.... Excluding those who intentionally abuse --- Parents, and other adults, really do try to do their best. Don't you? We all do try to do WHAT'S best... certainly when we have a chance to catch a breath! It is no different for "our" parents: they do what they think is best. The fact that THEY MAY NOT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING doesn't negate their efforts. That what they did might have been really bad.. sigh.

As others may have stated, parents who themselves were not raised properly - or neglected, or abused - themselves have a tough time not passing the syndrome along. It's all they know. And it's only this generation that really uses an option of whether to have children or not... but as you go back through the generations you find less and less options or control.. and sometimes bad situations became more unmanageable with the onslought of children.

With that said, I doubt that there will be less (child, esposal) abuse because of today's society being so materialistic and peer pressure run... and the ignorance or maybe the idea that "they'll make up for it later" surfaces.

As for forgiveness... yes, that's as much for our beliefs as it is for our own healing. To be able to understand that we don't know the WHOLE story might assist in reaching that platform.