My son, known to readers as Amigo, stands with his white cane and tells a good joke.

Mitt Romney, on the other hand, isn’t funny. Mitt is gaining notoriety for his bullying behavior in high school, behavior he calls “dumb things.” I’d take it farther than just dumb or dumber.

He allegedly cut off a fellow student’s hair. No matter what the reason, holding a person down while cutting his or her hair sounds like assault to me. If Mitt instigated this attack because he suspected the classmate was gay, this assault falls into the hate crime catalog.

Mitt might claim ignorance with the excuse that he was a prankster, one who was mischievous and liked to push boundaries. Gang-tackling a classmate and cutting his hair while he cried and screamed is more than pushing boundaries. It’s mean. It’s hurtful. It’s traumatic. None of the members of this wolf-pack can pretend they didn’t know they were hurting their classmate. I said he might claim ignorance; I didn’t say anyone would believe it.

There’s a sequel to this story we might call The Tale of Mean Mitt. While at the same privileged private boarding school, Mitt the Mean tricked a blind teacher into walking into a closed door – while other students laughed. He took advantage of a disability for his entertainment. .

So far we’ve established that the teen Mitt preyed on young men with long hair and took pleasure in the discomfort of disabled adults. Do you see where I’m going, readers? I’m sure you can.

I’m both a disabled adult and a teacher. I’ve taught long enough to notice that a person’s character shows in his interactions with those he considers his inferiors. Think about it. Teen Mitt didn’t respect people who were gay or people who were blind. The adult Mitt doesn’t respect people who are poor or people who are female. I’d wager a guess that he hasn’t changed his mind about long-haired men or disabled teachers, either.

Friends and family are saying Mitt “…doesn’t have a mean bone in his body.” I don’t believe them. I don’t want him near me or near my blind son. And I most certainly don’t want him in the White House.