Comments | absolutlaney: The Ashley Treatment

absolutlaney

The Ashley Treatment

Jan 04, 2007 15:40

If I was pregnant and found out that the fetus would be born with some type of severe disability, I would undoubtedly have an abortion. Call it selfish, call it what you will. That is just my personal take on the situation, and after placing a child for adoption, I am a HUGE advocate for individuals doing what is best for THEM in any given ( Read more... )

Comments 9

chayam January 5 2007, 00:10:30 UTC

Verrry interesting. Thank you so much for sharing this with me.

rayana January 5 2007, 00:28:07 UTC

yep, i read about that.

i think she'll be muccch more comfortable in life.

mantispid January 5 2007, 05:34:00 UTC

I would have made the same choice. Though I'm not sure the child is entirely morally relevant if her brain injuries are as extensive as they let on. I'm not the one to make the judgement, but it's quite possible there is no self-aware 'human spark' there.

I agree. absolutlaney January 5 2007, 08:49:19 UTC

I think I was too careful to cater to a crowd that is not my readership in my post ;)

fiveorsixgirls February 3 2007, 07:52:44 UTC

every human has a human spark, whether we can see it or not.

bestill January 11 2007, 06:59:06 UTC

I had not heard about this. I agree with you that no one should judge because no one knows what their exact situation is like. Everyone has to do what is best for them at the time. It sounds as though this was a well-researched decision, and not one that was hastily made.

The closest thing I can compare this to, and I know this will sounds odd, is my old, incontinent dog. When I am helping her up frequently or picking her up to put her into the bath tub to clean her, or doing the other things to take care of her, I am thankful she isn't any larger than she is--she weighs 65 lbs. I know that if she were larger, I wouldn't be able to care for her. Yes, it's odd to connect this family's situation to my old dog . . . but I get it. Good for them.

fiveorsixgirls February 3 2007, 07:51:59 UTC

nope, it is individual. for me, i would do the opposite. my grandson has down syndrome. my son and daughter in law could have aborted. but what henry has already given to the world was definately meant to be. i would have had my kids too if they had had any disability. this is what i used to do for twenty years. they are here to teach us about pureness, love and honesty.

what your children and grandchildren have given the world is all fine and good, but... absolutlaney February 3 2007, 16:59:17 UTC

As you said at the very top of your message, it's very important that you recognize that that is your INDIVIDUAL feeling on the matter. Just because you have found value in the disability of your grandchild doesn't mean any other family should be subjected to the trials and tribulations that that entails, nor should they ever be made to feel as if they HAVE to if they would rather have an abortion. When you say you used to do this for 20 years, I don't know what that means, but if you were ever in a possession to coerce young women into having babies they didn't want to have and weren't prepared to take care of then you weren't doing your job. The taint that children seem to be afflicted with from the moment of their birth is the concept of "purity". Children are no more "pure" than an adult. They are not some tiny infant supernatural thing. They just haven't been around long enough to make the kinds of mistakes that adults see as horrific. Overromanticizing children (and by that I mean placing them in this fairy tale regard where ( ... )

Re: what your children and grandchildren have given the world is all fine and good, but... fiveorsixgirls February 3 2007, 21:36:33 UTC

i wasnt doing abortions, i was teaching special ed. your reply was really offensive. babies are absolutely pure, there is no point replying to there is no difference between babies and adults in purity...you know a lot of people choose to have these children. they are here, in the world. thank god there are people with a heart for them to fend for them as they can't do so for themselves. i absolutely agree that you should not have disabled children. there was NO need to be rude about it. we are talking about children here. have some graciousness. i wish you well.