Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!ora!ora!daemon
From: llama@eleazar.dartmouth.edu (Joe Francis)
Newsgroups: soc.feminism
Subject: Re: Child making and rearing ( Mild Soapbox )
Message-ID: <23575@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU>
Date: 9 Aug 90 20:54:14 GMT
References: <10848@cs.utexas.edu> <9584@goofy.Apple.COM> <352@ccrwest.UUCP>
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In article <352@ccrwest.UUCP> ccrwest!desj@ucsd.edu (David desJardins) writes:
[in a discussion of the merits of parental leave]

>   Thus, it is in society's *interest* to promote practices which lead
>to future good citizens (I hope I'm not sounding too preachy here).
>That is why we have public schools instead of providing education only
>to those whose parents can afford it and choose to pay for it.  And
>similarly that is why we should be promoting opportunities for parents
>to spend a reasonable amount of time with their children.

I agree entirely.  However, your example is not a strong analogy to 
mandated parental leave.

Our education system is paid for by taxes.  Only people and institutions
who make money pay for our education system.  Progressive taxation
(I wish it was truly progressive - instead of giving breaks to the
wealthy) is a very low-impact way to finance our education system.

Mandated parental leave will cost businesses money.  NOTE:  Not PROFITABLE
businesses, not LARGE CORPORATIONS, but all businesses.  Many businesses
barely survive.  Making these businesses pay for parental leave is like
making the very poor pay the tax rates of the very rich (all right, the
rich get a break - make it the affluent and upper middle class, who actually
pay the highest tax rates).

Your analogy is better suited to publicly funded daycare, which I support
and believe is both fairer in implementation and more beneficial
then mandated parental leave.

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