Alpha Does Not Equal Abusive

I'm sitting here watching the Maury Povich show, with my mouth open in shock. Now, I don't know how much "stock" I place in these types of shows. The idea of someone going on national TV and admitting to their stupid behaviors is beyond my comprehension. But then I'm a very private person. I like to keep my stupidity to myself whenever possible.

The show today has four couples. Each of the men is verbally and/or physically abusive to their wives in order to control them. Because, according to these men, their women can't seem to manage themselves. So they belittle them, slap them, push them, choke them, whatever it takes. One of the men has forbidden his wife to have friends or to have anything to do with her family. Because he's all she needs. And because these women, their wives, are PROPERTY.

And these women stay with them because... they love them. Ack! I don't get it. I dated a guy when I was 15 who wanted to control me. He didn't like it when I spent time with my girlfriends, let alone any friends who happened to be male. He was at my house when I got home from school, and stayed well after I went to bed. (Kept my mom up until midnight many times, which she did not appreciate.) I put up with it for about 2 months, then broke up with him. The last I heard, he was married and had 4 kids. I hope he grew out of his need to control his woman. If not, I feel very sorry for his wife.

Whether this show is "true" or not, I gotta tell you: being a man is NOT about control. It's about love. Most women today are strong and capable human beings. They don't need someone to make decisions for them; they can make their own. They don't need someone to protect them; they can protect themselves. What they want is someone to cherish them, to laugh with them, to hold them when life gets rough. They don't need a man to tell them they're stupid. Believe me, guys, when we women do something that wasn't quite the smoothest of moves, we call ourselves all kinds of names. Don't need you to do it, too.

I love my Alpha heroes. They're tough and rough and ready for action. They love their women more than they love themselves.

That's what being a man is about.