DEAR ABBY: Anger -- a normal human emotion when dealt with positively and assertively, not negatively and aggressively -- can advance mankind.
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However, many people don't have the skills to positively deal with anger because they've never been taught the skills.
Anger-management skills classes should be part of the curriculum in all our nation's schools and prison systems. This would help eliminate some of the depression, domestic abuse, divorces, alcoholism, drug addiction, crime and murder in our country. I believe the benefits would far outweigh the costs.
For people who recognize their anger-management problems and want to learn the skills to enable them to deal with those problems positively, our society should make it "politically correct" to seek help through counseling. In other words, we should drop the stigma, as we have in the last 10 years or so in regard to alcoholism and drug addiction. -- CARL FOX, HURST, TEXAS
DEAR CARL: Although I'm not sure I agree that the "stigma" in regard to alcoholism and drug addiction has been erased, I do agree that anger-management classes in schools could be helpful in lowering levels of violence. A step in the right direction are the peer mediation programs that are being implemented in many schools, which help to defuse problems before they become serious.