The monthly dues were an amount arbitrarily decided by the state in the first place after the wife decided to divorce Russell. They were also based on salary from a job that he is no longer comfortable with and may not even be able to resume if he wanted. He's pretty dirt poor right now. I gave up a high-paying job to live on my own terms. It's particularly disturbing when you're busting your ass in a 9 to 5 that makes you miserable just to hand over half of it over for taxes, (and I don't just mean income taxes) so I can relate. It makes you truly feel like a slave.
I can appreciate anyone wanting to make a change in their life to find a better qualify of life....and that might mean giving up one particular job and living on far less and being far happier. But - and I think this is a big but - when you have children, you are responsible for them. Is it fair to the child that mom or dad just decide to up and stop supporting them? I know that the system often works against one of the parents (and all too often the father) but this is still about financially supporting your children. It shouldn't matter if they are natural born or adopted...no one forces someone to adopt children - and once you do, they're yours. IMO the rules that apply to those without children are different than those with. I am single and have no children, so, like dalebert, I can pick up and move wherever and however I like. The only person it effects is me. If, on the other hand, I had children, then then I need to first be responsible to them and then to myself. How would you feel if someone with kids just decided one day to not come home and feed the kids? It's really the same thing....just on a grander scale.
And I agree with Denis - this isn't civil disobedience - this is just contract enforcement. If Russel didn't like the contract, he should have attempted to change it.
That said - I feel bad for Kat - this has to be really hard to deal with.