Second Wife’s Rights

Concerning the article “New Child Support Rules Mean Higher Costs for Some Parents” (May 5):

As the second wife of a divorced father with two small children of my own, I can only be heartily grateful that my husband was not divorced under guidelines being proposed for San Diego County courts. The guidelines are objectionable for three reasons:

1. In practice, they are heavily punitive to divorced fathers, whose children are taken away from them--sometimes bitterly against their will--and who rarely have any say in how the child support they pay is spent.

2. They assume that the divorced mother is a helpless creature who will never, under any circumstances, get job training, a better job or a raise.

3. They assume that the divorced father will never marry again or have more children; or if he does, that his new wife and her children are not entitled to any support.

If these guidelines are adopted, a clear message will be sent to San Diego County women: If you are a first wife, it is all right to expect support. But if you are a second wife, be prepared to support yourself and your own children from Day One--because your husband certainly won’t be able to.

LINDA RIEDER

La Mesa