sketerpot wrote:How about we get rid of mandatory driver's licenses, and you repeat that remark. How well would it fly in that discussion?
1. A reasonable but untrained person cannot be expected to reliably operate a motor vehicle on a public road without significant risk of harm to others. Training received and tested in preparation for obtaining a driver's licence is essential to that safe operation. By comparison, a reasonable but untrained person who has a child does not pose a significant risk to her child or anyone else.
2. I haven't heard anyone claiming that people should be forced to undergo surgery to make them unable to drive a car, have you?
More government power is not inherently good or bad. You have to give reasons why it's good or bad for specific issues. In this case, the benefit of parental licensure is that it would cut down on children being born to parents who are horrifically unfit to raise them. Your turn: what do you have against parental licensure that isn't some generic "government power is evil" comment?
You are suggesting that the government should be given the power to force a woman to undergo destructive surgery, against her will, for the crime of having a child without first receiving government permission.
Also, your suggested law would increase the risk of harm to the child of an unlicenced mother. If the government is threatening to forcibly sterilise her if she reveals she had a child without a licence, if something
does go wrong, she will be more likely to delay seeking assistance.
A related question:
If a victimless crime like having a child without seeking government approval is to be punished by inflicting injury on the mother, do you also support such tactics for crimes which do harm others?