Bullying & Patriarchy (Part 6)

Power-Tripping

As an empathic INFJ, a feminist, and a pacifist, I often feel as though I’m not from the same planet or at least the same culture as the majority. This bizarre belief that it’s somehow magically my duty to be a verbal and psychological punching bag makes absolutely no sense to me.

I would have listed power-tripping as one form of bullying, but all forms of bullying are in some way power-tripping. It’s an adjective for bullying, not a category of bullying.

I’ve observed that here and now bullies are the majority, but I don’t consider this inevitable. I believe the extreme aggression of the world (especially the U. S.) is a result of toxic patriarchal society. Both bullies and patriarchal society value rigid hierarchy and assume that’s the way to do things. It’s no coincidence I’ve noticed how power-tripping bullies tend to be — they’re all about power-tripping and “proving” they’re superior by “proving” a good person is inferior (though of course anyone sane and empathic isn’t fooled).

My narcissist mother and one of her siblings — from the overtly patriarchal and empathy-challenged state of Kansas — used spanking not only as punishment for my not behaving like a robot, but also as power-tripping control. The last time my mother yelled, “You’re never too old to be spanked!” I yelled back, “If you…