To all the women, men and children that have survived abuse. "Look beyond the mountains and see a whole new future". You have survived.
To all of the abused animals of the world that have survived abuse at the hands of humans, may they too have a whole new future.
When we talk about abuse, we sometimes neglect to realize that there are all kinds of abuse. It is not necessarily physical. There is verbal, sexual, mental abuse and other kinds that we may never hear about. They all take their toll on human beings that go through this and can be just as damaging.
People can no longer hide their heads in the sand and pretend it does not exist. It most certainly does and it is constantly getting worse in large numbers.
Every day that you listen to the news or pick up a newspaper there are more stories about women, men, many children and yes even animals that are victims of abuse. Add to this the number of cases that we do not hear about and the numbers are astronomical.
Does it ever end? Probably not. Will we ever find the answers to what makes some people become abusers? Probably not. But our society must take a stand and demand tougher laws and punishment for those that commit this abuse.
Let us hope that anyone that suffers any kind of abuse will not be afraid to come forward and ask for help because they are too embarrassed to admit they are a victim. There is help available.
It has been proven that many abusers started when they were very young with abusing their pets and other children. Seminars are now being held where experts discuss reporting abuse and the LINK between animal cruelty and other crimes including domestic violence, child abuse and crimes against the elderly. If a child tends to be mean to animals or another child please seek help on how to handle the situation. There are treatment centers available to help anyone that feels they may have a potential problem with a child.
Before you say to yourself that there is no connection between animal abuse and human abuse I ask you to think about it and whether you have ever known or read about anyone that was cruel to an animal and in turn to another human being. If you haven't you are very lucky as I have had the horrible experience of knowing someone that took pleasure in dropping his cats and kittens out of a second story window to see if they could land on their feet. Some survived others did not. At the time he was a teenager, but a few years later he was a married man who dropped his child out of the window.
If you know of anyone suffering try and talk them into seeking help. It is nothing to be ashamed of. They do not need to suffer in silence as so many did in years past. There is help available.
My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone that has ever been abused in any manner. We shall survive.
LINKS
National Child Abuse Hotline
1-800 - 4 - A - Child
National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800 - 799 - Safe
Congratulations to the SPCA of Pinellas County, FL on the opening of their Training Center where Law Enforcement and Social Service Professionals are trained to identify animal abuse as an indicator crime and use tht training to prevent all forms of violence in our community such as child, spousal and elder abuse.
Music: Tears In Heaven
American Humane Organization (Covers both child & animal abuse)
I have thought about this particular subject for a very long time and decided to voice my opinion on this.
We see and read so much about abuse to women, children and yes even animals. This must be stopped and harsher penalties imposed. This should be a top priority in our country and every country.
Why is it then; that it is common knowledge that sports figures that are making millions of dollars a year usually get off with a slap on the wrist when they commit spousal abuse and endanger their children and we find that now this abuse is also committed on helpless animals. They then are sent back into society where some commit the same crime over and over.
Oh! I forgot. Their team needs them to win a Super Bowl or what ever so all we hear is that they used "poor judgement"
These are the same sports figures that are supposed to be roll models and set examples for our children.Great examples aren't they?
Who pays the price for the crime they commit? Their fellow sports figures that do set high standards for our youth to follow and the victims of these offenders. All players are painted with the same brush which is not fair .They too must stand up and be counted that they will not tolerate this behavior from their teammates.
These offenders should be punished to the full extent of the law and show the world that all the money and talent in the world does give them the right to abuse in any way another human being or one of God's Creatures and not be punished.
A Message To All Parents
To all the women, men and children that have survived abuse
"Look beyond the mountains and see a whole new future".
