In an economic depression such as the United States is facing today, thousands, if not millions of Americans are out of work. There are just not enough jobs; many of those who are jobless are qualified and have experience but are still not finding employment. To make matters worse, those fathers falling in this category face the risk of losing their freedom for failing to comply with child support orders. Of course a man should take care of his responsibilities, and this petition is not an excuse for those who do not. However, those fathers who are a regular part of their children's lives and who contribute financially as much as they reasonably can within their means and resources should not be penalized for falling behind on court ordered child support, especially during an economic depression such as the one we have been facing for the past decade or so in this country. Hopefully, with your support and signature, we would like for legislature to propose an amendment to child support laws to address the problem of the job security problem many supportive fathers are facing today. These laws which claim to act in the best interest of the child are in fact damaging to children, removing an integral part of their life and inflicting emotional and mental wounds. Therefore, amendments should be written to specify which cases should warrant criminal punishment and under which circumstances should lapses in payment be deferred.