So you're a child being taunted in the playground...

I was thinking about children who get in trouble in the playground for physically attacking someone who has been teasing them, calling them names, etc.
Then I thought about the pen being mightier than the sword, the idea that ideas are more powerful than actions. Of course when the pen is mightier than the sword it is only when the pen is a proxy for greater physical violence; but the point stands.

Of course no-one ever died from being called a name, but to be telling the child at one point that ideas and intentions are vitally important, and then in the second instant that name calling should be ignored sounds a little vacuous.
Also, what do you want the child to do? In the limit, how much verbal abuse should a person take before they do something else about it.
In the real world (such as the workplace) you'd have someone in court or fired for verbal abuse. Any physical action would cause police investigation with either a charge of GBH or ABH. So why then as a child was I repeatedly punched and kicked in school and nothing was done about it by the police? Why are so many children being told that they should ignore name calling, while adults are taking each other to court and getting serious compensation for racial and sexual slurs.

A few reasons I guess:

• Children aren't yet fully aware of the consequences of their actions.
  

Yes for a three year old I buy this argument. I don't buy this argument for a twelve year old. But where do you draw the line? The answer to me is simple, you have a rapidly increasing punishment and responsibility requirement.

• It happens far too often to bother the police/courts with.
  

Again this is an excuse, not a reason.

• It's part of growing up to experiment with this method of solving problems.
• Adults can't be bnothered to get into the depth of details for children
• Children are often a mirror for their environment, and in their predudices we see our own and we don't want to face this.
  
• A reluctance to treat children as young adults.

My old thought experiment is were I now with my mind, put back in the situations I was in as a child (particularly with bullying) what would I do? the only answer I can come up with is to form the playground equivalent of the UN. Not form our own gang as such, but at least try and convince others to form a united front to be protected as a group.