Re: Commentary: Women's shelter support much needed
While I agree there needs to be more shelters and support for them made available, something that is not always possible in rural areas, the real answer lies with prevention, making sure that people have empathy.
People with empathy don't abuse others, like some domestic partners do, and like the two 12 year-old girls who allegedly assaulted a 58 year-old woman in Edmonton at a transit stop. It’s a known fact that children develop their sense of empathy between three and five years of age.
So the real answer goes back to responsible parenting and assuring your children have empathy.
This is critical if you really don't want to see the continually increasing number of people needing access to shelters. And if the parents aren't up to the task, then maybe it should be mandatory in kindergarten education.
However even so, there needs to be regular reinforcement and rewarding recognition of such behaviour throughout the education system.
I recognize it is out-of-the-box thinking but ultimately, it is the only really effective answer to reduce the need for shelters. As with most of our societal problems, prevention is the key.
Darrel Florence,
Cremona
