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Liberals make it harder for men to defend themselves
For men living in Langley, or even just visiting, I offer the same advice I get from my neighbourhood squirrels: Watch your nuts.
It appears a woman randomly assaulted a man in Langley, by kicking him where it counts.
Anthony Clark says he was strolling along 200th Street when a young woman walked up and delivered a powerful blow to his groin with her foot.
The kick exploded his testicle, which had to be surgically removed, Clark says.
His description of the assailant -- young, slim, average height -- doesn't narrow the field enough to be very helpful.
"To say, 'Yeah, beware of all women walking down the street, that would be tough,'" says Langley RCMP Sgt. Don Davidson.
Because the victim didn't report any robbery, and random attacks by women against men are exceedingly rare, RCMP remain puzzled about a motive. The woman may be mentally ill, have an axe to grind against men, or there may be more to the story, Davidson suggests.
For men, I offer the following solution: Armour yourselves.
You have several choices, and one of them is on sale.
For $199.95 US, marked down from $249.95 until Saturday, Tamiami Armor is selling a Level IIIA "ballistic cup." This snazzy little number, made of high-tech ceramic like that used in military flak vests, is fitted into a companion jockstrap.
"It stops all handgun bullets," says a company spokesman, who inexplicably declined to be identified.
Given that we're talking about an attack in the Lower Mainland, where gang-war bullets could potentially fly anywhere at any time, this tactical device would serve a double purpose.
It would protect the family jewels from this female suspect as well as from gangsters' random slugs.
The problem is, you'd soon find your protected package snarled in red tape, as the provincial government is bringing in legislation to outlaw body armour for ordinary citizens -- except by special permit.
Banned will be any "garment or item designed, intended or adapted for the purpose of protecting the body from projectiles discharged from a firearm," the draft legislation says.
Fortunately, less-expensive protection is available, without a permit, at martial-arts equipment stores. At the low end, you can buy a $15 plastic cup with jockstrap, but considering the force of the blow received by Clark, these cups might not be up to the job.
"Being plastic, it's possible you could crack them," says Sam Logan, manager of Golden Arrow Martial Arts in Vancouver.
It makes more sense to spring for the $40 steel cup.
"It's a special order," Logan says.
Clark says RCMP told him constables had heard of three or four similar attacks in Langley.
Davidson says Langley Mounties are not aware of other such incidents.
"They're saying they never told him that kind of thing," Davidson says.
In the meantime, it may make sense to buy some protective gear.
When it comes to safeguarding the important things in life, it's better to err on the side of caution.
Just ask any squirrel.
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PAS and the usual suspects
You can get a flavour at the negative energy that is invoked when this subject arises. Those who believe it is "junk science" start sliming the theory and then other people. I want readers to take note of the vehemence of these deniers of abuse and then ask your self some reasonable questions.
In the normal course of family relationships children can be abused. In many countries it is the single mom who leads in this category for both maltreatment and death. You should note that some of the most passionate critics of this malady are moms who lost custody. Their first counter-attack is to call the opposing parent an abuser. Some organize themselves around lawyers who make a lucrative living from referrals, and call themselves protective parents. Most of these do not have fathers with custody in them. They are dominated by moms who have lost custody. In the USA 84% of decisions give maternal custody so when a mom does lose custody any reasonable person has got to understand there are serious issues. In Canada it is even more pronounced with over 90% of physical custody given to moms.
In both countries PAS has passed the relevant scientific tests for evidence that being Frye and Mohan. That it has not been given an entry in the DSM is often brought up as an issue yet the APA recommends custody evaluators use Dr. Gardner's books on PAS as part of the tool kit for their work. We should, however, not get hung up on semantics. Anyone with any contact or knowledge of children can recognize alienation of a child from a parent. Anyone with any kind of practical training can determine the cause. Common sense tells and close observation shows most children feel a sense of guilt if they are being abused by a parent thinking they have done something wrong. They usually don't hate the parent with the intensity an alienated child does. Abused children will try and please the abuser in order to get back in their good graces. They do not say to them without fear or reservation, "you smell, you hate mommy or daddy, you have bad breath, you have germs, you are over/underweight, you dress poorly, you are old, ugly, not liked by anyone and this list goes on. They will say this to your face on access visits in the hope you will take them back to the custodial parent.
In Canada the legal literature shows about a 2-1 ratio in terms of decided court cases where mom was the alienator. It is not strictly a one gender issue. Parental Alienation is real and is emotional abuse of children. Anyone who denies this is a person enabling this abuse.MJM