Argumentative Penguin
2 min readMay 23, 2024

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It's a balancing act - and having worked at the front end of Child Protection, I think sometimes the chaos of state interference generates more damage than simply leaving families alone. The right to a private family life is under Article 8 and I don't think this is given as much credence as it should.

What I mean by this is.... there are things I would strongly disagree with when it comes to bringing up children. Bigoted views around race, sexuality, gender etc fall into that category - but they aren't in-and-of themselves abusive. Abusive parents must be stopped, 'bigoted' simply means the parents have an inability to listen to others views and simply going against the direction of travel of the state isn't indicative of malevolence.

There are also plenty of examples of children being put in the care of state and exposed to monsters of all forms that weren't in their families. I've worked on cases in residential homes where the police have been called because children have smashed things in anger - no parent is calling the police because their kid threw a tantrum.

I understand your position and I do obviously want children protected from harm, school can be a hugely protective factor - but they can also be a source of danger. School can be respite, but it isn't always. A school which insists upon forcibly teaching a particular moral code which differs from that of your parents may put children in danger.

I would prefer every child has a liberal education. I won't mandate it. I had a blow up with James Finn about this a few years back. I can't remember if I've sent it to you before- but incase I haven't.... here it is. https://medium.com/lucid-nightmare/whack-a-woke-james-finn-special-86d6cb79aa11

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Argumentative Penguin
Argumentative Penguin

Written by Argumentative Penguin

Playwright. Screenwriter. Penguin. Fan of rationalism and polite discourse. Find me causing chaos in the comments. Contact: argumentativepenguin@outlook.com

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