Parents are supposed to teach their kids courage! That's the ideal.
But too many parents don't even bother to teach their kids to show courage. Too many parents don't even teach their kids how to stand up for themselves.
I'm guessing that many parents don't want to teach their kids to stand up to themselves, otherwise the kids might stand up to them!
But kids aren't going to be kids forever, and they need to learn how to stand up for themselves, especially under extreme duress!
But what's even worse, is when parents DISCOURAGE their kids from standing up for themselves.
This profile in cowardice is focused on a French politician named Anne Mansouret.
Mansouret admitted to discouraging her daughter (who was a victim of an attempted rape) from filing a police report! In other words, she taught her daughter to act like a coward! That's just wrong!
http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/05/16/france.imf.2002.allegation/index.html
Anne Mansouret, a member of parliament for the Socialist Party, said she cautioned her daughter, Tristane Banon, not to file a police report at the time, saying it might adversely impact her career. At the time, Banon was an aspiring journalist.
(skipped paragraphs)
Mansouret said she arrived about an hour and a half later to find her daughter still locked in the car and looking "roughed up." The heel of one shoe was broken, Mansouret recalled to CNN.
But Mansouret told her daughter not to file a complaint out of concern she would become known as Strauss-Kahn's victim.
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In other words, Mansouret encouraged her daughter to Act Like a Coward!
Oh, but now Mansouret is all apologetic now!
This is becuase the guy who attempted to rape her daughter (who happens to be the IMF chief who wants to be the next French president) has been caught attempting to rape another woman!
Mansouret, you got blood on your hands!
Because Mansouret discouraged her daughter from filing a police report on her attempted rapist ( Dominique Strauss-Kahn aka DSK ) was free to go around sexually assaulting more women.
In other words, DSK was free to force unwanted pregnancies and spread whatever STDs he might have on any unsuspecting woman he could launch a surprise attack on behind close doors!
And because DSK went unpunished, he thought he could get away with attempting to rape a hotel maid in New York!
But, here in the USA, we take rape more seriously than the French! So DSK got busted and he's on the notorious Rikers Island prison! DSK's fun gotta end sometime!
The maid who filed a police report against DSK should get a Profile in Courage award!
Mansouret, in her discouraging rape victims to take a risk and filing police reports against rapist deserve a Profile in Cowardice award!
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PS: While all of us have a coward within us, I truly despise those who encourage cowardice in others!
It's understandable when crime victims are reluctant to file a police report. Especially when the attacker is a celebrity or a politician, and especially when this can come with unwanted publicity. But there's no excuse for the victim's mother to be encouraging cowardice. A true mother should saying "I hope you file a police report against your attacker, I am with you in spirit, so don't be afraid!"
However, Ms Mansouret did the exact opposite, encouraged her daughter be a coward in the face of adversity, especially in something as important as making sure her daughter's rapist get brought to justice!
It's serious enough to involve CPS if you ask me!
