Delicious LiveJournal Links for 5-16-2010

[andrewducker]

• Tories to make it harder to divorce
  (tags: conservatives politics relationships uk)
• The 46 stages of Twitter
  (tags: twitter funny socialnetworking technology)

Comments

It's those killer cyborgs, I tell you ...

[autopope.livejournal.com]

Quoth Ian Duncan Smith: "... A recent US study found that children living with a non-biological adult are 50 times more likely to die from afflicted injuries."

In other news: this appears to be IDS's pet hobby horse. It remains to be seen how far he will be able to ride it before the LibDems start getting cold feet. (My guess is they'll be happy with the carrot elements of the proposals -- prenup arrangements and counseling centres -- but much less so with the big stick.)

Re: It's those killer cyborgs, I tell you ...

[andrewducker]

I am very curious as to how much pressure the Lib Dems are going to be able to exert over this kind of thing, and whether simple proximity and exposure will be enough for them to mould policy.

Re: It's those killer cyborgs, I tell you ...

[autopope.livejournal.com]

Yes, indeed. It's the €64,000 question hanging over this coalition.

Re: It's those killer cyborgs, I tell you ...

[nancylebov.livejournal.com]

Googling suggests that the statistic might be from here.

Unfortunately, I can't turn up anything about Broken Homes and Battered Children except that the book exists.

In any case, do they really mean "non-biological"? Would this imply that adopted children are at grave risk?

Re: It's those killer cyborgs, I tell you ...

[andrewducker]

He should probably read this:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/apr/19/marriage-not-help-child-development

Re: It's those killer cyborgs, I tell you ...

[khbrown.livejournal.com]

Clearly step-parenting and adoption should be outlawed as well.

Re: It's those killer cyborgs, I tell you ...

[captainlucy.livejournal.com]

I was wondering myself whether Cyberdyne was operating a network of creches using T-800 nannies...

Re: It's those killer cyborgs, I tell you ...

[matgb]

He'll be butting heads with Lynne over it, although she's not cabinet, and a few others.

Even if true, it's a stupid use of statistics, always very cautious when I see %age increases.

Wonder if it includes adopted kids? Regardless, lots of LD policy makers know it's daft, and many Tories do; might be worth starting to lobby Tory MPs on the subject actually, my new MP is a divorcee with kids living with him and new partner.

[gravityslave.livejournal.com]

AUUGHH!
Sometimes strength comes from independence, not being forced to stay with someone. Abusive relationships, statistically, get a lot more abusive after marriage - I know this first-hand as well. Encouraging marriage without encouraging the emotional health of all people is idiotic and utterly useless.

Not only that, but if my son's paternal genetic donor hadn't been such a douchenozzle and all-round jackass, I wouldn't have left him in the first place - and he'd make a terrible role model if he were still involved in our life. Thus, ensuring that kids don't lose contact with their fathers can be far more of a curse than a blessing, depending on the father. These things need to be dealt with case-by-case, not with broad brush policy.

[andrewducker]

Agreed!

[dalglir.livejournal.com]

"Encouraging marriage without encouraging the emotional health of all people is idiotic and utterly useless."

This.

[drdoug.livejournal.com]

I have had a rant brewing for a while about correlation and causation. Might send a copy to IDS when it's done.

Thanks for posting this. I'd been in a bit of a daze about the new Government but am now reassured that it is the same Conservative party. Although "reassured" is perhaps not the best choice of word.

[matgb]

From what I understand, IDS in Cabinet was one of the costs of the coalition that the Tory Parliamentary party got out of Cameron, it got us the referendum on AV or something else.

I was hoping he'd get something like Justice (where he agrees with LD policy in some areas), but as it is, we just have to show his evidence is wrong; he claims he likes evidence based policy, so we need to get the right evidence in front of him. And the rest of Cabinet. And the Tory MPs on the sane wing (of which there are increasing numbers, mine's a divorcee with new partner and kids living at home)