Who_Am_I wrote:
It annoys me too. It seems that the higher you are in the social hierarchy, the more nastiness you can get away with.
Not only does it seem that way, it really is that way.
Pointing out the flaws in others (bullying) is the technique humans (similar to dogs and wolves and other pack animals) use to establish a pecking order in their pack. This way, they compete about who is more alpha in the pack - and hence who is going to be dominant, and who is going to have to be submissive to remain a part of the pack (group).
All this comes natural to (most) NT people because of their innate pack mentality. The pack (group) means so much to them that they would rather put up with being bullied than excluded from the group.
You could put it this way: Generally, being excluded from the group feels just as bad for an NT as being bullied in a group does for a person with AS.
It feels bad for the NT person to be excluded from the group because they (unconsciously) believe their survival is dependent on their membership/acceptance of the group.
It feels bad for the person with AS to be bullied in a group because they (unconsciously) believe their survival is dependent on their independence. When you are bullied, you are forced into a submissive position, and in a submissive position you are no longer independent because the actions you are "allowed" to take dependent on the commands given by your leader/the alpha.
Losing independence is one of the worst thing you can expose an AS individual to. This is also why cats won't obey, unless they see no other way out, even if you kept punishing them for not obeying. They would rather flee, if possible.