California is a community property state. In the bad old days, father got most of the assets and or at least had all the income earning capability. Adoption as a form of transfer of ownership of a child. You can't sell a child, but you can give a child away. Thereis actually still elements in our conception of children that have to ve had this very weird, unsettling echo of these old property concepts.
“Mine” is one of the first words babies learn. By the time we grow up, the idea of ownership seems natural. But who controls the space behind your airplane seat: you reclining or the squished laptop user behind? Why is plagiarism wrong, but it’s okay to knock-off a recipe or a dress design? Mine! explains these puzzles and many more.