Preventing the need for alternative care

From UN Alternative care document
IV. Preventing the need for alternative care
38. States should ensure opportunities for day care, including all-day schooling,
and respite care which would enable parents better to cope with their overall
responsibilities towards the family, including additional responsibilities inherent in
caring for children with special needs.

A strange request for states. From a state perspective, educating the children in a state school is more beneficial to the state's goals. How many parents have run into conflicts with the state education system. The typical problem is religious views versus the secular approach of the state. This conflict happened in the Marxist states and now in the secular US.

The question is really, what do parents need to cope with? The state would want productive adults to contribute to the economy. Caring for the children with day care and all day schooling should enhance the state's objectives. Hopefully, the family benefits from this approach. From personal experience, I found mom at home to be the best model.

Injury update

Well, Sveta is giving me electrical therapy and it seems to be helping. I thought I was going to have to postpone or even give up this effort. The hardest part is not re-injuring myself. I can hurt myself sleeping if I have an arm in a bad position. The gym presents challenges, but I am adjusting my routines.

Un and punishment of children

Another interesting find from the Convention on the Rights of Children.

Article 2.2 "States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the child is protected against all

forms of discrimination or punishment on the basis of the status, activities, expressed opinions, or

beliefs of the child's parents, legal guardians, or family members". How do we define punishment and separate from discipline? Seems to be a matter of definition.

UN and abortion

An interesting quote from the United Nations on the Rights of Children.
 “Whereas the child, by reason of his physical and mental immaturity, needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth” (United Nations General Assembly, 1959).
There is no mention of abortion. It states that children should have safeguards and care before birth. That phrase plus legal protection indicates that children should not be aborted; it is a violation of their rights. Notice how many countries ignore this statement for convenience.

True orphans versus social orphans

According to UNICEF figures, only 10.7% of orphans have lost both parents. They are the true orphans, while the others are social orphans. When we think of 89.3% of the estimated 140 million orphans as having one parent, it makes an interesting situation. How many are abandoned, how many parents have lost parental rights, and perhaps other factors such as poverty, migration, or children who run away or are abducted into human trafficking.

Forward progress

I am making good progress on the orphan model article. I had to adjust my mind mapping. I need to include negative factors such as PSTD, RAD-Reactive attachment disorder, ADHD, and FAS-Fetal alcohol syndrome into the diagram. Also I flipped causes with types i.e. true orphan and social orphan. Still it is a very complicated web of topics as I write. Sometimes I find research that fits in two or more categories. This should be a good work when finished.

Abandoned Faith

I began reading the text on millenials. Quite a lot to digest. Everybody panics over the loss of Christians when they become adults. I remember in my 20s-many many moons ago, a pastor told me that he was glad to see me in church. He commented how we raise them in the faith and they disappear in their 20s for various reasons. Most come back when they get married and have children.

Abandoned Faith: Why Millennials are Walking Away and how You Can Lead Them Home

Alex McFarland, Jason Jimenez

Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2017

HIV/AIDS

Inspite of a rocky two days of events, I started on actually writing the article. I landed on HIV/AIDS for the first literature review. I can see I will need weeks to complete this article. With over 740 sources, there is much content to sort through. Ironically, the 25 page chapter I wrote on Project Management Procurement and Contracting theory helped me with a framework to write this one. The results are staggering for HIV/AIDS. Over half are in Africa.


Approximately 36.7 million people worldwide have HIV. Of that number approximately 2.1 are children. The number of infections continue to decline and access to antiretroviral therapy annually increases (UNAIDS, 2018).

Pain and progress

Still have numbness on the left hand and pain in the right elbow. I set up voice recognition on the computer. I tired the internal mics to the computer and they would not work. I have an external USB mic, works fine. However, I only have one open mic so have to trade of for the scanner and sometimes the printer. The printer is wireless, but once in a blue moon it decides not to work. Hopefully I can make forward progress.

I cleaned up the titles for the 735 sources this weekend. APA format uses sentence case so now I can insert references in proper format. I did get some ideas for publishers as I added sources. In the last 14 days, I added 295 sources and in the last 30 days the database says 372. Wow that is a lot of material since I had to import each one manually and download and often rename the pdf and then upload it. No wonder my fingers, hands and elbows are broke.

The researcher's search dilemma

Just when I thought I had searched through all the research databases, I discovered I had to use different combinations of the term orphan. I had good success with orphanhood and orphanage. The problem with the term orphan is the overlap with other areas. Orphan is used in technology and computer science. Orphan is used with drugs and other types of diseases so I end up with thousands of sources for a search. Too much minutia to wade through. Now I noticed I can use orphan and a topic such as China. Back to the search!

Enough sources to write

I finally searched high and low through the databases to come up with 661 sources in the orphan databases. Some sources are related to my dissertation but I would estimate over 600 pertain to orphans. I can start writing the ground breaking article on orphan theory. I am estimating about 120 hours to write 25 pages single spaced with about 40-50 sources. Let the writing begin!

Numb fingers

Well all this work on the computer has numbed my fingers in my left hand. My right elbow has a tendency to get "tennis elbow". I wonder how I will type for this project if the numbing continues. Even now my fingers are numb. I am feeling like tennis players and musicians who do repetitive movements so much that they cannot perform well or perhaps have to retire. Not sure how I would advocate for orphans if I can not use a computer. I do my exercises regularly to mitigate the left hand. I had this symptom before a few times. I can only hope for God's mercy and His healing hand to continue this work for the long term. I had planned to be still working on this, Lord willing, when I am 90 years old and beyond.

Orphan theory model

I have 578 sources now. Doing what a researcher does-digging for sources. It is an interesting excavation. The bulk of the material is sub-Saharan Africa, Russia, and Romania. Runners up are India, Malaysia, Turkey, and China.  Since most of the research is case studies, I have my work cut out. Fortunately I am trying to set a baseline and then we will have a benchmark to work from.

Gambling for orphans

As I read through the book of Job, I ran across an interesting verse:
"You would even cast lots for the fatherless and barter away your friend".
Gambling for the orphan is quite a serious charge. Job makes it to his friends who challenge his righteousness. It is more like having an auction for an orphan and the category is the same as betraying a friend in an auction and not standing up for that friend. I do recall other verses in Job about the fatherless. Best estimates are that Job lived between Noah and Abraham and possibly in western Mesopotamia. That was before the law and before Israel became a nation. Wise people understood orphans required care and should not be treated as property.

Humorous story about Kentucky Fried and orphan research almost leading to a riot

I found a humorous outcome of research on orphans. This study was done by pediatricians.

The interviews were being done at school, after hours, so it
was, ‘Well it’s going to take up your time. We’ll arrange to
provide food.’ There was a discussion with the children,
‘We’re happy to provide food, what would you like?’ And the
kids said they all wanted Kentucky Fried … Now, it’s a nice
idea […] a form of compensation that’s not really excessive.
Except … it’s a poor township, so most of them have never
had this. Kentucky Fried’s a real treat. […] There was a point
at which other kids came around and saw that these kids
were getting Kentucky Fried. There was almost going to be a
riot. It was fairly tense. Other kids were wanting it, other teachers
were wanting it, demanding it. They handled it by basically
barricading themselves in a room and handing Kentucky
Fried out the window to avoid being mobbed. […] Look, we
made a basic error, I mean, I’m just glad the kids weren’t
hurt, that the caterer wasn’t hurt. (Participant 3)

Kelley, M. C., Brazg, T., Wilfond, B. S., Lengua, L. J., Rivin, B. E., Martin-Herz, S. P., & Diekema, D. S. (2016). Ethical challenges in research with orphans and vulnerable children: a qualitative study of researcher experiences. International health, 8(3), 187-196.

Milestone

I finally finished my chapter on project procurement and contracting theory. I sent it over for editing. Now I have 4 weeks to work on the orphan theory article. I have 370 sources, most of them went into my dissertation. Now to go on the scavenger hunt to find sources for this article. When I finish, this will be the first research assessment of orphan theory. The first mention of orphan in my database is 1990. That makes it a really new concept in the research world. Stay tuned for updates as I progress through this monumental effort.

Cultral differences

The Culture Map, by Erin Meyer
"Meyer’s expertise and clever articulation of potentially tricky concepts  sheds much light on cultural and human interactions. The author digs in deep to understand underlying principles, expectations, and manifestations of culture that are sometimes so deeply ingrained in a culture that they are often not even aware of it themselves".

I was talking with someone how we use the index finger to indicate one for quantity and in Europe they use the thumb for one plus the index finger for two. He mentioned a movie where some Americans tried to play Germans to infiltrate the 3rd Reich and got caught because they used the wrong finger to order beer. Interesting all the different cultural signals that can be used.

 http://www.hopechest.org/humble-and-active-learners/ 

A good intro into her material is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf1ZI-O_9tU 

Low % of orphans in former Yugoslavia

As I pray through the countries of the former Yugoslavia (16th-21st of each month), I noticed again how low the percentages of orphans is. The former Yugoslavia had a civil war in the mid 90s. One would think the number of orphans would be high, but the societies seem to have stabilized over the past 20 years. I wonder what caused the low percentages? My best guess would be that families took in the orphans. Other conflicts are causing large percentages of orphans. Looks like a topic for research.

Stereotypes

Just in from Children's Hope chest blog

Stereotypes are typically seen by the average American as negative. That view can be seen in the media. However, people always stereotype. We have no way to process all the variables in public, whether in one's own country or in another. I recently stereotyped a person as educated and moral, and in conversation found out that person had deficiencies in thinking that were out of bounds for my ethics. No matter how hard we try, we will stereotype people. 

"While striving to understand culture (both foreign cultures and the ones that influence us) we do need to keep in mind that no matter how many layers of a cultural onion we peel back, even the most sophisticated stereotypes are still stereotypes. Some elements of culture will always remain intangible or unclassifiable, and ultimately nobody and no culture will completely fit into any box".
http://www.hopechest.org/humble-and-active-learners/ 

Life happens-again

Well this week did not go according to plan. Life happens. Several things happened and I did not complete my Project Management chapter. I had an extra task at work, but not difficult. Also the Internet modem failed and I had to get a replacement and install Then the printer had to be reconfigured for the new modem. I went up to Denver to visit a doctoral student. I did ask that person if working on orphans would be of interest. We will see in about 6 months. I should be able to finish up the PM chapter in a coulpe of days and then I will have 3 weeks to work on the orphan theory article.

Armenia and low % of orphans

I sure would like to know why Armenia has such a low orphan %. The country is poor and not much for resources. 2 of every 3 Armenians live outside the country and all over the world. They are quite an amazing people. They claim to be the first Christian state back in 320 AD. They will always bring up the Armenian genocide during WW1. Millions perished or were assimilated into Turkish culture. An the most interesting claim to fame is how many people they can recite that were part of the initial efforts for the film industry in Los Angeles. We plan to go visit in 2019 so perhaps I can find out something about the low orphan rate.

The 5 year plan

Cracks me up when I think of a 5 year plan. The Soviets coined the phrase and any discussion seems to bring a person to think of a communist plot. The concept is actually a good idea for setting goals.

2018
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Serbia

2019
Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia (Gruzia)

2020 (Still not sure about this one)
Belarus and Ukraine

2021
Plan to circumvent the world. Denver to Alaska, Vladivostok, Yoshkar-Ola, Moscow, New York, Denver
2 people
0 kids
2 countries
1 trip around the world

2022
Romania and Moldova

2023
The five "stans"

Missed a 2018 goal

Alibi on my goals as I already started reading this book. The Christian History of the American Revolution. Almost 700 pages. Best that I can tell, the authors wrote from around 1774 to 1890. So far the most interesting section is the title "France repelled in 1746 through prayer and fasting of new Englanders" The author describes a large French fleet that planned to wreck the entire English eastern seacoast of America. They attribute the misfortunes of multiple storms upon the fleet and groups of French ships not being able to find each other as if divinely blinded. The French fleet was almost completely destroyed by natural means and panicked burning of ships. The colonists sated in 1798: "A God hearing prayer, stretched forth the arm of his power, and destroyed that mighty armament, in a manner almost as extraordinary as the drowning of Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea".

Time management

As I set my goals for 2018, I find I must split my time between my professional work in Project Management and my calling to work on orphan research and writing. Actually for the university, research is research so that is no issue. Looks like I will alternate weeks, one week on PM theory and the next on orphan theory. Once I get into the depths of research and writing it is hard to switch back and forth. Also as I work through the web of sources, the material becomes so complex that even I get lost in the research. I now have 3,313 sources in Project Management and over 300 for orphans. Fortunately I have a database. I just upgraded the EndNotes software from version 4 to 8. That actually helped as I use Office 365 and the old version could not integrate into Word. This year seems promising to publish some articles. I must hope that these works will help orphans.

Kyrgystan orphans

As I was praying for Kyrgyzstan this morning, I noticed the percentage of orphans is high. I checked my data and for my 29 countries Kyrgyzstan rates number 2 for % of orphans in the country. For such a small country I wonder what is the cause. As far as population it is number 14 and 8th place for number of orphans.

Bishkek is a sister city of Colorado Springs.
I do not plan to visit the former Central Asian Republics until 2023-yes I plan a ways out.

The stats

Total number of children left without parental care (during the year 2014) = 2,009.

Total number of children in formal care (at the end of the year 2014) = 28,174.

% of population = 0.487%

Kazakhstan orphans

The 4th of each month I pray for Kazakhstan. I have this habit for praying for 29 countries for about 18 years now. I look at the stats for orphans and the  percentage is among the highest for the countries that I watch. The last figure I could find is 86 adopted from Kazakhstan in 2011. The government stopped US  adoption in 2012.

Total number of children left without parental care (during the year 2014) = 6,169.

Total number of children in formal care (at the end of the year 2014) = 78,293.

% of population = 0.422%.