I got into a conversation about this in a thread that was deleted. I got a lot of attention for my stance that mandatory paternity testing is a bad idea, so I figure it is worthy of it's own thread. So, just to be clear, the idea is that every kids born undergoes a paternity test with the alleged father to determine if he is really the father. The argument for this is that it would prevent the rare but tragic cases of paternity fraud. Assumedly women who don't make any claims about who the father is don't have their kids tested.

I am not opposed to paternity testing, even unilaterally. If the father wants to get a paternity test, he should be free to do so. My issue here is with the generic idea of government mandated medical testing. Yes, it's only a cheek swab, but that isn't the point. The point is that you get complete control over the information within your body. The government cannot force you do any medical testing. If the father doesn't consent to the test, the government cannot make him do it. So I'm opposed to mandating paternity tests on those grounds.

Note that I say "father" rather than parent. I get into this a bit with Pem, but a paternity test compares a child's DNA with a father's. The father has control over his body and information within it, and often the child's as well. So even if the mother consents, the father has to be willing too. The mother can consent to have her DNA tested and the child's (if she is a legal guardian), but she cannot consent for him. Not to mention the costs that would have to been taken on if we were to force a paternity test for every single child born in the US.

I see where they are coming from. I think that men should be free to get paternity tests. I just don't think the government should make them get tests.