In the Absence of Fathers: A Story of Elephants and Men

[Sanguine]

Are committed fathers an endangered species in our culture? Fr. Gordon MacRae draws a troubling corollary between absent fathers and burgeoning prisons.

Wade Horn, Ph.D., President of the National Fatherhood Initiative, had an intriguing article entitled “Of Elephants and Men” in a recent issue of  Fatherhood Today magazine. I found Dr. Horn’s story about young elephants to be simply fascinating, and you will too. It was sent to me by a TSW reader who wanted to know if there is any connection between the absence of fathers and the shocking growth of the American prison population.

Some years ago, officials at the Kruger National Park and game reserve in South Africa were faced with a growing elephant problem. The population of African elephants, once  endangered, had grown larger than the park could sustain. So measures had to be taken to thin the ranks. A plan was devised to relocate some of the elephants to other African game reserves. Being enormous creatures, elephants are not easily transported.  So a special harness was created to air-lift the elephants and fly them out of the park using helicopters.

http://thesestonewalls.com/gordon-macrae/in-the-absence-of-fathers-a-story-of-elephants-and-men/

This is an older article, but it is such a foundational truth (IMHO), that it deserves a re-read.  Or, a first read if you've never seen it.

[rodamala]

Excellent article.  Thanks for posting.  I wish I had a way to bookmark it.

[Sanguine]

Excellent article.  Thanks for posting.  I wish I had a way to bookmark it.

You're welcome. 

I just save the text to a file on my computer so that I can refer to it as needed.  So much information out there, it's the only way I can keep track.

[verga]

This is an older article, but it is such a foundational truth (IMHO), that it deserves a re-read.  Or, a first read if you've never seen it.

@Sanguine Bill Bennett has made that same case time and time again. Years ago one of my uncles passed away leaving a wife daughter and very young son. He managed to get himself into quite a bit of trouble and ended up getting himself arrested one night. My Aunt called my Father to ask him to bail my cousin out, and my father said he would do that in the morning. My Aunt was pretty upset that her son was spending the night in jail. My Father told her she could have someone else bail him, but he felt a night in jail would do my cousin some good.