Topic: Divorce & Child Custody Issues
The Federal Scheme to Destroy Father-Child Relationships
Federal entitlement programs are decimating the lives of children and trampling on the rights of fathers to the care and companionship of their kids. We must dismantle the Federal-State entitlement nexus that deprives men of their civil liberties. Here is what every man in America should know.
by Jake Morphonios
(conservative libertarian)
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Congress would feign admit its own dubious contribution to the suffering of America's children. Rather, these politicians promulgate the myth that they are helping children through federal and state welfare entitlement programs. It is, in fact, these very programs which are responsible for the out of control rampage against children. Here is how the scam works.
The federal government levies taxes against citizens to redistribute as welfare entitlements among needy applicants. Congress created the Social Security Act, a section of which is called Title IV. Title IV describes how tax dollars will be distributed among the States to subsidize their individual welfare programs. In order for States to tap into the federal treasure chest, containing billions of dollars, they must demonstrate that they are complying with Title IV mandates to collect child support revenues. In other words, to get money from the federal government, each State must become a child support collection and reporting agency.
Every unwed or single mother seeking welfare assistance must disclose on her application the identities of the fathers of her children and how much child support the fathers have been ordered by a family court to pay. She must also commit to continuously reporting the father's payments so that the State can count the money as "collected" to the federal government's Office of Child Support Enforcement. As with all bureaucracies, this process has developed into a monstrosity that chews up and spits out the very people it was designed to help.
States have huge financial incentives to increase the amount of child support it can report to the federal government as "collected". To increase collection efforts, States engage in the immoral practice of dividing children from their fathers in family courts. Have you ever wondered why family courts award custody to mothers in 80%-90% of all custody cases, even when the father is determined to be just as suitable a parent? It is because the amount of child support ordered by the State is largely determined by how much time the child spends with each parent. This means that the State "collects" less child support if parents share equal custody. By prohibiting fathers from having equal custody and time with their children, the State's child support coffers are increased and federal dollars are received.
Opponents try to paint loving fathers as "deadbeat dads" for daring to challenge the mother-take-all system of family law. This is nothing more than diversionary propaganda. The concern of fathers is not that they are unwilling to support their children financially. This is not an argument against paying child support. Any father that cares about his child will do everything in his power to provide for the child. The concern is, rather, that children are being separated from their fathers by family courts because the State stands to reap huge financial rewards as a result of the father's loss of custody. The higher the order of child support, the more money the State can collect - even if the amount ordered by the court far exceeds the reasonable needs of the child or if the father is required to take second and third jobs to keep up with outrageous support orders and escape certain incarceration. The truth is that most fathers don't care about the financial aspects of these family court verdicts nearly as much as they care about having their time with their children eliminated for nefarious government purposes.
The root of this evil is a State-level addiction to federal tax dollars being doled out as entitlement monies by a monolithic federal government. In the wake of this horror are millions of children drowning for lack of the care, guidance, and companionship of their fathers. Statistics and empirical evidence universally confirm that children forcibly separated from their fathers by family courts are considerably more likely to suffer anxiety and depression, develop drug addiction, engage in risky sexual activity, break the law, and commit suicide. This travesty must end.
Unconstitutional federal bureaucracy creates many of the societal ills it claims to be trying to solve. There are several steps incremental steps that could be taken to restore a child's right to the companionship of both parents. For example, citizens should insist that States abide by the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. No father should be automatically deprived of his fundamental right to the custody of his children without due process of law. Being a male is not a crime. Absent a finding of true danger from a parent, family courts should order shared parenting rights and equal time sharing for divorcing parents. These rights are fundamental and should not be abridged. The automatic presumption of custody-to-the-mother is unconstitutional.
The history of America is brim with examples of the federal government denying basic rights to its citizens. Women were denied the right to vote until the women's suffrage movement secured the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. Black Americans also were denied the right to vote and suffered myriad other cruel and humiliating indignities under the law until the civil rights movement brought about desegregation, put an end to Jim Crow legislation and compelled the enactment of the 15th and 24th Amendments to the Constitution. In each of these examples, society was slow to recognize that a problem even existed or that some of our laws were unjust. It took considerable time, concerted effort, self-sacrifice and perhaps even divine providence to realign concurrent societal paradigms with the principles of liberty and justice for all.
Our generation is not exempt from similar assaults on liberty. While many just causes may stake claims for redress of grievances, one group, more than any other, pleads for immediate support. The need to defend the rights of this group of American citizens, reeling from the unjust consequences of state-sponsored oppression, is before us. It is time to stand up for the rights of children and demand their equal access to both parents.
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Jake Morphonios is a civil rights advocate and North Carolina State Coordinator for Fathers 4 Justice - US. The political opinions of Mr. Morphonios do not represent those of Fathers 4 Justice. Neither Mr. Morphonios nor F4J-US provide legal advice or assistance with individual cases.
Fathers seeking support or information, or other parties interested in becoming involved in the father's rights movement may contact Mr. Morphonios at: jake.morphonios@nc.f4j.us
PLEASE THUMB THIS ARTICLE to help spread the word to others about this imporant issue.
If you liked this article, you may also want to read:
The Nuclear Option: How Men's Constitutional Rights Are Obliterated in Family Courts
There is a very simple trick, used all too frequently in family courts, that will almost always ensure the immediate elimination of a man's constitutional rights. Read more to find out if it can happen to you.
©2008 Jake Morphonios, all rights reserved. You must have written permission from the author in order to republish this work.
Published: Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Last modified: Wednesday, October 15, 2008
The views expressed in this article are those of Jake Morphonios only and do not represent the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. Jake Morphonios is solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
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Reader Comments:
Posted By: creator
Date: 2008-02-13 13:22:16
Jake,
Thanks for this very clear and informative article. I learned a lot.
Have you joined the Nolan Chart Columnists Lounge yet? There is a link in your "author's control panel."
Posted By: hornshwangler
Date: 2008-02-13 13:53:15
Great article covering a very complex issue that most Americans are completely unaware. You do make a claim that I would like to clarify. You state, "It is because the amount of child support ordered by the State is largely determined by how much time the child spends with each parent." Yes, time allocated does impact the models used to calculate CS but, in many cases, imputed income is largest contributing factor to excessively high CS. In my case, the court granted me 50% time with my child but imputed my income $150k+, I had been involuntarily unemployed 4 months prior to final orders. The clear incentive is to make CS awards as high as possible but awarding time doesn't keep them from elevating CS to unreasonable levels. Again, great article and thanks. Dan
Posted By: Dave
Date: 2008-02-13 16:10:14
Excellent article, Jake. As a father who pays CS, I agree w/ every word you've written. The only thing I might add is to consider employment status when racking up back CS. In my case, I was in the Army when my ex and I broke up, and I had set up an allotment for an agreed upon amount for each pay period to be sent to them for support. Well, after I had ETS'ed out of the service I was out of work for a while and the back CS piled on. As a married couple, if a father provides for his family, even during hard times, he's not obligated to take additional jobs to make up for income lost...it's just lost. Not when you are a single dad, tho! Job lost? It doesn't matter...you still owe this much, every month, even if your kids are eating better than you are. When I went to court to finalize the divorce, not only was I hit w/ that, but the court decided that the amount that I had been paying w/ the allotments was not enough and hit me w/ and additional $6000.00 of instant back CS! In the single swing of the gavel, I was indebted by almost $10,000.00, and my drivers liscense was suspended instantly! Well, this forced me to become an outlaw. I had get to work (drive) to save up $2000.00 to pay a lump sum before I could re-instate my DL. If I got caught driving...well, that's just more money out the window. But somebody in the courts needs to understand that you can't impoverish one man to sustain a lifestyle for his children that is beyond his means of providing. If it were not for church groups and friends, I would have literally starved. My kids have lived w/ thier grandparents & mother the whole time and never even had to skip a snack. Not that I'd ever want them to want for anything, but where's the justice in that? If their mom and I were still married, we all would have had to just tighten the belts and make it through the rough times. Being divorced, they get to enjoy the same lifestyle while I become impoverished. Being a single dad is hard enough...why do they have to make it so much harder?
Posted By: Joel Johnston
Date: 2008-02-13 16:41:59
This is a very well written article that describes how the states are entitled to Title IV-d funding.
I would add that this funding goes directly to a single State agency which is their designated child support collection agency. This agency has responsibility for the funding of others in the state. This funding includes Court Commissioners who track the hours they spend on child support for reimbursement, family court prosecutors who are funded by child support agencies, sheriffs offices that have members of their staff totally funded for giving out CIVIL warrants.
Effectively, you have developed a police state - prosecutors, judges, police, all funded by a common agency to get the results they need to fund themselves. Communism at its best! Right here in the good ol' U S of A.
Check out this web page for copies of actual contracts received from Washington State as an example that these practices are real. http://washingtonsharedparenting.com/web/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=35&Itemid=46
Posted By: Joel Johnston
Date: 2008-02-13 16:51:30
Sorry, at the risk of being viewed as a spammer, which I'm not, I have to add this additional comment. Two comments I read in this article talk about CS payments being set too high.
THis is not a coincidence. David Spring of the University of Washington in Seattle has just completed a very detail analysis of the child support table models that the states use. He goes into these models, exposing the plus, the minus of each, and demonstrates how they are too high.
In Washington State, they are easily 17%-40% too high due to faulty data provided individuals hired by Washington State to help develop their tables. Recently, Dr. David Betson of Notre Dame has had to recant some of his statements made about competing methods from his own, and his own method has been proven to be full of issues that would only add to the high child support already being paid. The entire report can be downloaded here and should be read by anyone involved in Child Support Workgroups in their state, activists, etc. [link edited for length]
Posted By: Tannim
Date: 2008-02-13 20:31:20
Bah. This totally misses the core of the problem, which is not the problem of how the government deals with divorce, child support, and out-of-wedlock births, but the fact that those things exist to set up a so-called "need" for the government to intervene in the first place.
As a child in a divorced family, as a kid I saw firsthand what that does. I saw the family politics, I saw the court-issued support checks from my Dad in the mail that went who knows where, and only when I was an adult was I able to point out to my mother the BS of it all and make peace with my Dad into a loving relationship. That took 18 years.
The tenets of personal responsibility require that people not be having kids out of wedlock and that parents accept the responsibility for the children they have created. That responsibility is much more than financial--it is the actions of nuturing, loving, teaching, and guiding your children. My Dad was denied that by my mother and was driven away, and then she blamed him for it. How many other divorced families go through that selfish petty crap? Probably a huge majority.
Fix that problem and the government intervention becomes largely irrelevant and easier to fix. But until the root of the problem is dealt with, all the government reform in the world won't help.
Posted By: Dave Briggman
Date: 2008-02-14 06:43:42
This is a great article detailing the intrusion into family law by the imperial federal government.
Posted By: Joel Johnston
Date: 2008-02-14 11:24:03
Tannim brings up some great points here, but some points are missing that should change his view of things. Government intervention under Title IV-D requires the Government agencies "go after" parents that don't pay child support, but forbids them from doing anything when parenting time is denied. You can check with any local prosecutors office, they file 100's of contempt orders for non-payment of child support each week, but NEVER file one for denial of time on a parenting plan.
Federal Studies have shown that the longer a child is kept from a parent, the harder it is to collect child support - they become disenfranchised.
Seems the government knows that if parenting time is provided child support is paid more regularly, yet their own rules and regulations forbid this from happening. why? Makes no sense. It's impossible to have loving and nurturing relationship with ones children when the very government agencies that are supposed to protect that are given financial incentives to ensure it doesn't happen.
Title IV-D block grants are a menace to the American Family
Posted By: Sherman
Date: 2008-03-04 23:58:21
This is so correct but another horror father's face is welfare that deceptive mother's enroll in. Myself a continuing up-to-date child supporter has now been charged with close to $14,000 back arrearages somehow calculated by welfare....even though I've followed everything in my court order....welfare doesn't wait for fair representation they just deduct from your paycheck without your consent. Of course, its overlooked where I had notified the ex's attorney of my job change but that doesn't get them very far or much money then. So now, I have to borrow lots of money, retain an attorney, while my paychecks give me $0.00 dollars on them and fight for the truth to prevail in court against an ex who hasn't let me see my kids for almost two years now (even though I'm entitled by the courts). Even with this welfare garbage, she still hasn't revealed the wereabouts of the kids but I can't wait til court....where she will be forced to do so.
Posted By: jerry wood
Date: 2008-04-16 20:17:27
Very informative, no wonder almost 90% of custody cases are decided against dads
http://shekidnappedmychildren.wordpress.com/
Posted By: Shani
Date: 2008-04-17 09:49:53
Excellent article !!
We need to shake up all Fathers across the Globe and wake them up in order to protect our future generations becoming slaves to extreme feminist and government sponsored legal terrorism.
Posted By: Rene\' S.
Date: 2008-09-07 15:19:12
I was denied custody of my 5-yr-old son by the court because: 1) I bought him too many toys and was viewed as bribery because the mom said so. The toys are model railroad electric trains, a hobby my son and I enjoy. To supportthe hobby, we go to model railroad museums and train stations; 2) I am delusional and have paranoia as since I mentioned to the court-appointed custody evaluator about Title IV-D and the Fed Incentive Program. NOW WHAT? ARE WE JUST GOING TO WHINE? I am now looking for legal help in filing a 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 - 1986. Any help or direction is greatly appreciated. I live in San Diego and the case is in Orange County, California.
Posted By: DustoneGT
Date: 2008-12-10 02:08:56
Vote w/ your feet. Move to another country and claim political asylum. See how far they get collecting their payment.
Posted By: Paul Raeburn
Date: 2009-01-22 14:13:59
Jake,
I thought your readers might be interested in the child-support situation in Massachusetts, where new child support guidelines are likely to boost what fathers or other non-custodial parents must pay:
http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/about-fathers/200901/child-support-how-much-is-too-much
Posted By: Gwen Caldwell
Date: 2009-01-24 08:39:27
Our children are being harvested from loving parents as a cash crop. I shuddered when I heard Tom Daschle was appointed to the head of Health and Human Services Department. He is not a family friendly guy, which is why we campaigned against him and were able to get him out of office is SD. www.freewebs.com/voiceofwomen
Posted By: AH Dowden
Date: 2009-01-28 10:35:17
Where no problem exists, a devious government will create one in order that they might "fix" it. Good piece Jake.
Posted By: joncatch
Date: 2009-02-23 20:49:48
I whole heartedly agree, it is time to take a stand against this. I for one have changed my life and fully intend on seeing equal custody and constitutional rights upheld. I do not see why we have to even recognize the validity of a court that so obviously violates our 14th amendment right of due process. I for one will not stop, even if it kills me to take down this government of corruption, my duty to my children is to protect them, if I cannot even do that from the government then where does this leave us? I am sick and tired of children being treated as cattle to states that want to leech off the imperialist federal government. I have also been in a custody dispute for the better part of 3 years. Funny thing is I've since finished my bachelor degree in psychology and plan on going to law school next. I will do whatever is necessary to change the laws in Illinois. Even if it means I have to become an elected legislator to change it.
Posted By: bgilbert
Date: 2009-03-10 10:33:58
this is a good site! i make 20 dollers a day, after childsupport gets done,the kids donot get the money,mom spends it on her self, i have payed 1500.00 in childsupport and the kids didnot get it, the state got it, and the kids got not a thing, money in there pockets first, then the mon, then the kids, nobody cares billions of dollers, put in the states pockets, and caseworkers pockets, so they can have nice new cars, homes, ect, i have lived in a tent in a woods, no car, walk to work, ride a bike 10 miles for min wage, bring home pay is 100.00 aweek, and i tryed to get food stamps, but they say i make to munch money??? the govrment is out to make money, and is out to keep there job(good paying jobs)
Posted By: brian D
Date: 2009-08-23 23:08:59
I was awarded custody of my now 13 yo daughter, after her mother and then stepdad had her and two sisters removed by CPS. took 1.5 years to finaly get out of dependency, and mother signed custody to me. I moved from WA to CA, mother came to live about 4 months after, and stayed til April of 09. May there was a complaint of poss. abuse to CPS who ruled it unfounded. in August, mother refused to return daughter and made allegations of abuse. I am currently scheduled to speak with detective sept 16 to adress these false accusations.Unfortunatly, my daughter has been backing her mother, as has her two sisters. They have been "paid off" with trips to water parks, a new kitten, etc.What can I do? my daughter was kept from me for over 10 years until CPS took them out of home and contacted me. every day shes there with mother, mothers parents, they are being 'brainwashed," mentally abused, living in a 2 bedroom condo.. sleeping in living room, etc..Brian760 617-5885
Posted By: joyce owens
Date: 2009-08-25 15:08:41
I have been searching and reading just about everything I could find on the internet for months about the systematic injustice to single dads. Beyond a doubt \"The Federal Scheme to Destroy Father-Child Relationship\" is the most thought provoking and straight forward explanation I have read regarding the blatant discrmination single fathers are suffering in our family court system. As a mother who witnessed the spiritual castration of her son\'s masculinity while fighting for shared custody of his son in family court, I thank you for your insightful and most truthful blog. While I may not live long enough to see it, I have to believe that the day will come when the corruption and fraud that finances the family court operation in this country depriving and causing loving fathers to be seperated from their children will end. The child\'s mom moved to NC with my granson when he was 4 years old. He is now 8 and his mom has deprived my son and our family from participating in is life every since he was born. My son who is responsible for child support and has stepped up on numerous occassions to make sure his son recieves gifts, not only on holidays and birthdays, but non-occassions as well in addition to sneakers etc., etc. is tired and depressed. Of course all of the extras are in addition to the court ordered child support he would pay willingly without court interference. In essence he seems to have given up. Her only concern seems to be money and what she can get and now she has programmed his 8 year old son to follow in her footsteps. I will make sure my son reads your blog that I 'm sure will be encouraging to him with the hopes that he will summon the courage to continue his fight inspite of the challenges and the odds that are certainly against him and other single dads who continue to be deprived of relationships with their children.
Posted By: Kim Roberts
Date: 2009-09-07 08:21:55
This article and others you wrote really shed some light on things. My husband has been the victim of parental alientation for eight years. It started when his son was seven as this is when he began dating me. My husband's relationship with his son was perfect unitl then. HIs ex-wife is a bully who wanted him back. She allegated sexual abuse not against the father but against my son which of course was unfounded. She has used this unfounded report to continue to perpetuate her emotional abuse and alienation with the help of her family who blindly supports her every move. I have tried to find a way to band people together and it is difficult. We are going for full custody in our case but haven't gotten visits for three months as she and the child's grandfather have just refused and it takes the courts a ridiculous amount of time to do anything. We have even been told that because the child is now fifteen the courts may do nothing at all. The mother falsley changed the child's last name to hers for two years at the Catholic School she teaches at and her mother was the secretary at, her father the Athletic director and a sister and and sister in law taught at. My husband was refused any school notices/conferences/school pictures etc. At fourteen she changed his name legally and in the state of Iowa the dad does not even need to be notified? Any thoughts or advice for our upcoming battle are welcome and any thoughts on how to band people together would be welcome also. I have been working with Glenn Sacks of the Non Profit Fathers and Familie and he has been helpful as well. Thanks; Kim Roberts
Posted By: Debra Cake
Date: 2009-10-09 22:51:42
I agree with Jake, Men and there children are victims to these selfless insecure mothers. These children should carry there fathers last name regardless to what these mothers say or think. These mother don't teach there children to have respect for there fathers, there teaching their children that fathers are no more than cash cows or a new video game providers. It won't be right until men share EQUAL RIGHTS! I'm a woman against these women. I have 2 older boys, I raise solely! They have there fathers last name and there father was absent most of there lives, but They grew up having respect for him, it made them better men. I never once talked bad about there father for not being there and I didn't drag him to court every week, in fact I didn't take him to court once. My children grew up seeing a strong mother that got her ass up and worked and was strong in mind and in heart, I taught my children to forgive their father for not being there. I taught them to see that sometimes people have deep problems that start from childhood. My ex was extremely abused as a child in every way. It was an act of love on my ex's part to stay away, knowing he didn't want to repeat the abuse. He's in there life now, and they love him as if he was always there, Because they where taught to love regardless to how much money he has. Most fathers are great! My father, when I was a child, was rage a holic. I was terrified when he came home. If my mother had kept him from me, I would have never got to know the real man that he is! I learned about addiction and learn to see past the addict. He is no longer a rage a holic! It was having his 5 children in his life that changed him. I am so glad my mother stayed with him and I'm glad she made us have respect for him even though he wasn't the perfect father figure. He is perfect to me and my other brothers and sisters. These mother are by far perfect in fact most of them need to get jobs and see how hard it is to get a good job and keep one. These mothers are never judged, but are so busy judging there Ex's or Ex's husbands. Men should not pay money to be in there children's life. That means these mother should let their husbands take their children instead of putting them in daycare, and then making the fathers pay the daycare. If you need money for the kids than ask him, don't drag him into court. If these mother would let the father take there kids, these mothers wouldn't need that much money. If the fathers are out of work, get your asses out there and give the kids to him until he finds a job. WORK TOGETHER. Do what you would do if you where married. The thing I see the most, that just pisses me off so bad, it's when these women and young girls are getting pregnant on purpose to trap these men they can't control or keep, then they use the child as a weapon or a means to make him say around, ARE THESE WOMEN STUPID OR WHAT!!!! It just makes the father run the other way and it makes them hate the mothers for life. This is dangerous. I can't humanly imagine the pain and hell these fathers go through, This is why they walk away, because they feel they will never be able to love their child freely, it's less painful to walk away from their child they don't know. They walk away because they can't handle the pain of loving there child and than never seeing them again. I would die! These women cause this to happen. We need to stop these women from allowing them to use there child as a tool to keeping a man. If laws for men are changed, giving them EQUAL right from the start of conception. Giving them the right to choice! If a women wants to abort her child and he wants to keep it. Make her deliver and give to him, but with a time frame with in 2 years for her to change her mind about her child. Children should have 2 parents in there life. That's the way it was meant to be! Well I can go on forever. Please keep fighting until this changes.
Posted By: RIck
Date: 2009-11-07 06:33:22
Statistics and empirical evidence universally confirm that children forcibly separated from their fathers by family courts are considerably more likely to suffer anxiety and depression, develop drug addiction, engage in risky sexual activity, break the law, and commit suicide. This travesty must end.
This also is just another incentive for the system to continue its damage. Those children who are warped by this system are boys who will eventually run afoul of the law (therefore ending up in Juvenile Halls and the State legal system, creating thousands of jobs for state workers, attorneys, and judges) and the girls will grow up with the attitude that it's OK to take everything you can from a man (therefore continuing the divorce court industry which employs thousands of state workers, attorneys, and judges). As you can see, it's a win situation all the way around for the divorce and law enforcement industries which work hand in hand. We no longer have the ability to compete in the world market in any area of production or creativity, the only thing we can do anymore is wage war and drop bombs, on other countries or our own people.
Posted By: Antonius Banks
Date: 2009-11-20 07:05:13
I am glad to find a forum i thought i was out here by my self,as I am writing this tears roll from my face because now i have someone to talk to who understands.
the sate practices are not right why? does one part of support grows in intrest as you try to pay the other part which means you can go in a circle for a long time if you have arrears and you cant even pay on any money your chrildren got from the state until you pay on all back pay of the regular payment mean while the money that's do to the state continues to grow a lot of intrest so if and when you do pay off back pay nowwwwwww you are facing paying the state their money which has now inflated way beyond your ability to catch up. now you need three jobs very little time with the children very little money for your self which can lead to depression.
why do they have to make intrest on the money as if they have made an investment in a bank or something.
wow this is not right what can we do or are we forced to make money by any means possible.