Massachusetts Attempts Illegal Support Measures

The right of a child, including support,  is now determined by kangaroo court.

New guidelines proposed to take effect this year in Massachusetts have been momentarily delayed, at least until the hearing to be held this morning. These new rules “were not formulated using the actual costs of raising a child, as required by federal law, and are thus arbitrary and capricious,” says attorney Gregory Hession representing family rights organization Fathers & Families.

The pleadings before the court assert that the process used to put together the new guidelines violates due process and equal protection rights of the payers of child support, as protected under the United States Constitution, a similar problem of Federal Bradley legislation enacted in the early 1990’s. To compound matters, the state of Massachusetts bypassed the normal legislative process by having a secret committee prepare the new child support rules and a single judge declare them to be law, in violation of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights.

According to finding by Fathers & Families, the new guidelines will cause almost all child support orders to increase substantially — when all factors are considered, middle-class recipients will enjoy a standard of living almost double that of payers who earn about the same amount. In some cases, child support orders will triple, even in cases in which the payer is poor and the child is economically comfortable because the custodial parent earns over $100,000. And in high income cases, the child support order for one child could be nearly $50,000.

The case being argued is that it hurts children, which seems to be the main concern of many and rightly so. Beyond that, however, the issues of illegal procedure seem to be almost secondary, yet are of the greatest importance. If Americans cannot expect legislators to abide by Federal Constitutional or even the established laws and rights of their own state citizenry, what can Americans expect, but more wholesale rape as any excuse for any cause, no matter how noble or just to the beholder or a body of thought.

If you aren’t paying attention, you should be. Massachusetts is known to be the testing ground for all kinds of errant child support law over the last twenty years, starting with implementing Federal Bradley Law itself on a trial basis fifteen years ago. Divorced parents across the nation continue to be in legislative crosshairs as the powers that be design new ways to implement their personal designs and agendas to alter the American social landscape. So far, legality has not proved to be an effective issue in the big picture. The new President is not expected to stand up against such designs based on his past statements. Obviously, the nation needs more socially conscious Americans to stand up for right beyond the rights of a child. The right of a child is not above the Constitution or previously established rights of American citizens. The right of a child is certainly not privy to secret meetings or kangaroo courts. ~ E. Manning

Fox zeroes in on 'Bad Dads'

Fox Network zeroes in on ‘Bad Dads’

Check out the dangerous and subversive mentality of this show…

After embracing the dark side of reality television with its marriage-busting hit “The Moment of Truth,” Fox’s newest project taps the power of its unscripted division for the forces of good.

The network has ordered a pilot from 3Ball Productions, in which an avenger of penniless single mothers hunts down deadbeat dads and forces them to pay child support.

Jim Durham, director of the National Child Support Center, functions as a sort of “Dog the Bounty Hunter” for tracking deadbeats. In the pilot, a financially destitute mom is contrasted with her wealthy ex-husband, who is living the high life. Durham confronts the man at his country club to shake him down in front his friends. It’s ambush reality TV — but for a noble cause.

“(Durham) calls them on the phone and gives them the chance to do the right thing,” said executive producer JD Roth (“The Biggest Loser,” “Beauty and the Geek”). “Of course, those calls are never met with anything but yelling. Then he goes into their life, finds out what kind of assets they have and makes their lives miserable — foreclose on their house, repossess their car. He will squeeze them until the women get paid.”

Roth sold the idea to Fox with the title “Deadbeat Dads.” But Fox president of alternative entertainment Mike Darnell famously concocts his own catchy titles for his shows. (“Nothing but the Truth” became “The Moment of Truth,” and “Do You Remember 5th Grade?” morphed into “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?”) Darnell has rechristened “Deadbeat Dads” with the very-Fox working title “Bad Dads.”

Sluggish government agencies often fail to persuade financially liable fathers to pay child support. As of 2006, the nation’s cumulative uncollected child support stood at about $105 billion, according to U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. Last year’s federal budget cuts could make the problem even worse, potentially adding about $11 billion in uncollected child support over the next 10 years.

Durham’s National Child Support Center is one of several collection agencies that serve as a last resort for neglected single mothers. Some critics say such companies do more harm than good. Child support collectors have been accused of charging steep fees and using ultra-aggressive tactics. Durham bills his clients 34% of whatever he collects.

Roth counters that Durham’s clients typically feel so abandoned by the court system that they’re relieved to get any money at all. Plus, he said Durham is the only collector who extracts interest owed on the outstanding debt, so his clients often receive more money than if the absent dads had simply paid their bills.

As for the aggressive tactics, child support is not considered a debt per se, but an order of the court. Collectors are therefore not subject to following the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which regulates what tactics a collection agency can employ to collect a debt.

“I’m hoping that eventually this show changes how courts see deadbeat dads and how moms have to deal with it,” Roth said.

If greenlighted to series, “Bad Dads” will provide Fox a fresh take on the law enforcement reality show, a genre the network pioneered with such Saturday night staples as “Cops” and “America’s Most Wanted.”

“I’ve seen ‘Cops,’ and I want to watch more than a crack addict with his pants around his ankles running away from a police car,” Roth said. “These guys owe money, and they should pay.”

TO PROTEST THIS PILOT SHOW CONTACT GLENN SACKS WEBSITE.

Protest Fox’s New Reality Show ‘Bad Dads’ !

FROM GLEN SACKS

PLEASE SEND A PROTEST EMAIL BY CLICKING HERE

Fox recently announced its intention to launch a new reality show called Bad Dads. According to Reuters, in Bad Dads Jim Durham, director of the National Child Support Center, “functions as a sort of ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ for tracking deadbeats…[Durham’s role is as] an avenger of penniless single mothers [who] hunts down deadbeat dads and forces them to pay child support…

“In the pilot, a financially destitute mom is contrasted with her wealthy ex-husband, who is living the high life. Durham confronts the man at his country club to shake him down in front his friends. It’s ambush reality TV.”

According to Reuters, Durham will target fathers who are behind on their child support by “making their lives miserable — foreclosing on their house, repossessing their car. He will squeeze them…”

This news was brought to our attention by our friend at Killing Marriage for Votes.