Monday, September 01, 2008

More Adoption, Less Politics

In a minute.

"Country First" assumes that not every one puts Country First. Well . . .

But this is what really gets me. Awhile ago, one of my students provided evidence that a character in a story was a "good character." He had, after all, a blind child. "What makes him good?" I pressed. "You can see here where he's on the beach, and he says that this is his son" he said, confused that I did not accept what he thought was plain to see . . . What should a man on the beach do with a son who is blind? Hide him? Drown him?!

"Before, they were excited about her, with the Down syndrome baby," conservative, anti-tax activist Grover Norquist said. "But now with this, they are over the moon. It reinforces the fact that this family lives its pro-life values."

The "Down Syndrome baby" is a person (Trig is four months old). And it seems odd that people, whatever their position on abortion, would congratulate Palin on carrying her child (as others have remarked, she was not congratulated, so far as we know, on not terminating her other children). Yes, I do know that a high percentage (nearing 90%) of children identified as ds by amnio are not carried to term. But isn't it a strike against people with downs syndrome and parents of ds children when someone is "exciting" for not terminating a ds person?!

I find the same thing odd about the story I would otherwise not mention here (Obama does not support the circulation of this story, and I do think candidate's children should be beyond the, ahem, Pale) but -- why should Palin be praised for not terminating Bristol's pregnancy?! It's Bristol's pregnancy, not Palin's!!! I know that families (particularly families of prominence) have pressured young women to terminate and/or hide pregnancies and/or relinquish, but I do not understand how this situation makes anyone "over the moon."

Dear baby Trig and baby-to-be,
We lived out our pro-life values by not terminating you. Isn't that great?! No, you don't have to say it. We already know you're feeling overwhelming gratitude that we let you be (even if we didn't protect your privacy) -- according to the media, this was in serious, reasonable doubt. So you're welcome!

That's the biggest "yeesh" of all.

And I hope that marrying the baby's father is really the best choice for Bristol and her child, and not merely for the campaign. I can't imagine that it could be.

(ETA (after others have shared their agreement, so this I say alone): That Trig has downs syndrome and Palin took less than usual precautions -- rather than more -- and that Palin seems to have thrown her daughter under the bus to prove that there was no cover-up with Trig's birth DOES seem to me to reflect on her judgment and values).

4 comments:

Erin said...

are you ready to be shocked to death

I agree with you!

abebech said...

Erin, I'm not shocked. Because despite our significant differences, I think you rock :)

Anonymous said...

I am absolutely on the same page. I can't imagine this marriage isn't solely due to the pending election. It makes me very sad for Bristol. Does she LOVE him? Does one even know what love (in the context of marriage) IS at 17?

Third Mom said...

Amen sister!!