Ugh! Will you read all of my posts before you put words in my mouth? I never said he IS A CHILD MOLESTER. Also, I said I despise pedophiles and rapists.

Based upon my personal experience, I believe that there is a significantly higher probability that those who were abused or those who witnessed the abuse of others will go on to become abusive in some form or another. It is important to remember that the incidence of abuse in its many forms is grossly under-reported in our society. For the sake of mutual understanding and clarity, it is also important to understand that "abusive behaviour" can take the form of blatant habitual physical, emotional or sexual abuse of a child, spouse or "significant other" or it can manifest itself as the more subtle but insidious behaviour such as aggression, passive aggression, belligerence, combativeness and/or bullying. Confirmed psychosis aside, in my view, many of the aforementioned maladies may have common-cause elements that result in abusive relationships. In some respects, the subject of the probability of "transference of abuse" is the classical "nurture" vs. "nature" question. I believe that some medical conditions (e.g. depression, bipolar disease/disorder, etc.) that are organic in origin (and thus have an "inheritance component") could be a factor in understanding why an abused person is at a higher risk of becoming an abuser. If you accept that depression and bipolar disorder/disease are organic in origin, then to that extent the basic underlying cause of "abuse" in those cases can be attributed to "nature". If one has lived in an environment where abuse is the "norm" or if you witnessed abuse in your "formative years" or if you have been the victim of emotional/psychological, physical and/or sexual abuse, it is my opinion that there will be an increased tendency to "act out" and inflict abuse on others because of hurt, anger, humiliation, etc. In my opinion, this is a "learned" behaviour and, as such, is the "nurture" component. When considering the incidence of the transference of abuse with "nurture" as its origin, it is important to bear in mind that we are dealing with probabilities and not absolutes. In the past, I have known people who have come from what would generally be considered to be a "dysfunctional family" setting (where one or both parents were abusive), and, in a small number of cases, some individual family members grew up to be highly functional adults (and, in some of those cases, exceptionally loving and nurturing parents). Not to trivialize the subject, but I suppose that in those small number of cases it was an example of "adversity building moral character". In my opinion, however, these cases of the human spirit triumphing over adversity in the form of abuse are the exception rather than the rule. Conversely, it is common knowledge that, within that same dysfunctional family, there are other members who were "emotionally and psychologically crippled" by the experience, even though they grew up in the same household. By exposing and discussing the issue of abuse in its many forms, there is hope that we can shift the emphasis to the preventative modality such that the signs of abuse will be recognized, acknowledged and acted upon much earlier in the process; thereby, minimizing the resultant damage and increasing the probability of "rehabilitation" of the abused as well as the abuser. -That says it all. I can admit that my opinion is derived from being around child molesters since I was 15 and I have a very strong view on this subject. Every single person can disagree with me, I don't care. It's not going to change my mind.

I just realized why FFML_314's posts are all so long. Most of it's copypasta. Try Googling "By exposing and discussing the issue of abuse in its many forms" and you'll find a hit containing large chunks of that post verbatim. I don't know where it came from originally, but not 314's own brilliant mind apparently.

The comment above yours was copy and pasted from a man that did a study, hence why I said "that says it all." Everything else I wrote was all me there chuckles. Good try though. ;] However, if you have found something else I wrote on here on some mythical website, I would be delighted to see it.

I'm sorry then, plagiarism is a major pet peeve of mine. I accept that you weren't trying to take credit for it, but you have to admit you didn't make it clear it was quoted material.

"It is important to remember that the incidence of abuse in its many forms is grossly under-reported in our society." Exactly. Most people who are molested do not report it, and go on to be normal adults. Child molesters who are caught are usually psychologically profiled, and sometimes report abuse in their past. Ergo, statistics are skewed in favor of a larger portion of child molesters having experienced abuse as a child. We have all witnessed something unpleasant during our formative years. It does not mean that we are all damaged goods. Often, people are AWARE of the wrongness of things they experience, and are able to form strong opinions against such things because they understand just how wrong those things are.

I know she doesn't necessarily think like I do. I was only stating MY OPINION and playing the devils advocate. Like you said, "we don't know if she used statisitcal reasoning" just as we don't know if he's a child molester. If you're going to base your opinion off just one person, that's your right, but I'll stick to seeing it from both sides. I don't know him or her so, there are plenty of factors that we don't know I for one like to look at it in it's entirety.