some help. Under supervision have these boys give up a few weekends to do some yard work for her, get her groceries, "volunteer" at retirement homes and soup kitchens. And those kinds of things shouldn't have to come from a justice system or anyone except the parents. That would be a way to help teach them some manners and that she is someones parent and grandparent.