The planets never cease to amaze me with their creative way of expressing themselves.  Saturn, the planet of rules and morality, entered Libra, the sign of marriage and relationships, last fall and now we have a new law proposed in France against “psychological violence” between married or cohabiting couples. .

Psychological violence creates a devastating and debilitating environment, but when the government (Saturn) steps in to legislate the workings of a relationship (Libra) we are going perhaps a bit too far.  It is hoped that the new law will protect spouses against abuse that escalates into the physical realm, but psychological violence is difficult to prove as there are no visible scars.  Punishable offenses include sustained ridicule, lewd comments, and false claims of infidelity.

I first heard of this new law in the context of a joke (“soon you will be arrested in France for nagging your spouse”) and spousal abuse is no laughing matter.  But in my view this is crossing a dangerous line into laws governing the way we behave in our own homes.