Thanks to Glenn
L. Eckles, Jr. for the following.
Links to related articles are at the
bottom.
ACFC
http://www.acfc.org/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Good morning Governors,
AT LONG LAST ... States are coming
to realize (what Parents have known
all along) that it "does NOT
take a Village or a State (government)
to Raise a Child" but BOTH PARENTS
acting in the vital and loving role
of mentor, role-model, spiritual leader
AND provider for their unemanicpated
minor children.
Action is urgently needed within your
respective States (Maryland and West
Virginia) to correct the "systemic-wrongs"
that are (unlawfully) eliminating
loving and committed parents (typically
the Father) from the lives of their
children - simply on the basis of
divorce and through the arbitrary
classification and punishment of the
Fathers. The ultimate harm being
done,
is upon the Children within that divorced
family, who have to endure enough
emotional distress arising from the
separation of their parents.
Through the actions of YOUR States
and YOUR Courts, the distress and
damage to those children is increased
significantly and without any semblance
of a rational or legal cause.
Other States Legislatures in this
Nation have legislation before them.
IT IS PAST TIME that the States of
Maryland and West Virginia take a
"real" leadership role,
and set-right the wrongs that have
been illegally and unconstitutionally
perpetrated against law abiding NonCustodial
Parents - who are only 'NonCustodial"
as a result of the unlawful/unConstitutional
"arbitrary classification"
of Fathers within YOUR States' judiciary.
I, and countless thousands of loving
Noncustodial Fathers within your State's
borders, respectfully request that
you publically and vocally endorse
"Fatherhood" and immediately
begin the process of enforcing the
Fathers' Constitutional rights, by
passing-into-law the necessary legistlative
reforms that will ensure the protection
of their "existing rights"
under the United States Constitution.
On behalf of loving and committed
Fathers throughout the Nation, I thank
you in advance for the support that
I am confident you will ultimately
provide. It is Right, It is Just,
AND, It is the Law.
Regards,
Glenn L. Eckles, Jr.
http://www.madmenunited.org/
----------------
http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050318/REPOSITORY/503180319/1031
Concord Monitor
March 18, 2005
Bill would give joint custody
by Allison Steele, Monitor Staff
The Children and Family Law Committee
heard testimony yesterday on a measure
that would automatically award joint
custody to parents except in cases
where it was shown that the children
would not benefit from equal parenting.
Parents and some child advocates said
the bill would offer parents, particularly
fathers, a better chance at being
treated fairly in custody disputes.
The bill's sponsor, Rep. David Bickford
of New Durham, said it would also
protect parents from stereotypes that
judges tend to rely on in making custody
decisions, such as the assumption
that primary custody should go to
the parent who was the primary caregiver
during the marriage. Courts are granting
an increasing number of joint custody
agreements, Bickford said, but this
bill would ensure that trend continues.
But others at the hearing said it
would be wrong for courts to assume
that equal custody is best for families.
Nina Gardner, chairwoman of the Family
Law Task Force, said her committee
opposes the bill because families
have different circumstances that
may or may not fit with a joint custody
agreement.
"This bill sets a standard that
treats all families alike," she
said.
The bill also perpetuates the view
of children as property in divorce
cases, rather than individuals, said
family law lawyer John Cameron. That
mindset, he said, is the largest problem
with the state's current custody law.
It mandates that a judge award custody
however he or she deems is best for
the child - a guideline that can lead
to nasty disputes between parents.
"We have to take the idea that
a child is a prize to be contested
over out of the system," he said.
"And equal responsibility for
a child doesn't necessarily equate
to equal time with a child. It's the
quality time spent with a child we
need to promote, not an automatic
50-50 split."
More than 50 people packed into the
room for yesterday's hearing, many
of them fathers who shared their experiences
with custody arrangements. David Amico
of Kingston, who said he sees his
son and daughter six or seven times
a month, said he has felt stymied
by a system that he felt pitted him
against his ex-wife in court.
"If we could just have the court
system say, 'We would like for you
to share your parental responsibilities,'
that would be wonderful," he
said.
On Wednesday, the committee heard
testimony on another custody bill
intended to do exactly that. That
measure, which has drawn more support
from family advocacy groups, encourages
parents to work together as a team
to share the rights and responsibilities
of raising the children but does not
specify how custody should be divided.
It would ask parents to create plans
for where the children should live
and how the parents would handle their
disputes. The Family Law Task Force
supports that bill.
Both bills would separate the laws
regarding kids and parents from the
state's marriage and divorce laws,
as well as replace the terms "custody"
and "child support" with
"parental rights and responsibilities."
Cameron said yesterday that children
who grow up with joint custody arrangements
have been shown to be better adjusted
than other children of divorce, but
he cautioned that it would be a mistake
to pass a bill asking courts to assume
that is always the best way to go.
And asking lawyers and parents to
demonstrate why joint custody should
not be awarded could create even more
bitterness in disputes.
"I think we need to work our
way up to shared custody," he
said. "Not whittle away at the
presumption of shared custody."
So many came to speak on yesterday's
bill that committee members had to
cut the hearing short. Testimony will
continue Tuesday.
(Allison Steele can be reached at
224-5301, ext. 314, or by e-mail at
asteele@cmonitor.com.)
Concord Monitor Home:
http://www.cmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage
~~~
Related articles:
California May be Forced to Finally
Reform Welfare
The Terminator may help the real John
Conner shut down the 'money machines'
http://www.mensnewsdaily.com/archive/u-v/untershine/2005/untershine031405.htm
by Jim Untershine -- MND, 14 Mar 05
WHISTLEBLOWER MAGAZINE / DIVORCE WARS
What's really behind America's epidemic
of family breakdown?
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=43212
[
http://shop.wnd.com/store/item.asp?ITEM_ID=1700
...where a single issue can be ordered,
but maybe only this month.]
by WND's Whistleblower Staff -- WND,
12/17 Mar 05
Divorce and Bankruptcy Reform
http://www.mensnewsdaily.com/archive/u-v/usher/2005/usher030905.htm
by David R. Usher -- MND, 09 Mar 05
Divorce as Revolution
http://www.newswithviews.com/Baskerville/stephen3.htm
http://www.stephenbaskerville.net/divorce_as_revolution.htm
by Stephen Baskerville -- Salisbury
Review, Summer 2003
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Children Need BOTH Parents!
The American Coalition for Fathers
and Children
For Membership information call 1-800-978-DADS
or see ACFC's homepages at:
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+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
