Implications of Bradford's bill for me

Hi, I am Andy Moore, and I am 20 and a half years old. I am a Christian.

Just lying in bed tonight, I began to think even more seriously than I previously had regarding the Section 59 debate. In ten years, I will quite likely be married, and have two or three children. Email me if you're the girl...

Now, let's say I head out into the backyard of my home and find my eight-year old son smoking dope with a couple of his friends. I have already warned him against the dangers of taking drugs, and have set the example by not smoking or anything. I have told him that if I do catch him taking drugs, there would be serious consequences.

"But daddy, Nandor Tanczos does it, and he's in the Government!"

Now, if Bradford's bill does pass, what sort of discipline am I going to give my son?

I can ask him if he would like to go to his room for time out. He need not respect me, because after all, I am only his father. He knows that I will not be allowed to pick him up and carry him into his room, because this would be child-abuse.

"Oh, it's not child-abuse Sue? Well, force is force. Who are you to say that parents may use force to remove a child from a dangerous situation, or to take a child into a room for time out, but not for the purpose of correction?"

Who the heck are you to say this Sue? - your pathetic reasoning infuriates me beyond reason.

Or if I find a teen-age boy getting a bit cozy with my thirteen-year old girl in her bedroom, when I have already told her that there is no place for behaviour like this in our family. What do you suggest I do Bradford? Any suggestions Clark?

When what she needs is a good wallop - (painful for a while, but not to cause bruising or bleeding at all) - all I can do is ask her to stay in her bedroom, of course I can't use force to get rid of the teen-age lad. I try to talk some sense into her, but she responds with: "Daddy, haven't you read the S.K.I.P. brochures?... You're not supposed to talk to me in this way. I can call CYFS if I want..."

This is not conjecture. This is what will happen if Bradford's bill is allowed to pass through Parliament. Stand up you Kiwis. Don't let our Government walk all over us like they are doing.

email your MPs, and start by visiting this website: www.politik.co.nz