Celebrating Jon

The number tells the story.  More than ninety percent of unborn children who are diagnosed with Down Syndrome are aborted.  There is no better indicator of the “better dead than have downs” attitude that exists in our culture.  But one man, columnist George Will, tells a different story.  His son, Jon, turns 40 years old this week and Mr. Will is a powerful witness to the goodness and contributions that those with Down Syndrome can -and do – make to the world.

Will’s tribute to his son, Jon, also touches on something that unfortunately too often goes unmentioned in the disability dialogue – parents and families that share the gift of an individual with Down Syndrome feel happy and feel blessed.  Dr. Brian Skotko, a geneticist at Children’s Hospital Boston, studied these families.  His work was published last fall in the American Journal of Medical Genetics.

Skotko found that among siblings ages 12 and older, 97 percent expressed feelings of pride about their brother or sister with Down syndrome and 88 percent were convinced they were better people because of their sibling with Down syndrome. A third study evaluating how adults with Down syndrome felt about themselves reports 99 percent responded they were happy with their lives, 97 percent liked who they are, and 96 percent liked how they looked.

Take a minute and read George Will’s article.  You’ll feel a little better about humanity.

Respect for Life and the Tucson Tragedy

We, at United Families International, have been greatly saddened by what occurred in Tucson, Arizona, where six people were killed and more than a dozen injured.  The tragedy in Tucson is a tragedy for us all.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families.  We add our condolences to those that have poured in from around the country and the world.

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., was gravely injured, but thankfully is recovering.  Rep. Giffords was engaged in a meeting with her constituents – important work for elected officials.  Acts of violence against political figures can destroy democracy itself.  Unfortunately, around the world, elected officials, candidates and other leaders are killed or injured while performing their duties and seeking to make the world a better place.  Although we may disagree with the politics of some, we thank all for their willingness to serve and pray for their safety.

As we reflect on what has occurred, many questions come to mind:

• Are all individuals who murder or harm innocent individuals emotionally and mentally compromised?
• As a society, what responsibility, if any, do we bear for the actions of others?
• What happens to a person that they could conclude that human life has so little value?
• What role, if any, does the violence depicted in TV, movies, video games, and other forms of media play?
• How numb and desensitized to violence has our culture and society become?
• Is this the least violent time in all human history, or have we reached a new low in civility and regard for human life?

We’re sure you could add many more questions to this list, but the question of basic respect and regard for human life looms large for us.

UFI has spent many years advocating for a universal respect for life.  Protecting life at all stages– from its very beginning to its end- is essential if societies are to survive.  There can be no exceptions to this understanding:  animals are not more important than human life; environmental ideals are not more important than human life; abortion is not simply a choice, and there are no expendable human beings, no matter their age or their “quality of life.”  As a society we must retain the understanding that each human life has intrinsic worth and value and is capable of a positive contribution to a community.

We at United Families International will continue to extend every effort possible to retain a respect for all human life in public policy around the world.  It’s time for each of us to examine our commitment to the sanctity of life and to determine what we can do to teach this principle to our children and to reflect it in our lives. We can never have a safe and peaceful world without it.

British Advice Columnist insists that “any good mother” would suffocate her suffering child

Popular British advice columnist, Virginia Ironside, shocked more than a few people with her comment:  “If I were the mother of a suffering child – I mean a deeply suffering child – I would be the first to want to put a pillow over its face . . . If it was a child I really loved, who was in agony, I think any good mother would.“  Speaking on BBC program “Sunday Morning Lite,” Ironside continued to insist, even after the host of the program called her original comment “horrifying” and asked if she (Virginia) thought other mothers would agree with her.  “I think a lot of mothers would…maybe not ‘any,’ but a lot.”

The program’s theme “Can Abortion be a Kindness?” had already brought forth some astounding statements from Virginia Ironside such as referring to abortion as “getting rid of a couple of cells” and that aborting an unwanted or a profoundly disabled child is the act of a loving mother.   Here’s how Ironside justifies abortion and her high-brow version of Euthanasia and Eugenics.

“To go ahead and have a baby, knowing that you can’t give it some kind of stable upbringing, seems to me to be cruel.”
…
“If a baby’s going to be born severely disabled or totally unwanted, surely an abortion is the act of a loving mother.”

The frightening thing is that this woman, Virginia Ironside, is considered to be “wise” and has power to influence public opinion via her regular column in the UK’s “The Independent.”  She’s not alone in her twisted perspective either.  Her views are shared by many so called “academics” and “progressives” in the United States and are very commonplace in Europe.

One pundit attempted to defend Ironside by saying:

“Ironside is not waging a war against the disabled: she simply said “life isn’t a gift per se”. There are plenty of circumstances that make it more burdensome than joyful.”

It is impossible to circumscribe the depth and breadth of issues that are relevant to this story.  Eugenics is not new, eugenics is not well reasoned, eugenics is the cold blood thirsty confirmation of the moral rot of a society turned upon itself.   See it for yourself.