A return to reason on family violence

Meanwhile, the mental health sector is starved of vital funds, and interventions that actually work go completely unfunded. Similarly, social policy initiatives that have been proven to reduce family violence, such as restrictions on alcohol sales, continue to be ignored because they don't fit with the feminist philosophy - a philosophy which (at the risk of repeating my self) has failed to have any positive effect for over 40 years. Millions of dollars a year are being put into the Duluth based 'National Strategy to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children", which was first adopted 25 years ago, and has entirely failed to reduce family violence in this country.

In comparison, over the last 20 years Australia has cut its road toll in half, by scientifically assessing all the risk factors for road deaths and intervening to reduce them. Had they done the same with family violence, we may have seen the same result. If not 50% at the very least we would have seen some reduction, and hundreds of men women and children would still be alive today.

The prominence of mental health in the Coroner's report is an inconvenient truth. Over the next few days and weeks we can expect to see a slew of articles, blogs, media appearances and statements by the women's lobby desperately attempting to make it invisible againas they strive to return the conversation to 'safer ground', their disproven theories about patriarchy and male entitlement.

Future generations will look back on the Duluth model as an explanation for violent behaviour with the same disbelief and contempt we now have for ideas like 'demonic possession' and 'lunacy'. They will wonder how we can have ever been so blindly irrational, and so easily deceived, for such a long time.

Unfortunately, Malcom Turnbull has recently comitted another 100 million to this same failed approach. Though a potent exercise in vote buying, it will be another chunk of taxpayer money completely wasted on a failed policy. Hundreds more will die, while thousands more continue to live in terror and suffering because effective help is unavailable. Those votes come at a terrible price.

If we hope to make a difference in family violence we need an urgent return to reason, science and real world accountability. That means a family violence policy that is based on real science that addresses the many types and many causes of famliy violence, as well as real measures of program efficacy (Duluth based behaviour change programs have almost zero effectiveness).

Meanwhile, the Duluth model death toll continues to grow.