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Comment by swyx | Hacker News Reader

one really has to wonder why he had to fight for 20 million dollars for children. CHILDREN! do we not care about our kids?

it would be a fun stat to track government spending on military vs children. i dont even want to know the results.

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The movie did a pretty good job of framing it: TV for children was not caring, and was not educational. It was predominately clowns and violence.

Fred Rogers saw the power in doing something different, and eloquently expressed that to the committee... although it's a little scary how much power that one man on the committee seemed to have over this incredibly powerful resource for children and adults.

It's fortunate that the committee had someone on it that cared enough to champion for the others. Many seem not to have anyone on them at all.

First off, that was in the 60s, so the number today would be something more like $150 million. Secondly - Pretty much every bit of the government budget is fought for. And should be. It is incredibly important that we have robust debate on government spending. At the time, children's programming, public television - These were unproven topics, and Fred was making some of the earliest debates for them.

And third: "Think of the children" is a classic fallacy all in itself, that bears no further explanation

Not to mention Mr Rogers convinced the committee pretty quick. The video is on Youtube and a great watch.

This is nothing new. We used to send kids to mine coal, sweep chimneys, and plant dynamite. A lot of them didn't live to see adulthood. Kids these days have it pretty good.

I loved Mr. Rogers, and several other PBS shows.

I can also understand why we might not want to spend government money to produce the shows.

There's plenty of money for detaining children apart from their guardians, tho.

Lately it almost seems like there's a competition to see who cares the least about children. As though giving any thought to their well being is some kind of unwarranted "won't anyone think of the chidren?!" hysteria.

Toddlers are being arbitrarily kidnapped and kept in cages, and 40% of this country just shrugs it off. Your comment is being downvoted without rebuttal. Etc. Etc.

Not caring shows toughness, in their minds.

“Welzer further describes that Nazism even managed to incorporate an individual’s struggle with deeds into their frame of reference. They knew that what they were doing was immoral on some level but it was framed in a way where an individual who struggled with what they had to do and did it anyway was perceived as a “real man” because he would put the good of the people’s community over his own feelings.”

https://www.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/8si6x5/monda...

Putting the good of the community before your personal comfort is not a trait unique to Nazis. Anybody who doesn't commit tax evasion is doing it. What made the Nazis unique was their particular notion of what constituted "good for the community".

    > Toddlers are being arbitrarily kidnapped

Citation?

Seriously? This has been the top story for almost a month now.

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-immigrant-family-separat...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trump...

http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/393371-there-will...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/powerpost/gop-leaders-voice-h...

Seriously. None of those articles described “arbitrary kidnapping”. First, it appears systematic and coordinated. Second, the parents are detained for allegedly breaking laws. Are there certain types of incarceration in the US where children are allowed to stay with their parents? Finally, (not that it makes it any better), but as of this morning BBC was reporting that 100 of the 3,000 kids currently in government custody are 5 and under - the vast majority are not toddlers.

So yes, I would be interested in citations of cases where toddlers are being arbitrarily taken from non-incarcerated parents which are otherwise fit to raise their children.

It does no one, including these kids caught in a horrific experience, any favors to talk about the issues with such hyperbole. At the same time, there are significantly more constructive things that can be done for these kids and the tens of thousands in the foster care system.

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