If the courts can break up a family based upon a divorce decree; if the courts can be used to enforce payment of child support; then the same courts ought to be used to bring the two side back together and enforce visitation.

It's time to quit putting non-custodial parents in the roles of 'Uncle Daddy' or 'Aunt Mommy'.

If you want to see a drop in juvenile crime, and teen pregnancies, let's get the courts, the politicians, and the press to wake up and smell the ink of the payment book.

Yes, there are consequences to nonpayment of child support. But, there are greater consequences to allowing children not to see BOTH parents. It took two to make a child.

It takes two to train a child in the way he, or she, needs to go. Take off the judicial handcuffs from non-custodial parents and repair the damaged image of fathers--and mothers--who have been taking responsibility; but not being allowed to share in the visitation of their children.

As I close, let me share this from personal experience; one of the worse pains a non-custodial parent faces is to get a call from a juvenile corrections facility concerning the actions of a child they have been paying for; but not allowed to see because of the actions of hard-headed, money-hungry, and bitter custodial parents.

The system says: 'Be responsible and pay for your kids!' Those who are paying are now starting to tell the system: 'We've done our part, now let us start SEEING our kids!'

If it's not about the money, then why can't more than several million paying, working, and praying non-custodial parents be allowed to have their visitation rights granted.

Are we not citizens? Are we not parents? Are we not--human?

Even Jesus Christ gets more respect and reverence from the courts, the press, and the politicians than a non-custodial parent.

At least it is admitted by those institutions that He exists. Non-custodial parents, it seems, do not.

Mike Ramey

Ramey is a syndicated columnist, minister and journalist and his monthly column has nearly 2 million readers across the US, Canada, and the Bahamas. Letters Welcome from friend or foe alike. Drop a line to The Manhood Line, c/o Mike Ramey, PO Box 20131, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46220 or email manhoodline@yahoo.com http://mypages.netopia.com/manhoodline. Copyright 2001 Barnstorm Communications (11)

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