Newsgroups: soc.men,soc.women
Subject: Re: Repressed Memories, Ruined Lives
From: rivero@mdcbbs.com
Date: 15 Oct 92 10:11:45 GMT
 <1992Oct15.032953.19504@netcom.com> <1992Oct15.033758.20465@netcom.com>
Organization: Electronic Data Systems, Unigraphics Division, Cypress CA
Nntp-Posting-User: rivero

In article <1992Oct15.033758.20465@netcom.com>, sheaffer@netcom.com (Robert Sheaffer) writes:
>         Book Reviews in the San Jose Mercury News, Oct. 11, 1992
>                                    (excerpts)
>         
>              ..."If  you  think you were abused, then  you  were."  These 
>              words are the sacred guidelines in the sexual abuse recovery 
>              movement.


  This touches on a topic that came up during a speaking engagement a week
ago. If the current estimates are accurate, then for every legitimate
conviction for sexual abuse brought out in a custody battle, there are
4 total fabrications during which the children may have been coerced by
mothers or over-committed therepists to say theings which are not true.

  Now, let's suppose that these 4 children start to grow up in a fatherless
house, where the mother will probably continue to reinforce the idea that
the sexual crime really did happen, or at the very least, discourage any
discussion about it. The child matures, and begins to understand both the
enormity of the accusation which was made by them against the father and how
badly it probably affected his life. Deep in their hearts, they know what did
and did not hapen.

  Such a child has one of two options. "Own" that they have committed a
serious moral offense by helping to charge their own father with what society
views as the most heinous of crimes. Or, they can resolve that guilt with the
absence of any real memory of abuse by claiming such memories been "buried";
that the crime really did happen after all, and that they themselves are really
blameless after all.

  Regardless of which direction these children choose, the experience of having
been forced to lie about their fathers and then living with the aftermath of
that lie must be viewed as a highly traumatic experience which will affect the
rest of their lives in adverse ways, possibly requiring years of therepy.

  Think about it. For every 1 child removed from an abusive parent, 4 are
emotionally traumatized by the very process which removes them from a loving
parent who in actuality has committed no wrong. These are not accidental
events, but deliberate and conscious decisions made by women, who may not
reaize the dreadful price their children will pay for a brief moment of
vindictive glory.

  So, as the media continues to flood with stories of people who suddenly
"recall" being abused by a parent, we need to ask the legitimate question, are
they real victims of abuse, or are they echoing a lie manufactured for them
long ago, a lie whoes perpetuation is far more comfortable than the alternative
explanation. In nthis context, a second question becomes, just which parent
is it who traumatized this child?


<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
|  Michael Rivero rivero@mdcbbs.com  "Middle-aged Mutant Ninja Animator" |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|  "The great masses of people. . .will more easily fall                 |
|  victims to a big lie than to a small one."                            |
|                                          --Adolf Hitler                |
|                                                                        |
|   "All men are potential rapists, and that's _all_ they are!"          |
|                                 -- Susan Brownmiller                   |
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Xref: sparky soc.men:17803 soc.women:17801 alt.activism.d:3915