The greatest disaster in the
history of
the human race
The greatest disaster in the history of the human race
is estimated to have brought about the loss of a billion lives.
Without
an understanding of this disaster it is impossible to understand
history
or the nature of our societies and culture. It is the
single greatest
cause for terrorism, war, drug abuse, and crime. It is the
abuse and murder of infants and children by their care givers.
Since establishing Psychohistory as a
science 30 years ago, Lloyd deMause
is the "first scholar who has made a thorough study of the history of
childhood without glossing over the facts." -- Alice Miller
Lloyd
deMause's theory regarding the
evolution of modes of parenting (psychogenic modes)
is important because it shows that the nature of societies and culture
is largely determined by its child raising practices. The
history of childhood is a history of the mitigation of the
abuse that infants and children have been subject to as humanity
advanced from the most primative forms of society.
Infants and children are programmed by the punishments and
rewards that they are subject to, and the farther we go back in history
the more severe have been the punishments and the less beneficial
have been the rewards. In the most primitive of societies we
find infants routinely being sacrificed, used as sexual objects,
starved, and beaten to death. The "psychogenic mode" of
parenting that an individual has been subject to determines the
degree of hostility and anger towards others that is experienced by the
adult; and this violence, in either its repressed or overt
forms, and creates limits to the character not only of the
individuals subject to abuse, but of societies and nature of
the culture.
His
insights regarding "The Childhood Origins of
Terrorism " focuses on a pattern
of systematic abuse, which is the common background of those
who go on to become terrorists, by
recognizing the centrality of child rearing as critical to the
understanding
of adult
behaviors/thoughts/actions. Terrorism manifests itself in
individuals who experience conflict
with the world as it
is versus their expectations of what it should be because of their
childhood experiences of abuse.
The institutions of our society were developed at a time when child
abuse was universally practiced.
The Medieval Protestant belief was
that man is evil, and this view
will be shared by the modern reader who learns about the child
rearing practices of the time. It never occurred to Medieval man
that the inherent wickedness that he saw in himself was due
to the practice of infanticide and the physical, mental, and
sexual abuse of infants and children
that was practiced in every segment of society. From the
modern perspective it
is self evident
that individuals subject to the kinds of abuse practiced in periods
prior
to the modern era would
result in the production of emotionally disturbed
personalities.
The basis of Anglo-American law was formed by an conquering elite
that was subject to child abuse, protected such abuse in the
law, believed that man was inherently evil, and that societies
functioned for both the purpose of domesticating and exploiting
man. -- Res Judica indeed!
Some of Lloyd deMause's ideas are controversial. His graphic
descriptions of abuse are not for the young or the emotionally
sensitive. It is unfortunate that his choice of phrases to
describe certain patterns of conduct are emotionally charged, because
the issues that he writes about deal with unconscious motivations that
shock the conscience. DeMause does not sugar coat the harsh
realities that infants and children have been subject to throughout
history, or the motivations of those who subjected infants and children
to that conduct, but brings it into a harsh light. Reading
about this abuse will be disturbing to the reader, but by bringing it
into the light it will be brought to an end. For the infants and
children around the world who are now being abused your brief
discomfort will help bring about an end to their torture.
An
investigation into the sexual exploitation of our children ,
compiled by the The United Nations Children’s Fund, describes one type
of abuse
that over a million children are subject to around the world, the
sexual
abuse of children economic profit.
The further we go back in history the worse the abuse that infants and
children were subject to, and unfortunately some of these practices
still take place in some parts of the world. After
years of studying the situation of the individual in the
risk/threat universe, and considering what could be the most cost
effective disaster mitigation strategy for the future of
humanity, I am convinced that mitigating the
abuse of infants and children would be the most
cost
effective and best first step towards a disaster free
future.
Mitigating the conditions which turn people into criminals, sadists,
masochists, terrorists, and is the cause for the
dysfunctional state of mind that fabricates conditions to justify
terrorism
and war is the keystone for a strategy to bring about a disaster
free future for the human race.
Psychohistory fuses lessons learned from both the study of psychology
and of
historic fact, to create a science that can explain aspects of both
individual and group behavior. Writing of
Lloyd deMause's work Erich Fromm wrote -- "Just
magnificent--an extremely important contribution to the knowledge of
man," and Erik Erikson wrote --"I am tremendously
impressed with your genuine approach."
Many of Lloyd deMause's writings are located
on
his web site.
You can view complete chapters FREE
from by Lloyd deMause (or purchase it from
www.otherpress.com):
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The
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See
also http://www.psychohistory.us
In the United States we don't know how many children are
being abused. All of the statistics about child abuse in the
United States that have been compiled are suspect. We can't tell
you how many children died of abuse because
studies of reported deaths in two states would suggest that
in those state's rates of death by abuse are under
reported by over 50%.
In cases of abuse involving death, mothers have a
role in 64% of reported deaths and fathers have a role in 38%
of deaths.
Distribution of Victims by Perpetrator
Status, 2003
Child Maltreatment 2003
| Parental Status of Victim's Perpetrator(s) |
Victims |
Percent |
| Mother Only |
221,153 |
40.8 |
| Father Only |
101,848 |
18.8 |
| Mother and Father |
91,639 |
16.9 |
| Mother and Other |
34,038 |
6.3 |
| Father and Other |
5,878 |
1.1 |
| Nonparental Perpetrator(s) |
72,733 |
13.4 |
| Unknown |
14,987 |
2.8 |
| Total |
542,277 |
100.1 |
The difference in rate of abuse
reported by the States doesn't make sense. Pennsylvania
reports indicate that about 1.5 infants and children out of a
thousand are found to be abused, while the rate in South
Dakota is 27 in a thousand, and in Massachusetts about 25 in a
thousand. I would suggest that what this means is that if you are
an abusive parent Pennsylvania is the place to be.
One aspect of the problem of State
intervention is that children in foster care may be
more likely to be abused than children in the general population,
and that this type of offence is the one most likely to be under
reported. According to statistics made available by the States
children in foster care are less likely to be abused then are
children in the general population.
Childhelp USA National Child Abuse Hotline
1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) is a nationwide 24-hour telephone
hotline that offers support and advice to:
- children who are being abused
- caregivers who feel they might abuse a child or who have abused a
child
- survivors of child abuse
- others who suspect child abuse
- caregivers requesting help with child rearing practices
- professionals who need to know how to help in child abuse
situations
Helpguide.org
US: Administration for Children and Families
Administration
for Children and Families The Children's Bureau