Should paternity tests be mandatory for married couples?

[Property of Goddess Irene]

Paternity tests have become very conspicuous in today's society. There are many instances where this information could be useful, and unlike a mother who its much simpler knowing who their child is, a father is harder to tell. If the correct biological father is found, then they would be responsible for child support as well.

[sgtninjago]

Why the fuck should anybody be doing this?

 

Unless the general public wants more Maury Povich episodes

 

[Leo's Candy Jelly Ho]

No wtf

[Chriandra]

Uh no. Like... that would be so stupid.

 

And anyway, in the US at least if you're married you're responsible for the kid no matter who the father is. You can't even get divorced if your wife is pregnant.

[♥SNS-Shinomiya♥]

I find this useful for certain circumstances, but I guess the problem is that getting a parernity test for married couples is almost like a malicious thing. You get the test to see who is the fathers, as if there is more than one father, as if the woman was unfaithful. Personally I do think before a man is put on child support yes a paternity test should be conducted, to make sure that a man isn't unjustly paying for a child that isnt his. In the case of marriage it seems dirty to me.

[denizen mars]

one would hope that if you've married someone, you either know who the father is, or you know it's uncertain and you don't care. In any case I think it should be a private matter for the couple in question, not something to be mandated by the state. 

[duhleenuh]

No, because it enables a lovechild culture, which we're already living in. People should be smart about who they sleep with and have kids with.

 

If people don't want to pay for someone else's child or if people don't want to run around accusing people of being the father, they should protect themselves. I don't think this sort of "protection" should be mandated.

[daebakplushies]

since the law states that after birth a baby is a person then I do think he has the right to know.

[Hizu]

Mandatory? No.

Who wants to do it can do it, who doesn't want to doesn't have to.

[denalichen]

Heck no.  Just one more cost for the poor government that will get passed on to taxpayers.  There is no reason to test every married couple who is having a baby.

[Property of Goddess Irene]

It would be mandatory because basically all women will say no. Like they say, it's the own woman's body, but when it comes to a child the legal and/or biological father should have rights and obligations as well.

 

There were cases of some casanovas impregnating various women, letting everyone else take care of their responsibility.

[duhleenuh]

It would be mandatory because basically all women will say no. Like they say, it's the own woman's body, but when it comes to a child the legal and/or biological father should have rights and obligations as well.

 

There were cases of some casanovas impregnating various women, letting everyone else take care of their responsibility.

I understand where you're getting at, but like I said, people should be more wary of who they get with.

I feel like a lot of people date and commit with these unexplainable, "in the moment" sentiments without really knowing their partner or their tendencies, and then suffer a lot of problems and heartache later when the right circumstance tears them apart.

[sane]

I hate to say it, but yes. The amount of children being raised by a man who think they're his but they actually aren't is way too high. Let the guy know the truth and choose whether or not he wants to be a part of it, it's only fair. Paternity fraud is unfortunately a very real and fairly common thing. If the tests are mandatory and it comes back true then the marriage will only be made stronger, if it comes back false then the man and child have a right to know.

 

And if you don't give a shit about fathers' rights (which you fucking should but whatever) then at least think about the kid... How are they supposed to prepare for any genetic health problems they might face down the line if they only know for certain half of their lineage? What if Bob the mailman has a serious heart defect that Dan the "dad" doesn't, and the kid never knows to get it checked out?

 

 

I understand where you're getting at, but like I said, people should be more wary of who they get with.

I feel like a lot of people date and commit with these unexplainable, "in the moment" sentiments without really knowing their partner or their tendencies, and then suffer a lot of problems and heartache later when the right circumstance tears them apart.

 

If somebody is really good at hiding their cheating then how are you supposed to know without stalking them 24/7? You marry somebody because you trust them, it's not your fault if they break that trust and you shouldn't be the one who's punished for it. Who knows, maybe mandatory testing would actually reduce the amount of cheating (or even reduce the amount of marriages that are doomed to fail from the start).

[Property of Goddess Irene]

I understand where you're getting at, but like I said, people should be more wary of who they get with.

I feel like a lot of people date and commit with these unexplainable, "in the moment" sentiments without really knowing their partner or their tendencies, and then suffer a lot of problems and heartache later when the right circumstance tears them apart.

Sometimes the woman may just cheat once, sometimes right before marriage and then have the capability to act normal afterward knowing the child doesn't belong to the husband. In those cases, which are probably common, it would be very hard to tell from the husband's point of view.

[duhleenuh]

Sometimes the woman may just cheat once, sometimes right before marriage and then have the capability to act normal afterward knowing the child doesn't belong to the husband. In those cases, which are probably common, it would be very hard to tell from the husband's point of view.

 

If somebody is really good at hiding their cheating then how are you supposed to know without stalking them 24/7? You marry somebody because you trust them, it's not your fault if they break that trust and you shouldn't be the one who's punished for it. Who knows, maybe mandatory testing would actually reduce the amount of cheating (or even reduce the amount of marriages that are doomed to fail from the start).

 

 

Good points, but I guess the thing about it is, I don't really believe in legally mandating things in general. I don't even believe in legally mandating child support. I feel like a lot of people have gotten too accustomed to letting the government step in to fix their lives, not realizing that the more you let them in, the harder it is to get them to step out.

 

 

I think that it's really sad when people get taken advantage of and are lied to, but if they get shafted after working to the best of their abilities, it's a loss. It's true, a lot of people are shit and it's hard to know who to trust, but I think that people should be more skeptical and try to protect themselves more before moving towards something being a legality.

 

 

And I don't think that the mandate would help in terms of doomed marriages because so many people have children out of wedlock as it is. These are the people who take their scum cases to Maury and end up testing ten people.

[denalichen]

You are talking about implementing something based on the fear that women COULD be unfaithful.  But I don't think the problem is widespread enough to warrant a new government agency to determine this.  Leave it for the child support cases and any man who truly doubts the origin of the baby. 

 

Mandating paternity tests would unfairly target women because they only show if the woman was unfaithful. 

[Property of Goddess Irene]

You are talking about implementing something based on the fear that women COULD be unfaithful.  But I don't think the problem is widespread enough to warrant a new government agency to determine this.  Leave it for the child support cases and any man who truly doubts the origin of the baby. 

 

Mandating paternity tests would unfairly target women because they only show if the woman was unfaithful.

It goes both ways. If the biological father already has a girlfriend or wife then it would be uncovered he also cheated.

[loviin_lee]

one would hope that if you've married someone, you either know who the father is, or you know it's uncertain and you don't care. In any case I think it should be a private matter for the couple in question, not something to be mandated by the state.

Exactly!

[Agilio]

Good points, but I guess the thing about it is, I don't really believe in legally mandating things in general. I don't even believe in legally mandating child support. I feel like a lot of people have gotten too accustomed to letting the government step in to fix their lives, not realizing that the more you let them in, the harder it is to get them to step out.

 

 

I think that it's really sad when people get taken advantage of and are lied to, but if they get shafted after working to the best of their abilities, it's a loss. It's true, a lot of people are shit and it's hard to know who to trust, but I think that people should be more skeptical and try to protect themselves more before moving towards something being a legality.

 

 

And I don't think that the mandate would help in terms of doomed marriages because so many people have children out of wedlock as it is. These are the people who take their scum cases to Maury and end up testing ten people.

 

I don't believe in mandating child support either, nor alimony but that's a whole other topic. 

 

In general society has become way too lax about things and too many people have the attitude that the government is supposed to provide them with things or that someone else is obligated to do things for them "because of reasons." This is why I don't agree with mandating paternity test. No one is obligated to make sure you don't accidentally pick up the cost of raising someone else's child. You need to be more selective about who you chose to engage in unprotected sex with. You want to be care-free and nonchalant, you suffer the expensive consequences.  

 

I'll say that it takes a special kind of woman to lie about something as serious as paternity. Most women use paternity fraud as a means to ensure a more stable environment financially for their child. My advice is this, don't engage in unprotected sex with men who you don't have confidence in their ability to provide for you and a child that will be completely dependent on you for at least 16 years!