Why is it that when ever I turn on the news it seems I always hear of parents harming their children?

I can't tune into CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, or the local news, and not hear of yet another child either being extremely abused, neglected, or even murdered by their very own parents. I'm not referring to child deaths that are accidental. By the way, leaving an infant in a one hundred and twenty degree vehicle for five hours while getting a manicure and pedicure does not qualify as an accidental death. At least it doesn't with me. However, I realize that with a good lawyer, between pleading being stressed and depressed, the parent would probably get a slap on the wrist and a prescription for an antidepressant. Perhaps, now, only the latter.

I am filled with the utmost anguish while writing this report. However, I feel compelled to say something about this subject.

I do believe that we live in the best country in the world. However, the priorities that our legal system has established leaves me completely confused. I realize terrorism is a very important issue that needs to be addressed by the government's and local authorities. I also believe that drug enforcement policies are important.

However, it seems that the federal government, and local authorities, even though they do not condone child abuse, treat this subject as something not as important as the other issues of our time. I'm not aware of any federal government agencies that are working full-time, planning, and breaking doors down, to work at preventing parents from harming their children. The federal government leaves it to the local authorities. The local authorities shake their heads and sympathize with society after the fact, and admit that it was a terrible thing when a child is harmed. However, no one is working as hard as they are in other areas to prevent and punish parents who harm, abuse, and kill their children.

The local officials leave the area of child abuse prevention to the state child welfare system. With all due respect, we all know how terribly ineffective and unproductive this system is.

Child abuse continues to grow in this country. It seems that good, responsible, people who would make good parents are not having as many children as, excuse my choice of words, evil people.

It seems that all authorities pass the buck to each other in a big circle. All the while, more and more parents are leaving babies to suffocate in cars, cutting limbs off, starving their children, burning their flesh, beating and drowning them.

Again, the information and words I am using in this report are very graphic and please forgive me if you find it offensive. However, everything I am saying is true.

What Can Be Done?

I believe that the federal government needs to get involved and establish a separate department whose sole purpose is to track down, prevent, and punish parents who harm their children. This department could also be responsible for tracking down child predators, including people involved with child pornography. Sadly, that would mean a lot of priests and youth ministers would be in trouble. This department would work alongside of the Department Of Home Defense, The Drug Enforcement Agency, The Alcohol, Tobacco And Firearms Department, and other departments within the federal government. This department would also work closely with local authorities and provide resources to increase efficiency in prevention of child abuse.

It is not enough to depend upon local authorities to protect our children.

It seems that the federal government and local authorities have their legal microscopes focused on analyzing everybody and every thing in keeping things in check for every other issue, except prevention of child abuse.

I think what disturbs me the most about this whole subject, is that the child abuse addressed in this report is done by the parents. The very people who are entrusted to protect, nurture, teach, and most of all love their children, are abusing, harming, and even murdering their children. A lot of these people wouldn't even treat their pets the way they treat their children.

This leads me to my next point. I've noted several organizations and authorities that are very large, influential, and powerful, in the area of animal abuse prevention. I love animals but there is something wrong with this picture.

There ought to be at the very least, groups of people out there, defending our children as militantly and vigilantly and as diligently as they defend animals. Many times, I have seen people doing extreme demonstrations on the news to drive home points on behalf of the protection of animals and the prevention of animal abuse. Why is it that there are not people creating extreme scenes to drive the point home to protect children?

I am pleased that people care for and defend animals. I just want the same level of defense for children.

I love my children more than anything. When my children were born something happened inside me that changed me from being completely selfish to becoming focused on something else beside myself. How someone is able to hold their own newborn child, look into their eyes one day, and the next abuse that child and perhaps even kill them, is beyond my comprehension.

Our children are the only good things left in a world where good things seem to be disappearing. It seems that we ought to be doing something to protect the most precious of our assets and do more to focus on prevention of child abuse. There is definitely something wrong with a society, or even a world, that although would never admit to condoning child abuse, does not seem to have the intolerance and outrage it has with other issues.

Perhaps, it's because children can't vote. I don't like to think of it in those terms, but it's true.

Where's the outrage? Where is the intolerance? Where are those militant people marching in battalions down the street demanding something to be done?

In conclusion, until people gather and demonstrate with the same enthusiasm and the same quality of intolerance as with other issues and demand something to be done, child abuse will continue to flourish. Every day, hundreds of children will continue to die - many at the hands of their very own parents. I just can't get over that!

Perhaps it's just me. Maybe I am the only one who feels this passionate about this. Perhaps our society has become so focused and preoccupied with other matters, that they have developed a blind eye when it comes to children being harmed by their very own parents. Maybe this is a subject that legislators and local authorities feel it's best to ignore and not talk about.

There are times that I've wanted to start a web site called "ParentsPleaseDontKillYourChildren.com. At this web site I would have an option for parents to give their children to loving parents who would care for them. At least the child would be spared. But this is not the way things are done, is it?

William Riopelle, MS PT, is a senior physical therapist with over twelve years experience working with people in the area of Home Health. His popular website provides more information, in downloadable audio format, for family and care providers on many important subjects: => http://www.audiomedicalscience.com