Have you heard the children crying?
Perhaps not, but they cry. It may be a silent and internalized cry.
The little boys remember. Once a long time ago, home was with Mommy and Daddy and their new baby sister. The boys were old enough for the memory of her arrival to impress them. She was small. That memory will now have been lost, squandered among the fearful memories that happened shortly after her appearance. Their removal from the loving environment of mommy's and daddy's home became an indelible imprint upon their minds. How crowded with horrors must their memory cache be? How often have they asked when can they come home? When was it that they stopped urgently asking that question? They may have wondered why they could not live at home? How long was that query a nightly trigger for the silent cries? Their nights were spent in different homes until recently when their sister came back into their lives. Imagine, three siblings together as it should be, but strangely not together with mommy and daddy. Do they feel their parents' helplessness? Is any sense made of it in a troubled child's mind. Their Mommy and Daddy show them so much love, but they never take them home. Might the boys have wondered early, whether they had been so bad that Mommy and Daddy didn't want them at home? Mommy and Daddy assured them over and over with convincing hugs and words that this was not so. Yet still each week now the boys observe their parents excited to see them and to smother them in embraces and then several hours later there are goodbyes. What explanations have their little boy minds contemplated? Have they been able to resolve their bewildering life situation? It's so confusing.
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With all my heart I am trusting that this nightmare will end in a celebration of reunion for all five members of the Bayne family, never again to experience the interference of what will forever to the Baynes be regarded as a heartless government agency.
The facts I am hearing, not about the Bayne family but about the generic British Columbia family are frightening. It's most frightening to me that most B.C. citizens while not knowing the facts, seem rather casual when they hear a shock story or a shock statistic so they hardly pay attention. People in families or involved with families that have been adversely affected by MCFD are the ones who pay attention.
The mess we are in, is the consequence of policy and practice, nonconstructive work experience, deficient skill sets, inadequate training, incompetent practitioners, unsuitable motivation.
People who have been listening are worried, frightened and angry. And a few are hopeful that things are so bad that the alarm will go off now so that people can finally be protected from the protectors so that the crying stops.
TOMORROW THE HEARING RESUMES AT CHILLIWACK COURT HOUSE BEFORE JUDGE THOMAS CRABTREE.
Did you read an earlier plaintiff piece written for June 10th entitled Surprised by Joy which refers to the Baynes' oldest son.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteBe mindful that Ferris is an ex-service provider. He will never agree with giving up child removal power, perhaps not until his loved ones fall prey.
ReplyDeleteCP law was created and perverted by special interests to benefit an industry. Child removal authority must be revoked before any meaningful reform is possible. Perhaps Ron should let Ferris defend his position.
Anon 7:59 AM - Read my comments again and see whether that is precisely what I said. Ferris can answer for himself and I was speaking for myself.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that my comments have inspired such lively debate. I do not want readers to think for one minute that I condone the horrible abuse of authority which has burgeoned over the last twenty years. I fully share the outrage expressed by so many readers.
ReplyDeleteI do not pretend to have the answers for correcting the current abuses. However, I do know what the answers ARE NOT. If you read all the horror stories from all the English speaking protection services in the USA Britain, Canada and so on, you will find that there are mainly two types. Those where there was inappropriate intrusion and abuse of authority and secondly those where horrible abuse of children was ignored. It is this type that outrages the public and creates demands for reform. As I said before in the days of fewer workers there was little over-investigation, but a huge amount of turning a blind eye to child suffering.
I think what the contributers are wrestling with is the fact that whatever one does, one is faced with a choice of evils. We are all trying to define which is the lesser evil. The present system is intolerable, but so were many conditions before present legislation. I am not defending the abuses in Quebec, or any other province. How do you find the anwers to practitioners who appear to be ignorant, callous and without intelligence. How do you deal with a management that defends appalling behaviour. How do you deal with a legislature which is apparently indifferent to such abuses of authority? Ron is doing his best to find answers and I commend him for taking on this herculean task.
One cannot divorce criminal and protection law from each other. When the RCMP cleared the Baynes, the ministry's hostile pursuit was plain wrong and very bad practice. When abusive parents are prosecuted by police, it is usually necessary to find a safe home for the children and this can often only be done through child welfare services. As I said in a previous blog, a whole lot of people aid and abet the abuses of the ministry. Apathetic defense lawyers, aggressive prosecutors and indifferent judges. The law is half the problem
Somebody said that judges err on the side of caution. This would work, providing that people get their day in court and can challenge the evidence quickly. This used to happen under the old law and one did not get the type of abuses that one sees in the Bayne case.
In my book "The Art of Child Protection" I try to set out a standard of practice, which protects the rights of both children and parents and ensures a speedy accountability on the part of social workers. I emphasise over and over again the need to practice within a strict ethical framework. I also emphasise the need for everything that is done to be based on good factual evidence, which can convince any reasonable person. I had hoped that if more people read my book, it might help to improve practice. When the MCF had its own library, the librarian requested more copies because it was in such demand.
As you can see, I understand where my critics are coming from and why they wish to simply cut the Gordian knot. Maybe you can help me with the dilemmas that I see and how we know which is the least evil to choose?
Corruption and Government / Waste of Taxpayer Dollars: PART 1 OF 2
ReplyDelete-------------------
Eight public agencies in Victoria are abandoning their offices in favour of more expensive, state-of-the-art premises amid tight government spending and staff layoffs.
The agencies say relocation is justified by efficiencies in the new office design and layout, by consolidating offices spread over a number of locations and mandates supporting such environmentally friendly buildings. Utility costs in these LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) buildings are estimated at 15 to 25 per cent lower than in older structures.
Improved storage for historic documents and extra space for independent offices of the legislature with expanded mandates are also spurring the moves.
Lease details are not being made public, but square-foot rent in new Class A office space can run from $28 to $32 a month. Class B landlords vying for tenants are cutting rates now that demand has stalled, with some around $10.
Millions will be spent over several years on everything from leases to moving costs and improvements such as walls and new furniture. Some money would have been spent in any case to rent space, while some is new. Some organizations were in publicly owned space and are now renting.
Three new major office buildings are taking eight government bodies:
- The Atrium at 800 Yates St. is taking B.C. Ferry Services' head office and the Land Title and Survey Authority of B.C. Each of the organizations is consolidating operations. Ferries president David Hahn said a favourable lease agreement was negotiated and the agency has the option to buy up to half of the owner's equity in the building at a maximum price of $25 million.
- Uptown on north Douglas Street now houses B.C. Assessment's head office and Consumer Protection B.C.
CON'T....
PART 2 OF 2 - GOVERNMENT WASTE OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS
ReplyDelete(The same government that is "protecting" children)
- 947 Fort St. will be home to four independent offices of the legislature -- the B.C. Ombudsperson, Information and Privacy Commissioner, Police Complaint Commissioner and Merit Commissioner.
Commercial real estate companies DTZ Barnicke and Colliers International agree that vacancies in mid-range buildings are rising as ministries downsize out of mainly Class B space. Colliers is predicting the region's office vacancy rate, now at 6.3 per cent, could rise to nine per cent by year's end and that rates won't drop until 2012.
Potential tenants are in a strong position, says Anne Tanner at DTZ Barnicke's Victoria office. "They have a tonne of leverage to get a great deal."
Landlords are shaving per-foot rents to between $10 to $15, from $20 to $25 a year ago, she said.
Vacancies are showing up in Class B buildings which were normally close to full, said Tanner, who noted the province normally takes up 35 to 40 per cent of office space downtown.
Several federal government departments are poised to fill some of the vacancies, she said. Tanner estimates federal demand will reach 60,000 square feet within six months.
"Vacancies are going up, rents are going down," says Gerald Hartwig, who owns or manages more than 100,000 square feet of downtown Victoria office space, including Nootka Court, which lost provincial tenants. Nootka Court, with 40,000 square feet available, is listed with DTZ Barnicke for $11 per square foot.
Michael Prince, the University of Victoria's Lansdowne professor of social policy, sees the benefit of consolidating organizations into one location.
And while it makes sense to have Class A office space for public bodies involved in industry or economic development, he said hundreds of public servants have lost jobs at a time these Crown agencies are moving into new locations.
Keeping employees happy -- and that's about more than just paycheques -- will be a factor for the B.C. public sector of the future. "They are going to be in the same race to compete to try to attract the next generation of public servants and public managers and executives," Prince said.
Issues include the quality of the workplace, its setup, location and condition of buildings, Prince said. "That's one of those things that you can't quite put a hard number on, but it is certainly goes into the equation of any headhunter. So I think in terms of looking ahead to the renewal of the B.C. public service, this has got to be seen as something that would be a positive, I think."
Read more: http://www.timescolonist.com/life/time+restraint+government+agencies+move+into+upscale+digs/3373999/story.html#ixzz0w3iUTU7I
More news today on the Government Paid Pedophiles:
ReplyDeleteB.C. used penile teen sex test for decades
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2010/08/08/bc-teen-sex-testing.html#socialcomments#ixzz0w3m0L2Cw
To Ferris
ReplyDeleteThere is no dilemma between a wrongfully accused parent problem and a child protection problem. Criminal law deals with all child abuse problems. CFCSA creates more problems both in terms of broadening the scope of child abuse and wrongful accuse of parents. I dealt with an example of drunkenness you used in your defense before. You give no response so far and continue to drag on your narrow view on the necessity and indispensability of general child removal power.
Yes, real child abuse is a crime and must be punished based on good evidence and due process. General child removal authority must be revoked to protect families from being harmed and oppressed. There is no conflict.
To anon 4.32PM. My view is far from narrow and you appear to be contradicting yourself. You say that child abuse must be punished. What do you do with the kids when the parents are jailed? What do you do with abandoned children? What do you do with orphaned children? How do you deal with these through the criminal justice system? Child protection has many facets and there are no easy answers. It is a tough job and that is why it needs top quality staff. I suggest that it is you who is being narrow, by thinking there are simplistic answers.
ReplyDeleteI would rather posters stick to the subject of a particular day's blog rather than continue discussions from comments from previous days. I discovered that comments are not searchable using the blog-specific search box, only blog texts. A search on "Ray Ferris" for example, produces only two blog references, none of his many comments.
ReplyDeleteThe 2-part office space story, while interesting, only needs the link posted, not the content of the entire story.
Incidently, while centralization can obviously be reasoned to consolidates costs, is it really a good idea to group disparate government entities together? Imagine, a freedom of information employee having lunch in the joint cafeteri and hob-knobbing with an MCFD representative.
Anon 9:42 PM
ReplyDeleteYou wrote: "I discovered that comments are not searchable using the blog-specific search box, only blog texts."
That's true. It is a Blogger design issue and nothing correctable by the administrator. And I agree with you that comments should associate with the post theme. I do have the option of rejecting a comment - often reluctant to do that but on occasion will have to when the comment is irrelevant to the theme as this one re:office space was. I let it pass.
My son may well be able to come home from being in care in 2 weeks. He was very confident and out spoken when he went into care. I see that now he is quite shy and worried what will happen if he speaks out. He saw his baby sister get taken like a criminal from my arms. He is blaming himself for that and feels really badly no matter how I try to reassure him. My daughter was so scared and upset then so relaxed and happy to see me for our first supervised visit after over a week from when she was taken. But then after 90 minutes I had to give her up to a stranger again. Then to another stranger the next time, and another stranger. She is not happy anymore. She used to smile and laugh at everybody, now she is shy and scared. This is what MCFD does to children.
ReplyDeleteThe various commentary the failings of the CFCSA begs the question, how well do the child protection acts work in all the other Provinces? Is there any that do a better job because their version of the child protection act is written with more thought?
ReplyDeleteHaving your child removed is comparable to rape, in the level of trauma induced on not just the child but the parents.
ReplyDeletePost traumatic stress, interrupting of bonds between child and parent for extended, and needless lengths of time.
The difference is the government does this not for personal gratification, but for money.
Somewhere, in a different Province, State or Country, there are examples of child protection that work, that does not destroy families in the process, does not ignore abused or troubled children, and does not remove children from families on a wide scale as a "precaution."
Yes, I do not know how they got the right to do so much 'precautionary' child removal. I am in the position of trying to explain to people how a bunch of quite unusual people who are not anyone you would want to know have been able to phone on me and create a malicious file against me that led to child removal. It was just one social worker who did this. I have pages of good reports on file, but she cobbled together the strangest stuff, like reports that I was smoking crack while driving a car with my baby unbuckled. I do not have a drivers license or a car and have never attempted to drive a car, and have never gone near any kind of drugs. These are mischief calls, yet MCFD welcomes them. Why?
ReplyDeleteI agree that child removal is like rape. My sister was phoned to comment on my parenting abilities. She likes me and is a supporter but they got her talking about stuff that went on 30 years ago in our family when we grew up. She had no idea that the SW would use it legally to remove my child. Sure enough, it is on my file and I am so considered messed up. But that was not even the case when I grew up, I actually had a good childhood. Yet, MCFD thinks all this other stuff that is unproven. My sister could not believe her words would be twisted like that. She was crying last night and felt so bad. I was okay with it because I will not go after my family members when they have been raped by MCFD. We have to stay strong and show love to each other. But what kind of a group would do this?? I have never even been known to even yell at my kids and they are smart, healthy and well dressed and do well in school. Why are they trying so hard?? What about children who are really being abused?? They are not doing their job properly anymore. MCFD has gotten very strange and I am tired of being the one to have to explain it to people who can not believe that MCFD is like this now.
ReplyDeleteWhy indeed Anon 8:25 AM?
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of person assembles documentation without confirming that the details are accurate and tries to form an opinion about a stranger and their trustworthiness without truly knowing that person. And why would someone accept an anonymous report from anyone upon which to build a case that might lead to child removal? It is conduct that in other settings would be reason for loss of job or lawsuit. This present system must go.
In the United States there are cases where social workers have been charged with false allegations - these social workers have made anonymous phone calls to child protective services, alleging abuse - the social workers have then been discovered to have made false accusations of abuse. In at least one case, the social worker went to jail. The point is, anyone - including a caseworker or a social worker - can make an anonymous allegation of abuse. The end result is that children suffer terribly, because of the highly traumatic removal, and because of the ripping apart of their family, subsequent time in foster housing, and all the destruction that goes with that existence.
ReplyDeleteGradually, and this is escalating, snow balling as more people feel free to speak out, people are realizing that child protective services - all over the world - has way too much power, and that they abuse that power. Things will change, and those who have been guilty of what are essentially crimes against humanity (look up the definition of that term if you think I'm exaggerating) will have to account for their actions.
ANON AT 8:56 WRITES:
ReplyDelete"I agree that child removal is like rape. My sister was phoned to comment on my parenting abilities. She likes me and is a supporter but they got her talking about stuff that went on 30 years ago in our family when we grew up. She had no idea that the SW would use it legally to remove my child."
THIS IS WHY IT IS SO IMPORTANT TO NEVER TRUST SOCIAL WORKERS / CASEWORKERS. THE INFORMATION THEY GET CAN BE USED TO DESTROY CHILDREN, AND IT IS USED, ALL THE TIME, TO DESTROY CHILDREN.\
NEVER, EVER TRUST THEM. Even when they act nice, even when they just pretend to be making simple conversation. They are, as we have found time and again, gathering information with one goal in mind: taking a child from his or her parents, forever. DO NOT BE AN ACCOMPLICE - TELL THEM this;
"My lawyer has advised me that I cannot speak with anyone about this issue, unless he or she is present." If you don't have a lawyer, or if your lawyer hasn't said this, THEY SHOULD say it, so don't be afraid yourself to say it. THIS IS CANADA, you have the right to remain silent. Especially when everything you say will be used against a child. To destroy that child. DO NOT BE AN ACCOMPLICE. They will lie, and distort the truth. Do not fall for it. Tell them nothing.
ANON WRITES AT 8:56 AM:
ReplyDelete"But what kind of a group would do this?? I have never even been known to even yell at my kids and they are smart, healthy and well dressed and do well in school. Why are they trying so hard?? What about children who are really being abused?? They are not doing their job properly anymore. MCFD has gotten very strange and I am tired of being the one to have to explain it to people who can not believe that MCFD is like this now."
It's because of people such as yourself that the truth is getting out. And you are 100% correct when you state MCFD has gotten very strange. This is true of all child protection all over the world. You can't just get rid of one or two of the people, and all will be fixed. The rot is deep and wide, and impossible to fix. They must be abolished. That may seem harsh, but once you really understand what they do, and how they do it - and once you TRY to understand why they do it, you can only come to one conclusion: they must be abolished. Just like slavery.
MCFD encourages "casual" conversation, because then they can later cherry-pick out the "good" parts that disparage you as a parent, and because any notes the parent takes will be disbelieved. Always, two of these people are in an interview of you, one writing, the other free to converse and distract, disarm or to intimidate you.
ReplyDeleteSocial workers are viewed much like officers of the court in the same way police officers are. They have "no motive" to lie. Their "notes" are viewed as gospel. Your notes are ignored.
ALWAYS record conversations. Ask your friends and family members to talk to MCFD and supply positive information and record conversations to ensure intakes you later acquire are accurate, then point out the differences in court and in a sworn affidavit.
Ask questions, such as what services do they offer? What servics, in your opinion, do I need? When can I take advantage of these free services? Can you provide respite care for my children? Can I see my intake records when you close the file in 30 days? Have you done a risk assessment, or, can I help you write a risk assessment (fill out the form yourself.)
Typically MCFD will only offer you services if a file is opened and then they get to call it a "service agreement" and it is stretched out over a year or two. They do not benefit if you go out on your own and take an anger management course, or a parenting course. They then can't interrogate the course providers to provide negative information about you.
You can also do a pre-emptive strike if you suspect MCFD is planning a removal by doing a parental capacity assessment with a known, ministry-approved psychologist that is not afraid of the Ministry that is proven to write objective reports. It costs $4,000-$10,000, but it is far cheaper than the legal route after they take your kids. Plus, you cannot redo such tests within a 2-year timeframe, such as the MNPI psychological test.
You will have considerable armament if you have some of this ready beforehand and it is presented at a presentation hearing.
Responding to Anons 2:10 PM and 2:50 PM
ReplyDeleteTo 2:10 - I know that there are many people who find it difficult to believe that MCFD is causing so much heartache needlessly. It is easier to believe that MCFD is merely doing the job it has been charged to do and that they all use good judgement in each and every case. How does one make the quantum leap to believing that reports about parents are stretched or fabricated on the basis of inadequate or wrong data unless you know someone who children have actually been removed. At some point many of these parents will have to tell their stories in a very public hearing so this country can see and hear.
To 2:50 - Good point you've made about inviting friends and family to talk to MCFD to provide affirming information. Baynes have learned in court that the primary SW didn't read any of them. At least this ridiculous oversight was exposed. Your paragraph about expressing willingness and cooperation is well made. Also good point to be proactive in taking courses that satisfy a requirement but not with an agency that works with MCFD. I was most interested in your suggestion of the pre-emptive strike of a self-initiated capacity assessment using a ministry-approved psychologist who is not intimidated by the Ministry, but I was appalled at the cost of $4-10,000. You said this was wise to do in advance of a presentation hearing. I WILL BE MOST INTERESTED TO HEAR OTHER CONTRIBUTORS ABOUT WHETHER THIS SEEMS REASONABLE AND POSSIBLE.
ALWAYS record conversations. Don't talk to them UNLESS a recorder is running. Digital if possible, so you can upload to your computer.
ReplyDeleteI would not recommend accepting any of their services as they will, just as their casual conversations, be used against you.
Remember the goal of MCFD: To take your children. No matter what they say, or how they act, even if this is not their goal (by some miraculous chance) act as if it is. Your child's life depends upon it.
I found that a very odd thing also happened in my MCFD experience. I was offered 'supports'. The particular homemaker I was given said the most strange things about me and my kids. She was quite scary and told me that her friends who work for MCFD take home the client's garbage and sort through it and they use it for evidence they put into written reports against parents. These are parents like myself who may be suffering some mild post partum depression. They are not criminals. She was very intimidating and when I read her writings about me, I got them officially refuted (5 years ago. Oddly enough, I find that her words still stand. There is a tiny note that I disagree with the notes and in other places it is used to discredit me even further. A CPS worker from a fresh intake quotes all these weird untrue statements throughout my file. SO there is no way to clean a file. Has anyone ever been able to clean their file?
ReplyDeleteAvoid hate, profanity, name calling, character attack, slander and threats, using specific names.
ReplyDeleteI can avoid it but I will still hate them because they are mind munipulating word twisting heartless child stealers. They dont give a crap about kids all the people that should get thier kids back dont and the ones that should not do.
Most of the social workers never lived through poverty, sexual abuse, drugs, gangs, drunken parents and spouses, development delays, mental health such as, depression,OCD,ADD
They sit thier with thier noses in the air looking down on people and they give the fighters the most judgements.
character attack is exactly what they do at MCFD thier job is to destroy and dismantle the family unit and fill thier pockets they are running a business.....period
THIS IS BIGGER THEN US THIS IS NEW WORLD ORDER NO RIGHTS NO CHARTER OF RIGHTS APPLY THEY SAY WHAT THEY WANT THEY DO WHAT THEY WANT THEY LIE AND GET AWAY WITH IT....I SUGGEST A NICE BIG SMILE THEY ARE LIKE THE POLICE ANYTHING YOU SAY OR DO WILL BE USED AGAINST YOU..SECURE YOUR DEFENSE AND DONT TRUST THEM!