Comments on: Sarah Palin, Down’s syndrome, and the race for the White House

By: How G survived the National Health Service death panels « Welcome to Illinois

Sat, 08 Aug 2009 09:48:48 +0000

[...] » I wrote about Sarah Palin a few times during the US presidential election last year, questioning the reporting of her decision to go ahead with the pregnancy of Trig, while also noting the [...]

By: Having a child with Down’s syndrome is not a political policy « Welcome to Illinois

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 13:17:44 +0000

[...] I wrote back in August that “I can’t help feeling slightly disconcerted about some of the media [...]

By: A different perspective « Welcome to Illinois

A different perspective « Welcome to Illinois — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 13:15:24 +0000

[...] all started with this comment on my post about Sarah Palin’s selection as VP candidate, which led me to this post on [...]

By: Which presidential ticket is the real advocate for disability? « Welcome to Illinois

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 08:29:08 +0000

[...] presidential ticket is the real advocate for disability? Having commented on Sarah Palin’s nomination as the Republican VP candidate and the subsequent increase in the [...]

By: The Palin effect - media begins to take DS seriously « Welcome to Illinois

The Palin effect - media begins to take DS seriously « Welcome to Illinois — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 22:22:40 +0000

[...] Palin effect – media begins to take DS seriously While I remain concerned about the overall media portrayal of Sarah Palin and her decision to continue with the birth of her [...]

By: Anissa

Anissa — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 14:49:29 +0000

Hmm..I know that women don’t have abortions and continue to exist without guilt about having terminated their child.

But I cannot imagine the guilt a woman would feel after terminating a child because that child was neurologically atypical. I would think the guilt would be magnified by 1000.

While I respect the pro life decision to bear a child with a neuro disorder, I do not respect Sarah Palin or John McCain as leaders of this country, Nor do I feel they better capable of leading this country out of war and into a better relationship with the rest of the world. I don’t trust their diplomatic skills and lack thereof.

By: Kristina Roper

Kristina Roper — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 18:17:37 +0000

As a mother of a 17-year-old boy with Down’s Syndrome, I have some experience in what it takes to raise a child with special needs. As an atheist, who also agrees that having an in utero diagnosis of Trisomy-21 is not a good reason to terminate a pregnancy, I do not see my son as a gift from a god, but rather as a child I love and want, and would chose again in a heart beat.

What I cannot fathom is how Governor Palin can take on the Vice Presidency, with a strong possibility of eventually assuming the presidency itself, at a time that is critical to the health and welfare of her son? Being a woman in the 21st century in America means we do have choices as to how we want to live our lives, but let’s be clear: We bare the responsibility of our choices. I have learned that having a child with DS means taking nothing for granted. The parents must act as strong advocates for their child, both with medical and education professionals, and this takes time and dedication. Although we have progressed so far in the past 25 years, there is still so much ignorance and benign neglect when it comes to the needs of DS children and young adults in our educational system.

Finally, I would also like to point out the all the benefits and advantages my son and I gained from living in a liberal county and state, everything from an Infant Stimulation Program to Head Start, are public services that Republicans like Senator McCain and Governor Palin would like to purge from the federal government.

Like Governor Palin, I took my child to work with me soon after his birth. I worked for a company that welcomed my child and supported my decision. But there were career advancements that I declined because my son needed both his mother and father on a regular basis. Governor Palin stated in a July 31 interview that she didn’t really know what the VP of the US does. Maybe someone should tell her so she can make an informed decision as to just who she wants to be.

By: welcometoillinois

welcometoillinois — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 22:55:38 +0000

That is an interesting point of view that raises some valid questions but you have also made not just one but several massive assumptions, not least that people who decide to continue with the pregnancy of a child with Down’s syndrome do so due to their religious beliefs.

It certainly had nothing to do with my decision http://welcometoillinois.wordpress.com/category/religion-and-the-lack-of-it/ which was based on the moral judgment that Down’s syndrome was not, in and of itself, a reason to terminate the pregnancy, as far as my family was concerned.

It was without a doubt the most difficult decision I have ever faced in my life. For your sake I hope you never have to choose whether or not to terminate the life of your unborn child but perhaps if you do you will realize how outrageous your comparison of a parent that continues with the pregnancy of a disabled child with a child rapist is. That was probably the intention, but it totally belittles your argument.

By: David V

David V — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 22:07:19 +0000

Whereas previously, a Down’s child could be born without the prior knowledge of the mother, going forward, a parent with a Down’s child will likely (at least in the developed world) have made a conscious choice to have that child. As prenatal testing for trisomy 21 becomes ubiquitous, Down’s children (and eventually those with other genetic disorders) will increasingly become symbols of faith – a freak show meant to communicate the “family values” of their parents. The children will become public sacrifices made by their parents for their faith. They will be a symbol of religious reverence in the same way as the scarred backs of Catholics who flagellate themselves, or Buddhist monks who set themselves on fire, or Sunni Muslims who mutilate their girl’s genitals or Shiites who bloody their children’s heads with swords.
Genuine moral virtues – such as integrity, honesty, and productivity are not useful as evidence of religious virtue. To the extent that their practical benefit is visible to everyone, they do not represent the special domain of religion. To demonstrate religious virtue, it is necessary to sacrifice authentic moral values in favor of “religious” values. The particular object of the sacrifice is not important – there is nothing particularly “biblical” about being prolife (the Christian bible just as easily supports the opposite position.) If Christian fundamentalists decided that cutting of one’s hand sufficed as proof of moral virtue, they would be wrong to do so, but not much more so than the numerous other ways that people find to be self-destructive. What is really vicious about fundamentalists in America is that the prey on the most vulnerable –poor pregnant young girls and women, those dying from painful terminal illnesses, the loved ones of brain-dead patients, — and children afflicted with terrible genetic illnesses. One can at least grasp the moral indifference with which a fundamentalist can force a single young mother to abandon her goals and dreams and condemn her and her child to poverty. But what can we say about a parent that chooses a life of suffering upon their child? If we are morally outraged by child rapists, how should we judge a parent who chooses a lifetime of suffering on their own child?

By: Rickismon

Rickismon — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 19:06:01 +0000

I agree that the media will probably have a field day with this. And look at this idiocy about her daughter having the baby, As if all 7th month pregnancies show!