I take it you are not a homeschooler, and are not accustomed to being marginalized and ridiculed, or been the target of endless ploys designed to bring your children into the public schools, or be otherwise monitored and regulated to ensure that they don’t subscribe to any of the foolish, antiquated notions they might be taught by their parents.

Geolith and Hamlet, it is clear that nothing either of us says will make any headway towards “convincing” the other. And that is OK – “agreeing to disagree” and allowing or even encouraging “dissenting speech” is the legacy of freedom of expression that I taught my children.

You apparently agree with the concept of your tax dollars used tofund a program that will empower a government bureaucrat who doesn’t know your child from a hole in the ground to come into your home to tell you how to raise him.

I do not.

My children are grown, and this really doesn’t affect me any more – but it will affect my grandchildren should I be so blessed. And it does affect those homeschooling moms and dads who have risen up behind me over the last twenty years, who want to fulfill the Biblical mandate to raise our children “in the fear and admonition of the Lord,” a concept considered alien and dangerous in this political climate where both homeschool and Christian groups can both be found on lists of potential domestic terrorist groups.

I refer to you the articles elsewhere on the site about the German solution to homeschooling. The same can happen here. Particularly now (Feb 2009) that Sen. Boxer of California is trying to have the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child reconsidered. Though I am sure that for all the same reasons, I consider that a problem and you do not.

Thank you again for your comments. I stand by my opposition to this bill.

Home visitation is an effective, research-based and cost-efficient way to bring families and resources together to ensure that children grow up healthy and ready to learn.

Let’s NOT stop this attempt to ensure families are receiving the most appropriate services to meet their needs.

Let’s NOT stop this attempt to provide guidance on how parents can enhance their children’s development from birth through kindergarten entry.

We need to stand up and demand that this attempt to take away the fundamental right of all Americans to be ignorant of anything that might potentially keep our children safe.

God forbid that the GOVERNMENT tell us anything that we haven’t already decided would be useful.

AND DON’T STOP WITH THE GOVERNMENT. Burn ALL those baby books. Rip out ANY article from a parenting magazine that trys to tell you something you don’t already know to be true. Everyone knows those magazines come in the US MAIL – a GOVERNMENT agency!

AND DON’T TRUST any other parent who thinks they know more than YOU do about YOUR baby. They could be one of those doctors, nurses or parenting educators IN DISGUISE to spread more information, trying to break down YOUR protective barrier against any information that you don’t already know.

Sure, they START with innocent “tips”, but the next thing you know they actually start offering evidence that they says EXPLAINS early childhood development. They next thing they’re trying to do is convince YOU that THEY know more than YOU about the SCIENCE of early brain development.

AND don’t let ANYONE try to confuse YOU about the difference between “eternal vigilance” and paranoia. If YOU believe it, it must be TRUE.

PLEASE forward this important inforation to everyone in the WORLD!!!!

WE have to stop THEM. NOW!!!

But the government has a history of expanding “voluntary” programs and eventually making them mandatory. I don’t believe subjecting the parents of the 70-75 million children who are NOT being abused to additional government regulation and investigation is the way to handle this problem.

I stand by my opposition to this bill. It has not been entered into lightly, or “in ignorance”, as you suppose.

Thanks for your comments.