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Let's treat Domestic Violence as a crime and not as a weapon against marriage The US equivalent of the Domestic Violence legislation that we have in the British Isles is called the Violence Against Women Act. They all serve the same purpose - to destroy marriage and families. There is no evidence that these Acts protect women or children. On the contrary their effect is to render them unprotected as the expulsion of the husband or father is their sole aim. There is a mounting effort by pro-family groups to get the flawed legislation dramatically amended and so block its destructive effects. The level of proof or evidence required in any so-called domestic violence hearing is slightly above zero because this is considered "private" family law as there are no public concerns for the welfare of the children or anyone else. Basically if a spouse or partner wants to end the relationship and get the other person out of their life so they can carry on living with the kids on their own (and/or a new partner) in the family home (and get lots of money) all they have to do is say they are afraid. That is sufficient. A judge can not refuse a woman a Barring order or Protection order or Safety order who says she is afraid of her partner. No corroborating evidence is required of her allegations even if they are that the man swore at her or got angry with her or tried to keep the kids in line or even refused to give her some money she said she wanted. The act uses a definition of domestic violence that blurs the difference between violent action and run-of-the-mill marital tiffs and arguments. Definitions of abuse can even include minor insults and refusing to help with childcare or housework. It does not even matter if the woman admits she is also afraid of spiders or the dark and so shows she is irrationally fearful. A woman seeking help from a domestic violence centre is not offered any options except to leave her husband, divorce him, accuse him of being a criminal and have her sons targeted as suspects in future crimes. There is no notion of joint counselling, reconciliation or saving marriages. These Acts deny that alcohol and illegal drugs are a cause of domestic violence, a peculiar assumption contrary to all human experience. In fact, most domestic violence incidents involve those components and one half are committed by dating couples under the age of 24. The act forces Soviet-style psychological re-education on men. The accused men are not given treatment for real problems, but are assigned to classes where feminists teach shame and guilt because of a vast male conspiracy to subjugate women. Of course there will be rare occurrences where a man or woman are truly being physically harmed. Woman's Aid had as their slogan for years, "it is a crime to beat a woman" yet they refuse to join with the National Men's Council of Ireland in insisting that all allegations of domestic abuse are treated as a crime. Their reason simply is that if it was the number of cases would be dramatically reduced and would cease to be effective in destroying so many marriages which is the avowed objective of all these extremists who call themselves feminists. The government knows from reports it commissioned for the Department of Health (but refuses to act on) which show that the incidence of actual physical harm in intimate relationships, especially marriages is minimal. Yet it promotes the wholesale destruction of marriages and families by funding anyone unscrupulous enough to avail of the benefits of a Domestic Violence Order through the Legal Aid scheme. It's time to stop these Acts from spending any more taxpayers' money to promote family dissolution and fatherless children. The ideological motivations for these Acts are obvious for the extremists who derive a living from them but one must ask why is the state - including your TD and mine - so determined to destroy family life and marriage which is the bedrock of every civilised society?
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