[quote[Laura Gauld dumped the trash...faculty, staff, families that didn't understand what was going on there and has created the old community that made Hyde famous.
Of course I do not have the whole story, but this sounds an awful lot like the purges of old. It would appear to be a lot healthier for one's body if one approached one's diet sensibly in the first place, rather than having to resort to bulemia.
And since when is being treated with the common deceny afforded any human being such an outrageous expectation? I don't believe that Hyde developes TRUE character; rather, they foster a rigid toeing of their bylines. They do not like, nor do they foster, independent thought. Moreover, the phrase "unique potential" becomes oxymoronic in their hands.
There are an infinite number of pathways to any given point. Certainly there are some that you would't want to take on moral grounds alone. And common sense would dictate that a much smaller number than infinite could be considered reasonably feasible for the human psyche to undertake in an ordinary lifetime. But this is still far many more than ONE. Hyde does not respect people's differences, and yes, their uniqueness, if you will. Their rigid intolerance for any approach to life other than one espousing their dictums is STIFLING to the human spirit. To my mind, it is a stance antithetic to life itself.
For me, for my own life experience, Hyde has harmed me far more than it has helped. I am hard pressed, actually, to imagine how it could possibly have helped me in any regard other than perhaps sports, which is hardly reason enough to have attended.[/b][/quote][/quote]
Like you, I found Hyde far more harmful than helpful. When I think back on my years there I feel enraged at the unnecessary cruelty I witnessed and experienced. Now that I have been away from Hyde for awhile and have seen much more of the world, my Hyde experience has taken on new meaning. It's so much clearer to me now. I am astonished at how immature and pathetic many Hyde staff were when I was there. I now see that many of the staff had difficulties in their own lives and probably would have had a hard time building a life outside of Hyde. Some of the few good staff I knew didn't stay at Hyde for very long, and now I understand why. My guess is that they figured out what a sick place that school is.
I feel sick to my stomach when I remember how some of the staff tormented students who clearly had major mental problems. I know of staff who cursed at these kids. And these were supposed to be our role models.