Everyone knows the phrase "social suicide" when it comes to the term: popularity. But what happens when social networking leads to literal suicide? I recently read a brief on how a boy from Puyallup was arrested for plotting an attack on his school and it got me thinking about cyber bullying. Many suicides in the world today happen because of cyber bullying. Phoebe Prince, for example, was 15 when she took her own life Jan. 14, 2010, as a result of bullying as well as receiving threatening text messages.

Many don't realize the effect words have on others when saying hateful things. Some teens may say they are "just kidding" with one another, but in all reality, many of the things said are extremely hurtful.

I, along with my fellow adolescents, are at a time in our lives when we are just trying to figure out who we are as individuals. It's not helping if we have others trying to rip us apart when in all actuality we haven't even put ourselves together yet. The upcoming generations need to be educated on bullying and told how to prevent it. Whether it's cyber bullying or just harassment, it needs to stop as soon as possible.

Tiphani Villarreal, Kennewick