Today was a bad day.  A student was beaten severely by others.  He was believed to have run away but was actually napping and hadn’t told anyone (not that he hasn’t run away many times before).  When I saw what was happening I had to pull off some of the others multiple times before they stopped.  He was bleeding and crying for mercy.  This is a boy who used to be in a psychiatric ward before he came to my institution; he doesn’t belong here.  None of these kids really do.  They need help and reform, not sequestering and neglect.  The drugs he’s on (which I understand are to make him less aggressive) give him the severe shakes.   No wonder he tries to run away.  Sometimes I hate this place and feel powerless to change it at all.  Merry Christmas.