Re: "deadbeat parents"

["S. M. Halloran" <mitch@duzen.com.tr>]

On 25 Jun 98, Vladimir Z. Nuri was found to have commented thusly:

> apparently one of the 4 horsemen of the infocalypse...?!?!
> whatever can be used as an excuse to take away rights, eh?
> 
> 
[news clip  regarding new Deadbeat Parents federal law excised]

I have a strong feeling that this new law is going to turn around and bite 
the Great Society II (GSII) advocates in their federal ass.  Considering 
some of the minimum limits regarding child support sums in arrears, it 
really won't take any time for prominent members, subscribers, and 
believers in GSII, including Friends of Bill and Friends of Hillary, to 
find themselves on the other side of a federal arrest warrant.  The $5000 
limit could be reached in a matter of a few months, it seems, for quite a 
few of even the "middle-class" child support payers.  (Anyone reading this 
who pays child support willing to divulge how many months it would take 
for them to reach that limit?)  I don't believe that deadbeat parents 
should evade their responsibility, but this law pretty much is the wrong 
way to deal with it.

Prosecutors of any stripe are not going to bother with making a judgment 
regarding 'intent', which they probably don't consider their duty anyway. 
They will have a formulae all worked out in concert with the presiding 
judge--whose duty should be the 'justice' end of any bum rap, deciding the 
issue of 'intent'--to nail anyone who violates the letter (and disregard 
the question of the violation of the spirit) of the law.  The poor will 
necessarily cop a plea and probably do some federal time AND/or find 
themselves assessed federal fines that will essentially make them 
indentured servants to the state for years.  The rich will work a deal to 
stay out of prison since the feds don't want to waste time with the 
delaying tactics of their savvy lawyers.

Perhaps at some point, after thousands of well-meaning but misfortunate 
parents find themselves considered felons in their society because they 
got behind in the support although there was no clear intent to do so, the 
law or certain elements of it will be sensibly repealed or reformed to 
target those whose intent to evade is really indisputable.  There are 
probably as well "minor" provisions and clauses in the law not reported in 
the news clip, but which certainly make life impossible for the well-
meaning to obtain complete rehabilitation;  those parts of the code would 
need attention as well.


Mitch Halloran
Research (Bio)chemist
Duzen Laboratories Group
Ankara   TURKEY
mitch@duzen.com.tr

"Tonight, again, the strong and arrogant opponent
           felt the bitter taste of defeat at your hands"
---Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, addressing the jubilant Iranian soccer team
        whose very unexpected victory over the US eliminated them
        from the France 1998 World Cup