Justice Department findings not to their liking

[normanchateau]

"Parenting by same-sex families is just as good...for children when compared to heterosexual families, a Justice Department study has concluded.

Commissioned by the then-Liberal federal government in 2003 at the height of the same-sex marriage debate, the academic study was not released until recently when its main author, professor Paul Hastings at Concordia University, obtained it under the Access to Information Act.

The paper references about 100 studies on parenting.

Mr. Hastings said it is only speculation but he believes the study was being held back from being published by the Justice Department once Stephen Harper's Conservative government came into power in 2006. The Conservatives upheld their election promise to review the issue of same-sex marriage when a government motion on the question of revisiting the definition of marriage was defeated in the House of Commons in December.

The psychology professor pointed out that a government-commissioned study that suggests same-sex parents may even be advantageous to children would probably not be appreciated by the federal Tories.

Question period notes and media lines recently obtained by CanWest News Services, via an Access to Information request, reveal the department distancing itself from the research paper by stating it simply represents the opinions of the study's author "and not those of the department."

As well, in notes prepared for question period, it stresses that there has been "very little research in this area" but that "the Government of Canada has a duty to fully support all children and their families."

http://forum.newshounds.us/viewtopic.php?t...7d8ab0a3fb483dd

What's especially interesting here is that the author had to use the Access to Information Act to get his own report released to the public. The Conservative Justice Department was not about to release it. I wonder why? Could it be because the conclusions were "not those of the Department" but merely those of more than 100 rigorous scientific studies that the professor had compiled? I wonder what the Conservative Justice Department believes should be a more appropriate and authoritative source used to make conclusions?

[betsy]

What's especially interesting here is that the author had to use the Access to Information Act to get his own report released to the public.

Well, the answer is right in that article. And the government is right!

Question period notes and media lines recently obtained by CanWest News Services, via an Access to Information request, reveal the department distancing itself from the research paper by stating it simply represents the opinions of the study's author "and not those of the department."

As well, in notes prepared for question period, it stresses that there has been "very little research in this area" but that "the Government of Canada has a duty to fully support all children and their families."

What's especially interesting to me here is the odd use of words by this author that points out that in his own view, nothing was really conclusive.

"May even be...." is not good enough!

I can SUGGEST...and can consider my "conclusion" to be right so...that same-sex parents MAY even be dis-advantageous to children.

That's why this study was supposedly commissioned.

To eliminate the "MAYBEs".....and to get an authoritative conclusion.

This is not about some trivial matter, for crying out loud. This is about our children....the future generation!

The psychology professor pointed out that a government-commissioned study that SUGGESTS same-sex parents MAY even be advantageous to children would probably not be appreciated by the federal Tories.

The use of the words "suggests" and "maybe"....ESPECIALLY the word "maybe".....connotes the author himself does not fully stand by his own conclusion. That he cannot fully back it up with authority if challenged by others in the research field.

He is not sure about this.

In other words, this study concluded squat!

Just another waste of taxpayers money!

Just to let you know, there's another thread existing, similar to this one.

[M.Dancer]

Isn't there already a lame thread about this?

[normanchateau]

Isn't there already a lame thread about this?

Do you have the link to it?

[sharkman]

Yeah, here it is.

[normanchateau]

Yeah, here it is.

Thank you.