Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Many people discuss how they would or should raise their kids. Obviously, there is no one fit all way. However, I feel like there are certain methods that have no place in modern society. Unable to decide if I am being arrogant or rational, I leave it to City data to decide: Should parents require a child certificate to give birth? Should parents require a child certificate to keep their children?
Also, what kind of class do you think should be required in order to get this child certificate?
You need a license to get married, to drive a car, to be a beautician or real estate agent or to own and/or carry a firearm (depending on the state). But anyone capable of having sexual intercourse (which even animals can do) can create and raise another human being. On a completely logical level, it seems rather insane.
But the reality is that we can't prevent people from having unwanted children or ones they are unable to give the support, nurturing and love they need. At present, the children have to suffer until the point that Child Services intervenes (if they ever do) and their efforts don't seem to have a positive long-term impact. There are a lot of Child Services workers who care and work incredibly hard to help children and families, but there are also a lot who are burned out or have given up because the system doesn't usually work. These governmental agencies don't have nearly enough funding and other resources to handle the vast number of children who need their help.
The bleak truth is that there's very little we can do. We can't forbid people from having children or sterilize them (although some should be). If we taxed or fined them for having a child without a 'license/permit' it either wouldn't be paid or, if it was, it would divert money that could be used to care for the child. There simply isn't an answer to the problem...and that breaks my heart. Unwanted children often end up committing crimes as they get older. And it truly isn't their fault, because they had little parenting (and no 'good' parenting) and may have been abused or at least neglected. They don't have a chance. In some cases, the child is fortunate or exceptional enough to overcome their circumstances, but that isn't the reality for the majority.
All we can do is lobby our governing officials to provide more money and more oversight and assistance to the agencies that help children, mothers and families. Anyone who is in a position to help a parent or child who needs it should do so. That's the best we can do....
No. That would be hugely unethical and while not explicitly unconstitutional (as far as I know), it would undeniably go against the spirit of the constitution.
A more feasible solution is having proper sex education.
This.
Moreover, who would design this course or class? Are we talking basics of how to change a diaper, but beyond this, because there is no one consensus concerning most parenting practices. So what body or organization creates the course, and what data is it using to support its methods and teachings? Because a lot of parenting practices, even seemingly basic stuff, is highly generational and regional. There are many factors and opinions.
Should all high school students be required to take early child development courses?
I could, however, see the merit in requiring all parents to pass a class or series of classes on child safety, nutrition, basic health care, education, etc. It could be enforced by fines or loss of government assistance for non-compliance. It wouldn't fix everything, but it may help a few people.
I agree that required parenting classes and training could only improve matters. But enforcing them with fines would deprive many children of essential needs (food, shelter). Legal penalties, such as jail time, would deprive the child of their parent(s) and require someone else to take care of them for a period of time. That could be traumatic for both the parent(s) and child and, to be honest, the foster home or orphanage where they end up could cause much more damage than their non-compliant parent(s).
In addition to my previous posting, I think that women who aren't prepared to be mothers should be presented with all of the options available- abortion, adoption or keeping the child. They should be shown what it costs in time and money to raise a child and the support system they need to give the child a safe and loving upbringing. Basically, a "scared straight" version of Parenting 101!
Too many young women romanticize having a child, but the reality is nothing like the fantasy. My younger (step)sister was one of them. She already had two children by two different men, neither of whom she was married to, and she got pregnant by yet another man. My parents and I have had temporary custody of her daughter and son four times in the over a six year period, the most recent time being almost four years ago. The two kids she has need her time, love and attention desperately. Another child would have only deprived them further and the baby would end up in a similar situation once the 'new' wore off!
I talked her into having an abortion and I was going to take her and pay for it. Abortion is a tragic thing, but sometimes it's more merciful than bringing a child into the world that will not be loved and grow up in a living hell. Nature (or a higher power, depending on what you believe) intervened a few days prior to her appointment and she miscarried. My mom and I took a proactive approach and paid for her to have an implanted birth control device that lasts for three years. She just had it replaced for another three years....and I hope she does until she hits menopause, but she just turned 30, so that's likely more than a decade away. Until then, I'll keep my fingers crossed and my wallet open to pay for the implant!!!
There is a requirement for parenting, and if you don't fulfill it we take your kids away. I assume you're talking about extanding the bare minimum of parenting skill? If you did so, say remove kids whose parents don't express their love, would the foster parents be any better? A lot of foster parents are not great, even if they're not abusive.
The same classes Childrens Services claim help those bad parents- Look how well they work.....
I don't KNOW how well they work - do you? How many of those parents have their kids returned to them? How many of those kids end up staying with their parents? How many end up finishing school, etc.?
NO!!!!!! we need less government involvement in our lives ..
if the government decided how to raise a child , at some point , somewhere along the line you will disagree with what they are telling you .. the way life is now isn't perfect, you have to take the good with the bad ..
Has your children's school ever told you something that was ridiculous ? like spray suntan lotion not allowed on field trip, only cream, because one time 3 years ago, a child got the spray kind in their eyes ?
There is a requirement for parenting, and if you don't fulfill it we take your kids away. I assume you're talking about extanding the bare minimum of parenting skill? If you did so, say remove kids whose parents don't express their love, would the foster parents be any better? A lot of foster parents are not great, even if they're not abusive.
So I'm assuming you work for the CSA ? child protection services ? Can you elaborate more on what will actually get my kid taken away ? aside from food, clothes water, clean house with no drugs , no signs of abuse, is that about it ?
Many people discuss how they would or should raise their kids. Obviously, there is no one fit all way. However, I feel like there are certain methods that have no place in modern society. Unable to decide if I am being arrogant or rational, I leave it to City data to decide: Should parents require a child certificate to give birth? Should parents require a child certificate to keep their children?
Also, what kind of class do you think should be required in order to get this child certificate?
No, it's a slippery slope towards eugenics. There are simply too many ways that the agency granting the permits could discriminate, and it would be very difficult to prove. Even in the time it would take (up to 1-2 years?) a lot of damage could be done. 2 years is a sizeable fraction of a generation!
Also it would be a bureaucratic nightmare and might lead to severe shortages of foster/adoptive parents due to all these kids being taken away. Consequently kids who really need a home would be in unstable situations more frequently, and this could be very damaging to them.
Finally, the idea of restricting reproductive and family rights violates the very tenets of a free society.
No. That would be hugely unethical and while not explicitly unconstitutional (as far as I know), it would undeniably go against the spirit of the constitution.
A more feasible solution is having proper sex education.
I don't think "proper sex education" is a feasible solution. Many of these people with poor parenting skills have children to put cash in their pockets. They are like the turtles that lay the eggs and then swim back into the sea. I have watched these people and it is sad and sick what they do to their children. Perhaps not attaching a government check to these children would go a long way in preventing so many births. Having the extra child brings in more money for drugs and alcohol, selling that WIC coupon or buying goods with the Vision card and selling them.......... I have seen it!
No, they should not have to get a child certificate to have a child, but if they have one they can't support financially and emotionally, the child needs to be removed from the home.
Let's get them off the couch and off the cell phone and get them working (job creation a must, remember to vote) if they want to have their children with them! Children as cash cows has to be stopped.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
