Cuban Controversy

[Sandy Levinson]

I think it is fallacious to speak of the "liberty" rights of minors under, say, seven, in any but a metaphoric sense.  (For starters, would David allow young Eilian to reject the possibility of going to school, etc?)  I'm far more sympathetic, I suspect, than most people on this list to the idea of children's autonomy, but surely the idea tends to become fatally complicated when we're talking about the very young.  Presumably David would support disallowing the return of any child to Cuba (or China, etc.) on the grounds that that violates the liberty right of the child.  Is that his position?  (To put it mildly, as suggested in other postings, this conflicts with Professor Garnett's "fundamental right" of parents to raise their children as they see fit.  Is this just another example of the deep conflict in conservative circles between the libertarian and traditionalist wings?)

Sandy