Sunday, July 13, 2014

THIS MACHINE KILLS FASCISTS: JESUS CHRIST IS ENOUGH FOR ME--THE PERFECT LAW OF LIBERTY; TWO TEAMS, ONE TROPHY . . . LIFE TAKES COURAGE. AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE, TAKES UNCOMMON COURAGE! JESUS IS THE WORD, AND THE WORD IS SHARPER THAN A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD! EVERY WORD HE SAID, WAS A FIGHTING WORD, WITH THE SANHEDRIN, MADE UP OF PHARISEES AND SADDUSEES, ANY REVOLUTIONARY THOUGHT, BRINGS ON A FIGHT WITH THE LEARNED MEN OF THE LAW! JUST SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT JESUS, KIDS, PARENTS, AND THE STATE LAWS ON DISCIPLINE, ABUSE, WORKING WITH DCFS OR CPS, COMPLAINTS--COMMENTS FROM MY EXPERIENCES RAISING 4 STELLAR CHILDREN, IN THE LAW, TEACHING FAMILY LAW, AND FROM THE BIBLE!

Deliverance of a Different Kind

Back in the days, before Christ's birth, when the children of Israel were under Roman Law, and rule, under constant taxation, threat of imprisonment and fear of death, the people were looking for a savior, that was promised by their prophets and wise men, would come.  So, when Jesus came, not as a military leader, but one teaching the principles, of love, charity, kindness, mercy, turning the other cheek, walking the extra mile, and the inheritance of the earth belonging to the meek, the pure in heart, and the repentance, the people or many of them, rejected his message, missing the missing the more victorious triumph and deliverance, a superior kind, that would transcend death, hell and eternal damnation.

Roman soldiers walked the streets of Jerusalem, Copernicus, Nazareth, and other cities Jesus frequented; however, Jesus had little conflict with the Romans, for he rendered unto Ceasar, what was Ceasar's, and gave to God, what was God's, even Pontius Pilot, found no wrong in this man, the Jews called to be crucified, but did, have many differences with the Sanhedrin, or the learned men of the law or the Jewish high councils, his thoughts were foreign and strange to this group of Jewish scholars, and they didn't like this blasphemous, man claiming to be the literal Son of God!  Children, the sick, the lame, the prostitute, the sinners were his crowd, humble fisherman, tax collectors, with an occasional physician, were among his friends and disciples.  Much as in the world today, that particular group of individuals, are not looked up to, admired, or even given the time of day.

In a world, where many of the countries of the world are oppressed, beaten down, murdered, and enslaved, imprisoned, sold by fascists regimes, much like the Romans of old, who ruled with an iron fist, using whips, chains, inflicted pain, desolation and despair, among their lower classes, or not those in the ruling class.  And just like, in the days of old, Jesus, offers much more than just food and drink, but he is the living bread and water of life, literally, who the son sets free, who the son sets free, is free indeed!  His law is the perfect law of liberty, making his believers, children of God, but joint heirs with him, to have all that our Father which are in heaven has to offer . . . simply for taking up his cross, and following him!

Nothing Will Separate Us, From the Love of God--Accept Our Own Beliefs

Just recently, the pastor of Fresh Life Church, Kalispell, Montana, traveled to England and Budapest, where 33 people accepted Christ and turned their lives over to him.  It is interesting, during that same time period, there was a pastor from the Church of England, or the Anglican Church, who visited Whitefish, if I remember, and was planting the seeds for a church here . . . competition?  I don't know, I believe in no establishment of religion, the freedom to practice if you want, and a huge separation between church and state, the constitutional approach.  So to me, each man, woman and child, is ultimately responsible for their own lives, relationship with God, or even to not have a relationship with God, that is a personal choice and studies have shown that people who attend church, are happier, overall, but again, I don't believe in forcing people to be happy.

But there was one thing that concerned me, and I guess you would say this goes to options, understandings and opportunities to worship as you please.  As this world gets more and more connected, and with many teachings in common, with the great religious teachers of the earth, I do however, worry about those who do not know Jesus Christ, are not given an opportunity, or the teachings, that might be of use to them in not only their personal lives, but in their feelings and beliefs in the afterlife . . . and this comes from my experience with a former wife, Japanese, of 24 years, married to my favorite cousin, who just recently went through a divorce after a long and relatively happy marriage, with one draw back, their beliefs and understandings of Christ, she was Buddhist, with many of the solid human relationship rules and dictates, but when the sunami hit Japan, several years ago, she was devastated, wanted my cousin to sell everything they owned in America and move to Japan, to be by her aged mother.

Basically, she freaked out, because, she didn't believe in an afterlife, nor that the people who lost loved ones, would ever see them again, that created much anxiety, fear, crying, devastation in her life, and ultimately in his.  My cousin, served a Mormon mission in Japan, and spent at least 17 years of his 24 year marriage over in Japan, mainly, then wanted to move back to the states, as his own parents aged.  I was sad, not only to see a long term marriage break up, but to know over the years, Edwards, passion for Jesus Christ, in his life, not only from his Mormon upbringing, but from his exposure to the Urantia Book, with about 2,000 pages on the life of Christ.  He always longed to be able to speak about religious concepts, principles, and thoughts, and that was the one element missing in his relationship, and perhaps, many.

Pastor Levi in Budapest

Last week, at Church, Pastor Levi, spoke to us, from Budapest.  He went into a little of the background on the name of the city . . . that it actually used to be two cities, Buda and Pest, and eventually, the two cities merged into one, and took on the word, or name, Budapest.  As he spoke of the words, making up the various parts of the current name, my mind wondered, to the thought, Buddha is a Pest . . . don't get offended, because I don't mean it the way, I am sure it sounds, but, the teachings of Buddha, like Christ is often referred to, is considered a great teacher, leader, and religious thought leader, but as far as I know, neither, Buddha, nor Mohammad, ever claimed to be, the Son of God, the Savior of the World!  

The devil is in the details, in and of the fact, that with no concurrent teachings of Christianity, or of the saving mission of Jesus Christ, making us conquerors over death, leaving us without a belief in the afterlife, I personally, believe that Buddha was doing a disservice to his people.  I don't know the coronological order of the prophets, in regard to Christ; however, I do know, that what you don't know, could hurt you, as it did my cousin's wife.  I do believe that she could have been comforted, by the fact that she would indeed, not only see her mother, but the 250,000 people who lost their lives, in the Sunami, would surely live again, and see their loved ones again.  In that I find great comfort, no fear of death, nor dread, that someone I love will be forever gone.

The Dream, The Big Bad Wolf, My Brother, Angels & The Afterlife

That is just too damned final for me.  I had a brother die when he was 48 years old, leaving 10 children and a wife.  Just the other night, I had a dream, that Richard, who had been dead for 10 years, appeared out of now where, and when a wolf, approached me in a city setting, he backed me behind him, and having a newspaper in his hand, rolled up, extended his arm, with the newspaper in his hand, toward the wolf, who approached me, never snarled, growled, but did come closer, but was kept at arm's length, by my dead brother.  In the dream, I said, thank you . . . most people don't find me too sympathetic of a person, and think I am more than able to fend for myself; however, Richard, said to me . . . that is my job!

I have never thought much of angels, or guardian angels, I know people talk of them, but, for one of the rare occasions in my life, I truly felt protected.  I am not a crier either, in fact, I never shed a tear at his funeral, never really believed he was dead, in fact, given what I am going through now, thought he probably didn't die, but it was a government charade, and they figured he was such a great husband and father, that he was entitled, under Mormon Law, to take another wife, and breed 10 more kids with a younger wife!  So, this dream, really took me by surprise, but also, let me get a glimpse into a possible afterlife, and what we might be doing there . . . Richard, was protecting his sister, much like he had done in life!  I love you, Rich.

Some claim, to have experienced, near death, or afterlife experiences, and have come back to life, to live to tell of what they see.  I have no reason to doubt their tales or experiences, but believe that, as they say, death is just like walking from one room into another, that simple.  Some have said that they walk through a tunnel, into a blinding light, with Christ waiting with open arms . . . that's sounds much better than Satan, sticking his pitch fork in my butt!  It has been said, that there are no atheists in fox holes and prisons, and many do find, salvation there, in fact, I had the whole Christian Brotherhood, in the Draper Prison, in Utah writing me . . . sad to say, I was too busy to write them back.

Jesus Said, Suffer the Little Children to Come Unto Me

He also said, that if anyone harms one of these little ones, it would be better for them to have a millstone, tied around their necks, and drowned in the depths of the sea!  Christ is our leader to take us into a New Beautiful World, away from the wages of sin, but also, from the natural man, woman and child, showing us a better way to live, relate to people, conduct ourselves in government, as bosses, worker, mothers and fathers, and much, much more.  But, a situation came up yesterday, that was not only a concern for me, in Utah, as children were taken from their parents, my daughter-in-law, included, without merit, after even winning a lawsuit, with many similar stories throughout the state, but with many here in Montana too.

Don't even ask me how, I got into the conversation about a McDonald worker, having her child taken from her and her husband, by Child Protective Services.  This woman, gave me a skeleton sketch of her case, and I told her I would write about it.  She came to me today, and told me she had been crying all day, and needed to give me a few more details about her son, and what happened to her.  First of all, she cannot have her own child, and she and her husband adopted a that was older, I have listed age 6, in my notes.  The child had PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, from being abused in a previous home, I am not sure if that is a foster home, or his original family home.  

But, Samantha, who told me I could use her name, said, one night, around Memorial Day, 2013, after having the child for a year, her husband lost his temper and used a belt to spank the child, allegedly abusing the child, the neighbor heard, and called CPS, and the boy was removed from the home.  Now, the mother, never abused the child, and is now facing termination of parental rights, due to failure to protect.  I asked Samantha, if she herself had been abused, she said yes, but she had done nothing, and was loosing her child.  In my not so humble opinion, and from experience, I find, that child protective services in both Utah and Montana, not the first story I have heard, in fact, many, are too slow to remove the really abused children, and take ones that are marginally abused.

I Would Have Been More Traumatized By Removal, Than the Abuse

When I was practicing law, dealing with abused women, children, and the elderly, from the legal perspective, and also teaching family law, my mother told me one day, and I was in my 40's, that I had been abused as a child, although, I didn't remember it, which explains a great deal of my aversion to authority, any type of power and control, and my passion to defend the powerless, and the oppressed!  My father was not an abuser, but he did, one time, spank me, over and over again, to get my mother's point across, until the next morning I was black and blue from my shoulders to my knees!  Today, prison time, removal, and possibly jeopardizing a family of 8!  

I refused to cry, and stood up and said, I just brush it off!  Abuse or a willful child, with a mother who wanted me punished, and a father, not mad, but trying to get the point across, and I probably didn't even remember what I did wrong . . . but I will say, the abuse, I suffered has benefited many.  Before I knew of the spanking, that crossed the line, people, would ask me after a presentation, on domestic violence, if I was a victim, I would laugh, and say, no, I am more likely to be the abuser, than the abused, but a state and nation . . . the situation, while not advised, might lead to a profession, in the field, and may just have been the right course for a life, sometimes our weaknesses, or that of our parents, becomes our strength.  

As I talked to Samantha, I thought of the total devastation, that removal might have been, how different my life may have been, with an overzealous child protective service . . . that, rather than, do what state law, at least in Utah suggests, that only in the cases of serious bodily injury, sexual assault, or a threat to life and limb, or failure to seek medical attention, all other forms of abuse, should be handled by keeping the child with the family, and providing services to aid and help the family, stay in tact, if possible.  The standard, is generally, what is in the best interest of the child!

There is a new development in family law, child reunification, to be exact, that they are finding, the bonding, between a parent and child, even in the situation of drugs, alcohol, and even abuse, is so strong, that most kids, if given a choice, would prefer their natural parent, any time over an foster, or adoptive parent situation. And in more progressive legal states and jurisdictions, judges are actually returning children to parents, who had previously, lost their parental rights.  New studies list a whole list of considerations.  But, I think the true problem is the fact that DCFS or CPS, is failing to follow, the plain and simple language, intent and history, behind the laws and standards of legislative recommendations, to do all in its power to keep the family together, through support and services, and they are just going in a taking the child away, making money through adopting them out, or putting them in foster homes!

Courts are just as guilty, for destroying families, rather than following mandates to use the least intrusive means, in handling sensitive family issues!  The balance of power between the branches of government: (1) the legislative branch, makes the laws, and usually with committee meetings, testimony, and hearing the stories that make them pass a particular law, from parents and state workers alike; (2) the executive branch, enforces the laws, that is the preview, that DCFS and CPS would fall under, they don't make new laws and standards, nor be more invasive in families than the law makers say they can; and (3) the judicial branch, interprets the law, they don't just follow, assistant attorney generals, who are bulldozing parents, and taking away children . . . Utah had a 26,000 case, backlog, on termination of parental rights, I was shocked they could even do that!  I had volunteered to help with the backlog, not knowing what it was, but when I heard, I got up and left the room.

God is a Better Child Placement Agent than the STATE!

This to does not mean, I don't think there are good adoptive parents, and, like in Samantha's case, she loves her son, is doing all CPS is making her do, which I think is very burdensome, but she has to attend, domestic survivor's group, counseling every week, weekly visitation, and psych evaluations.  I have had clients, that are being more damaged, by having to leave their children to attend court ordered classes, than the damage of the abuse, and the kids have generally forgotten, or never thought of it again, like I did, and are on with life.  Too many times, they, remove the bread winner, and put an even worse burden on the parent who never did abuse or hurt the child, and I know of cases, where the father was ordered to leave the home, as a condition for the mother to keep her children . . . no abuse, just a slap on the head, of an unruly child, state laws allow, parents, to use corporal punishment to discipline a child, especially one who is out of control, in a public place, doing it because the child knows it embarrasses the parent at their work. 

And, we wonder why kids are brats today, the Bible recommends or warns, spare the rod and spoil the child!  I only had to spank my daughters once, the boys never.  But is was always an option, if they got out of control, for no good reason, like a late night at Lagoon, overly tired and worn out, is expected, but just manipulating and throwing tantrums, hell no!  I used time out with my kids, and that seemed to work, most of the time; however, I was not opposed to stiffening the punishment, if they needed it.  I hate bad behaving kids . . . I was always, firm, but fair . . . that seemed to work!

When Does A Parent Cross the Line From Corporal Punishment, to Abuse?

Every year, in my family law classes, as we covered this subject, and got opinions, we had great discussions, stories, the good, the bad and the ugly.  I personally, just pushed my daughter, into her room, once in anger, and felt, that I had crossed the line, without hurting her, or even coming close to abuse, I had acted out of an emotion, rather than being the good parent, who acts out of discipline, for the best interest of the child, training, and teaching the child.  One of the best pieces of advice I ever got, as a parent, was to deal with your children, as if you were their counselor, not their parent, unemotionally removed, and make the best judgement call, and punishment, using natural consequences for choices and behaviors.

Parents, don't get an instruction manual, with each child, to tell them what means of discipline works, and what doesn't, we are all human, have pressures and demands, that may actually, make us a bit out of control at the time . . . but, I knew in my heart, that this was not the way to deal with my child, and that was the last time I ever just reacted out of natural instincts, to strike out.  I became the unemotional and removed counselor.  Too many times, parents, discipline, based on how the child's behavior reflected on them as a parent . . . not too cool, what would the neighbors think, is not a great standard for discipline!

Failure to Protect Children from an Abusive Spouse Laws, I Never Liked!

The problem with these type of laws, is, it makes the actions of one parent, responsible for the actions of the other.  I have a firm sense of justice, and this is not just to me.  I believe in boundaries, jurisdiction if you will, your rights and your responsibilities are restricted to your nose, and your person.  Again, this has to be used with prudence and thought . . . if you can protect a child, we are, as parents responsible for our children, but two abused people is not cool either.  I don't know the kid, but it seems that a mother, who booted her husband out of the house on her own, is complying with all the requirements, of reunification, and may have done all she could, should not be held responsible for the abusers, or alleged abusers, conduct and the consequences of his actions, when his actions are not within her control!

I don't know, the facts, the child's behavior, or how fast the father may have used the belt on him, but, I just don't believe, that Samantha, should lose her rights as a parent, because he was an ass!  The child does have past trauma, and Samantha, was understanding PTSD, and protecting him from his dad, she said, that she would work with his counselor, and work with his school, no matter how many times her son needed to go, but they still said, she could not protect the child . . . hell, the mother was not even home at the time the father, took a belt to the child!  Now, if the courts, CPS and case workers, who lied, and were fired, can tell me, how in the world, the mother, could have protected the child, when she didn't even know that it happened, until she got home, is beyond, my wildest imagination?

To Me, This Case is Nothing But A Tragedy--Just Do What They Say!

I know that the state has a special role in protecting children, but, in this case, it seems, that they are taking a child, out of another home, one where the mother is doing all the courts told her to do, and she was not even home, and now, she is paying for her husband's crimes, under what legal theory is this systemic abuse being perpetrated against the mother!  And inadvertently against the child?  There is no magical formula for raising, rearing and bringing up a great kid.  Abused kids turn out fine, spoiled kids turn out shitty . . . but I do, know, that the natural parent/child bond is strong, and many kids, even love their abusers, and many survive! And many kids are given everything, never spanked, and end up protected by their parents in the schools, on the streets, and in the courts, and that is not in their best interest.

I know many exceptional people, myself included, who were spanked with belts, spoons, paddles, hands, and in my day, nobody thought anything about it, the neighbors and teachers spanked kids, my 6th grade teacher, Mr. Hallows, used to hit his students, with a ruler or yard stick, some hard enough to bring tears, even chased me into the girl's restroom, where I thought I would be safe, NOT! and the we learned our lesson and we obeyed, helicopter parents, drive me fucking insane!  He was my favorite teacher, and he followed my junior high and high school years, calling me and congratulating me, when I won an elected office, or became a cheerleader, he was my cheerleader!

I don't condone abuse, but I do encourage discipline . . . children, need to learn limits, boundaries, the law, to respect other people's property, to not infringe on the persons and property of others.  My father, who raised, 8 pretty respectable children, firmly believed that before the age of eight, they were spanked, and after the age of eight, they were talked to, reasoned with, and instructed, and that worked pretty well!

The Scriptures are Replete with Parental Advise--a Soft Answer Turneth Away Wrath!  I Think the Bible is the Best Child Psychology Book in the World!  Top Ten Best Seller, Since The New York Best Seller List Started!

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