"They're just jealous of me!"--Have you ever said this?

[QUOTE=Velma]
I know some parents who tell this to their kids when someone else is mean to them, to try to make their kids feel better about themselves. “Don’t worry about them, they are just jealous.”
[/QUOTE]

My mom was always very specific: “They’re just jealous because you’re so smart!

Kid-brain translation: “If I stop doing well in school, the hurting will stop.”

What a thing to do to a kid.