Does this look like fearmongering to you?

[AnnoDomini]

My mother posted the link to the 'docudrama Overruled: Government invasion of parental rights' on her facebook. I'm watching it now and it looks like a few legitimate concerns or the government, mixed with a good deal of fearmongering and general propaganda.

http://www.overruledmovie.com/

My brother commented saying 'anyone who thinks America is a free country is either lying or kidding themselves.' I was flabbergasted. He fell for the party line hook line and sinker, while exercising his freedom of speech! It's BECAUSE America is a free country that he's allowed to bitch about the perceived lack of freedom parents have to do things like, oh, NOT properly educate or socialize their children just like my parents did to him.

After a second of consideration, I simply commented back 'America is a free country.'

[Constance Vigilance]

I need to say that I don't know why you are watching fundie propoganda if you are trying to escape that mindset (and if your mother and brother like it it won't be anything but). That will be the opposite of helpful for you.

[AnnoDomini]

That is a good point. I was thinking it would be good snark material but maybe it would be better to let other FJers watch it and give out choice bits to snark on.

[debrand]

I think that getting angry about fundies helped rid me of some of my black and white thinking. Sometimes, I just needed to rant against this type of thinking.

Over time, Anno, you'll learn to ignore your family.

[Witsec1]

Also, don't you all live in the same house? It seems kind of weird to talk to each other on Facebook. I think you need to get out of there as soon as you can.

Why do you think your mother posted about that particular book right now?

[Constance Vigilance]

I just know I am prone to being swayed briefly by fundie nonsense -- be it fearmongering or 'look at our lovely lives!' -- if I'm exposed to it for a while when I'm not expecting it, and god knows I couldn't be more opposed to their principles. Fundie propaganda is designed to push all your buttons. So watching it when you're trying to transition out might not be the way to go :)

[finleeport]

Yes, this is fearmongering

[emmiedahl]

AD, the shit is going to hit the fan when CPS shows up. If your family is this suspicious of government intervention, just WOW. Can you arrange to go somewhere? I am worried for you. With this in the front of their minds, things could get very ugly.

Stay safe, okay? Everything will probably be alright in the long run (thanks to your intervention) but the short term forecast is looking stormy.

[AnnoDomini]

Emmie, rest assured I will keep myself safe. Safer than I feel I need to keep myself. For example, I have no fear of physical abuse. But I am planning an exit strategy just in case somebody goes off the rails in a completely unpredicted manner.

[snarkykitty]

Good grief. People need to think for themselves.

DUN DUN DUN!!! We are gonna make teh children become teh gays!!!!111!! ELEVENTY!

[2xx1xy1JD]

Can your brother see anything beyond the scary music and fear-mongering? They leave out tons of information. You would need to have access to the cases themselves to know the full story. Of course parents have rights! It's just that those rights are not absolute, so the courts have the power to get involved to protect the wellbeing of children where it is warranted.

This drives me a bit bonkers, because fear leads otherwise good people to make stupid decisions. I do child protection law, and have represented both parents and a child protection agency. Increasingly, I'm getting calls from parents who are terrified because of some sort of contact from a child protection worker, and they say "I was looking stuff up on the internet, and can't believe all the bad things these people do!" It's then my job to talk them down, and get them to realize that they are reading things put up by people with an agenda - for example, someone who may have lost custody of their children who finds it easier to place blame than to admit the true situation. The problem with this paranoia is that when intake child protection workers can't get cooperation, they can't just conduct a quick investigation and close the file, so the involvement escalates.

[StarrieEyedKat]

Also, don't you all live in the same house? It seems kind of weird to talk to each other on Facebook.

Meh, I know a lot of people that facebook each other while sitting in the same room.

AD - is there a chance that they can get on your computer and look at the history? Given that your mom is posting this now seems worrying, and if CPS shows up, they're most likely going to become suspicious of you since you've been asking so many questions. If you plan on telling them you didn't call, I'd clear your browser history and keep yourself logged out of FJ when you get offline.

[Witsec1]

Is there any chance that your mom could have checked your phone and seen the outgoing calls to CPS?

[Constance Vigilance]

The thing that's terrifying to fundie families is that children also have rights. And when they're too defenceless to protect those rights themselves, the government steps in to do it for them.

The idea that you don't own your children, and can't just do whatever fucked-up abusive thing you feel like doing to them, is very scary to a certain kind of person.

[AnnoDomini]

My parents don't seem the snooping type, but sometimes I think my sister knows something. Not specifically what I did, but some of where I've been. She says things like 'you know, you don't have to talk to other people to figure out who you are' and 'I'll never understand why people look for philosophical and psychological perspective from sources they neither trust nor respect.' I'm thinking she knows I read FJ and/or Jezebel.

[BravaAmica]

Meh, I know a lot of people that facebook each other while sitting in the same room.

AD - is there a chance that they can get on your computer and look at the history? Given that your mom is posting this now seems worrying, and if CPS shows up, they're most likely going to become suspicious of you since you've been asking so many questions. If you plan on telling them you didn't call, I'd clear your browser history and keep yourself logged out of FJ when you get offline.

Yes, this, please, AD. I'm glad that you have an escape plan, I hope you don't have to use it. Your family might not "seem the snooping type," but don't rule it out. Protect yourself.

Also, remove any bookmarks to FJ and other sites like it from your computer. And I don't know what internet broswer you're using but Google Chrome stores all your web searches if you have a gmail account and stay logged in. You'll have to make sure to change the settings so any searches made on Chrome aren't stored. I don't know about Firefox and Explorer. Also, Firefox and Chrome both have private browsing options, which means the sites you visit won't show up on the history (unless someone that has access to your computer is very savvy and knows where to look. This is not a common skill, though.). You can also set up a password protected log-in for yourself, so only you will be able to log on to your computer.

[finleeport]

Also, this documentary seems to emphasize all about Statism, that its is a form of atheism. Statism is actually a form of State-worship, you can't call it atheist if the state is your God.

[emmiedahl]

I watched the documentary. So, doctors have to follow HIPAA even for minors, parents cannot trespass and act threatening at a school when they don't approve of the curriculum, the UN wants to entend human rights to children, you cannot force your teenager to go to church multiple times per week, somebody call a waaahmbulance.

I suggest everyone watch and share this just so you can see how crazy the right wing is right now. OMG--I CANNOT TREAT MY CHILDREN LIKE SLAVES--WHAT IS THE WORLD COMING TO??????

Holland and Sweden are held up as the horrific places where children and parents must suffer under these laws.

One question: the video says that in Belgium, doctors can kill a baby less than a year old without a parent's permission? I am pretty sure this is not the case, but does anyone know where they got this?

[fakepigtails73]

AD - is there a chance that they can get on your computer and look at the history? Given that your mom is posting this now seems worrying, and if CPS shows up, they're most likely going to become suspicious of you since you've been asking so many questions. If you plan on telling them you didn't call, I'd clear your browser history and keep yourself logged out of FJ when you get offline.

That's what I wanted to know, also re: yr CPS calls like one poster mentionned...Stay safe, ok?? :|

Empty not just yr web history, but clean yr cache as well!! And when you'll have an exit plan all figured out, I'd suggest that you don't write about any of it here. We tend to forget that it's a public forum (in fact there are over 90 guests viewing this board at this moment)...There must be some that lurk here a while before registering, but the sheer # makes me think that some of these "guests" are un-sympathetic to what most FJers believe.

[Eclipse]

I couldn't watch the last few minutes of the video, it was so disgusting. It was fear mongering for certain. And no on in it understand what "best interest of the child" means. It mean best interest of the child. Everyone else in the world don't let 13 years old run their own lives because they have different opinions than their parents, or don't want to go to bed, school or eat their vegetables. They still have to do all that. Yes, you should listen to the child, but that does not mean you have to automatically do what the child says. Instead the child's opinion influences a decision, considering their age, maturity and the issue. Best interest of the child means children have rights of their own and they are not puppets for the parents to do whatever they want with!

AD, I wish you all the luck in the world. You have a tough road ahead, but I wish you all the strength to see it through the end. Your mother, from posting this video, will probably play the victim, but the victim is your sister. Never doubt that.

[finleeport]

I watched the documentary. So, doctors have to follow HIPAA even for minors, parents cannot trespass and act threatening at a school when they don't approve of the curriculum, the UN wants to entend human rights to children, you cannot force your teenager to go to church multiple times per week, somebody call a waaahmbulance.

I suggest everyone watch and share this just so you can see how crazy the right wing is right now. OMG--I CANNOT TREAT MY CHILDREN LIKE SLAVES--WHAT IS THE WORLD COMING TO??????

Holland and Sweden are held up as the horrific places where children and parents must suffer under these laws.

One question: the video says that in Belgium, doctors can kill a baby less than a year old without a parent's permission? I am pretty sure this is not the case, but does anyone know where they got this?

I thought 90% of Holland, Sweden and Belgium were atheist/non-religious? why would he use non-religious countries as examples? Is he denying about their atheism/non-religiousity?

[emmiedahl]

I think he is worried more about the loss of parental rights than the religion.

I thought Sweden and Holland had it pretty good? Certainly not a horror story. And *gasp* if I am doing something that is not in the best interests of my children, I kinda want someone to intervene.

[lra07]

Watching this made me feel slightly nauseous. The examples they used were such minor things, why on earth do these parents feel the need to have that level of control over someone else.

[StarrieEyedKat]

And *gasp* if I am doing something that is not in the best interests of my children, I kinda want someone to intervene.

This is my big thing. If anyone, including me, is doing something to harm my children in any way, I'd want someone to step in and stop it. Of course, I have my children's best interests in mind, not my own.

[emmiedahl]

Watching this made me feel slightly nauseous. The examples they used were such minor things, why on earth do these parents feel the need to have that level of control over someone else.

I know, the guy made such a big deal because a family court judge said that once a week was enough church for a teenaged boy. That is what we call sanity, my friends. Most people don't go to church three times a week, and if the kid did not want to go? Let him stay home. I have a feeling there were other issues that were not presented in the vignettes presented in the film; I just can't see CPS removing a child even for two days because of a church dispute. If the parents were beating him for refusing to go, then yeah. And the fact that the judge spent a morning and then some on a family court case... I have been in family court as a witness, and they spend three to five minutes each on the CPS cases.