The Consequences of Rotten Government, Rotten Post-Modernism and Rotten Parenting

19 Aug, 2008 by Melissa Clouthier

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How dare we judge a woman who has had 9 children by five men, who lives on welfare, takes the kids to some 3rd world country, leaves one 15 year old daughter in the care of an old guy and the daughter winds up dead? In an article about how bad it is to be a British kid:

What explains the nonjudgmental attitude among elites? The reluctance to criticize Fiona MacKeown might be an expression of sympathy for someone in the throes of grief: however foolishly (or worse) she behaved, she certainly did not deserve the murder of her daughter. Furthermore, the Guardian and Observer journalists might argue, we do not know enough about the details of her life to criticize her fairly. Perhaps she is a good mother in most respects; perhaps her children, apart from the drug addict and the murdered Scarlett, are happy, and will lead lives of fulfillment and achievement. After all, no style of upbringing guarantees success or, for that matter, failure; and therefore we should suspend judgment about her.

I suspect, however, that the main consideration inhibiting elite criticism of MacKeown is that passing judgment would call into question the shibboleths of liberal social policy for the last 50 or 60 years–beliefs that give their proponents a strong sense of moral superiority. It would be to entertain the heretical thought that family structure might matter after all, along with such qualities as self-restraint and self-respect; and that welfare dependency is unjust to those who pay for it and disastrous for those who wind up trapped in it.

Theodore Darlymple concludes:

The British government thus pursues social welfare policies that encourage the creation of households like the Matthews’, and then seeks, via yet more welfare spending, to reduce the harm done to children in them. But was the Matthews household poor, in any but an artificial sense? At the time of Shannon’s current stepfather’s arrest, the household income was $72,000; it lived free of rent and local taxes, and it boasted three computers and a large plasma-screen television. Would another $5,000 or $10,000 or $20,000 have made any difference?

A system of perverse incentives in a culture of undiscriminating materialism, where the main freedom is freedom from legal, financial, ethical, or social consequences, makes childhood in Britain a torment both for many of those who live it and those who observe it. Yet the British government will do anything but address the problem, or that part of the problem that is its duty to address: the state-encouraged breakdown of the family. If one were a Marxist, one might see in this refusal the self-interest of the state-employee class: social problems, after all, are their raison d’être.

So children in Britain suffer from emotional lack and material indulgence. This is a deadly combination. Not only that, but the elites refuse to hold the parents responsible for this disastrous mix. Expecting parents to work, or women to stop at one or two men, etc. is simply not done because it would call into question liberal policies and ethics (or lack thereof). It pays to be irresponsible and reckless. It pays in America, too.

There is a good way to change this bad behavior. Stop underwriting it with tax-payer dollars. Remove the incentive to live licentiously and reinforce the behavior that’s desired. Part of me would also like to punish parents who have rotten kids. I know that’s not always fair. Still, in my short time on this earth, I have yet to see “bad seeds”, but I have seen loads of bad parents. And they always seem shocked when their precious offspring become Satan’s foot soldiers.

And another thing: being a single parent is no excuse. Michael Phelps was raised my his mom. He and his sisters turned out fantastic–they are a credit to her dedication. But she worked and she was committed to something she loved, education, and they learned by her example. Even in less-than-ideal circumstances, children can succeed. But someone has to care.

It’s time to throw out the nonjudgmental, post-modern nonsense that there are no absolutes and no ideals. It is time to judge and heap scorn upon the parents who produce these rotten kids. It is also time to stop reinforcing bad behavior of the parents. Children deserve better. And when children are deprived of what they really need, society ends up paying a steep price.

H/T Instapundit

Cross-posted at MelissaClouthier.com