Domestic abuse slowly bleeding us to death

For the purposes of this discussion, I'll assume I'm talking to the fellas on this one...

Have you ever had the urge to hit a girl? Most of us were raised with a mental line in our behavior code. Hitting females is over that line. But truth be told, the notion lurks stealthily beneath the surface.

The mental picture that forms in a man's head just before the cowardly deed tends to bubble up in times of stress. When a man feels powerless, he can always fall back on physical force, like a scared dictator with armies at his disposal.

Most men never give that stupid urge a second thought. It was scrubbed out of their behavior set, out of their psyche at a very young age. For some of us who are pursuing a practical, living Christian faith, the practice of self-control enters in to keep us from transmitting domestic abuse to another generation. Surely other faiths have a moral code that keeps men from violence against women.

The beheading of a Muslim woman in New York raises serious questions for the Islamic community, struggling with both the reality and the image of their treatment of women and Sharia law. See the commentary by M. Zuhdi Jasser at EnergyPublisher.com. The Christian church also has an infamous record when it comes to denial about domestic violence. We expect more from the "religious" community.

Young pop singer Chris Brown is being upbraided for his suspicious role in the injuries to his girlfriend Rihanna. Howard University Law professor Lisa Crooms explains her view as a mother trying to teach her son proper behavior in a commentary at TheRoot.com. It isn't surprising at all that Brown himself was raised in an abusive home, according to media reports.

Men, the cycle of violence that dessimates families STOPS WITH US. Let's deal with some anger management issues. Let's get a handle on control issues. Let's deal with the matter of respect, for self and for others. Let's set our children free from these chains that bind.

Check out the website for AMEND (Abusive Men Exploring New Directions). Get with some men who can help you tame the beast.

We've got to get this one right, and in this generation.