Question should be: What's best for children of divorce?

Question should be: What's best for children of divorce?
EDITOR:
Ohio is presumptively a shared parenting state.
Joint custody has been proved through studies as best for the children providing there are no criminal offenses against either parent, and they are both willing to take an active role in the welfare of the child. Sole custody encourages hostility because one parent is in control and often uses the child as a pawn.
Studies have shown that children that have both parents involved in their life adjust better in life with fewer psychological problems and have a greater percentage of successful marriages.
The problem lies before the final court date. There have been so many divorces that the court dates are in the distant future, many 10 months down the road. It is presumed that the mother has sole custody until then. The conflict from divorce is exacerbated when one parent is in control. In 85 percent to 95 percent of divorce cases, the father is initially presumed to be the nonresidential parent; the father has only 41/2 days per month to the mother's 251/2 days per month. For a father who has been actively involved with a child, this can be extremely devastating to the child and the father, let alone the extended family members. It is also ludicrous to think that any parent should have to pay child support for a child he can't actively be involved with.
The child support formula needs to be scrutinized. The child support provided to any parent should only be used to improve the quality of the child's life. And the divorce transition for the children can be much easier if they see each parent equally from the beginning of the separation.
The Children's Rights Council works to assure a child the frequent, meaningful and continuing contact with two parents and extended family the child would normally have during a marriage. CRC is not gender biased. Many mothers have joined CRC because they felt their rights were being violated and want to ensure equal rights for both parents.
If interested in gaining a greater insight concerning parents' and children's equality issues, contact the CRC at www.gocrc.com. Let's think of our children's best interests and fight for equal rights. A CRC organizational meeting has been scheduled for June 15 at Scholl Pavilion in Mill Creek Park from 6 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. Further information is available at (330) 799-3057.
NANCY MOORE
Youngstown
Arrests made for loud stereo,but real issues are ignored
EDITOR:
I must congratulate the fine work of the Youngstown police on the capture and arrest of loud car stereo "criminals." I do understand that for many families this is an important "quality of life" issue, as are the loud factory noises, car security systems, and pity the ice cream truck driver who is no longer allowed to play his tunes.
A particular "quality of life" issue is the torture of sleep deprivation brought on by a neighbor's pet, and I use the term loosely, which is chained outside 24-7 and allowed to bark throughout most of the night, keeping an entire neighborhood awake.
The house next door has been left to rot, depositing its loosened parts on my property. Where is a decent "quality of life" hiding itself in the Idora Park area?
My personal resolution is to move somewhere where pets are not allowed and property is cared for, as expected, and so there will be one more abandoned house on the South Side.
D.A. CRAIG
Youngstown