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#21
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Canadian mosquitoes rule
CA NA DA ! , CA NA DA ! , CA NA DA ! I worked as a guide for a while at a hunt camp in northern Ontario , and we had a bunch of Americans up from Texas one year and outside the main lodge was a humming bird feeder , and when they asked what was going on around the feeder , I casually replied , " mosquitoes " "Phil #3" wrote in message nk.net... You'll not get me riled by pointing out the obvious, which is: Americans are hated world-wide because we demand other countries abide by US principles. However, in northern Manitoba the mosquitoes are big enough to mate with birds, even when the birds don't want to Phil #3 "%" wrote in message ... "Phil #3" wrote in message nk.net... From what I hear and read, things are not as rosy a picture as Spiderham paints. From all indications, Canada is even more feminist than the US, if that is possible. Phil #3 ' its true , Canada is a terrible place its all flooded and everyone wants to , fly airplanes into our buildings |
#22
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Some info for you to mull over..
Fatherhood Statistics Index * Affirmative Action * Child Abuse * Child Murder * Child Custody * "Child Support" * Discrimination Against Men * Divorce * Domestic Violence * Education * Family Breakup * Fatherlessness * Incarceration * Life Expectancy * Single-Mother Households * Suicide Rate * Taxation * Wealth * Welfare Important Articles on Fatherhood --------------------------------------------------------------------- Armin Brott on Battered Domestic Violence Statistics --------------------------------------------------------------------- Mark Charalambous, Coalition for the Preservation of Fatherhood on Discrimination Against Men --------------------------------------------------------------------- COPS -- Coalition of Parental Support -- Fatherlessness --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kingsley Morse on Fatherlessness --------------------------------------------------------------------- John A. Rossler on Domestic Violence --------------------------------------------------------------------- James Sniechowski & Judith Sherven on Domestic Violence --------------------------------------------------------------------- Callifornia Governor Wilson's Fatherhood Summit On Fatherlessness --------------------------------------------------------------------- Affirmative Action * Affirmative action is discriminatory against men by design, and benefits women more than it does any other "minority group" [i.e., men are a "minority group" because they constitute 48% of the population, but affirmative action does not work to their benefit]. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Child Abuse --------------------------------------------------------------------- Child Murder * Per the Department of Justice, 55% of child murders are by their own mothers, and 6% are by their biological fathers, making mothers 9 times more likely to murder their children than biological fathers. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Child Custody * Don King or 909-698-5834) has official State of California statistics that show only 3.4% of California fathers get custody. * This data is from "Advance Report of Final Divorce Statistics, 1989 and 1990," National Center for Health Statistics, Sally C. Clarke In 1990, from 19 reporting states, percent of custody: Awarded to husbands: 8.7 Awarded to wives: 72 Awarded to joint custody 15.7 Awarded to other persons: 1.3 Awarded to combination: 2.4 * As we know "joint custody" often means maternal custody in practice. So a safe estimate on the basis of these figures is that mothers get custody between 80 to 85 percent of the time. Note that fathers get custody only 8.7 percent of the time. * Even in cases where both parents agree to joint custody, 33% are awarded to the custody of the mother anyway, and even in cases where both parents agree to father custody, 13% are awarded to the custody of the mother. [Anne Mitchell, Attorney, single mother, founder FREE] * The Associated Press cited the fact that 97% of the persons to be prosecuted by Maine under this child support collection law are fathers. That statistic was provided by officials of Maine. Do they explain why these statistics are so out of balance between genders? Most studies of fathers pre-divorce show that about 66% or two thirds of them want custody of their children. Read Richard Warshak's book, The Custody Revolution, for a description of some of the mistaken beliefs about the parenting abilities of men that result in sex discrimination in child custody decisions. Contrary to the equal abilities of either parent to nurture a child, the custody decisions after divorce give women sole custody in 90 percent of divorces. Parents retain joint custody in 5 to 7 percent of divorce custody cases. Only in 10 percent of all divorce custody cases are fathers able to retain their parental status. This loss of parental rights is not related to any crime or innate inability to nurture children. The loss of NCF parental rights is due strictly to the gender bias of the Family Court system. --------------------------------------------------------------------- "Child Support" * "90.2% of fathers with joint custody pay the child support due." U.S. Bureau of the Census: 1988 * "79.1 % of fathers with visitation privileges pay the child support due." U.S. Bureau of the Census: 1988 * A study by the Institute for Research on Poverty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that "dead-beat dads" were really impoverished dads. In their comprehensive study, they found that "... 52% of the nonpaying fathers had incomes of less than $6,155 per year ... ." [18 Dallas Morning News, pg. 5. April 26, 1993.] * ... The PFS pilot experience ... lays bare several sobering realities about the potential of 'enforcement only' strategies for increasing (financial) child support collections from the parents of AFDC children. ... The hard truth is that many noncustodial parents do not pay because they have no income. Before they can pay, they need jobs.[Gordon Berlin, Senior VP, Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation. Subcommittee on Human Resources, House Ways and Means Committee. March 15, 1994.] * Mothers get custody of our children 92% of the time in divorce, which is a 100% failure by fathers for all practical purposes. No matter what we did, we could not have lost any bigger than this, especially when "child support" is nothing more than disguised alimony which almost no woman pays. * Because men receive custody of children so rarely, they pay more than their proportionate 92% share of child support payments. "Child support awards" paid by the man are much higher than those paid by the woman, and men are almost 2 times more likely than women to make those payments. * This opens the possibility of a minor female to seek out a minor male child from a wealthy family, and use him as a means of obtaining a part of that wealth. Our current Family Court system empowers women by 92% with the raising of children, (see the US Bureau of the Census, Series P-23, No 173, 1989; Child Support & Alimony, Bureau of the Census, Series P-60, No 173, September 1991). A system that places an unfair distribution of monetary "child support" on the Non-Custody-Parent (NCP), without any form of tax relief, and with no accountability about where and how that support money is spent. * "Noncustodial Fathers: Can They Afford to Pay More Child Support?", by Elaine Sorenson (202) 857-8564 of The Urban Institute. 2100 M Street N. W. Washington, D.C. 20037 (202) 833-7200 is a highly theoretical and hypothetical study which sets out to prove that noncustodial fathers can pay more child support. It did NOT PROVIDE OR PRETEND TO OFFER ANY ACTUAL EVIDENCE OF nonpayment of child support. The data related to child support payments reported by the Bureau of the Census (Current Population Reports, Series P-23, No 173, 1989), show that 75 percent of all child support owed is paid. Total amount of child support owed.... $14,800,000,000 (NOT $34 billion!) Amount received......................................$11, 100,000,000 Composed of paid in full.............................$7,600,000,000 Paid in part.............................................. $3,500,000,000 * President Clinton recently stated on national television, that $34 billion was owed in unpaid child support. This number is a fabrication and incorrect. [Jerry W. Lester, Ph.D. 2476 Bolsover, Suite 428 Houston, Texas 77005 (713) 528-6565] This concept of child support debt non-payment by choice is not supported by a report from the Government Accounting Office (Report: GAO/HRD-92-39FS, January 9, 1992). On page 19 of that report the following reasons were given for not receiving payments: Father not able to pay............66% Unable to locate father............5% Other.................................29% * Only $50.00 of any monthly payment collected in Texas is turned over to the custodial parent. The rest is used to "reimburse" the state for welfare payments. The scam being perpetrated on taxpayers is as follows: Citizens, including NCFs, pay taxes to support child welfare payments. They agree to shoulder that financial burden because human beings care about children. They vote for laws to collect support due to children for the same reason. But state officials are keeping the money collected from NCFs. Using the excuse of poor children to pass harsh collection laws, allows them to effectively raise the amount of tax money collected from a particular group of citizens, NCFs. Money collected from "Deadbeat Dads" is paid into state general revenue coffers. So we see campaigns to raise taxes to pay child welfare, then laws to collect child support, but what is missing is the step which turns over all of the collected child support to the children in whose name it is collected. It is instead directed into the pockets of those bureaucrats enforcing the collection measures. [That's your tax money at work! -Tom Williamson NCFM] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Discrimination Against Men Custodial mothers who receive a support award: 79.6% Custodial fathers who receive a support award: 29.9% Non-custodial mothers who totally default on support: 46.9% Non-custodial fathers who totally default on support: 26.9% (Data obtained by asking custodial parents) Non-custodial mothers who pay support at any level: 20.0% Non-custodial fathers who pay support at any level: 61.0% (Data obtained by asking custodial parents) Single mothers who work less than full time: 66.2% Single fathers who work less than full time: 10.2% Single mothers who work more than 44 hours per week: 7.0% Single fathers who work more than 44 hours per week: 24.5% Single mothers who receive public assistance: 46.2% Single fathers who receive public assistance: 20.8% Source: Technical Analysis Paper No. 42, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Income Security Policy, Oct. 1991; Authors: Meyer and Garansky * As to Old Age Survivors Insurance (the traditional social security) and the Disability Insurance programs (they are reported together for reasons known only to the government). There were 36.5 million recipients in 1992. Of those 25.7 million were retired. Retired men numbered 13.4 million. Retired women numbered 12.2 million. Spouses (read wives) numbered 6.1 million. So men = 13.4 women = 18.3 the rest are children of retired or deceased workers. Another form of social security payment SSI is paid to disabled or blind individuals who earn below $446/month. Almost 60% of the recipients are mentally retarded or mentally disabled. Not separately listed are those disabled by drug addictions. There is also no gender breakdown. So if the cost of maintaining women is higher (seven years longer support) why doesn't the government charge equitably higher amounts for women in the system than for men. Any reasonable insurance program would base its charges on its costs or payouts. But we see here a hidden mechanism to transfer money from men to women [Dr. Jerry Lester] Dr. Lester: What you present here is a vital piece of information which is CRUCIAL to solving our social pathology, which is due in part to gender inequality in productivity, earnings, and federal spending. In this era of feminists' demands for gender equality, they should get it. And it cannot be equitable to propose that such payments be divided proportionately to the mere population of each gender (e.g., if women are 52% of the population then they should receive 52% of the benefits), IF their proportionate CONTRIBUTION is significantly smaller in the first place. Rather than dividing federal funds by POPULATION, such funding should be divided by CONTRIBUTION. If men earn 65% of the income in the country, but because of the graduated income tax pay 75% to 85% of the taxes, then true gender equality demands that men as a group receive 75% to 85% of the benefits. Assuming that the lower (75%) figure is accurate, then the $360 Billion welfare tab must be reapportioned as follows: Current More Equitable Males $36 Billion $270 Billion Females $324 Billion $90 Billion IF men pay more than 75% of the taxes, then even MORE than $234 Billion must be shifted from females to males to arrive at an equitable proportion. This is about $3,600 per working male per year, or $108,000 per working male over his 30 year career. And if this amount, rather than subsidizing welfare queens year after year, had been successfully invested at an average rate of 6% per year, it would now be worth more than $300,000. If each of the 65 million male US workers had been able to KEEP this money rather than forking it over to Uncle Sam, and if each one had saved it in a modest savings plan, Personal Savings, rather than being $212 Billion, would now be $19,712 Billion (i.e., more than $19 Trillion). Any other scenario would not represent "equality", and we want "equality"? Can our social pathology be reduced with this lopsided inequality? It would be pure unadulterated sexism to propose that it can. But clearly this is more than an "equality" issue. Personal Savings is the lifeblood of any democracy, and we don't have any. With a Public Debt of $5 Trillion on which interest payments would sop up our total Personal Savings in several months, "Personal Savings" is just an accounting error. And fatherlessness would not be such a major problem if those who earned it were able to keep and invest it. The fact that females live 7 years longer than males and cost more in medicare, or collect 58% of Old Age Survivors Insurance, must be remedied with this gender equitable solution. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Divorce * The US divorce rate is 10 times higher than at the turn of the century and 4 to 10 times higher than other industrialized nations. 85% of those divorces being filed by the mother and 15% by the father suggests that the incentives for mothers to get divorced are about 6 times stronger than the incentives for fathers. * In 1988 divorces filed involving families with children, 64.9% were filed by women, which is down from 71.4% filed by women in 1975; 28.8% were filed by men, which is up from 25.6% in 1975; and 6.3% were filed jointly, which is up from 2.6% in 1975. [National Center for Health Statistics, Monthly Vital Statistics Report,Vol. 38, No. 12 (S) 2, May 21, 1991.] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Domestic Violence * Cathy Young states rates of domestic violence are roughly equal between spouses. * In another announcement, Health and Human Services director, Donna Shalala, has announced a one million dollar grant to the Texas Council on Family Violence to establish a NATIONAL hot line for domestic violence. The grant is paid for out of funds made available through the Violence Against Women Act. In a press release announcing the Hot Line, HHS stated, "In the United States, a woman is more likely to be assaulted, injured, raped or killed by a male partner than any other type of assailant".[That's your tax money at work! -Tom Williamson NCFM] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Education * My attention to that bias was drawn about 15 years ago in mainland China by a primary school headmistress. I had noted the fairly universal gender-equality, with the blatant exeption of primary school teachers that were 99+% female. Her suggestion seemed to be: By age seven or eight boys have been so brainwased to accept the role dictated by women, that they can be safely let loose. I don't know about the USA, but here in Aussie the main enemy of equal rights for men are other men themselves that feel equal rights are "Unchivalrous" "Unmanly" etc.(While the women safely grin in the background). Maybe men have to be educated first. And nothing will change as long as the zero to seven's are under the sole influence of women, I think. Peter Stuy --------------------------------------------------------------------- Family Breakup * While television and the movies gather headlines as the motivation behind teen violence, school administrators blame "family breakup" for violence in the schools. [Survey by the National School Boards Association as reported in the Washington Time, January 1994. 77% of school administrators blame "family breakup" for violence in the schools] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Fatherlessness * What struck me especially was Blankenhorn's statement that controlling for fatherhood status erases the relationship between poverty and crime, and between race and crime. That's worth mentioning. [Gordon Little] * The quality of the early father-child relationship is linked to the son's and daughter's later adjustment in adolescence and adulthood. The Father Factor and the Two Parent Advantage: Reducing the Paternal Deficit, pg. 1. Henry Biller, Ph.D., Psychology Department, University of Rhode Island. April 15, 1994.] * As fathers have been excluded from their children's lives, with the marriage rate falling and the divorce rate rising, SAT scores have fallen to all-time lows while teen births and the crime rate have exploded. The divorce rate, teen birth rate, and the crime rate each doubled between 1975 and 1990. SAT scores fell in 1975 and then dipped below 900 for the first time in 1980. They have remained at that low level. ["Index of Leading Indicators." Washington Times. March 16, 1994.] * Subsequently, unwed pregnancy and childbirth have become a "job" for too many women. In 1960, only 15% of teen births occurred outside of marriage, in 1991, 69% occurred outside of marriage. More than 25% of all births are to unwed mothers. The failure rate among users of contraception is approximately twice as high among "poor" women as among "non-poor" women. ["Trends in Teenage Fertility", pg. 26. Child Trends, Inc., May 4, 1994.] * Teenage pregnancy rates reflect this trend. Data compiled by Child Trends, Inc. indicate that 18% of teen pregnancies resulted from a decision by the mother to become pregnant, 40% resulted from the mothers' ambivalence toward pregnancy, and 42% of teen pregnancies were terminated (abortion). [Facts at a Glance, pg. 2. Child Trends, Inc., January 1994] * "Ambivalent teens were just a likely to have a baby during the next two years as teens who unequivocally wanted a child. ["Trends in Childrearing and Implications for Reform", State-Federal Assembly, National Conference on State Legislatures. Presentation by Child Trends, Inc., May 4, 1994.] * Children who grow up without a father present, even when adjustments are made for income, are 75% more likely to need professional assistance for emotional problems, twice as likely to repeat a grade of school, and more likely to suffer a wide variety of other disorders including anxiety, peer conflict, and hyperactivity. [National Center for Health Statistics, June 1991 study of 17,100 children in various family structures. Children living with a mother and step-father fared worse on most indicators.] * "One clear message from the accumulated divorce research is that children profit by continued exposure to both parents" [Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984] * "Children who were able to maintain post-divorce relationships with both parents were better able to adjust to the divorce." [Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984] * "The continuing involvement of divorced fathers in families where mothers maintain physical custody has become recognized as an important mediating factor in the adjustment and well-being of children of divorce." [The Effect of the Post Divorce Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance R. Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993] * "Children recover more rapidly from the emotional trauma of parents' separation when they maintain close ties with their fathers." [Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between Visiting and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol. 51, No. 4, November 1989.] * "Adolescents who reported closer relationships with their non custodial fathers were assessed as displaying fewer internalizing problems." [Interparental Conflict, Relationship with the Noncustodial Father, and Adolescent Post-Divorced Adjustment - Gene Brody and Rex Forehand, University of Georgia, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 11, No. 2, April - June 1990] * "Fathers economic and social involvement with children diminishes some of the negative consequences of living with a single mother" [Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between Visiting and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol. 51, No. 4, November 1989] * "When both parents share the social and economic responsibilities of child care, children appear to adapt better to their changed living arrangements than when mothers bear these responsibilities alone." [Relationships between Fathers and Children Who Live Apart: The Father's Role after Separation - Judith A. Seltzer, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Journal of Marriage and the Family, Vol. 53, No. 1, February 1991] * "Fathers have much to offer their adolescent children in many areas, including their career development, moral development, and sex role identification." [Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol . 40, No. 3, July 1991 * "Fathers who spend time with their children teach them values." [Relationships between Fathers and Children Who Live Apart: The Father's Role after Separation - Judith A. Seltzer, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Journal of Marriage and the Family, Vol. 53, No. 1, February 1991 * "Fathers and children who maintain close touch through visiting communicate regularly in other ways as well." [Relationships between Fathers and Children Who Live Apart: The Father's Role after Separation - Judith A. Seltzer, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Journal of Marriage and the Family, Vol. 53, No. 1, February 1991 * "Frequent contact with the father is associated with positive adjustment of the children." [The Effect of the Post Divorce Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance R. Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993] * "Fathers play a significant role in terms of adolescent functioning" [The Role of Paternal Variables in Divorced and Married Families - Amanda Thomas and Rex Forehand, American Journal of Othopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 1, January 1993] * "Males who reported high levels of inter-parental conflict and a good relationship with their fathers were perceived [by their teachers] to have fewer internalizing problems. A similar set of results emerged for the female adolescents" [Interparental Conflict, Relationship with the Noncustodial Father, and Adolescent Post-Divorced Adjustment - Gene Brody and Rex Forehand, University of Georgia, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 11, No. 2, April - June 1990] * "Significant correlations were found between the father's reports of positive relationships with their adolescent offspring and teacher reports of less anxiety/withdrawal on the part of the adolescents." [The Role of Paternal Variables in Divorced and Married Families - Amanda Thomas and Rex Forehand, American Journal of Othopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 1, January 1993] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Incarceration * Men are convicted of crimes for which women are not equally charged, and receive longer prison sentences for equal crimes [from 5x to 20x times longer per some recent TV programs]. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Life Expectancy * Males = 72.3 years, females = 79 years, which is 6.7 years or 9.3% longer [National Center for Health Statistics] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Single-Mother Households * Juveniles committed to juvenile prisons in Texas: 1% are from single father homes 20% are from 2-parent homes 79% are from fatherless homes Single father homes constitute 4% of households, single mother homes constitute 37%, and two parent homes constitute 59%. The children of single mother households are 8.5 times more likely to be in juvenile prisons than children of single father households. Children of single father households are 35% less likely than the children of two parent households to be in juvenile prisons. * The US Office of Technology Assessment commissioned Howard Dubowitz to evaluate child abuse, through a health program . His report dated May 1987 entitled "Child Maltreatment in the US" points out: The increase in the number of mother-headed households and the corresponding decrease in father-headed households parallelled a 158% increase in child abuse and neglect in the 8 years from 1976 to 1984. 2.3% of sexual abuse of girls was by biological fathers, and 17% by stepfathers. 37% of child maltreatment occurred in mother-headed households, versus 23% in all US families. 44,700 children were sexually abused in 1979 which was .07% of all children below the age of 18 years of age. Why was this report, which reveals the shocking realities of father-absence so effectively ignored by the media? Because girls in the custody of their divorced and remarried mothers were 7.4 times more likely to be sexually abused by their stepfathers than those in father-headed households, and this is very revealing of the abject failure of the feminist ideology. It is proof of the complete bias of the feminist media. It illustrates that the *welfare* of children is SECOND on the list to the *rights* of women. Out of 64 million fathers, 1,034 of us allegedly did abuse our daughters, but 62,998,966 of us did NOT. The failure by the report to state what part of the other 80.7% of the children who were sexually abused were abused by their mothers is also revealing. It is possible, and entirely probable, that half of that 80.7% were abused by their mothers, which makes mothers 17.5 times more likely than biological fathers to sexually abuse their daughters. * FEMALE-HOUSEHOLDER FAMILIES MOST LIKELY TO STAY POOR, CENSUS BUREAU SAYS Persons in female-householder families were the most likely demographic group to be chronically poor, according to the results of a survey released today by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau. One in five female-householder families (19.5 percent) reported income below the poverty threshold during the 24-month period of 1991-92. That was more than any other age, race, or Hispanic-origin, employment, disability, or family status group discussed in the report. The finding is reported in "Dynamics of Economic Well-Being: Poverty 1991 to 1993 (P70-45), based on data collected in the Survey of Income and Program Participation. Compared to persons in female-householder families, 1.3 percent of persons in married-couple families were poor for all 24 months in 1991-92. The median time spent in poverty during this period for persons in female-householder families was 6.4 months compared with only 3.9 months for persons in married-couple families. Other findings: * Among children under 18, 8.5 percent were chronically poor, compared with 3.2 percent of adults 18 to 64. Children constituted 48 percent of the chronically poor. * Of persons who were poor in 1991, 21.6 percent were able to escape poverty in 1992. * Of all the population subgroups looked at in the report, only African Americans lost ground in the likelihood of their escaping poverty. For those who were poor in the previous year, their exit rate dropped from 17.4 percent in 1991 to 13.0 percent in 1992. * Half of all periods of poverty lasted longer than 4.3 months. * The median duration of poverty was longer for African Americans (5.8 months) than for Whites (4.1 months). For Hispanics, it was 5.0 months, not statistically different from the other groups. * The median duration of poverty during 1991 through 1993 period was 4.0 months for adults 18 to 64; 4.7 months for children under 18; and 7.0 months for the elderly (65 and older). The Office of Management and Budget determines the official poverty index for families based on such factors as family size, family income, number of children under 18 years old, and the consumer price index. Chronic poverty refers to a situation in which families stay below the poverty cutoff every month during the 1991 to 1992 period. * WASHINGTON -- In 1970, 12 percent of kids under 18 lived under a single-parent family; in 1995, 36 percent of kids live this way. Children are most likely to live with a never-married parent (35 percent) as with a divorced, single-parent (37 percent). DURING THE PAST DECADE, MORE AND MORE CHILDREN ARE LIVING UNDER A SINGLE-PARENT HOUSEHOLD Percent: 40 38................................................ ..? 36..........................................X...X 34...................................X...X 32 30.......................X...X...X 28...................X 26...........X...X 24...X...X 22 20 ......'83 '84 '85 '86 '87 '88 '89 '90 '91 '92 '93 '94 '95 Two Census Bureau reports -- published each year -- keep up with the trend: - HOUSEHOLD AND FAMILY CHARTERISTICS: MARCH (P20-477), THREE OUT OF TEN MOTHERS ON AFDC BEGAN CHILDBEARING BEFORE AGE 18 WASHINGTON -- Approximately 29 percent of the 3.8 million mothers 50 to 44 years old who receive Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) had their first child before they turned 18, according to Census Bureau -STATISTICAL_BRIEF-. Never-married mothers were 48 percent of the mothers in the 15 to 44 year age group on AFDC. The 1.8 million never-married mothers supported 4.2 million children, or an average of 2.4 children per mother. Entitled "Mothers Who Receive AFDC Payments -- Fertility and Socioeconomic Charateristics," the BRIEF focuses on mothers in the childbearing years. Covered are mother's age, race and ethnicity, education, and poverty status. It also focuses on foreign-born mothers receiving AFDC. AFDC mothers tended to have more children than those who did not receive AFDC payments. The AFDC mothers average 2.6 children each compared with 2.1 children born to mothers not receiving AFDC. Altogether, 9.7 million children were dependent on mothers receiving AFDC. Recently completed study by CATO (?) Institute reveals that in 9 States, money received by welfare recipients EXCEEDS the starting salary for a TEACHER!...and in all 50 States, exceeds the minimum wage. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Suicide Rate * Women attempt suicide four times as often as men, but men succeed three times as often as women. Men out number women 25 to one in the prison system. Two thirds of all grade repeaters are boys, women out live men by eight years (largely due to issues involving life style), 80% of the deaths of boys between the ages of 15 and 24 are caused by accidents, suicide and homicide (in that order) - Note: These statistics are not the current year, but these facts have remained very consistent for a long period of time. [MEN'S RESOURCES HOT-LINE - NCFM] * The suicide rate amoung men is five (5) times higher than for women, yet there are no "men's studies" programs to understand why. * Faludi didn't bother to mention that the male suicide rate had been higher all along. The "suicide gap" between men and women only got worse. Roughly, over the last generation, men's suicide rate in the U.S. went from about 15 per 100,000 each year to about 19, while women's rate went down from about 7 to 5.2 or so. The observation that women's suicide rate peaked in 1960 was interesting, since this was the time of the so-called "problem that had no name." --------------------------------------------------------------------- Taxation * Men constitute 58% of the workforce, earn an average of 42% more than women, and earn 66.2% of the nation's total income, while women earn 33.8%. The graduated income tax places the majority of in the highest tax bracket and the majority of women are in the lower tax bracket, leaving men paying up to 90% of all federal income taxes. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Wealth * Women hold 65% of the country's wealth today. [Fortune Magazine] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Welfare * The percent of those receiving one or another form of welfare who are males range from 5-15%, while famales receive 85-95%, making welfare a $360 Billion transfer of wealth from men to women. * Women have a 7 year longer life expectancy than men, yet women's studies and women's health programs get 100% of the gender-related health program spending. * In a study by the Cato Institute, to match the value of welfare benefits, a mother with two children would have to earn as much as $36,400 in Hawaii or as little as $11,500 in Mississippi. In New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Alaska, and Rhode Island, welfare pays more than a $12.00 an hour job--or more than two- and-a-half times the minimum wage. In 40 states welfare pays more than an $8.00 an hour job. In 17 states the welfare package is more generous than a $10.00 an hour job. Welfare benefits are especially generous in large urban cities. Welfare offers the pre-tax income equivalent of a $14.75 an hour job in New York City, $12.45 in Philadelphia, $11.35 in Baltimore, and $10.90 in Detroit. In 9 states, welfare pays more than the average first year salary for a teacher. In 29 states, welfare pays more than the average starting salary for a secretary. In 47 states welfare pays more than a janitor. Indeed, in the 6 most generous states, benefits exceed the entry level salary for a computer programmer. $$$ are pre-tax equivalent of welfare benefits for single mother over the age of 21 with 2 children, aged 4 and 1. Hawaii $36,400 $17.50 per hour Alaska $32,200 $15.48 Mass. $30,500 $14.66 Conn. $29,600 $14.23 DC $29,100 $13.99 NY $27,300 $13.13 NJ $26,500 $12.74 RI $26,100 $12.55 CA $24,100 $11.59 Virginia $23,100 $11.11 Penn. $19,700 $9.47 (#22 on the list) Illinois $19,400 $9.33 Texas $15,200 $7.31 (#44 on the list) Mississippi $11,500 $5.53 (#51, last) This report did not include certain education benefits, job training benfits, child care costs, etc. The Institute just listed the normal living expenses for a single parent and 2 children: AFDC cash benefits (Alaska was #1, followed by Hawaii and NY) Food stamp benefits (Hawaii was #1, followed by Alabama and Arkansas) Medicaid benefits (Louisana was #1, followed by OK and Indiana) Housing benefits (DC was #1, followed by Mass & Hawaii) Utilities benefits (Texas was # 1, followed by Vermont & Minn) WIC benefits (Hawaii was #1, followed by Alaska & CT) The study does not define the total single-parent-welfare cost to each state. The study's authors -- Michael Tanner, Cato's director of health and welfare studies; Stephen Moore, Cato's director of fiscal policy studies; and David Hartman, CEO of Hartland Bank in Austin, Texas--conclude that if Congress or state governments are serious about reducing welfare dependency and rewarding work, the most promising reform is to cut benefit levels substantially. * Report to the Chairman, Committee on the Budget, U.S. Senate BUDGET ISSUES - GDP ANALYSIS BROADENS BUDGET DEBATE GAO/AIMD-94-41 As our analysis of the data shows, the United States in 1970 and 1989 ranked last among the nine countries in gross fixed capital formation as a share of GDP. Health care consumption presents a sharp contrast to the findings about gross fixed capital formation: health care consumption in the United States has grown dramatically as a percentage of GDP The United States ranked second among seven nations\3 in both 1970 and 1987 in resources devoted to education although the differences between the various countries is generally small. Economic Allocations Across Countries (1990 or most recent year for which data are available, percent of GDP) Transportation Non-resident Resident Communication Health Defense Ed. Consumption Other Country Year ential dential cations tion tion ------- ------ ----- ----- ----------- ----- ------ ---- ------ - --- Australia 1990 17 5 10 8 2 5 54 0 Canada 1987 14 7 11 8 2 6 50 1 France 1988 15 5 11 8 3 5 51 1 Germany 1989 15 5 9 8 2 4 50 6 Italy 1990 15 5 8 7 2 5 57 1 Japan 1990 26 6 6 6 1 3 50 1 Sweden 1989 16 5 10 8 2 5 53 1 U.K. 1990 16 3 11 6 4 4 58 -2 U.S. 1989 12 4 11 11 6 6 50 -1 --------------------------------------------------------------------- The Battered Statistic Syndrome by Armin A. Brott [appeared in the Washington Post, July 1994] By now, everyone knows about the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. But there's a third victim of these tragic killings: The truth about the prevalence of domestic violence and female victimization, a truth that is daily being maimed almost beyond recognition by the irresponsible use of statistics. Consider, for example, the wildly varying statements being issued on all sides regarding the number of women who are supposedly beaten by men in the United States. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, for example, estimates that more than half of married women (over 27 million) will experience violence during their marriage, and that over one third (over 18 million) are battered repeatedly every year. Shocked by these statistics--both of which are frequently quoted in the media--I called the NCADV and asked where they came from. Rita Smith, the group's coordinator, told me these figures were only ""estimates.'' From where? ""Based on what we hear out there.'' Out where? Battered women's shelters and other advocacy groups. Common sense should tell you that asking women at a shelter whether they've been hit would be like asking patrons at McDonald's whether they ever eat fast food. It would be irresponsible and intellectually dishonest to apply those answers to the country as a whole. But when there's a sensational story to run, common sense and intellectual honesty are rarely taken into consideration. Even those who have a public responsibility to be accurate on these issues sometimes falter. According to Donna Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services, for example, 4 million women are battered each year by their male partners. But where did Shalala get her figure? From a 1993 Harris poll commissioned by the Commonwealth Fund. Two percent of the 2,500 women interviewed said they had been ""kicked, bit, hit with a fist or some other object.'' Apply that to the approximately 55 million women married or living with a man and you get a total of 1.1 million. So where did the other 2.9 million come from? They were women who said they had been ""pushed, grabbed, shoved, or slapped.'' That's a form of abuse, to be sure, but is it what most people would call battering? By far the worst distortion of the numbers of battered women comes from Miami talk show host Pat Stevens, who appeared on a segment of CNN's Crossfire show called ""OJ on the Air'' in June. Stevens estimated that when adjusted for underreporting, the true number of battered women is 60 million. No one bothered to tell Stevens-or Crossfire's millions of viewers--that 60 million is more than 100% of all the women in this entire country who are currently in relationships with a man. Instead, Stevens' ""estimate'' and the other ""facts'' on battered women all serve to fuel the claims that there's an ""epidemic of domestic violence'' and a ""war against women.'' How many battered women are there? ""Because many feminist activists and researchers have so great a stake in exaggerating the problem and so little compunction about doing so, objective information on battery is very hard to come by,'' writes Christina Hoff Sommers, author of Who Stole Feminism: How Women Have Betrayed Women (Simon & Schuster, 1994). But Murray A. Straus, head of the Family Research Laboratory at the University of New Hampshire, and Richard A. Gelles, a sociologist at the University of Rhode Island, who have been tracking spousal abuse for over 20 years, have come up with what are widely believed to be the most accurate estimates available--the National Family Violence Survey (NFVS). Their Survey, sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health, found that 84% of American families are not violent. In the 16% of families that do experience violence, the vast majority of that violence takes the form of slapping, shoving, and grabbing. Only 3-4% of all families (a total of about 1.8 million) engage in ""severe'' violence: kicking, punching, or using a weapon. Moreover, a recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that 44% of ""severe violence'' to wives did not cause any injury, and 31% caused only a slight bruise. Still, Straus and Gelles estimate that about 188,000 women are injured severely enough to require medical attention. That's a horrifying number of victims, but it's a far cry from 4 million, or 18 million, or 60 million. Another commonly accepted ""truth'' about domestic violence is that 95% of the time, women are the victims and men the perpetrators. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Family Violence Survey--as well as numerous other studies have found that men are just as likely to be the victims of domestic violence as women. But aren't these women just defending themselves against their more violent partners? Straus and Gelles found that among couples reporting violence, the man struck the first blow in 27% of cases; the woman in 24%. The rest of the time, the violence was mutual, with both partners brawling. The results were the same even when the most severe episodes of violence were analyzed. They were also the same when only the woman's version of the events was considered. Even more interesting are Straus' findings, released earlier this month, that men's violence against women--even as reported by women--has dropped 43% between 1985 and 1992. Over this same period, in contrast, assaults by women against men increased by about 28%. Straus concludes that ""part of the reason may be that there has been no effort to condemn assault by wives parallel to the effort to condemn assaults by husbands.'' So where did the claim that 95% of domestic violence is initiated by men come from? From the U.S. Department of Justice, which collects data on the number of reports of domestic violence. But as women's rights groups rightfully claim, reports are not always an accurate measure of the severity of the problem. Certainly, some female victims of domestic violence fail to call the police, fearing retaliation by their abusers. But other Justice Department studies have shown that men, too, are reluctant to ask for help, reporting all kinds of violent victimization 32% less frequently than women. Confessing to being beaten up by another man, however, is a piece of cake compared to admitting being victimized by a woman. After all, men are socialized to ""take it like a man.'' As a result, men tend to report only the most extreme abuse. ""They wouldn't dream of reporting the kind of minor abuse--such as slapping or kicking--that women routinely report,'' says Suzanne Steinmetz, director of the Family Research Institute at Indiana University/Purdue. Another example of how data on female victimization is distorted, is the claim that ""domestic violence is the most common cause of injury to women.'' The source for this claim is a 1991 study of extremely poor, inner-city African-American women in Philadelphia--which doesn't even find that domestic violence was the leading cause of injury. ""And even if it did,'' says Dr. Jeane Ann Grisso, one of the lead researchers of the study, ""I'd never apply that conclusion to the total population of American women.'' Nevertheless, Grisso's study has been widely cited as proof that there's an epidemic of violence against women. Some advocates have taken Grisso's study one-step further, claiming that as many as 50% of women's hospital emergency-room admissions are the result of ongoing abuse. At the source of this so called fact are several studies done in the 1970's by Evan Stark and Anne Flitcraft, co-directors of the Domestic Violence Training Project at the University of Connecticut. They compiled their data by going through old medical records in urban hospitals and estimating how many women were battered by using what they called an ""index of suspicion.'' Christina Hoff Sommers has analyzed Stark and Flitcraft's methods and writes: ""if a woman was assaulted but the records do not say who hit her, Stark and Flitcraft classify this as a case of "probable' domestic abuse; if she has injuries to her face and torso that are inadequately explained, they classify it as "suggestive of abuse.''' Apparently no one considered the possibility that someone other than a husband or boyfriend might have been responsible for the woman's injuries. Compare Stark and Flitcraft's results to those reached in a 1992 survey of 397 emergency rooms in California. Nurses were asked to estimate the number of patients per month who have been diagnosed with injuries caused by domestic violence. Estimates ranged from two per month for small hospitals to eight per month for large ones. The California study concluded that the number of perceived domestic violence victims was so low because many health professionals are poorly trained in recognizing domestic violence. That may be correct, but it's doubtful that it would account for the enormous difference between a handful of domestic violence cases a month and the claim that such cases account for 50% of all women's emergency room admissions. There's no question that many women who have been severely battered are afraid to leave their batterers--either because they are economically dependent, or because they fear further abuse. In one of their ""fact sheets,'' the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence tells us that women who leave their batterers ""increase by 75% their chances of getting killed.'' When I asked her to explain that figure, the NCADV's Rita Smith admitted that that statistic isn't true at all, and that the Coalition has no concrete evidence of the effect--if any--leaving a violent partner will have on a woman. I then asked Ms. Smith whether it bothered her that her organization was responsible for spreading an imaginary statistic. ""Not really,'' she said. ""We think the chance of getting killed goes up and we're just trying to make a point here.'' In a very small number of tragic cases, abusive men do kill their partners. But women aren't the only ones killed in domestic disputes. A Justice Department study released earlier this month showed that 41 percent of spousal murder victims were male. Battered women's advocates claim that those women who kill their husbands do so only out of self-defense. But in an extensive study of women imprisoned for murder, Coramae Richey Mann, a researcher at the Department of Criminal Justice, Indiana University/Bloomington found that only 59% claimed self-defense and that 30% had previously been arrested for violent crimes. As for the perception that women who murder their husbands are treated harshly by the justice system, Dr. Mann found that few female domestic homicide offenders receive prison sentences, and that those who do rarely serve more than four or five years. These findings were confirmed by a recent Los Angeles Times article. The article, which quoted Justice Department sources, reported that women who kill their husbands were acquitted in 12.9% of the cases, while husbands who kill their wives were acquitted only 1.4% of the time. In addition, women convicted of killing their husbands receive an average sentence of only six years, while male spousal killers got 17 years. Why are these statistics being battered? ""The higher your figures for abuse, the more likely you'll reap rewards, regardless of your methodology,'' says Dr. Sommers. Those who create and disseminate inflated statistics are often invited to testify before Congress, they're written about in the New York Times, and some even get to be interviewed on Oprah. Not everyone who manipulates data does so for personal gain. Some are simply trying to get people to sit up and pay attention to the plight of battered women--a truly important goal. But to do so, they've created a false epidemic. If advocates confined themselves to the truth--that 3-4% of women are battered each year--domestic violence might still be regarded as the unfortunate behavior of a few crazy men. But if enough people are led to believe that 19 or 50 or 100 percent of women are ""brutalized,'' the only logical conclusion can be that all men are dangerous and all women need to be protected. Is it OK to lie shamelessly if your cause is a noble one? Is half a solution better than no solution at all? On the one hand, lying about the extent of the problem of domestic violence has had some very positive effects, opening the public's eyes as well as their wallets. Battered women are now the hottest story in town and Congress is about to pass the $1.8 billion Violence Against Women Act which, among other things, will fund toll-free hotlines, battered women's shelters, and education and training programs. It's certainly possible that none of this would be happening if advocacy groups stuck strictly to facts. On the other hand, even supposedly harmless ""puffing'' can have been some extremely negative consequences. Inaccurate discussions about domestic violence, for example, can quickly turn into smear campaigns in which almost every man who hasn't exhibited his natural vicious and misogynist tendencies yet, is expected to do so at any moment. Members of Congress, seeing a golden opportunity to appease a large block of voters, have chosen a quick solution rather than attempting to correct their constituents' misapprehensions. The Violence Against Women Act, for example, doesn't devote a nickel to the same kind of special protection for men, even though males make up 75% of all murder victims and 61% of the victims of all violent crime. Women, too, are being hurt by the lies. Having fought so hard to be taken seriously and treated as equals, women are again finding themselves portrayed as weak and helpless--exactly the stereotypes that have been traditionally used to justify discriminating against them. As the author and feminist critic Katherine Dunn writes in the current issue of The New Republic, ""The denial of female aggression is a destructive myth. It robs an entire gender of a significant spectrum of power, leaving women less than equal with men and effectively keeping them "in their place' and under control.'' Worst of all, the inflation of domestic violence statistics produces a kind of ratchet effect. The same people who complain that no one listens if they don't exaggerate only find it that much more difficult to get people's attention the next time around--which in turn seems to justify another round of exaggeration. Eventually, the public either stops listening altogether, or finds the statistics too absurd to believe. And when we're trying to alleviate the tragedy of domestic violence, the last thing you want anyone to do is laugh. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Mark Charalambous, Coalition for the Preservation of Fatherhood Child support is an award of money that one adult pays another. It is ostensibly paid from Non-Custodial Parents (NCP) to Custodial Parents (CPs). Because of the FACT that men are not allowed by the State to become CPs (estimates range from 95-99% of custodial battles arrive at maternal physical custody; in Massachusetts, I'm *still* waiting to hear of a case where at the trial level a father is awarded sole physical custody in a contested case. Guess what! I heard of one Wednesday night! The context was that it made Lawyers Weekly because it was reversed on appeal! There were abuse allegations on both sides (of course), and the appeals court ruled that "battered women's syndrome' was not taken into account to explain the abuse that the mother allegedly perpetrated on the father. So. To the best of my knowledge, the rate is still: mothers 100%, fathers 0%. Also, bear in mind that when a father does win custody -- it's cause for national headlines! (Remember the Michigan case last year? ) So we have an environment where only one class of people, women, can be CPs (child support recipients), and the other class, men, can only be NCPs (child support payors). Hence, I state that ALL laws, policies, and what- have-you, including all state guideline child support IS ILLEGITIMATE AND INVALID prima facie. We are talking about a thoroughly discriminatory environment against men. I do not recognize this system of transfer of money as being anything that resembles something that the words "child support" *should* represent. So what exactly is it? In a time when it is politically incorrect for women to acknowledge any dependence on men, this euphemism was conjured up. We know what it is. It passes the duck test real well. It is POLITICALLY CORRECT ALIMONY, state-mandated at levels that make the worst alimony story of decades past pale in comparison. $9,000 a month for "child support" (recent Vermont case)? Who's kidding who? I would ask you to consider the sex discrimination inherent in the practice of providing welfare payments to out of work mothers, and prosecuting out of work fathers for non-payment. I would also ask you to consider the logic of reducing the ability of NCFs to get or keep work, as a method which will increase child support payments. As shown above, two-thirds of the nonpayers of ordered child support can't pay. Laws such as those currently enforced in Maine, which strip professional and driving licenses from fathers who fall behind in child support payments, will help to insure that they never will be able to pay. In contrast to the Maine policy, is one being used in parts of New York state, called Parents Fair Share. In the Parents Fair Share program, NCFs are provided with job training and given preference in state employment office job placement programs. The collection rate among fathers who have been helped in this program is near 90 percent. The collection rate reported in one Associated Press (Houston Post, July 3, 1994) article for Maine is $11.5 million out of $138.5 million, or less than 9 percent. The program of NCF assistance, Parents Fair Share, is ten times as effective in producing child support payments as the punishment program of Maine. --------------------------------------------------------------------- COPS - Coalition of Parental Support Fathers' Absence* * 85% of all children that exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes. * 90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes. * 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes. * 75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes. * 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes. * 80% of rapists motivated with displaced anger come from fatherless homes. * 70% of juveniles in state-operated institutions come from fatherless homes. * 85% of all youths sitting in prisons grew up in a fatherless home. * California has the nation's highest juvenile incarceration rate and the nation's highest juvenile unemployment rate. * Juveniles have become the driving force behind the national increase in violent crime; the epidemic of youth violence and gangs is related to the breakdown of the two-parent family. * 71% of teenage pregnancies are to children of single parents. Daughters of single parents are 2.1 times more likely to have children during their teenage years than are daughters from intact families. Daughters of single parents are 53% more likely to marry as teenagers, 164% more likely to have a premarital birth, and 92% more likely to dissolve their own marriages. All these intergenerational consequences of single motherhood increase the likelihood of chronic welfare dependency. * In 1983, a study found that 60% of perpetrators of child abuse were women with sole custody. Shared parenting can significantly reduce the stress associated with sole custody, and reduce the isolation of children in abusive situations by allowing both parents' to monitor the children's health and welfare and to protect them. * 18 million children live in single-parent homes. Nearly 75% of American children living in single-parent families will experience poverty before they turn 11. Only 20% in two-parent families will experience poverty. * The feminization of poverty is linked to the feminization of custody, as well as linked to lower earnings for women. Greater opportunity for education and jobs through shared parenting can help break the cycle. * Kidnapping: family abductions were 163,200 compared to non-family abductions of 200-300, attributed to the parents' disenchantment with the legal system. --------------------------------------------------------------------- DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: Some Things Have Always Been Equal by John A. Rossler The serious examination of violence in the family began in the mid '70s with studies by Straus, Gelles and Steinmetz that challenged many of our preconceived notions of violent men. Also challenged was the stereotype, the anathema of feminists, of the "little women," docile and passive compared to her husband. Whereas these original researchers suspected violence was a major problem in American families, consistent with our violent society, surprising was its high incidence: at least one act of violence occurred in 16% of families in the last year and 28% since the beginning of the marriages ("Societal Change and Change in Family Violence from 1975 to 1985 As Revealed by Two National Studies," Straus and Gelles, Journal of Marriage and the Family, 8/86.) More surprising was the virtual equality of offenses by wives to husbands. Wives committed 48.5% of all violent occurrences, and 54.8% of all violence termed "severe." In her 197778 Victimology article, "The Battered Husband Syndrome," (p.501) Steinmetz (U. of Delaware) reveals "The data from the nationally representative sample (Straus et al., 1977)... found wives slightly higher in almost all categories (of violence) except pushing and shoving." "Gathered data plus insights gained from in-depth interviews, suggest that women are as likely to select physical violence to resolve marital conflicts as are men." (Ibid., p. 505) --------------------------------------------------------------------- WOMEN ARE RESPONSIBLE, TOO James Sniechowski, Ph.D. & Per Judith Shervn, Ph.D. Forty-one percent of spousal murders are committed by wives. The 1985 National Family Violence Survey, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and supported by many other surveys, revealed that women and men were physically abusing one another in roughly equal numbers. Wives reported they were more often the aggressors. Using weapons to make up for physical disadvantage, they were not just fighting back. While 1.8 women annually suffered one or more assaults from a husband or boyfriend, 2 million men are assaulted by a wife or girlfriend, according to the 1986 study. The study also found that 54% of all violence termed "severe" was by women. The Journal for the National Association of Social Workers found in 1986 that among teen-agers who date, girls were violent more frequently than boys. Mothers abuse their children at a rate approaching twice that of fathers according to state child protective service agencies surveyed by the Children's Rights Coalition. Because men have been taught to "take it like a man" and are ridiculed when they reveal they have been battered by a woman, women are nine times more likely to report their abusers to authorities. The women's movement claims it's goal to be equal rights for women. If that is so, then women must share responsibility for their behavior and their contribution to domestic violence. Otherwise we remain in a distortion that overshadows the truth. Only the truth will show us the way out of the epidemic of violence that is destroying our families and our nation. In defending their point of view they are often disingenuous. They will rely on a domestic-violence researcher, like Murray Straus, who, in a widely used 1986 study, reported that, "a man's assault on a woman is far more likely to cause serious injury." However, they do not reveal that it was Straus who also found, in that same study, that "women are about as violent within the family as men," and furthermore that "violence by wives has not been an object of public concern. It has not been defined as a problem." Rather than face the dilemma squarely, feminists classify references to battered males as backlash, relegating the issue to the status of an aggravating diversion and describe the men as "whiners." With that, the real injury done to men becomes irrelevant. --------------------------------------------------------------------- California Governor Wilson's Focus On Fathers Summit Burbank, California June 13, 1995 Wade Horn, National Fatherhood Initiative Our three decade [old] experiment with fatherlessness has failed. 23 million children will be sleeping in fatherless homes tonight. The divorce rate tripled between 1960 and 1980. 40 out of 100 families divorce now compared to 16 out of 100 in 1960. Illegitimacy has followed a geometric progression from 10.7% in 1970 to 33% today. 40% of children in fatherless homes have not seen their fathers for more than 1 year. 58% have never been in their fathers homes. 75% of single parent "familes" live in poverty versus 20% of 2-parent families. Single-parent [read: mother-headed] households produce: 60% of the rapists 72% of the murderers 70% of long-term imprisoned And I quote: "This is not an attack on mother-headed households. Fathers just do things differently and this can't be replaced with AFDC, Welfare, etc." Divorce has severe consequences on children. We must change the way we look at it. We are running out of time because soon majority of children will be raised in single-parent "families". --------------------------------------------------------------------- WE MUST STOP PUNISHING MEN. A woman on welfare who marries a man on minimum wage takes a 30% income reduction. WE MUST ENFORCE PSYCHOLOGICAL SUPPORT. The issue is father contact, not money. [Standing Ovation] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Sherman Block, Sheriff, Los Angeles County Children of single-parent households commit most of crimes. Does not know "why" fathers leave their homes. (Hasn't heard of the HHS "man out of the house rule"??) Must minimize this national disgrace. Sheriff's office involved in community programs by default because there is no other agency which can. But he must divert funds from other programs to handle this. [i.e., there is less money for "prevention"??] Tony Chipelow, Casey Foundation Mother-headed households grew from 6% in 1950 to 24% today. 19 million children are fatherless. Average income of 2-parent families is $43,000, versus $17,500 for female- headed "families" Young males today are far more likely not to get married, of all races, with less than half of blacks and 78% of Latinos Single-mother "families" are 5x more likely to be poor, 10x more likely to be extremely poor, 2x more likely to go to jail, and 3x more likely to have children as teenagers. A national priority should be made of 4 points: 1) Education reform. 2) Stop treating fathers as "marginal players". 3) Welfare reform. 4) Develop jobs for the 5 million who are not in the workforce. Patrick Fagan, Heritage Foundation Our socio-economic problems stem from fatherlessness, not from poverty. Poverty stems from fatherlessness. The ill-effects of fatherlessness go across the socio-economic strata, including poor health, high infant mortality, poor cognitive development, behind their peers, lower impulse control (more sex and violence). When the agreement between the father & mother is weakened the social contract is weakened, leading to increased litigation. Crime increases across the socio-economic strata. Present GNP much lower than it would have been with strong 2-parent families. This risk to the future of our nation is much greater than the risk from the USSR could have ever been. [STANDING OVATION!!!!] Material needs and wants are not the problem - lack of interpersonal contact with fathers is the problem. BOOK OF VIRTUES made Bill Bennett and his publisher a millionaire because of the timing of his "loyalty, honesty" presentation. To reverse the problem might require us to raise our own children PLUS ANOTHER CHILD. Government must free up the family, schools, the economy, and churches to allow them to solve the problem - government cannot solve it alone. Government has no competence in raising children!!! Allow education to play a larger role coupled with parental involvement. The goal is stable marriages. Reginald Brass, Founder, My Child Says Daddy Described his organization's Triangle Theory - mother, father, children. His emotional account of his dealings with the courts got a standing ovation which helped to encourage Governor Wilson to promise a review of the judicial system and a "judges' college". Family courts are all we have, and they are negative, degrading, and must be educated. [Ovation] It would be easier for him to go to the social services department and adopt a child than to see his own children. [standing ovation] Timothy Johnson, 13, Big Brother Program Had a big brother for 3 years that he waited 2 years for. Provided male role model and someone to talk to about things he could not talk to his mother about [like about everything a teenager thinks about?] Anne Mitchell, Attorney, single mother, founder FREE Governor Wilson is on the cutting edge. In her numerous dealings with divorce cases fathers are considered dispensable by single mothers. Fathers do believe they have nothing to contribute under the current setup. Enforcing child support costs $millions [she didn't say how much is collected versus how much it costs, but David Garrod shows how it costs more to collect than is collected] Even in cases where both parents agree to joint custody, 33% are awarded to the custody of the mother anyway, and even in cases where both parents agree to father custody, 13% are awarded to the custody of the mother. [Have a little hidden agenda, these judges???] When fathers are so restrained from their own children they "go away". "We must bring the dads back" got an ovation. "We must educate the family law judges" [Sure, and we must send dogs to training to make sure they don't bite cats] Wolfgang Hirczy, Senior Policy Advisor, FREE Governor has placed the issue of how the paternal role is affected by government policy on the national agenda. Government policy undermines the paternal role. Few fathers have adequate access to their own children because it is restricted by current government policy. But it is not just government's fault. Support and advocacy organizations AND FEMINISM think it is OK to throw the father out like dirty diapers and tying his hands behind his back, so they can pick his pockets, and they are the ones demanding this action from government. [STANDING OVATION] The legislature must assure that children's access to their fathers is guaranteed. [STANDING OVATION] And they must establish paternity at the hospital when the father is most likely to be present, to assure his involvement in the child's life. Officer Frank Dipaol, LA Police Department Personally started a community service alternative to jail time for teenagers. Almost all of the 600 kids who went through his program came from homes with no fathers. 10% of them were "turned around". [i.e., for 90% of them it was too late for a father image] "Oscar was one of those kids but he is now wearing a Police Explorer's uniform rather than baggy pants." Eloise Anderson, Director, Dept. Social Services More important than money is parental involvement. Welfare cannot replace the father's role. Fatherlessness as described by the other presenters (and she knows the statistics and rattled them off faster than could be recorded) is the root of our social pathology. If parents decide on divorce we must mitigate the conflict. Marriage is for children, not for parents. The relationship of fathers to their daughters is also very important. [Ovation] 2 out of every 5 children live without their biological fathers. "What happens in a childs life when he or she wakes up without a father?" AFDC moms are usually mated to their peers, not to rocket scientists, and thus don't have the opportunity to pay the child support ordered from them. Gov. Wilson implemented "wedfare" which allowed welfare to married couples so that both parents would be available to a child's life. David Blankenhorn, National Fatherhood Initiative 40% of the children in the nation will be sleeping in fatherless homes tonight. We must honor the special role of our religious custodians, like the "Promise Keepers". PROPOSAL An eccentric, symbolic legislative gesture would be to pass a law prohibiting men from selling their sperm to sperm banks. This produces children who will never, never know fathers. Their fatherlessness is absolute. This social movement requires guys who are prepared to commit to: "Maximize the possibility that every child has a father". No-fault divorce started in California - it should end here. Must get rid of the term "no-fault". The non-filing spouse should be shown more power and respect than the filing spouse. California was the first state to hold a conference on fatherhood, and it shifted the debate dramatically. This is far bigger than both political parties and it can be fixed. This Summit assisted in formally recognizing fatherlessness as a problem. University of California studies on motherhood have outnumbered those on fatherhood by 5x suggesting alarming ambivalence about the importance of fathers. Jim Cook, Joint Custody Association Biological parents obviously come first, but 3 decades ago 80% of the children had grandparents close by, but now only 4% do. Ken Canfield, Pres. National Center for Fatherhood "There is a deep father wound on the face of the California landscape. We must grieve first and then appreciate fathers." We have a foe - it is fatherlessness - and we need tools to fight it: 1) Promote responsible fatherhood in the media. 2) Resources for training and education. 3) Prepare tomorrow's fathers before they are fathers. How to return teen fathers to their children since there are 1 million teen pregnancies and 500,000 teen childbirths per year, 85% of which are unplanned. The current stance on teen fathers is punitive, shows no support for them, labels them as deadbeat dads. Teen fathers desire relationships with their children but they receive no moral support from government. Hogan Hillings Must promote father presence. Fatherlessness is a problem which feeds itself - a fatherless child grows up without a male role model and then has difficulty being a father to his own children. Governor Pete Wilson, California Detroit Board of Education could not create an all male academy because it was sued by NOW and the ACLU for being DISCRIMINATORY TO WOMEN. "Judge missed the point that the long term benefits would also help women." [PS - Are these decisions judges are capable of making?] Asked "what percent of fathers would be available if they had a chance" and got a whole room full of blank stares. [100%??] His concern about fatherlessness is not a passing fancy which will go away. Human costs are larger than the dollar costs, but the dollar costs are enormous. In budget meetings he is struck by the enormous size of the welfare and prison budgets. Statutory rape should be prosecuted more vigorously to reduce teen pregnancy. The conference certainly will raise the public consciousness about the problems of fatherlessness. A concensus was reached in five areas: 1) teen pregnancy must be stigmatized through education, media. 2) families must be strengthened because families are the best environment for children. 3) policies must be developed to encourage and permit parenting by fathers. 4) strengthen laws holding parents responsible for children's actions. 5) must develop male role models for the children of mother-headed households. The Governor promised a review of the judicial system and a "judges' college" to make sure the judicial system does not remain a part of the problem. --------------------------------------------------------------------- FATHERING, CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT & US PUBLIC POLICY by Kingsley G. Morse Jr. Copyright 1995 Introduction """""""""""" An avalanche of data is showing that fathering is crucial to normal childhood development. Unfortunately, children are being deprived by certain public policies and when fathers work outside the home. Advances in telecommuting and new laws that protect the crucial father-child relationship may help. Fathers are Crucial to Normal Childhood Development """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" " Quite a few statistics have been gathered on fatherlessness and abnormal childhood development. So many are summarized in this paper that the reader may want to take a deep breath before proceeding. The author and others believe the implications for our society are profound. The U.S. Census department has said that nearly one in four[1] children are born out of wedlock in the general population. Sadly, fatherless children are responsible for a disproportionately high percentage of juvenile delinquency. For example, considering that only 25% of children raised without fathers, then why are 63% of youth suicides from fatherless homes? (Source: U.S. D.H.H.S., Bureau of the Census) Probably because these children were deprived of adequate fathering. Here are more disturbing statistics. Keep in mind that only 25% of children in the general population comes from fatherless homes. * 85% of all children that exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes (Source: Center for Disease Control) * 80% of rapists motivated with displaced anger come from fatherless homes (Source: Criminal Justice & Behavior, Vol 14, p. 403-26, 1978.) * 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes (Source: National Principals Association Report on the State of High Schools.) * 75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes (Source: Rainbows for all God`s Children.) * 70% of juveniles in state-operated institutions come from fatherless homes (Source: U.S. Dept. of Justice, Special Report, Sept 1988) * 85% of all youths sitting in prisons grew up in a fatherless home (Source: Fulton Co. Georgia jail populations, Texas Dept. of Corrections 1992) If the reader still doubts that fathering is vital to normal childhood development, perhaps the following expert opinions will be more convincing. "Daughters in single mother homes have more negative attitudes toward men in general and their fathers in particular." (pg. 146 , 2, lines 5 - 8) Interparental Conflict, Relationship with the Noncustodial Father, and Adolescent Post-Divorced Adjustment - Gene Brody and Rex Forehand, University of Georgia, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 11, No. 2, April - June 1990 "Children recover more rapidly from the emotional trauma of parents' separation when they maintain close ties with their fathers." (pg. 013, Col. 2, 2, lines 13 - 24 continued on pg. 1014, Col. 1, 1, lines 1) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between Visiting and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol. 51, No. 4, November 1989. "Adolescents who reported closer relationships with their non-custodial fathers were assessed as displaying fewer internalizing problems." (pg. 139, 1, lines 8 - 10) Interparental Conflict, Relationship with the Noncustodial Father, and Adolescent Post- Divorced Adjustment - Gene Brody and Rex Forehand, University of Georgia, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 11, No. 2, April - June 1990 "Fathers have much to offer their adolescent children in many areas, including their career development, moral development, and sex role identification." (pg. 284, col. 2, 5, lines 6 - 10) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 40, No. 3, July 1991 "Frequent contact with the father is associated with positive adjustment of the children." (pg. 441, col. 2, 1, lines 18 - 20) The Effect of the Post Divorce Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance R. Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993 "Finally, girls whose parents divorce may grow up without the day to day experience of interacting with a man who is attentive, caring and loving. The continuous sense of being valued and loved as a female seems an especially key element in the development of the conviction that one is indeed femininely lovable. Without this regular source of nourishment, a girl's sense of being valued as a female does not seem to thrive." (Long-Term Effects of Divorce on Children: A Developmental Vulnerability Model Neil Kalter, Ph.D., University of Michigan, American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 57(4), October, 1987) "The impact of parental divorce and subsequent father absence in the wake of this event has long been thought to affect children quite negatively. For instance, parental divorce and father loss has been associated with difficulties in school adjustment (e.g. Felner, Ginter, Boike, & Cowen), Social Adjustment (e.g. Fry & Grover) and personal adjustment (e.g. Covell & Turnbull)..." "The results of the present study suggest that father loss through divorce is associated with diminished self-concepts in children...at least for this sample of children from the midwestern United States." (Children's Self Concepts: Are They Affected by Parental Divorce and Remarriage Thomas S. Parish, Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 1987, V 2, #4, 559-562) Think of all the children who could benefit from more fathering! And beyond the children, think of all the tax dollars we could save if we needed fewer prisons, chemical abuse centers and other state- operated institutions! Causes and Cures for Fatherless Children """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Fatherlessness and abnormal childhood development are natural consequences of fathers working outside of the home and certain public policies. When their fathers leave home to go to work, children are at greater risk of abnormal development. Before the industrial revolution, most children had fathers who worked at home, on the farm. But the percentage of children who've had this luxury plummeted with the obsolescence of our farm based economy. Between 1820 and 1988, the percentage of people in farm occupations dropped from 72% to just 3% [2]. Interestingly, recent technological advances may reverse this trend, if only slightly. Technological breakthroughs and plummeting telecommunication costs for phones, faxes and the internet are permitting some fathers to work at home and spend more time fathering their kids. Working at home means children can be fathered during the lunch hour and when their father would otherwise be commuting to and from work. Beyond the technological advances, trade organizations like the Home Office Association of America and the Small Office Home Office America are lobbying for tax deductibility for health costs and home office expenses, among other things. These bills are the "Home Office Deduction Act of 1995" and the "Self Employed Health Fairness Act of 1995". If passed, these will make it more economical for families to have fathers work at home, thus promoting more fathering and normal childhood development. Along with tax legislation for home offices, some county planners are zoning traditionally residential areas to permit home offices, cottage industries, and therefore more fathering and normal childhood development. Even if more fathers do eventually work closer to their kids, we as a society will still need to relearn to appreciate fathers' contribution to normal childhood development. Toward this goal, president Clinton released a memorandum in June called "Supporting The Role Of Fathers In Families"[3]. Several public policies have been criticized by father's rights lobbyists as harming the crucial father-child relationship. A public policy which probably exacerbates fatherlessness and abnormal child hood development is the use of so called "no-fault" divorce laws. They've made divorcing easy and typically result in the children having less time with their father. Marvin Mitchelson, a famous lawyer who specializes in man and woman relations has been quoted as saying "The [present] easy grounds [for divorce] and no- fault system of divorce [in some states] mean that anyone can go to court and get a divorce with very little effort."[4] The divorce rate rose steadily from 2.5 per 1,000 population in 1966 to a peak of 5.3 in both 1979 and 1981.[5] Some states still don't have no- fault laws, and those that do might consider repealing them for the childrens' sake. Another public policy which promotes fatherlessness and abnormal childhood development is awarding sole physical custody of children after divorce to one parent instead of joint physical custody. My understanding is that several states have tried to make joint custody the default, and some states, like Washington, even permit joint custody over one parent's objection. Joint physical custody helps children get the fathering they need to develop normally. Most states don't enforce visitation agreements, which permits bitter ex-spouses to deny children visits with their fathers. Encouragingly Arizona, Colorado and Illinois have passed laws which enforce visitation. Another public policy which promotes fatherlessness and abnormal childhood development is the immunity enjoyed by bitter divorcing spouses who file contrived restraining orders to separate children from their fathers. For example, a Massachusetts "209A" restraining order prohibits children from having reasonable visitation and adequate fathering, and this is routinely justified by unproven allegations. California has recently passed a law, SB 558, which will hopefully allow more fathering in that state. It makes false convictions of child abuse a justification for change of custody. Another misguided public policy is the practice of putting children in day-care when divorced fathers are willing to care for them. Some states, like Virginia and California, have introduced legislation dubbed "Mrs. Doubtfire" bills that would permit children to be cared for by their fathers instead of sending them to a day care facility. Welfare and child support from paternity suits are two more policies which subsidize illegitimacy and fatherlessness. Preliminary data shows that two thirds of fathers didn't intend to cause conception where the mothers were unwed[6]. This high percentage would explain why many fathers are absent. The rate of illegitimate births is soaring, and is now about one in four[1]. Remedial welfare legislation is often proposed in Congress, and the National Center for Men is pressing for a federal suit to give men who would otherwise be absent fathers the right to decline fatherhood and child support. By making welfare and child support from paternity suits harder to get, there would be less economic incentive to have children who won't have adequate fathering. Conclusion """""""""" Studies are showing how crucial fathering is for normal childhood development. Fathers who work at home and new laws protecting the father-child relationship may help. References """""""""" [1] The U.S. Census Bureau, "Fertility of American Women: June 1992". (San Jose Mercury News 7/14/93) [2] The World Almanac 1991, Pharos Books, 200 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10166 (page 128) [3] Memorandum For The Heads Of Executive Departments and Agencies, U.S. President Bill Clinton, June 16, 1995, "Supporting The Role Of Fathers In Families" [4] The Jacoby and Meyers Practical Guide to Everyday Law, 1985, Simon and Schuster, Inc., New York, NY [5] National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), Advance Report of Final Divorce Statistics, 1989 and 1990, Monthly Vital Statistics Report, Vol. 43, No. 9, Supp. For Release April 18, 1995 [6] DRAFT COPY of Unintended Births: Women's Attitudes vis-a-vis their Male Partners' Attitudes: 1982-1990, Joyce C. Abma and Linda J. Piccinino, NCHS, 6525 Belcrest Road, Hyattsville, MD 20782, (301) 436-8731 |
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"Dusty" wrote in message ... Some info for you to mull over.. Fatherhood Statistics Index * Affirmative Action * Child Abuse * Child Murder * Child Custody * "Child Support" * Discrimination Against Men * Divorce * Domestic Violence * Education * Family Breakup * Fatherlessness * Incarceration * Life Expectancy * Single-Mother Households * Suicide Rate * Taxation * Wealth * Welfare Important Articles on Fatherhood --------------------------------------------------------------------- Armin Brott on Battered Domestic Violence Statistics --------------------------------------------------------------------- Mark Charalambous, Coalition for the Preservation of Fatherhood on Discrimination Against Men --------------------------------------------------------------------- COPS -- Coalition of Parental Support -- Fatherlessness --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kingsley Morse on Fatherlessness --------------------------------------------------------------------- John A. Rossler on Domestic Violence --------------------------------------------------------------------- James Sniechowski & Judith Sherven on Domestic Violence --------------------------------------------------------------------- Callifornia Governor Wilson's Fatherhood Summit On Fatherlessness --------------------------------------------------------------------- Affirmative Action * Affirmative action is discriminatory against men by design, and benefits women more than it does any other "minority group" [i.e., men are a "minority group" because they constitute 48% of the population, but affirmative action does not work to their benefit]. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Child Abuse --------------------------------------------------------------------- Child Murder * Per the Department of Justice, 55% of child murders are by their own mothers, and 6% are by their biological fathers, making mothers 9 times more likely to murder their children than biological fathers. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Child Custody * Don King or 909-698-5834) has official State of California statistics that show only 3.4% of California fathers get custody. * This data is from "Advance Report of Final Divorce Statistics, 1989 and 1990," National Center for Health Statistics, Sally C. Clarke In 1990, from 19 reporting states, percent of custody: Awarded to husbands: 8.7 Awarded to wives: 72 Awarded to joint custody 15.7 Awarded to other persons: 1.3 Awarded to combination: 2.4 * As we know "joint custody" often means maternal custody in practice. So a safe estimate on the basis of these figures is that mothers get custody between 80 to 85 percent of the time. Note that fathers get custody only 8.7 percent of the time. * Even in cases where both parents agree to joint custody, 33% are awarded to the custody of the mother anyway, and even in cases where both parents agree to father custody, 13% are awarded to the custody of the mother. [Anne Mitchell, Attorney, single mother, founder FREE] * The Associated Press cited the fact that 97% of the persons to be prosecuted by Maine under this child support collection law are fathers. That statistic was provided by officials of Maine. Do they explain why these statistics are so out of balance between genders? Most studies of fathers pre-divorce show that about 66% or two thirds of them want custody of their children. Read Richard Warshak's book, The Custody Revolution, for a description of some of the mistaken beliefs about the parenting abilities of men that result in sex discrimination in child custody decisions. Contrary to the equal abilities of either parent to nurture a child, the custody decisions after divorce give women sole custody in 90 percent of divorces. Parents retain joint custody in 5 to 7 percent of divorce custody cases. Only in 10 percent of all divorce custody cases are fathers able to retain their parental status. This loss of parental rights is not related to any crime or innate inability to nurture children. The loss of NCF parental rights is due strictly to the gender bias of the Family Court system. --------------------------------------------------------------------- "Child Support" * "90.2% of fathers with joint custody pay the child support due." U.S. Bureau of the Census: 1988 * "79.1 % of fathers with visitation privileges pay the child support due." U.S. Bureau of the Census: 1988 * A study by the Institute for Research on Poverty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that "dead-beat dads" were really impoverished dads. In their comprehensive study, they found that "... 52% of the nonpaying fathers had incomes of less than $6,155 per year ... ." [18 Dallas Morning News, pg. 5. April 26, 1993.] * ... The PFS pilot experience ... lays bare several sobering realities about the potential of 'enforcement only' strategies for increasing (financial) child support collections from the parents of AFDC children. .... The hard truth is that many noncustodial parents do not pay because they have no income. Before they can pay, they need jobs.[Gordon Berlin, Senior VP, Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation. Subcommittee on Human Resources, House Ways and Means Committee. March 15, 1994.] * Mothers get custody of our children 92% of the time in divorce, which is a 100% failure by fathers for all practical purposes. No matter what we did, we could not have lost any bigger than this, especially when "child support" is nothing more than disguised alimony which almost no woman pays. * Because men receive custody of children so rarely, they pay more than their proportionate 92% share of child support payments. "Child support awards" paid by the man are much higher than those paid by the woman, and men are almost 2 times more likely than women to make those payments. * This opens the possibility of a minor female to seek out a minor male child from a wealthy family, and use him as a means of obtaining a part of that wealth. Our current Family Court system empowers women by 92% with the raising of children, (see the US Bureau of the Census, Series P-23, No 173, 1989; Child Support & Alimony, Bureau of the Census, Series P-60, No 173, September 1991). A system that places an unfair distribution of monetary "child support" on the Non-Custody-Parent (NCP), without any form of tax relief, and with no accountability about where and how that support money is spent. * "Noncustodial Fathers: Can They Afford to Pay More Child Support?", by Elaine Sorenson (202) 857-8564 of The Urban Institute. 2100 M Street N. W. Washington, D.C. 20037 (202) 833-7200 is a highly theoretical and hypothetical study which sets out to prove that noncustodial fathers can pay more child support. It did NOT PROVIDE OR PRETEND TO OFFER ANY ACTUAL EVIDENCE OF nonpayment of child support. The data related to child support payments reported by the Bureau of the Census (Current Population Reports, Series P-23, No 173, 1989), show that 75 percent of all child support owed is paid. Total amount of child support owed.... $14,800,000,000 (NOT $34 billion!) Amount received......................................$11, 100,000,000 Composed of paid in full.............................$7,600,000,000 Paid in part.............................................. $3,500,000,000 * President Clinton recently stated on national television, that $34 billion was owed in unpaid child support. This number is a fabrication and incorrect. [Jerry W. Lester, Ph.D. 2476 Bolsover, Suite 428 Houston, Texas 77005 (713) 528-6565] This concept of child support debt non-payment by choice is not supported by a report from the Government Accounting Office (Report: GAO/HRD-92-39FS, January 9, 1992). On page 19 of that report the following reasons were given for not receiving payments: Father not able to pay............66% Unable to locate father............5% Other.................................29% * Only $50.00 of any monthly payment collected in Texas is turned over to the custodial parent. The rest is used to "reimburse" the state for welfare payments. The scam being perpetrated on taxpayers is as follows: Citizens, including NCFs, pay taxes to support child welfare payments. They agree to shoulder that financial burden because human beings care about children. They vote for laws to collect support due to children for the same reason. But state officials are keeping the money collected from NCFs. Using the excuse of poor children to pass harsh collection laws, allows them to effectively raise the amount of tax money collected from a particular group of citizens, NCFs. Money collected from "Deadbeat Dads" is paid into state general revenue coffers. So we see campaigns to raise taxes to pay child welfare, then laws to collect child support, but what is missing is the step which turns over all of the collected child support to the children in whose name it is collected. It is instead directed into the pockets of those bureaucrats enforcing the collection measures. [That's your tax money at work! -Tom Williamson NCFM] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Discrimination Against Men Custodial mothers who receive a support award: 79.6% Custodial fathers who receive a support award: 29.9% Non-custodial mothers who totally default on support: 46.9% Non-custodial fathers who totally default on support: 26.9% (Data obtained by asking custodial parents) Non-custodial mothers who pay support at any level: 20.0% Non-custodial fathers who pay support at any level: 61.0% (Data obtained by asking custodial parents) Single mothers who work less than full time: 66.2% Single fathers who work less than full time: 10.2% Single mothers who work more than 44 hours per week: 7.0% Single fathers who work more than 44 hours per week: 24.5% Single mothers who receive public assistance: 46.2% Single fathers who receive public assistance: 20.8% Source: Technical Analysis Paper No. 42, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Income Security Policy, Oct. 1991; Authors: Meyer and Garansky * As to Old Age Survivors Insurance (the traditional social security) and the Disability Insurance programs (they are reported together for reasons known only to the government). There were 36.5 million recipients in 1992. Of those 25.7 million were retired. Retired men numbered 13.4 million. Retired women numbered 12.2 million. Spouses (read wives) numbered 6.1 million. So men = 13.4 women = 18.3 the rest are children of retired or deceased workers. Another form of social security payment SSI is paid to disabled or blind individuals who earn below $446/month. Almost 60% of the recipients are mentally retarded or mentally disabled. Not separately listed are those disabled by drug addictions. There is also no gender breakdown. So if the cost of maintaining women is higher (seven years longer support) why doesn't the government charge equitably higher amounts for women in the system than for men. Any reasonable insurance program would base its charges on its costs or payouts. But we see here a hidden mechanism to transfer money from men to women [Dr. Jerry Lester] Dr. Lester: What you present here is a vital piece of information which is CRUCIAL to solving our social pathology, which is due in part to gender inequality in productivity, earnings, and federal spending. In this era of feminists' demands for gender equality, they should get it. And it cannot be equitable to propose that such payments be divided proportionately to the mere population of each gender (e.g., if women are 52% of the population then they should receive 52% of the benefits), IF their proportionate CONTRIBUTION is significantly smaller in the first place. Rather than dividing federal funds by POPULATION, such funding should be divided by CONTRIBUTION. If men earn 65% of the income in the country, but because of the graduated income tax pay 75% to 85% of the taxes, then true gender equality demands that men as a group receive 75% to 85% of the benefits. Assuming that the lower (75%) figure is accurate, then the $360 Billion welfare tab must be reapportioned as follows: Current More Equitable Males $36 Billion $270 Billion Females $324 Billion $90 Billion IF men pay more than 75% of the taxes, then even MORE than $234 Billion must be shifted from females to males to arrive at an equitable proportion. This is about $3,600 per working male per year, or $108,000 per working male over his 30 year career. And if this amount, rather than subsidizing welfare queens year after year, had been successfully invested at an average rate of 6% per year, it would now be worth more than $300,000. If each of the 65 million male US workers had been able to KEEP this money rather than forking it over to Uncle Sam, and if each one had saved it in a modest savings plan, Personal Savings, rather than being $212 Billion, would now be $19,712 Billion (i.e., more than $19 Trillion). Any other scenario would not represent "equality", and we want "equality"? Can our social pathology be reduced with this lopsided inequality? It would be pure unadulterated sexism to propose that it can. But clearly this is more than an "equality" issue. Personal Savings is the lifeblood of any democracy, and we don't have any. With a Public Debt of $5 Trillion on which interest payments would sop up our total Personal Savings in several months, "Personal Savings" is just an accounting error. And fatherlessness would not be such a major problem if those who earned it were able to keep and invest it. The fact that females live 7 years longer than males and cost more in medicare, or collect 58% of Old Age Survivors Insurance, must be remedied with this gender equitable solution. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Divorce * The US divorce rate is 10 times higher than at the turn of the century and 4 to 10 times higher than other industrialized nations. 85% of those divorces being filed by the mother and 15% by the father suggests that the incentives for mothers to get divorced are about 6 times stronger than the incentives for fathers. * In 1988 divorces filed involving families with children, 64.9% were filed by women, which is down from 71.4% filed by women in 1975; 28.8% were filed by men, which is up from 25.6% in 1975; and 6.3% were filed jointly, which is up from 2.6% in 1975. [National Center for Health Statistics, Monthly Vital Statistics Report,Vol. 38, No. 12 (S) 2, May 21, 1991.] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Domestic Violence * Cathy Young states rates of domestic violence are roughly equal between spouses. * In another announcement, Health and Human Services director, Donna Shalala, has announced a one million dollar grant to the Texas Council on Family Violence to establish a NATIONAL hot line for domestic violence. The grant is paid for out of funds made available through the Violence Against Women Act. In a press release announcing the Hot Line, HHS stated, "In the United States, a woman is more likely to be assaulted, injured, raped or killed by a male partner than any other type of assailant".[That's your tax money at work! -Tom Williamson NCFM] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Education * My attention to that bias was drawn about 15 years ago in mainland China by a primary school headmistress. I had noted the fairly universal gender-equality, with the blatant exeption of primary school teachers that were 99+% female. Her suggestion seemed to be: By age seven or eight boys have been so brainwased to accept the role dictated by women, that they can be safely let loose. I don't know about the USA, but here in Aussie the main enemy of equal rights for men are other men themselves that feel equal rights are "Unchivalrous" "Unmanly" etc.(While the women safely grin in the background). Maybe men have to be educated first. And nothing will change as long as the zero to seven's are under the sole influence of women, I think. Peter Stuy --------------------------------------------------------------------- Family Breakup * While television and the movies gather headlines as the motivation behind teen violence, school administrators blame "family breakup" for violence in the schools. [Survey by the National School Boards Association as reported in the Washington Time, January 1994. 77% of school administrators blame "family breakup" for violence in the schools] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Fatherlessness * What struck me especially was Blankenhorn's statement that controlling for fatherhood status erases the relationship between poverty and crime, and between race and crime. That's worth mentioning. [Gordon Little] * The quality of the early father-child relationship is linked to the son's and daughter's later adjustment in adolescence and adulthood. The Father Factor and the Two Parent Advantage: Reducing the Paternal Deficit, pg. 1. Henry Biller, Ph.D., Psychology Department, University of Rhode Island. April 15, 1994.] * As fathers have been excluded from their children's lives, with the marriage rate falling and the divorce rate rising, SAT scores have fallen to all-time lows while teen births and the crime rate have exploded. The divorce rate, teen birth rate, and the crime rate each doubled between 1975 and 1990. SAT scores fell in 1975 and then dipped below 900 for the first time in 1980. They have remained at that low level. ["Index of Leading Indicators." Washington Times. March 16, 1994.] * Subsequently, unwed pregnancy and childbirth have become a "job" for too many women. In 1960, only 15% of teen births occurred outside of marriage, in 1991, 69% occurred outside of marriage. More than 25% of all births are to unwed mothers. The failure rate among users of contraception is approximately twice as high among "poor" women as among "non-poor" women. ["Trends in Teenage Fertility", pg. 26. Child Trends, Inc., May 4, 1994.] * Teenage pregnancy rates reflect this trend. Data compiled by Child Trends, Inc. indicate that 18% of teen pregnancies resulted from a decision by the mother to become pregnant, 40% resulted from the mothers' ambivalence toward pregnancy, and 42% of teen pregnancies were terminated (abortion). [Facts at a Glance, pg. 2. Child Trends, Inc., January 1994] * "Ambivalent teens were just a likely to have a baby during the next two years as teens who unequivocally wanted a child. ["Trends in Childrearing and Implications for Reform", State-Federal Assembly, National Conference on State Legislatures. Presentation by Child Trends, Inc., May 4, 1994.] * Children who grow up without a father present, even when adjustments are made for income, are 75% more likely to need professional assistance for emotional problems, twice as likely to repeat a grade of school, and more likely to suffer a wide variety of other disorders including anxiety, peer conflict, and hyperactivity. [National Center for Health Statistics, June 1991 study of 17,100 children in various family structures. Children living with a mother and step-father fared worse on most indicators.] * "One clear message from the accumulated divorce research is that children profit by continued exposure to both parents" [Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984] * "Children who were able to maintain post-divorce relationships with both parents were better able to adjust to the divorce." [Visitation and the Noncustodial Father - Mary Ann P. Koch, Carol R. Lowery, Journal of Divorce, Vol. 8, No. 2, Winter 1984] * "The continuing involvement of divorced fathers in families where mothers maintain physical custody has become recognized as an important mediating factor in the adjustment and well-being of children of divorce." [The Effect of the Post Divorce Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance R. Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993] * "Children recover more rapidly from the emotional trauma of parents' separation when they maintain close ties with their fathers." [Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between Visiting and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol. 51, No. 4, November 1989.] * "Adolescents who reported closer relationships with their non custodial fathers were assessed as displaying fewer internalizing problems." [Interparental Conflict, Relationship with the Noncustodial Father, and Adolescent Post-Divorced Adjustment - Gene Brody and Rex Forehand, University of Georgia, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 11, No. 2, April - June 1990] * "Fathers economic and social involvement with children diminishes some of the negative consequences of living with a single mother" [Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between Visiting and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol. 51, No. 4, November 1989] * "When both parents share the social and economic responsibilities of child care, children appear to adapt better to their changed living arrangements than when mothers bear these responsibilities alone." [Relationships between Fathers and Children Who Live Apart: The Father's Role after Separation - Judith A. Seltzer, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Journal of Marriage and the Family, Vol. 53, No. 1, February 1991] * "Fathers have much to offer their adolescent children in many areas, including their career development, moral development, and sex role identification." [Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol . 40, No. 3, July 1991 * "Fathers who spend time with their children teach them values." [Relationships between Fathers and Children Who Live Apart: The Father's Role after Separation - Judith A. Seltzer, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Journal of Marriage and the Family, Vol. 53, No. 1, February 1991 * "Fathers and children who maintain close touch through visiting communicate regularly in other ways as well." [Relationships between Fathers and Children Who Live Apart: The Father's Role after Separation - Judith A. Seltzer, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Journal of Marriage and the Family, Vol. 53, No. 1, February 1991 * "Frequent contact with the father is associated with positive adjustment of the children." [The Effect of the Post Divorce Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance R. Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993] * "Fathers play a significant role in terms of adolescent functioning" [The Role of Paternal Variables in Divorced and Married Families - Amanda Thomas and Rex Forehand, American Journal of Othopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 1, January 1993] * "Males who reported high levels of inter-parental conflict and a good relationship with their fathers were perceived [by their teachers] to have fewer internalizing problems. A similar set of results emerged for the female adolescents" [Interparental Conflict, Relationship with the Noncustodial Father, and Adolescent Post-Divorced Adjustment - Gene Brody and Rex Forehand, University of Georgia, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 11, No. 2, April - June 1990] * "Significant correlations were found between the father's reports of positive relationships with their adolescent offspring and teacher reports of less anxiety/withdrawal on the part of the adolescents." [The Role of Paternal Variables in Divorced and Married Families - Amanda Thomas and Rex Forehand, American Journal of Othopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 1, January 1993] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Incarceration * Men are convicted of crimes for which women are not equally charged, and receive longer prison sentences for equal crimes [from 5x to 20x times longer per some recent TV programs]. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Life Expectancy * Males = 72.3 years, females = 79 years, which is 6.7 years or 9.3% longer [National Center for Health Statistics] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Single-Mother Households * Juveniles committed to juvenile prisons in Texas: 1% are from single father homes 20% are from 2-parent homes 79% are from fatherless homes Single father homes constitute 4% of households, single mother homes constitute 37%, and two parent homes constitute 59%. The children of single mother households are 8.5 times more likely to be in juvenile prisons than children of single father households. Children of single father households are 35% less likely than the children of two parent households to be in juvenile prisons. * The US Office of Technology Assessment commissioned Howard Dubowitz to evaluate child abuse, through a health program . His report dated May 1987 entitled "Child Maltreatment in the US" points out: The increase in the number of mother-headed households and the corresponding decrease in father-headed households parallelled a 158% increase in child abuse and neglect in the 8 years from 1976 to 1984. 2.3% of sexual abuse of girls was by biological fathers, and 17% by stepfathers. 37% of child maltreatment occurred in mother-headed households, versus 23% in all US families. 44,700 children were sexually abused in 1979 which was .07% of all children below the age of 18 years of age. Why was this report, which reveals the shocking realities of father-absence so effectively ignored by the media? Because girls in the custody of their divorced and remarried mothers were 7.4 times more likely to be sexually abused by their stepfathers than those in father-headed households, and this is very revealing of the abject failure of the feminist ideology. It is proof of the complete bias of the feminist media. It illustrates that the *welfare* of children is SECOND on the list to the *rights* of women. Out of 64 million fathers, 1,034 of us allegedly did abuse our daughters, but 62,998,966 of us did NOT. The failure by the report to state what part of the other 80.7% of the children who were sexually abused were abused by their mothers is also revealing. It is possible, and entirely probable, that half of that 80.7% were abused by their mothers, which makes mothers 17.5 times more likely than biological fathers to sexually abuse their daughters. * FEMALE-HOUSEHOLDER FAMILIES MOST LIKELY TO STAY POOR, CENSUS BUREAU SAYS Persons in female-householder families were the most likely demographic group to be chronically poor, according to the results of a survey released today by the Commerce Department's Census Bureau. One in five female-householder families (19.5 percent) reported income below the poverty threshold during the 24-month period of 1991-92. That was more than any other age, race, or Hispanic-origin, employment, disability, or family status group discussed in the report. The finding is reported in "Dynamics of Economic Well-Being: Poverty 1991 to 1993 (P70-45), based on data collected in the Survey of Income and Program Participation. Compared to persons in female-householder families, 1.3 percent of persons in married-couple families were poor for all 24 months in 1991-92. The median time spent in poverty during this period for persons in female-householder families was 6.4 months compared with only 3.9 months for persons in married-couple families. Other findings: * Among children under 18, 8.5 percent were chronically poor, compared with 3.2 percent of adults 18 to 64. Children constituted 48 percent of the chronically poor. * Of persons who were poor in 1991, 21.6 percent were able to escape poverty in 1992. * Of all the population subgroups looked at in the report, only African Americans lost ground in the likelihood of their escaping poverty. For those who were poor in the previous year, their exit rate dropped from 17.4 percent in 1991 to 13.0 percent in 1992. * Half of all periods of poverty lasted longer than 4.3 months. * The median duration of poverty was longer for African Americans (5.8 months) than for Whites (4.1 months). For Hispanics, it was 5.0 months, not statistically different from the other groups. * The median duration of poverty during 1991 through 1993 period was 4.0 months for adults 18 to 64; 4.7 months for children under 18; and 7.0 months for the elderly (65 and older). The Office of Management and Budget determines the official poverty index for families based on such factors as family size, family income, number of children under 18 years old, and the consumer price index. Chronic poverty refers to a situation in which families stay below the poverty cutoff every month during the 1991 to 1992 period. * WASHINGTON -- In 1970, 12 percent of kids under 18 lived under a single-parent family; in 1995, 36 percent of kids live this way. Children are most likely to live with a never-married parent (35 percent) as with a divorced, single-parent (37 percent). DURING THE PAST DECADE, MORE AND MORE CHILDREN ARE LIVING UNDER A SINGLE-PARENT HOUSEHOLD Percent: 40 38................................................ ..? 36..........................................X...X 34...................................X...X 32 30.......................X...X...X 28...................X 26...........X...X 24...X...X 22 20 .....'83 '84 '85 '86 '87 '88 '89 '90 '91 '92 '93 '94 '95 Two Census Bureau reports -- published each year -- keep up with the trend: - HOUSEHOLD AND FAMILY CHARTERISTICS: MARCH (P20-477), THREE OUT OF TEN MOTHERS ON AFDC BEGAN CHILDBEARING BEFORE AGE 18 WASHINGTON -- Approximately 29 percent of the 3.8 million mothers 50 to 44 years old who receive Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) had their first child before they turned 18, according to Census Bureau -STATISTICAL_BRIEF-. Never-married mothers were 48 percent of the mothers in the 15 to 44 year age group on AFDC. The 1.8 million never-married mothers supported 4.2 million children, or an average of 2.4 children per mother. Entitled "Mothers Who Receive AFDC Payments -- Fertility and Socioeconomic Charateristics," the BRIEF focuses on mothers in the childbearing years. Covered are mother's age, race and ethnicity, education, and poverty status. It also focuses on foreign-born mothers receiving AFDC. AFDC mothers tended to have more children than those who did not receive AFDC payments. The AFDC mothers average 2.6 children each compared with 2.1 children born to mothers not receiving AFDC. Altogether, 9.7 million children were dependent on mothers receiving AFDC. Recently completed study by CATO (?) Institute reveals that in 9 States, money received by welfare recipients EXCEEDS the starting salary for a TEACHER!...and in all 50 States, exceeds the minimum wage. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Suicide Rate * Women attempt suicide four times as often as men, but men succeed three times as often as women. Men out number women 25 to one in the prison system. Two thirds of all grade repeaters are boys, women out live men by eight years (largely due to issues involving life style), 80% of the deaths of boys between the ages of 15 and 24 are caused by accidents, suicide and homicide (in that order) - Note: These statistics are not the current year, but these facts have remained very consistent for a long period of time. [MEN'S RESOURCES HOT-LINE - NCFM] * The suicide rate amoung men is five (5) times higher than for women, yet there are no "men's studies" programs to understand why. * Faludi didn't bother to mention that the male suicide rate had been higher all along. The "suicide gap" between men and women only got worse. Roughly, over the last generation, men's suicide rate in the U.S. went from about 15 per 100,000 each year to about 19, while women's rate went down from about 7 to 5.2 or so. The observation that women's suicide rate peaked in 1960 was interesting, since this was the time of the so-called "problem that had no name." --------------------------------------------------------------------- Taxation * Men constitute 58% of the workforce, earn an average of 42% more than women, and earn 66.2% of the nation's total income, while women earn 33.8%. The graduated income tax places the majority of in the highest tax bracket and the majority of women are in the lower tax bracket, leaving men paying up to 90% of all federal income taxes. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Wealth * Women hold 65% of the country's wealth today. [Fortune Magazine] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Welfare * The percent of those receiving one or another form of welfare who are males range from 5-15%, while famales receive 85-95%, making welfare a $360 Billion transfer of wealth from men to women. * Women have a 7 year longer life expectancy than men, yet women's studies and women's health programs get 100% of the gender-related health program spending. * In a study by the Cato Institute, to match the value of welfare benefits, a mother with two children would have to earn as much as $36,400 in Hawaii or as little as $11,500 in Mississippi. In New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Alaska, and Rhode Island, welfare pays more than a $12.00 an hour job--or more than two- and-a-half times the minimum wage. In 40 states welfare pays more than an $8.00 an hour job. In 17 states the welfare package is more generous than a $10.00 an hour job. Welfare benefits are especially generous in large urban cities. Welfare offers the pre-tax income equivalent of a $14.75 an hour job in New York City, $12.45 in Philadelphia, $11.35 in Baltimore, and $10.90 in Detroit. In 9 states, welfare pays more than the average first year salary for a teacher. In 29 states, welfare pays more than the average starting salary for a secretary. In 47 states welfare pays more than a janitor. Indeed, in the 6 most generous states, benefits exceed the entry level salary for a computer programmer. $$$ are pre-tax equivalent of welfare benefits for single mother over the age of 21 with 2 children, aged 4 and 1. Hawaii $36,400 $17.50 per hour Alaska $32,200 $15.48 Mass. $30,500 $14.66 Conn. $29,600 $14.23 DC $29,100 $13.99 NY $27,300 $13.13 NJ $26,500 $12.74 RI $26,100 $12.55 CA $24,100 $11.59 Virginia $23,100 $11.11 Penn. $19,700 $9.47 (#22 on the list) Illinois $19,400 $9.33 Texas $15,200 $7.31 (#44 on the list) Mississippi $11,500 $5.53 (#51, last) This report did not include certain education benefits, job training benfits, child care costs, etc. The Institute just listed the normal living expenses for a single parent and 2 children: AFDC cash benefits (Alaska was #1, followed by Hawaii and NY) Food stamp benefits (Hawaii was #1, followed by Alabama and Arkansas) Medicaid benefits (Louisana was #1, followed by OK and Indiana) Housing benefits (DC was #1, followed by Mass & Hawaii) Utilities benefits (Texas was # 1, followed by Vermont & Minn) WIC benefits (Hawaii was #1, followed by Alaska & CT) The study does not define the total single-parent-welfare cost to each state. The study's authors -- Michael Tanner, Cato's director of health and welfare studies; Stephen Moore, Cato's director of fiscal policy studies; and David Hartman, CEO of Hartland Bank in Austin, Texas--conclude that if Congress or state governments are serious about reducing welfare dependency and rewarding work, the most promising reform is to cut benefit levels substantially. * Report to the Chairman, Committee on the Budget, U.S. Senate BUDGET ISSUES - GDP ANALYSIS BROADENS BUDGET DEBATE GAO/AIMD-94-41 As our analysis of the data shows, the United States in 1970 and 1989 ranked last among the nine countries in gross fixed capital formation as a share of GDP. Health care consumption presents a sharp contrast to the findings about gross fixed capital formation: health care consumption in the United States has grown dramatically as a percentage of GDP The United States ranked second among seven nations\3 in both 1970 and 1987 in resources devoted to education although the differences between the various countries is generally small. Economic Allocations Across Countries (1990 or most recent year for which data are available, percent of GDP) Transportation Non-resident Resident Communication Health Defense Ed. Consumption Other Country Year ential dential cations tion tion ------- ------ ----- ----- ----------- ----- ------ ---- ------ - --- Australia 1990 17 5 10 8 2 5 54 0 Canada 1987 14 7 11 8 2 6 50 1 France 1988 15 5 11 8 3 5 51 1 Germany 1989 15 5 9 8 2 4 50 6 Italy 1990 15 5 8 7 2 5 57 1 Japan 1990 26 6 6 6 1 3 50 1 Sweden 1989 16 5 10 8 2 5 53 1 U.K. 1990 16 3 11 6 4 4 58 -2 U.S. 1989 12 4 11 11 6 6 50 -1 --------------------------------------------------------------------- The Battered Statistic Syndrome by Armin A. Brott [appeared in the Washington Post, July 1994] By now, everyone knows about the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. But there's a third victim of these tragic killings: The truth about the prevalence of domestic violence and female victimization, a truth that is daily being maimed almost beyond recognition by the irresponsible use of statistics. Consider, for example, the wildly varying statements being issued on all sides regarding the number of women who are supposedly beaten by men in the United States. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, for example, estimates that more than half of married women (over 27 million) will experience violence during their marriage, and that over one third (over 18 million) are battered repeatedly every year. Shocked by these statistics--both of which are frequently quoted in the media--I called the NCADV and asked where they came from. Rita Smith, the group's coordinator, told me these figures were only ""estimates.'' From where? ""Based on what we hear out there.'' Out where? Battered women's shelters and other advocacy groups. Common sense should tell you that asking women at a shelter whether they've been hit would be like asking patrons at McDonald's whether they ever eat fast food. It would be irresponsible and intellectually dishonest to apply those answers to the country as a whole. But when there's a sensational story to run, common sense and intellectual honesty are rarely taken into consideration. Even those who have a public responsibility to be accurate on these issues sometimes falter. According to Donna Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services, for example, 4 million women are battered each year by their male partners. But where did Shalala get her figure? From a 1993 Harris poll commissioned by the Commonwealth Fund. Two percent of the 2,500 women interviewed said they had been ""kicked, bit, hit with a fist or some other object.'' Apply that to the approximately 55 million women married or living with a man and you get a total of 1.1 million. So where did the other 2.9 million come from? They were women who said they had been ""pushed, grabbed, shoved, or slapped.'' That's a form of abuse, to be sure, but is it what most people would call battering? By far the worst distortion of the numbers of battered women comes from Miami talk show host Pat Stevens, who appeared on a segment of CNN's Crossfire show called ""OJ on the Air'' in June. Stevens estimated that when adjusted for underreporting, the true number of battered women is 60 million. No one bothered to tell Stevens-or Crossfire's millions of viewers--that 60 million is more than 100% of all the women in this entire country who are currently in relationships with a man. Instead, Stevens' ""estimate'' and the other ""facts'' on battered women all serve to fuel the claims that there's an ""epidemic of domestic violence'' and a ""war against women.'' How many battered women are there? ""Because many feminist activists and researchers have so great a stake in exaggerating the problem and so little compunction about doing so, objective information on battery is very hard to come by,'' writes Christina Hoff Sommers, author of Who Stole Feminism: How Women Have Betrayed Women (Simon & Schuster, 1994). But Murray A. Straus, head of the Family Research Laboratory at the University of New Hampshire, and Richard A. Gelles, a sociologist at the University of Rhode Island, who have been tracking spousal abuse for over 20 years, have come up with what are widely believed to be the most accurate estimates available--the National Family Violence Survey (NFVS). Their Survey, sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health, found that 84% of American families are not violent. In the 16% of families that do experience violence, the vast majority of that violence takes the form of slapping, shoving, and grabbing. Only 3-4% of all families (a total of about 1.8 million) engage in ""severe'' violence: kicking, punching, or using a weapon. Moreover, a recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that 44% of ""severe violence'' to wives did not cause any injury, and 31% caused only a slight bruise. Still, Straus and Gelles estimate that about 188,000 women are injured severely enough to require medical attention. That's a horrifying number of victims, but it's a far cry from 4 million, or 18 million, or 60 million. Another commonly accepted ""truth'' about domestic violence is that 95% of the time, women are the victims and men the perpetrators. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Family Violence Survey--as well as numerous other studies have found that men are just as likely to be the victims of domestic violence as women. But aren't these women just defending themselves against their more violent partners? Straus and Gelles found that among couples reporting violence, the man struck the first blow in 27% of cases; the woman in 24%. The rest of the time, the violence was mutual, with both partners brawling. The results were the same even when the most severe episodes of violence were analyzed. They were also the same when only the woman's version of the events was considered. Even more interesting are Straus' findings, released earlier this month, that men's violence against women--even as reported by women--has dropped 43% between 1985 and 1992. Over this same period, in contrast, assaults by women against men increased by about 28%. Straus concludes that ""part of the reason may be that there has been no effort to condemn assault by wives parallel to the effort to condemn assaults by husbands.'' So where did the claim that 95% of domestic violence is initiated by men come from? From the U.S. Department of Justice, which collects data on the number of reports of domestic violence. But as women's rights groups rightfully claim, reports are not always an accurate measure of the severity of the problem. Certainly, some female victims of domestic violence fail to call the police, fearing retaliation by their abusers. But other Justice Department studies have shown that men, too, are reluctant to ask for help, reporting all kinds of violent victimization 32% less frequently than women. Confessing to being beaten up by another man, however, is a piece of cake compared to admitting being victimized by a woman. After all, men are socialized to ""take it like a man.'' As a result, men tend to report only the most extreme abuse. ""They wouldn't dream of reporting the kind of minor abuse--such as slapping or kicking--that women routinely report,'' says Suzanne Steinmetz, director of the Family Research Institute at Indiana University/Purdue. Another example of how data on female victimization is distorted, is the claim that ""domestic violence is the most common cause of injury to women.'' The source for this claim is a 1991 study of extremely poor, inner-city African-American women in Philadelphia--which doesn't even find that domestic violence was the leading cause of injury. ""And even if it did,'' says Dr. Jeane Ann Grisso, one of the lead researchers of the study, ""I'd never apply that conclusion to the total population of American women.'' Nevertheless, Grisso's study has been widely cited as proof that there's an epidemic of violence against women. Some advocates have taken Grisso's study one-step further, claiming that as many as 50% of women's hospital emergency-room admissions are the result of ongoing abuse. At the source of this so called fact are several studies done in the 1970's by Evan Stark and Anne Flitcraft, co-directors of the Domestic Violence Training Project at the University of Connecticut. They compiled their data by going through old medical records in urban hospitals and estimating how many women were battered by using what they called an ""index of suspicion.'' Christina Hoff Sommers has analyzed Stark and Flitcraft's methods and writes: ""if a woman was assaulted but the records do not say who hit her, Stark and Flitcraft classify this as a case of "probable' domestic abuse; if she has injuries to her face and torso that are inadequately explained, they classify it as "suggestive of abuse.''' Apparently no one considered the possibility that someone other than a husband or boyfriend might have been responsible for the woman's injuries. Compare Stark and Flitcraft's results to those reached in a 1992 survey of 397 emergency rooms in California. Nurses were asked to estimate the number of patients per month who have been diagnosed with injuries caused by domestic violence. Estimates ranged from two per month for small hospitals to eight per month for large ones. The California study concluded that the number of perceived domestic violence victims was so low because many health professionals are poorly trained in recognizing domestic violence. That may be correct, but it's doubtful that it would account for the enormous difference between a handful of domestic violence cases a month and the claim that such cases account for 50% of all women's emergency room admissions. There's no question that many women who have been severely battered are afraid to leave their batterers--either because they are economically dependent, or because they fear further abuse. In one of their ""fact sheets,'' the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence tells us that women who leave their batterers ""increase by 75% their chances of getting killed.'' When I asked her to explain that figure, the NCADV's Rita Smith admitted that that statistic isn't true at all, and that the Coalition has no concrete evidence of the effect--if any--leaving a violent partner will have on a woman. I then asked Ms. Smith whether it bothered her that her organization was responsible for spreading an imaginary statistic. ""Not really,'' she said. ""We think the chance of getting killed goes up and we're just trying to make a point here.'' In a very small number of tragic cases, abusive men do kill their partners. But women aren't the only ones killed in domestic disputes. A Justice Department study released earlier this month showed that 41 percent of spousal murder victims were male. Battered women's advocates claim that those women who kill their husbands do so only out of self-defense. But in an extensive study of women imprisoned for murder, Coramae Richey Mann, a researcher at the Department of Criminal Justice, Indiana University/Bloomington found that only 59% claimed self-defense and that 30% had previously been arrested for violent crimes. As for the perception that women who murder their husbands are treated harshly by the justice system, Dr. Mann found that few female domestic homicide offenders receive prison sentences, and that those who do rarely serve more than four or five years. These findings were confirmed by a recent Los Angeles Times article. The article, which quoted Justice Department sources, reported that women who kill their husbands were acquitted in 12.9% of the cases, while husbands who kill their wives were acquitted only 1.4% of the time. In addition, women convicted of killing their husbands receive an average sentence of only six years, while male spousal killers got 17 years. Why are these statistics being battered? ""The higher your figures for abuse, the more likely you'll reap rewards, regardless of your methodology,'' says Dr. Sommers. Those who create and disseminate inflated statistics are often invited to testify before Congress, they're written about in the New York Times, and some even get to be interviewed on Oprah. Not everyone who manipulates data does so for personal gain. Some are simply trying to get people to sit up and pay attention to the plight of battered women--a truly important goal. But to do so, they've created a false epidemic. If advocates confined themselves to the truth--that 3-4% of women are battered each year--domestic violence might still be regarded as the unfortunate behavior of a few crazy men. But if enough people are led to believe that 19 or 50 or 100 percent of women are ""brutalized,'' the only logical conclusion can be that all men are dangerous and all women need to be protected. Is it OK to lie shamelessly if your cause is a noble one? Is half a solution better than no solution at all? On the one hand, lying about the extent of the problem of domestic violence has had some very positive effects, opening the public's eyes as well as their wallets. Battered women are now the hottest story in town and Congress is about to pass the $1.8 billion Violence Against Women Act which, among other things, will fund toll-free hotlines, battered women's shelters, and education and training programs. It's certainly possible that none of this would be happening if advocacy groups stuck strictly to facts. On the other hand, even supposedly harmless ""puffing'' can have been some extremely negative consequences. Inaccurate discussions about domestic violence, for example, can quickly turn into smear campaigns in which almost every man who hasn't exhibited his natural vicious and misogynist tendencies yet, is expected to do so at any moment. Members of Congress, seeing a golden opportunity to appease a large block of voters, have chosen a quick solution rather than attempting to correct their constituents' misapprehensions. The Violence Against Women Act, for example, doesn't devote a nickel to the same kind of special protection for men, even though males make up 75% of all murder victims and 61% of the victims of all violent crime. Women, too, are being hurt by the lies. Having fought so hard to be taken seriously and treated as equals, women are again finding themselves portrayed as weak and helpless--exactly the stereotypes that have been traditionally used to justify discriminating against them. As the author and feminist critic Katherine Dunn writes in the current issue of The New Republic, ""The denial of female aggression is a destructive myth. It robs an entire gender of a significant spectrum of power, leaving women less than equal with men and effectively keeping them "in their place' and under control.'' Worst of all, the inflation of domestic violence statistics produces a kind of ratchet effect. The same people who complain that no one listens if they don't exaggerate only find it that much more difficult to get people's attention the next time around--which in turn seems to justify another round of exaggeration. Eventually, the public either stops listening altogether, or finds the statistics too absurd to believe. And when we're trying to alleviate the tragedy of domestic violence, the last thing you want anyone to do is laugh. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Mark Charalambous, Coalition for the Preservation of Fatherhood Child support is an award of money that one adult pays another. It is ostensibly paid from Non-Custodial Parents (NCP) to Custodial Parents (CPs). Because of the FACT that men are not allowed by the State to become CPs (estimates range from 95-99% of custodial battles arrive at maternal physical custody; in Massachusetts, I'm *still* waiting to hear of a case where at the trial level a father is awarded sole physical custody in a contested case. Guess what! I heard of one Wednesday night! The context was that it made Lawyers Weekly because it was reversed on appeal! There were abuse allegations on both sides (of course), and the appeals court ruled that "battered women's syndrome' was not taken into account to explain the abuse that the mother allegedly perpetrated on the father. So. To the best of my knowledge, the rate is still: mothers 100%, fathers 0%. Also, bear in mind that when a father does win custody -- it's cause for national headlines! (Remember the Michigan case last year? ) So we have an environment where only one class of people, women, can be CPs (child support recipients), and the other class, men, can only be NCPs (child support payors). Hence, I state that ALL laws, policies, and what- have-you, including all state guideline child support IS ILLEGITIMATE AND INVALID prima facie. We are talking about a thoroughly discriminatory environment against men. I do not recognize this system of transfer of money as being anything that resembles something that the words "child support" *should* represent. So what exactly is it? In a time when it is politically incorrect for women to acknowledge any dependence on men, this euphemism was conjured up. We know what it is. It passes the duck test real well. It is POLITICALLY CORRECT ALIMONY, state-mandated at levels that make the worst alimony story of decades past pale in comparison. $9,000 a month for "child support" (recent Vermont case)? Who's kidding who? I would ask you to consider the sex discrimination inherent in the practice of providing welfare payments to out of work mothers, and prosecuting out of work fathers for non-payment. I would also ask you to consider the logic of reducing the ability of NCFs to get or keep work, as a method which will increase child support payments. As shown above, two-thirds of the nonpayers of ordered child support can't pay. Laws such as those currently enforced in Maine, which strip professional and driving licenses from fathers who fall behind in child support payments, will help to insure that they never will be able to pay. In contrast to the Maine policy, is one being used in parts of New York state, called Parents Fair Share. In the Parents Fair Share program, NCFs are provided with job training and given preference in state employment office job placement programs. The collection rate among fathers who have been helped in this program is near 90 percent. The collection rate reported in one Associated Press (Houston Post, July 3, 1994) article for Maine is $11.5 million out of $138.5 million, or less than 9 percent. The program of NCF assistance, Parents Fair Share, is ten times as effective in producing child support payments as the punishment program of Maine. --------------------------------------------------------------------- COPS - Coalition of Parental Support Fathers' Absence* * 85% of all children that exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes. * 90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes. * 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes. * 75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes. * 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes. * 80% of rapists motivated with displaced anger come from fatherless homes. * 70% of juveniles in state-operated institutions come from fatherless homes. * 85% of all youths sitting in prisons grew up in a fatherless home. * California has the nation's highest juvenile incarceration rate and the nation's highest juvenile unemployment rate. * Juveniles have become the driving force behind the national increase in violent crime; the epidemic of youth violence and gangs is related to the breakdown of the two-parent family. * 71% of teenage pregnancies are to children of single parents. Daughters of single parents are 2.1 times more likely to have children during their teenage years than are daughters from intact families. Daughters of single parents are 53% more likely to marry as teenagers, 164% more likely to have a premarital birth, and 92% more likely to dissolve their own marriages. All these intergenerational consequences of single motherhood increase the likelihood of chronic welfare dependency. * In 1983, a study found that 60% of perpetrators of child abuse were women with sole custody. Shared parenting can significantly reduce the stress associated with sole custody, and reduce the isolation of children in abusive situations by allowing both parents' to monitor the children's health and welfare and to protect them. * 18 million children live in single-parent homes. Nearly 75% of American children living in single-parent families will experience poverty before they turn 11. Only 20% in two-parent families will experience poverty. * The feminization of poverty is linked to the feminization of custody, as well as linked to lower earnings for women. Greater opportunity for education and jobs through shared parenting can help break the cycle. * Kidnapping: family abductions were 163,200 compared to non-family abductions of 200-300, attributed to the parents' disenchantment with the legal system. --------------------------------------------------------------------- DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: Some Things Have Always Been Equal by John A. Rossler The serious examination of violence in the family began in the mid '70s with studies by Straus, Gelles and Steinmetz that challenged many of our preconceived notions of violent men. Also challenged was the stereotype, the anathema of feminists, of the "little women," docile and passive compared to her husband. Whereas these original researchers suspected violence was a major problem in American families, consistent with our violent society, surprising was its high incidence: at least one act of violence occurred in 16% of families in the last year and 28% since the beginning of the marriages ("Societal Change and Change in Family Violence from 1975 to 1985 As Revealed by Two National Studies," Straus and Gelles, Journal of Marriage and the Family, 8/86.) More surprising was the virtual equality of offenses by wives to husbands. Wives committed 48.5% of all violent occurrences, and 54.8% of all violence termed "severe." In her 197778 Victimology article, "The Battered Husband Syndrome," (p.501) Steinmetz (U. of Delaware) reveals "The data from the nationally representative sample (Straus et al., 1977)... found wives slightly higher in almost all categories (of violence) except pushing and shoving." "Gathered data plus insights gained from in-depth interviews, suggest that women are as likely to select physical violence to resolve marital conflicts as are men." (Ibid., p. 505) --------------------------------------------------------------------- WOMEN ARE RESPONSIBLE, TOO James Sniechowski, Ph.D. & Per Judith Shervn, Ph.D. Forty-one percent of spousal murders are committed by wives. The 1985 National Family Violence Survey, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and supported by many other surveys, revealed that women and men were physically abusing one another in roughly equal numbers. Wives reported they were more often the aggressors. Using weapons to make up for physical disadvantage, they were not just fighting back. While 1.8 women annually suffered one or more assaults from a husband or boyfriend, 2 million men are assaulted by a wife or girlfriend, according to the 1986 study. The study also found that 54% of all violence termed "severe" was by women. The Journal for the National Association of Social Workers found in 1986 that among teen-agers who date, girls were violent more frequently than boys. Mothers abuse their children at a rate approaching twice that of fathers according to state child protective service agencies surveyed by the Children's Rights Coalition. Because men have been taught to "take it like a man" and are ridiculed when they reveal they have been battered by a woman, women are nine times more likely to report their abusers to authorities. The women's movement claims it's goal to be equal rights for women. If that is so, then women must share responsibility for their behavior and their contribution to domestic violence. Otherwise we remain in a distortion that overshadows the truth. Only the truth will show us the way out of the epidemic of violence that is destroying our families and our nation. In defending their point of view they are often disingenuous. They will rely on a domestic-violence researcher, like Murray Straus, who, in a widely used 1986 study, reported that, "a man's assault on a woman is far more likely to cause serious injury." However, they do not reveal that it was Straus who also found, in that same study, that "women are about as violent within the family as men," and furthermore that "violence by wives has not been an object of public concern. It has not been defined as a problem." Rather than face the dilemma squarely, feminists classify references to battered males as backlash, relegating the issue to the status of an aggravating diversion and describe the men as "whiners." With that, the real injury done to men becomes irrelevant. --------------------------------------------------------------------- California Governor Wilson's Focus On Fathers Summit Burbank, California June 13, 1995 Wade Horn, National Fatherhood Initiative Our three decade [old] experiment with fatherlessness has failed. 23 million children will be sleeping in fatherless homes tonight. The divorce rate tripled between 1960 and 1980. 40 out of 100 families divorce now compared to 16 out of 100 in 1960. Illegitimacy has followed a geometric progression from 10.7% in 1970 to 33% today. 40% of children in fatherless homes have not seen their fathers for more than 1 year. 58% have never been in their fathers homes. 75% of single parent "familes" live in poverty versus 20% of 2-parent families. Single-parent [read: mother-headed] households produce: 60% of the rapists 72% of the murderers 70% of long-term imprisoned And I quote: "This is not an attack on mother-headed households. Fathers just do things differently and this can't be replaced with AFDC, Welfare, etc." Divorce has severe consequences on children. We must change the way we look at it. We are running out of time because soon majority of children will be raised in single-parent "families". --------------------------------------------------------------------- WE MUST STOP PUNISHING MEN. A woman on welfare who marries a man on minimum wage takes a 30% income reduction. WE MUST ENFORCE PSYCHOLOGICAL SUPPORT. The issue is father contact, not money. [Standing Ovation] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Sherman Block, Sheriff, Los Angeles County Children of single-parent households commit most of crimes. Does not know "why" fathers leave their homes. (Hasn't heard of the HHS "man out of the house rule"??) Must minimize this national disgrace. Sheriff's office involved in community programs by default because there is no other agency which can. But he must divert funds from other programs to handle this. [i.e., there is less money for "prevention"??] Tony Chipelow, Casey Foundation Mother-headed households grew from 6% in 1950 to 24% today. 19 million children are fatherless. Average income of 2-parent families is $43,000, versus $17,500 for female- headed "families" Young males today are far more likely not to get married, of all races, with less than half of blacks and 78% of Latinos Single-mother "families" are 5x more likely to be poor, 10x more likely to be extremely poor, 2x more likely to go to jail, and 3x more likely to have children as teenagers. A national priority should be made of 4 points: 1) Education reform. 2) Stop treating fathers as "marginal players". 3) Welfare reform. 4) Develop jobs for the 5 million who are not in the workforce. Patrick Fagan, Heritage Foundation Our socio-economic problems stem from fatherlessness, not from poverty. Poverty stems from fatherlessness. The ill-effects of fatherlessness go across the socio-economic strata, including poor health, high infant mortality, poor cognitive development, behind their peers, lower impulse control (more sex and violence). When the agreement between the father & mother is weakened the social contract is weakened, leading to increased litigation. Crime increases across the socio-economic strata. Present GNP much lower than it would have been with strong 2-parent families. This risk to the future of our nation is much greater than the risk from the USSR could have ever been. [STANDING OVATION!!!!] Material needs and wants are not the problem - lack of interpersonal contact with fathers is the problem. BOOK OF VIRTUES made Bill Bennett and his publisher a millionaire because of the timing of his "loyalty, honesty" presentation. To reverse the problem might require us to raise our own children PLUS ANOTHER CHILD. Government must free up the family, schools, the economy, and churches to allow them to solve the problem - government cannot solve it alone. Government has no competence in raising children!!! Allow education to play a larger role coupled with parental involvement. The goal is stable marriages. Reginald Brass, Founder, My Child Says Daddy Described his organization's Triangle Theory - mother, father, children. His emotional account of his dealings with the courts got a standing ovation which helped to encourage Governor Wilson to promise a review of the judicial system and a "judges' college". Family courts are all we have, and they are negative, degrading, and must be educated. [Ovation] It would be easier for him to go to the social services department and adopt a child than to see his own children. [standing ovation] Timothy Johnson, 13, Big Brother Program Had a big brother for 3 years that he waited 2 years for. Provided male role model and someone to talk to about things he could not talk to his mother about [like about everything a teenager thinks about?] Anne Mitchell, Attorney, single mother, founder FREE Governor Wilson is on the cutting edge. In her numerous dealings with divorce cases fathers are considered dispensable by single mothers. Fathers do believe they have nothing to contribute under the current setup. Enforcing child support costs $millions [she didn't say how much is collected versus how much it costs, but David Garrod shows how it costs more to collect than is collected] Even in cases where both parents agree to joint custody, 33% are awarded to the custody of the mother anyway, and even in cases where both parents agree to father custody, 13% are awarded to the custody of the mother. [Have a little hidden agenda, these judges???] When fathers are so restrained from their own children they "go away". "We must bring the dads back" got an ovation. "We must educate the family law judges" [Sure, and we must send dogs to training to make sure they don't bite cats] Wolfgang Hirczy, Senior Policy Advisor, FREE Governor has placed the issue of how the paternal role is affected by government policy on the national agenda. Government policy undermines the paternal role. Few fathers have adequate access to their own children because it is restricted by current government policy. But it is not just government's fault. Support and advocacy organizations AND FEMINISM think it is OK to throw the father out like dirty diapers and tying his hands behind his back, so they can pick his pockets, and they are the ones demanding this action from government. [STANDING OVATION] The legislature must assure that children's access to their fathers is guaranteed. [STANDING OVATION] And they must establish paternity at the hospital when the father is most likely to be present, to assure his involvement in the child's life. Officer Frank Dipaol, LA Police Department Personally started a community service alternative to jail time for teenagers. Almost all of the 600 kids who went through his program came from homes with no fathers. 10% of them were "turned around". [i.e., for 90% of them it was too late for a father image] "Oscar was one of those kids but he is now wearing a Police Explorer's uniform rather than baggy pants." Eloise Anderson, Director, Dept. Social Services More important than money is parental involvement. Welfare cannot replace the father's role. Fatherlessness as described by the other presenters (and she knows the statistics and rattled them off faster than could be recorded) is the root of our social pathology. If parents decide on divorce we must mitigate the conflict. Marriage is for children, not for parents. The relationship of fathers to their daughters is also very important. [Ovation] 2 out of every 5 children live without their biological fathers. "What happens in a childs life when he or she wakes up without a father?" AFDC moms are usually mated to their peers, not to rocket scientists, and thus don't have the opportunity to pay the child support ordered from them. Gov. Wilson implemented "wedfare" which allowed welfare to married couples so that both parents would be available to a child's life. David Blankenhorn, National Fatherhood Initiative 40% of the children in the nation will be sleeping in fatherless homes tonight. We must honor the special role of our religious custodians, like the "Promise Keepers". PROPOSAL An eccentric, symbolic legislative gesture would be to pass a law prohibiting men from selling their sperm to sperm banks. This produces children who will never, never know fathers. Their fatherlessness is absolute. This social movement requires guys who are prepared to commit to: "Maximize the possibility that every child has a father". No-fault divorce started in California - it should end here. Must get rid of the term "no-fault". The non-filing spouse should be shown more power and respect than the filing spouse. California was the first state to hold a conference on fatherhood, and it shifted the debate dramatically. This is far bigger than both political parties and it can be fixed. This Summit assisted in formally recognizing fatherlessness as a problem. University of California studies on motherhood have outnumbered those on fatherhood by 5x suggesting alarming ambivalence about the importance of fathers. Jim Cook, Joint Custody Association Biological parents obviously come first, but 3 decades ago 80% of the children had grandparents close by, but now only 4% do. Ken Canfield, Pres. National Center for Fatherhood "There is a deep father wound on the face of the California landscape. We must grieve first and then appreciate fathers." We have a foe - it is fatherlessness - and we need tools to fight it: 1) Promote responsible fatherhood in the media. 2) Resources for training and education. 3) Prepare tomorrow's fathers before they are fathers. How to return teen fathers to their children since there are 1 million teen pregnancies and 500,000 teen childbirths per year, 85% of which are unplanned. The current stance on teen fathers is punitive, shows no support for them, labels them as deadbeat dads. Teen fathers desire relationships with their children but they receive no moral support from government. Hogan Hillings Must promote father presence. Fatherlessness is a problem which feeds itself - a fatherless child grows up without a male role model and then has difficulty being a father to his own children. Governor Pete Wilson, California Detroit Board of Education could not create an all male academy because it was sued by NOW and the ACLU for being DISCRIMINATORY TO WOMEN. "Judge missed the point that the long term benefits would also help women." [PS - Are these decisions judges are capable of making?] Asked "what percent of fathers would be available if they had a chance" and got a whole room full of blank stares. [100%??] His concern about fatherlessness is not a passing fancy which will go away. Human costs are larger than the dollar costs, but the dollar costs are enormous. In budget meetings he is struck by the enormous size of the welfare and prison budgets. Statutory rape should be prosecuted more vigorously to reduce teen pregnancy. The conference certainly will raise the public consciousness about the problems of fatherlessness. A concensus was reached in five areas: 1) teen pregnancy must be stigmatized through education, media. 2) families must be strengthened because families are the best environment for children. 3) policies must be developed to encourage and permit parenting by fathers. 4) strengthen laws holding parents responsible for children's actions. 5) must develop male role models for the children of mother-headed households. The Governor promised a review of the judicial system and a "judges' college" to make sure the judicial system does not remain a part of the problem. --------------------------------------------------------------------- FATHERING, CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT & US PUBLIC POLICY by Kingsley G. Morse Jr. Copyright 1995 Introduction """""""""""" An avalanche of data is showing that fathering is crucial to normal childhood development. Unfortunately, children are being deprived by certain public policies and when fathers work outside the home. Advances in telecommuting and new laws that protect the crucial father-child relationship may help. Fathers are Crucial to Normal Childhood Development """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" " Quite a few statistics have been gathered on fatherlessness and abnormal childhood development. So many are summarized in this paper that the reader may want to take a deep breath before proceeding. The author and others believe the implications for our society are profound. The U.S. Census department has said that nearly one in four[1] children are born out of wedlock in the general population. Sadly, fatherless children are responsible for a disproportionately high percentage of juvenile delinquency. For example, considering that only 25% of children raised without fathers, then why are 63% of youth suicides from fatherless homes? (Source: U.S. D.H.H.S., Bureau of the Census) Probably because these children were deprived of adequate fathering. Here are more disturbing statistics. Keep in mind that only 25% of children in the general population comes from fatherless homes. * 85% of all children that exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes (Source: Center for Disease Control) * 80% of rapists motivated with displaced anger come from fatherless homes (Source: Criminal Justice & Behavior, Vol 14, p. 403-26, 1978.) * 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes (Source: National Principals Association Report on the State of High Schools.) * 75% of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes (Source: Rainbows for all God`s Children.) * 70% of juveniles in state-operated institutions come from fatherless homes (Source: U.S. Dept. of Justice, Special Report, Sept 1988) * 85% of all youths sitting in prisons grew up in a fatherless home (Source: Fulton Co. Georgia jail populations, Texas Dept. of Corrections 1992) If the reader still doubts that fathering is vital to normal childhood development, perhaps the following expert opinions will be more convincing. "Daughters in single mother homes have more negative attitudes toward men in general and their fathers in particular." (pg. 146 , 2, lines 5 - 8) Interparental Conflict, Relationship with the Noncustodial Father, and Adolescent Post-Divorced Adjustment - Gene Brody and Rex Forehand, University of Georgia, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 11, No. 2, April - June 1990 "Children recover more rapidly from the emotional trauma of parents' separation when they maintain close ties with their fathers." (pg. 013, Col. 2, 2, lines 13 - 24 continued on pg. 1014, Col. 1, 1, lines 1) Family Ties after Divorce: The Relationship Between Visiting and Paying Support - Judith A. Seltzer, Nora Shaeffer, Hong-wen Charing, University of Wisconsin, Journal of Marriage & the Family, Vol. 51, No. 4, November 1989. "Adolescents who reported closer relationships with their non-custodial fathers were assessed as displaying fewer internalizing problems." (pg. 139, 1, lines 8 - 10) Interparental Conflict, Relationship with the Noncustodial Father, and Adolescent Post- Divorced Adjustment - Gene Brody and Rex Forehand, University of Georgia, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 11, No. 2, April - June 1990 "Fathers have much to offer their adolescent children in many areas, including their career development, moral development, and sex role identification." (pg. 284, col. 2, 5, lines 6 - 10) Increasing Our Understanding of Fathers Who Have Infrequent Contact With Their Children - James R. Dudley, Professor, University North Carolina, under a grant from Temple University, Family Relations, Vol. 40, No. 3, July 1991 "Frequent contact with the father is associated with positive adjustment of the children." (pg. 441, col. 2, 1, lines 18 - 20) The Effect of the Post Divorce Relationship on Paternal Involvement: A Longitudinal Analysis - Constance R. Ahrons, Ph.D., and Richard B. Miller, Ph.D., American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Vol. 63, No. 3, July 1993 "Finally, girls whose parents divorce may grow up without the day to day experience of interacting with a man who is attentive, caring and loving. The continuous sense of being valued and loved as a female seems an especially key element in the development of the conviction that one is indeed femininely lovable. Without this regular source of nourishment, a girl's sense of being valued as a female does not seem to thrive." (Long-Term Effects of Divorce on Children: A Developmental Vulnerability Model Neil Kalter, Ph.D., University of Michigan, American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 57(4), October, 1987) "The impact of parental divorce and subsequent father absence in the wake of this event has long been thought to affect children quite negatively. For instance, parental divorce and father loss has been associated with difficulties in school adjustment (e.g. Felner, Ginter, Boike, & Cowen), Social Adjustment (e.g. Fry & Grover) and personal adjustment (e.g. Covell & Turnbull)..." "The results of the present study suggest that father loss through divorce is associated with diminished self-concepts in children...at least for this sample of children from the midwestern United States." (Children's Self Concepts: Are They Affected by Parental Divorce and Remarriage Thomas S. Parish, Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 1987, V 2, #4, 559-562) Think of all the children who could benefit from more fathering! And beyond the children, think of all the tax dollars we could save if we needed fewer prisons, chemical abuse centers and other state- operated institutions! Causes and Cures for Fatherless Children """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" Fatherlessness and abnormal childhood development are natural consequences of fathers working outside of the home and certain public policies. When their fathers leave home to go to work, children are at greater risk of abnormal development. Before the industrial revolution, most children had fathers who worked at home, on the farm. But the percentage of children who've had this luxury plummeted with the obsolescence of our farm based economy. Between 1820 and 1988, the percentage of people in farm occupations dropped from 72% to just 3% [2]. Interestingly, recent technological advances may reverse this trend, if only slightly. Technological breakthroughs and plummeting telecommunication costs for phones, faxes and the internet are permitting some fathers to work at home and spend more time fathering their kids. Working at home means children can be fathered during the lunch hour and when their father would otherwise be commuting to and from work. Beyond the technological advances, trade organizations like the Home Office Association of America and the Small Office Home Office America are lobbying for tax deductibility for health costs and home office expenses, among other things. These bills are the "Home Office Deduction Act of 1995" and the "Self Employed Health Fairness Act of 1995". If passed, these will make it more economical for families to have fathers work at home, thus promoting more fathering and normal childhood development. Along with tax legislation for home offices, some county planners are zoning traditionally residential areas to permit home offices, cottage industries, and therefore more fathering and normal childhood development. Even if more fathers do eventually work closer to their kids, we as a society will still need to relearn to appreciate fathers' contribution to normal childhood development. Toward this goal, president Clinton released a memorandum in June called "Supporting The Role Of Fathers In Families"[3]. Several public policies have been criticized by father's rights lobbyists as harming the crucial father-child relationship. A public policy which probably exacerbates fatherlessness and abnormal child hood development is the use of so called "no-fault" divorce laws. They've made divorcing easy and typically result in the children having less time with their father. Marvin Mitchelson, a famous lawyer who specializes in man and woman relations has been quoted as saying "The [present] easy grounds [for divorce] and no- fault system of divorce [in some states] mean that anyone can go to court and get a divorce with very little effort."[4] The divorce rate rose steadily from 2.5 per 1,000 population in 1966 to a peak of 5.3 in both 1979 and 1981.[5] Some states still don't have no- fault laws, and those that do might consider repealing them for the childrens' sake. Another public policy which promotes fatherlessness and abnormal childhood development is awarding sole physical custody of children after divorce to one parent instead of joint physical custody. My understanding is that several states have tried to make joint custody the default, and some states, like Washington, even permit joint custody over one parent's objection. Joint physical custody helps children get the fathering they need to develop normally. Most states don't enforce visitation agreements, which permits bitter ex-spouses to deny children visits with their fathers. Encouragingly Arizona, Colorado and Illinois have passed laws which enforce visitation. Another public policy which promotes fatherlessness and abnormal childhood development is the immunity enjoyed by bitter divorcing spouses who file contrived restraining orders to separate children from their fathers. For example, a Massachusetts "209A" restraining order prohibits children from having reasonable visitation and adequate fathering, and this is routinely justified by unproven allegations. California has recently passed a law, SB 558, which will hopefully allow more fathering in that state. It makes false convictions of child abuse a justification for change of custody. Another misguided public policy is the practice of putting children in day-care when divorced fathers are willing to care for them. Some states, like Virginia and California, have introduced legislation dubbed "Mrs. Doubtfire" bills that would permit children to be cared for by their fathers instead of sending them to a day care facility. Welfare and child support from paternity suits are two more policies which subsidize illegitimacy and fatherlessness. Preliminary data shows that two thirds of fathers didn't intend to cause conception where the mothers were unwed[6]. This high percentage would explain why many fathers are absent. The rate of illegitimate births is soaring, and is now about one in four[1]. Remedial welfare legislation is often proposed in Congress, and the National Center for Men is pressing for a federal suit to give men who would otherwise be absent fathers the right to decline fatherhood and child support. By making welfare and child support from paternity suits harder to get, there would be less economic incentive to have children who won't have adequate fathering. Conclusion """""""""" Studies are showing how crucial fathering is for normal childhood development. Fathers who work at home and new laws protecting the father-child relationship may help. References """""""""" [1] The U.S. Census Bureau, "Fertility of American Women: June 1992". (San Jose Mercury News 7/14/93) [2] The World Almanac 1991, Pharos Books, 200 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10166 (page 128) [3] Memorandum For The Heads Of Executive Departments and Agencies, U.S. President Bill Clinton, June 16, 1995, "Supporting The Role Of Fathers In Families" [4] The Jacoby and Meyers Practical Guide to Everyday Law, 1985, Simon and Schuster, Inc., New York, NY [5] National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), Advance Report of Final Divorce Statistics, 1989 and 1990, Monthly Vital Statistics Report, Vol. 43, No. 9, Supp. For Release April 18, 1995 [6] DRAFT COPY of Unintended Births: Women's Attitudes vis-a-vis their Male Partners' Attitudes: 1982-1990, Joyce C. Abma and Linda J. Piccinino, NCHS, 6525 Belcrest Road, Hyattsville, MD 20782, (301) 436-8731 you have penis envy ... ay |
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Man please join my site and help get the fight going!
http://childsupportunfair.com Join up, put those facts in place... and for the guy in canada, need to go to disneyland at least there you can enjoy fantacy land... MAN Some people are just so ignorant... |
#25
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How am I being ignorant.. I have used the Laws that exsist in to work
in my Favour... Some people would call that Smart.. but if you call it Ignorant.. you obivously no idea what the word means. I totally understand that there alot of people who are just neck deep in ****, and are having more piled on them by their Ex... And again let me try this again, I Empathize with them. And I do agree there needs to be changes made in the Calculation of Support Payments.. and there needs to be Single Bar for this. To me the people who put themselves in this position are Ignorant. For not finding out the laws, or understanding how to work them prior to commiting an act. And I've been to Disney Land a few times.. had a geat time... Thanks for the Sugestion... I may book another trip. SpiderHam77 |
#26
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so i was right , i win
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#27
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LOL Yes I guess you are right %... just depends on who you are
calling Ignorant. SpiderHam77 |
#28
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% wrote: "SpiderHam77" wrote in message ups.com... Well then move to a larger Town where there is public Transit... Move closer to your Place of work... Walk to Work.. Ride a Bike... Roller Blade... The point being that you have the option of reducing your costs... and not spending it unless you choose to live where you are.. and work where you do... SpiderHam77 i live in the heart of the north rockie mountains , you roller blade up the hills around here and i'll be right behind you i'm already as close to work as i can be if i move it will cost even more houses aren't all the cheap to buy and there are no places in larger towns that i can apply my trade , i'm a placer miner Well then you've committed the sin of being poor. Poor people deserve to be thrown in jail and raped. End. Of. Story. - Ron ^*^ |
#29
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SpiderHam77 wrote: How am I being ignorant.. I have used the Laws that exsist in to work in my Favour... Some people would call that Smart.. but if you call it Ignorant.. you obivously no idea what the word means. Your use of the "..." in most of your posts is an earmark of a female poster. I think Spiderham is a woman. - Ron ^*^ |
#30
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Phil #3 wrote: "SpiderHam77" wrote in message ups.com... Fist off I'm 100% man. I have Sole Custody of my Child. I took the steps needed to ensure that if things ever broke down in my Marriage with my Wife I would in fact be in the position to offer better.. more stable care for my Child. Perhaps it is just the feminism in your posts that threw me. I, too, suspect that Spidey is a woman. It's the choice of language and patterns in her posts. The "..." at the end of so many sentences, for example, is a dead giveaway. - Ron ^*^ |
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