The rise in dating violence against young women and violence among young men rages on.  And law enforcement, educators, and even parents are holding girls responsible for stopping it while entirely overlooking systemic and cultural influences that breed violent behavior.  In schools, teenage girls are packing into public-school auditoriums and hearing this dangerous message:  you must prevent your boyfriends from becoming violent.  
   It paints young men as hormone-crazed meat heads who can't be expected to manage their own emotions or be responsible for their own behavior, and young women as moralistic enforcers with no sex drive and nothing better to do than regulate boys' seemingly untamable instincts.  
   More than 1/3 of students questioned were victims of emotional and physical abuse by romantic partners before they started college.  And dating violence has rise more than 40 percent since 1999.  The vast majority of perpetrators are male.  So much of domestic violence is tied up in alcohol and drug addiction, and the enduring tradition of macho behavior.  
   Of course young women must be educated about dating violence and encouraged to protect themselves. Of course they can play a role in reimagining masculinity, in discouraging the men they love from falling into tired stereotypes. But holding young women primarily responsible for preventing male violence is like telling young men that ending the epidemic of eating disorders in this country is ultimately up to them.

In high school its a "cool" thing to date older guys. They drive, they take you around, they're experienced, and they know all the right things to say. I guess I got to do that cool thing and date one of those, it was the worst mistake of my life! First of all Those guys who date girls that are so much younger than them have something wrong with them. They're not sweet and nice and fun like most the people their age, they're usually over protective, if not physically abusive then most definitely emotionally abusive. I've seen this happen to so many girls other than my self. Many guys in high school also start stereotyping to become like that as well. I use to think my mother was dumb when she would tell me that I was too young to date, but it's true. These youth aren't mature enough and the boys definitely aren't till theyre older. If its an older guy dating a way younger girl then they're just wrong period. Am I making sense? lol

I know what you're talking about the stereotyping.. my sister always got the attention of older guys and my parents finally had to put their foot down after one of her boyfriends got extremely overprotective.  He was a jerk and would scream at her on the phone, and everyone in the car could hear.  She was 14 at the time, and he was 18.  People always say that girls mature faster than guys, and in some cases that may be true BUT boys often are more experienced at a younger age, and they have sex on their mind more than girls do.  Because of the fact that they're older, it's easier to manipulate younger girls, and like you said, always say the right things..  My sister had to learn the hard way that older guys usually just want one thing, and they aren't scared to brag about it either.  It's best to just play it safe in high school and date for fun, nothing serious because we all know how high school relationships end up these days.