Bullying is something that happens everywhere: school, work, the playground, you name it. Unfortunately, being a bully has its consequences. Besides turning innocent kids into depression-riddled beings, bullying turns people into pessimists. They suspect the whole world is against them, and beyond through their entire lives, trust is hard to come by.

However horrible bullying is, it's no reason to feel down about yourself nor turn to violence. From an otaku perspective--which is, in essence, being a nerd and geek--having a bully only means that somebody else has a shorter self-esteem than you. Normally, picking on others is a way of making themselves feel superior. Sometimes, it's just a form of control that they don't have at home or in their past.

In Hiroshi Takahashi's Worst manga, the main character, Hana, is really strong, but he's also very nice. He rooms with four other freshmen boys in a boarding house run by a yakuza man. Although the personality types in the house are known for bullying and fighting, it's Hana who diffuses the tension and breaks barriers with his optimism. He even takes down one of the strongest and ruthless guys in the boarding house just for trying to rule over them like a monarchy.

It's not the end of the world if somebody does bully you. It's never really about you and it's never your fault. They probably feel threatened by you because you seem to be in control of your life or you have some attribute they wish they had. As simple as this sounds, it's not easy to just walk away and leave it alone, but it's the best route.

Personally speaking, I have almost gone past that line of sanity just to seek revenge on a bully, but I held back. I knew it wouldn't help anyone or anything. I was always smarter than the other person, anyways, so there are other ways to deal with bullies without hurting yourself or others.

Just think of it this way in the long run: Geeks and nerds rule the world. Bill Gates (nerd), Oprah Winfrey, Donald Trump-- do you think they're stupid? They certainly aren't, but I bet in high school, people thought they looked like a nobody.

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