The prime minister has said that
"Plenty of women go back to work when their baby is a year old and it makes financial sense to do so"
and that shows what a lowlife he is. Of course he never asks the obvious question of why. Yes a number of women go back to work and some of them may even want to, but many are also forced to because "it makes financial sense". If they didn't then there would not be enough money to pay the bills or create a life for themselves and their families and even for many that do work, the money isn't enough. Welcome to capitalism 101.
Of course the other implication of keys statement is that raising a child is not work which is utter bullshit. A good post on the standard shows the truth of keys lies. As that post shows, key is only looking at one side of the equation and mr moneybags never adds in the cost of working for any parent, let alone a single mum. That's just the monetary values not even getting into the social and moral values of having parent/s around raising young children. The comments on the post also mention - what happens when the child gets sick, or is disabled, or there are 2 or more children - why mention all of these factors when all he can focus on is money.
The attitudes of key and bennett are the cause of most of the ills of our society.
I like this new Māori parenting program, due to be released on Thursday, by The Office of the Children's Commissioner. It is based upon research which shows that abuse of children was shunned by Māori and arose from Missionaries and colonisation.
Stuff
Prior to Europeans arriving, children were considered gifts from the gods and whanau shunned child abuse.The researchers suggested abuse arose only after Maori were introduced to corporal punishment in missionary-run classrooms
It is so good to see the myths and slurs on Māori getting dealt to by research. Te Kahui Mana Ririki, the child advocacy group, commissioned the research and Chair Dr Hone Kaa states
"It will serve to demonstrate to Maori they don't have to believe they're inherently violent," he said.
Maori children were taught by Europeans that bad behaviour should be punished by physical violence, he said. This steered away from the traditional idea children were tapu and discipline should be avoided because it tamed the child's spirit.
They researched the treatment of children using oral histories, poems, and European observations and what did they find?
Researchers found children were treated with loving care and indulged. "The father was devotedly fond of his children and they were his pride and delight," the report found. "Children would entwine themselves around their father's neck for an entire day, asleep or awake, as a constant companion." This instilled love, security, and confidence into Maori children.
Lead researcher Margaret Mountain Harte hoped the findings could be introduced in school curriculums to educate Maori teens. "It's empowering for me. The whole warrior culture was balanced by the nurturing one," she said.
Yes we need to take back the ownership of us, we need to keep decolonising our own heads because they have forcefed the myths into us. This isn't a rosy picture of hippie Māori - the reality of the old times are known and people were killed and degraded for all sorts of reasons, including children. But that is irrelevant to the fact that children were the future and that future was protected seriously. Of course there are those who don't buy this and that includes Paul Moon
Maori history professor Paul Moon, of Auckland University of Technology, dismissed the idea abuse began after the Europeans came. "The proposition that missionaries introduced violence, it's one of those allegations that entered the historical bloodstream and once it's in that bloodstream, it's hard to get out. I would want to see evidence."
Hey paul isn't that research and evidence included in the report coming out on Thursday?
Moon said the report's reliance on oral histories and lullabies also raised doubts over its reliability
Oh well, I am sure I saw that the 'great european historical record' has also been researched so hopefully that will allay moons fears. Meanwhile his broken record will keep revolving.
The abuse of children is intolerable and must be sorted. Race or ethnicity has nothing to do with whether a person will abuse a child but poverty does, and stress does. This research can rebalance the lies and disinformation put out to suppress Māori aspirations. This research can be used to reeducate those at risk of abusing, those who do not have the mana and knowledge and are already abusing. This program will make a difference for our children.
Does it work?
Te Kahui Mana Ririki has reported a reduction in child abuse after running workshops based on its findings.
Great initative and some awesome research - thank you.
