Children’s Plea

Written By: - Date published: 10:11 am, November 21st, 2014 - 24 comments
Categories: child welfare, families - Tags:

We all know that Child Poverty is one of New Zealand’s major problems.

In an attempt to finally get a response from the National government to the problem ex-Family Court judge Graeme MacCormick has issued a “Children’s Plea” to get the government to do something serious in their next budget.

You can sign it here.

It’s great that someone like Graeme MacCormick, who can afford to place ads in national newspapers, is pushing, but it really shouldn’t take this.

But given it does, let’s get behind him, the Brainwave trust and Children’s Commissioner Dr Russell Wills and get this petition signed by as many as possible.

24 comments on “Children’s Plea ”

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  1. Bill 1
    21 November 2014 at 10:37 am

    What a wonderfully appropriate photo attached to ‘the herald’ article.

    (For anyone not clicking through – seemingly successful professional woman in rather flash looking house with young child beside her ‘play working’ on his toy computer while she finishes ‘writing up that report’ on hers.)

  2. music4menz 2
    21 November 2014 at 12:57 pm

    If this petition is calling for MPs to encourage parents to limit the size of their families so that they can take full responsibility for caring for the children that they bring into the world, then I am all for it.

    If it is calling for MPs to encourage single people to use contraceptives so that they don’t bring children into one parent families, then I am all for it.

    If it is calling for MPs to encourage parents to budget wisely so that providing for the basic needs of their children is their first priority, then I am all for it.

    If it is calling for parents to give their children a breakfast of cereal and toast each morning before sending them to school, I am all for it.

    • minrach 2.1
      21 November 2014 at 1:49 pm

      if this petition called for forced eugenics

      then music4menz would all over that mutha like a rash…

      are you really so arrogant to think that other peoples choices regarding sex/child raising is ANY of your f**king business

      take some personal responsibility and get your nose out of other peoples wombs you libertard/randroid clown

      • Tracey 2.1.1
        21 November 2014 at 4:29 pm

        Some schools have as many as 40% of their roll who haveno english spoken at home. Musicformenz wants to order them to speak english or stop expecting their children to succeed in our education system.

    • brainz4menz 2.2
      21 November 2014 at 3:11 pm

      music4menz, I’m wondering if you’re familiar with the word “empathy”?

      I mean fair enough, in the same way that an eskimo might not understand what a suntan is you might just have never experienced empathy but I think you should at least look it up – along with “sympathy”, that’s another good one.

      • Murray Rawshark 2.2.1
        21 November 2014 at 10:55 pm

        Eskimos get suntans on exposed skin because of the sun reflecting off the snow. They wouldn’t see many penguins, however.

    • RedBaronCV 2.3
      21 November 2014 at 8:45 pm

      WTF One parent familys don’t start out as single people – they start out as married people and one parent does a runner leaving it all to the other.

    • miravox 2.4
      21 November 2014 at 9:43 pm

      Maybe people took responsibility and budgeted quite nicely until some government upped GST, increased indirect taxes through government charges, did nothing to improve affordable housing and reduced workers rights to stable full-time employment.

      Now the little babies they had when they could afford it, are now food and money-chopping big kids while the parents have incomes that haven’t kept up with costs.

    • Foreign waka 2.5
      22 November 2014 at 12:19 pm

      If they call for maternity leave of 1 year – paid I am all for it
      If they call for an increase of the minimum wage so that 1.5 jobs can support a family, I am all for it
      If they call for people, through no fault of their own finding themselves on hard times to be given a life in dignity, I am all for it

      Just lets not forget, an economy is suppose to work for its people and not the other way around. We don’t need fear of loosing ones basics to get responses of greed. We need functioning families if we want to have a future – for all.

  3. Mr Nobody 3
    21 November 2014 at 3:00 pm

    I think Music4menz would be more than happy to take his nose out of other people wombs as long as other people are more than happy to take their hands out of his wallet and stop expecting others to pick up the tab for their decision to bred.

    • aaron 3.1
      21 November 2014 at 3:13 pm

      Yeah, and as for those women who insist on still raising their children after the father walked out on them, they need to get real! Get rid of the kids and get back to work you useless Sheilas!!!

      • Foreign waka 3.1.1
        22 November 2014 at 12:23 pm

        AAA+++ so far no one has mentioned the fathers making a runner. One only has to look at the wealthy parents boys to get some insight. Shall I mention Roast Busters?

    • McFlock 3.2
      21 November 2014 at 3:29 pm

      They don’t have their hands in his wallet.

      Rather than bitching about government money for raising children, maybe you chaps should be focussing on the $4.8B this government wasted from the Cullen fund, or the billions of dollars in tax fraud this government fails to prevent.

      But no, let’s focus on the poor and needy and the comparative pittance that they “cost” (long term positive investment for the country, but what the fuck), as if but for luck we don’t walk in their shoes. /sarc

    • minarch 3.3
      21 November 2014 at 3:33 pm

      maybe you should piss off to galts gulch with Music4menz and all the other men of genius where you can spend your days telling other people how to procreate

      meanwhile us here in reality understand the term “social contract”

    • One Anonymous Bloke 3.4
      21 November 2014 at 9:06 pm

      I’m quite happy to pass laws to cut off their nose (and yours) rather than allow the sort of vicious prejudice you wish upon others.

    • Murray Rawshark 3.5
      21 November 2014 at 11:29 pm

      People like you deserve to live in a society where there is no government welfare. You’d have a robber’s gun in your face once a week and you’d lose a hell of a lot more than the pittance you contribute to caring for society’s children.

  4. coaster 4
    21 November 2014 at 4:16 pm

    National are a centre right party, its not there job or beleifs that they shoulg jump in and help the youngest citizens of this country. The population needs to know that its the left who beleives in helping everyone up, the right beleive in trickle down.

    This bs about personal responsibility doesnt work with kids, how can they take responsibility for the situation they are in.

  5. RedBaronCV 5
    21 November 2014 at 8:48 pm

    Perhaps Mccormick could use some of his influence with his fellow judges to ensure adequate family support is paid (including the cost of the free babysitting) and that assets are shared adequately. Oh that’s right the courts don’t bother with that.

    • One Anonymous Bloke 5.1
      21 November 2014 at 9:15 pm

      Is that true?

      The courts “bother” with the cases that are presented to them. Forgive my ignorance: can the courts unilaterally commission inquiries?

      • Murray Rawshark 5.1.1
        21 November 2014 at 11:33 pm

        As far as I know, they can’t.

        What they could do would be to give white collar criminals such as John Banks the choice of donating half their wealth to a children’s fund, or a few years in prison. We’d raise enough money to do something significant fairly quickly.

      • RedBaronCV 5.1.2
        22 November 2014 at 11:17 am

        I’m not talking about courts commissioning inquires but the stuff known as “judge made law” of which the “clean break principal” is an example or ‘he needs to support his second relationship’ -no mention of her second relationship. A good chunk of this effectively negates the laws made by parliament. Many of them look at it only through the prism of a male life tragectory (much like supperannuation) and therefore put women and children on the benefit /impoverish them.

        Judges need to look hard at their own bias particularly around money – and there is nothing new in this it been going on for several decades. Judges can ask and go to training just ike everyone else.