Interesting Question

i would say yes i am about to post photos of my baby brothers might take about 20mins lol

I would say yes…but then thinking about it. Who would be in charge of deciding who gets a license? Would it be mainstream or more off-the-path parenting? Would the person in charge look on you negatively if you decided not to vaccinate your child (or hell, if you DID vax them), nursed them until they were 4 if they so wished, refused regular prenatal care (on the grounds that you(C)

know your body better than anyone), or such and such and such? If all they were judging was whether you were overall a good parent, yes. But knowing how the human race is, I don’t think it would work out. You’d have some potentially good parents turned away because they didn’t have the same parenting goals as whoever else, I think. Yep. ~ajaye

if you are on can you do me a favour? can see if the photos show for you please?

I wouldn’t say so much a license would be required, as a mandatory schooling on common parenting issues (IE. breastfeeding, ‘spoiling’, the basic needs and wants of an infant, incorrect care, etc) without being slanted in one ‘parenting style’ or another, just presenting basic facts, dos and don’ts, but in a very gentle and realistic way. IT would be even better if someone could be on 24 >

> hour support for a new mom, and come to visit every day (or every few days) for the fist 6-8 weeks to make sure mom not only is coping well and knows her stuff, but has a shoulder to cry on when she feels stressed, lonely or desperate. Sigh… if only.

It would never work though. What would happen if a mother had an unplanned pregnancy? Would you need to re-apply for a license each time you chose to give birth? What would happen to the babies of parents without a license? Would they be forced into abortion, or have their children taken from them? While i agree some parents should never BE parents, i think it’s wrong to be judged

on your capabilities as a parent unless there is a good reason for this, like previous drug/drink abuse, or a child who is being neglected already under their care. Everyone parents differently, to set boundaries would be wrong, especially in the cases where no harm is being done.

No… but only because it’d be a waste of tax-payers money… driver’s licensing doesn’t at all guarantee “good drivers” etc. I don’t think there is a tangible way to license parents… but perhaps better ways to detect bad ones? Ontario has invested millions into “early years” giving parents and children 0-6 access to resources – including parent education. I think this is an effective method.

of getting access to the information and shows that the government is clueing in about how important the first 5 years are in development.

We teach both square dancing in PE and welding in Shop (or did when I was younger)in school-sex ed is a required course. I don’t understand why “Parenting” is not a mandatory class. With the teen pregnancy rate what it is these days, it ought to be a required course in jr. high. I never did use those darned welding skills, but I’ve had three kids and didn’t know what to do with them at first.

I would love to see parents have to be licensed, but I agree with naturalmom, who would oversee it and what would be the criteria? Scary.:) I do think everyone should have to take basic child psych and child development courses. But that wouldn’t help everyone anyways. It would only help the parents who would seek that info themselves.

no but i definitely think parents to be need counseling & education regarding the resposibilities of parenting prior to birth. i think a “license” would not solve the problem of abuse but I do think if a child is abused that parents should have their rights taken away

I think so, yes.

I sometimes think yes because of the way some poor kids are living and being brought up or more of lack of being brought up right. But that’s going to far. I think parenting classes should be taught though.

That’s a pretty fascist opinion to have, that people should have to get permission from the government before they are allowed to have children. What kind of animal would place the authority of the government over the rights of individuals? I’ll tell you what kind of animal. Do some research, and you’ll find that several countries *have* implemented strict regulations of…

…childbirth. And I’ll give you a hint, they aren’t democracies.

Nope – I wouldn’t trust the gov’t to decide who should and should not have children – that is a power that is FAR too easily abused. And some people are crap for humans BEFORE they have children, and the simple fact that they now have a child to take care of turns their life around – while others are still crap for humans no matter what.

Hell yes but it would never happen. Licenses are about control & money.

Choice. Exactly. I’ve thought about government licensing for parents. But. Then comes the issues of, well, how does the government judge who can and can’t be a parent. In an ideal world, we’d keep the dregs of the world from reproducing. But. Then wouldn’t there be a revolt from the third world?

I don’t particularly like the government putting me on display and “judging” whether I’m fit to be a good father, or not. Imagine if you have to take classes. What would they teach? If it’s good, it’ll show us all our options, and emphasis that, hey, as long as you love your kids and do what’s in your child’s best interests, you can’t go wrong.

But if you imagine a Republican regime, we’ll be told that SEX IS EVIL, that ANAL SEX IS SIN, and that, sorry, you can’t join the class if you’re gay.

I think everyone needs to pass some certain tests before allowed to take their children home. I know so many people who can’t care for their children. They have no “motherly instinct”.

LOL ^ I so agree with Timmy up there…I didn’t even think about the fact that certain people would most likely not even be allowed to APPLY for a mandatory parenting class or parenting license. Beh ~ajaye

I don’t know the answer. I just wish everyone was more educated about childcare, psychology and development.

No.

Yep, or at least be forced to pass a parenting class befor they’re allowed to breed – some kind of mandatory contraception in place to prevent unplanned pregnancy! I know it’s unrealistic, but I would rather every child was a wanted and looked after child….

no. If you were told you HAVE to do things a certain way and you didnt agree and did different you now are teaching your kids to break the law. I dont want someone telling me that I can or cant do something and that my way is wrong. We have social services to investigate people if they are bad parents. Its getting others to turn them in that is the problem.

So what would happen if you got caught parenting without a license / : Would they confiscate the kids? How about if it expires / :

No, I think the idea of getting a license to raise children is ridiculous!! I agree that some parents out there don’t need to be parenting, but you just have to trust that your justice system will take the children if need-be. But to limit your right to reproduce is ludicrous.

Ignorant and fascist about sums it up.

Oh, and I meant to ask you… where did you get all of those cute little graphics on your diary description? The cute smilies and the breastfeeding ones? They’re so adorable, and the breastfeeding “awards” are great!

I think that stupid people shouldn’t be allowed to breed in the first place. Make people take something similar to an IQ test, maybe then we’ll stop the mass production of retards in this country. 🙂

This is actually going to be one of the essay questions on my final exam in my graduate class on child development.

No, because it would be impossible to enforce. You can’t stop people from having children, that is their right. And even if they do not raise them by society’s standards, it doesn’t make them a bad parent. However, I think we need harsher punishments for those who do abuse their children, more funding/manpower for social services, and more rehabilitation centers and parenting classes.

…The problem is that we give people far to long to hurt these kids while we do not have enough “proof”. Anyone convicted of a violent crime should have to report to social services if they have a child. WE need to protect these children better. It’s sad that adoptive parents have to go through months and sometimes years of paperwork to have a kid when a junkie can have one in 9 months…

I agree with [A’ishah] as well… My cousin’s son saved her life… she was a heroin addict before him. Now she is married with three kids, and has been clean since she got pregnant…

I think they should. But, no one can control others sexual inuendos.

Nobody can control what family they are born into, IMO… and who would be the “god” to give out licenses, per say? Not “God” as in the heavenly father… that isn’t what I’m getting at… but it seems like one person would have to choose who is good and who isn’t…to be able to give out the license. Interesting question though! 🙂

YES, YES, YES!!! A) I could have used educational training before I became a mother at age 23, despite good modeling from my mom and sisters. B) Adoptive parents have to undergo all sorts of scrutiny in this country. Why be inconsistent?? C) Every day you read about someone shaking their baby and not realizing they could “really” hurt a child that way.

All I’m saying is, they teach nutrition and sex ed in school these days…why not include basic parenting classes, no one is saying how to raise a child, or that the classes should say “bf is best” etc, but IMO, most people could use the BASICS

So people who work shouldn’t have the opportunity to have kids because they would have to use daycare? BullS…. Kisses

My government does not get to decide if I deserve to have children or not. These sorts of policies are invariable elitist; even abuse-prevention agencies tend to overlook well off families and focus on the projects.