THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Thursday, December 22, 1994            TAG: 9412220011
SECTION: FRONT                    PAGE: A14  EDITION: FINAL 
TYPE: Letter 
                                             LENGTH: Short :   26 lines

STATE DOESN'T OWN CHILDREN

I reject the assumptions of Susan Potter's letter about child abuse (``Do not reunite families at any cost,'' Dec. 15). As in most liberal arguments, the subject of every active verb is the state - which chooses whether to ``reunite,'' ``maintain custody,'' etc. Ms. Potter's position necessarily means that my children are the property of the state, not gifts to me from the Creator, and that the state graciously allows me to care for its offspring as long as it considers me ``fit.''

My children are not on loan to me from the government. Where was the Department of Social Services during my collective 27 hours of labor and birth? The welfare bureaucracy lacks the ability to define ``good parenting'' and to determine which families shall be left intact and which torn apart.

JILL BARRETT

Virginia Beach, Dec. 17, 1994 by CNB