The Bad Karma Diaries by Bridget Hourican Page B

a deprived inner city anarchist, he is a pampered little darling.
    I said, ‘Wow, we could so blackmail him.’
    Anna said, ‘Instruments of Karma don’t blackmail,’ in a very prim voice. I was only joking, obviously! The fact that she took it seriously means she is actually tempted to blackmail (I think!)
    Well now I have to have dinner and then I have to think what to add to our blog.
     
    Later
    Have had a really good idea: I want to write all about Instruments of Karma on the blog, but I don’t want it to get back to us and get us into trouble. So here’s my cunning plan: I will report on what’s happening in school, but not like I’m part of it. Instead I will just pretend to be an observer, as if I’m just any kid in the class saying what’s going on. Well, I have to post something! It is not like we have enough kids’ parties to fill up the blog.
    Later again!
    So here’s what I wrote:
    25th October
    End of an exciting week at our school! Something funny is going on there. Last week someone stole X’s homework. [X is the class bully!] We know it was stolen because one day it was gone, and the next day it reappeared. Like magic! I think whoever stole it was getting X back for being a bully.
    This week someone stuck stickers saying R ACIST ! all over Y’s coat, and bag, and locker. All over all her things, basically! Apparently Y had said something racist to another girl, who is Indian. So whoever stuck those stickers up was showing her up. Maybe it’s the same person who hid X’s homework! Well who is it? I’ll keep you posted!
    Texted Anna:
    Treated the clog. Take a look!
    But she hasn’t get back yet. Probably she is in bed. It is kind of late.
M ONDAY O CTOBER 26 TH
    Today … well, today…
    Shit!!! We’re in trouble!
    Well, potential trouble…
    So we got into school to discover there was an assembly called for before first class. This is not usual. We don’t have assembly except on very special occasions like first day of term, or when our debating team wins a big prize in Europe. So we were all pretty intrigued and excited. When we got to the hall we saw it was only a half special assembly – I mean only the lower school was assembled, First to Third Years. Right off you could see this was not a happy special assembly. The teachers had stern unmoved faces. Then Mr Lucas (our headmaster) came to the stage to address us. He looked VERY serious.
    He said, ‘A serious case of … bullying, or … vendetta , has taken place in the school.’ Then he paused. A ripple moved through the classes, as everyone went oooh and turned to their friends. Me and Anna went oooh and turned to each other. Lucas went on, ‘Some of you will know about this.’ (pause) ‘A student has been branded .’ (long pause, he is a master of pauses!) My heart slowed right down … ‘Yes,’ said Lucas (I swear he was beginning to enjoy himself, I mean he had everyone’s attention and he was milking it) ‘someone in this room is playing God . Someone in this room is playing prosecutor, judge, and jury. Someone in this room has decidedto condemn a fellow student as a racist and to anonymously brand her!’
    The ripple swelled and almost burst. Lucas let it build. He gazed down on us. Everyone was exclaiming and turning. I didn’t dare look at Anna. And then I thought: not looking at Anna is suspicious, not making noise is suspicious, so I turned to her and said, ‘Whoa!’
    She was looking mutinous. Her face was fixed and stubborn like it is when Renata gets to her.
    Lucas started speaking again, ‘Perhaps the perpetrator acted with good intentions. Perhaps the perpetrator thought they were doing a good and a just thing. Perhaps the perpetrator thought they were striking a blow against racism. But we don’t condemn people without a hearing in this school, or in this country. We don’t decide unilaterally that someone is guilty. And we certainly don’t take anonymous revenge. Anonymity is the last refuge of the