Child Abuse Ads on Australian Television
By BELMCstar
@BELMCstar (1341)
Australia
July 3, 2007 1:43am CST
Currently in Australia, a lot of advertising is being done talking about how people who suffered child abuse are more likely to turn to drugs or go to jail.
It talks about Peter Jackson, who was a Rugby League player for Australia.
"It's easy to defend yourself when you are a supremely conditioned athlete, but not when you are an abused child"
Then it says that Peter died of a drug overdose.
Or, about the young lass who is in jail, and how we don't feel sorry for her, but do for the abused child, but it is the same person.
Or the other one is that we should feel sorry for the young boy being abused, but not for the abuser. However, the abuser was abused as a child.
What are your feelings on this? Do you think that someone who is abused is more likely to become an abuser themselves, or do you think that they know what they have been through, and so won't put anyone else through it?
Do you think that someone who is abused as a child is more likely to turn to drugs or crime and end up in jail?
I think that the catchcry at the end of the advertising - ASCA - "Helping sufferers become survivors" is a bit of a strange thing to say.
It is something which happens too often in our society, and we need to do something to the people who do it so we can make sure that they don't do it to others.
1 response
@Aussies2007 (5336)
• Australia
3 Jul 07
It is a bit of a generalisation like with everything else. I don't believe that every child who is abuse turns bad. It very much depends on the degree of abuse. It has become fashionable for adults over 30 and even 40 to come out of the closet after all these years and claim that they were abused as a child. It did not stop them leaving a normal life... and often a successful one.
It is a fact that we are what our parents are. If your father did beat you... chances are that you will go around beating people and your children. If your father was a thief... you will probably be a thief.
However... with the abuse... it might be different. As a guess... I would think that for you to become an abuser... it might be that you actually did enjoy being abused as a child. Because at the end of the day... if you had suffered through it... you would not find any satisfaction in abusing someone. It is more a question of believing that the child you abuse will enjoy it as much as you did. But then again... this apply only for men abusing boys.
When it comes to men abusing girls... there is no relation. Men who do this probably started at an early age with their sister. I think that child abuse is like rape. It is about men who cannot control their lust. They don't actually think or realise that they are causing harm to the child. They believe that the child will enjoy it as much as they do.
However... while it is bad enough for a man to rape a girl over 12... I have absolutely no explanation for a man raping a girl under 12. You have to be sick mentally to do that... unless you are a child yourself. And anyone under 18 is still a child mentally... regardless of how smart an 18 year old might think he is.
There are plenty of 25 year old around who act like 15 year old. Indeed... there are some 50 year old who act like 15 year old.
On the subject of "Or, about the young lass who is in jail, and how we don't feel sorry for her, but do for the abused child, but it is the same person."
This is the reason why the judges are lenient with most criminals and people don't understand why criminal get such lenient sentences.
People only see one thing. The crime the person committed. The judge on the other hand wants to know the reason why that person committed the crime... because for each act... there is a reason.
People don't get punish in relation to their crime... but in relation for the reason of their crime. Judges have to show as much compassion for the criminals as for the victims... because we are all human beings.
Paris Hilton did not get 45 days jail for driving without a licence. She got 45 days because she did not had a valid reason to drive without a licence. It was assumed that she could afford a chauffeur.
You can kill someone and get away with it if you have a good reason and an excuse for killing someone. That's how the system works.
Compassion and understanding is what it is all about. You are not going to reform a criminal by beating him up. It goes along the same principal.
If a abused becomes an abuser...
When you treat a abuser like a criminal... he will become a criminal.
