In an age obsessed with granting adults every single whim and craving, often the biggest losers are children. We are so intent on pleasing the desires of adults, especially those from the various noisy minority groups, that the wellbeing of children is often the very last thing taken into consideration.
And sometimes this catering to adult selfishness takes on moonbeam proportions. I can think of no greater slap in the face to children and their fundamental needs than when we cave in to the homosexual activists who demand adoption rights and/or access to fertility treatment. And a case featured on the front page of yesterday’s Canberra Times really has to take the cake for sheer madness.
A lesbian couple is suing a Sydney obstetrician and gynaecologist because they had twins through an IVF procedure. The doctor is being sued for “wrongful birth” because they only wanted one child.
The article quotes the 40-year-old mother as saying, “I remember sitting on the couch and feeling devastated, absolutely devastated”. The article continues, “She and her partner, who were living in Watson at the time, had planned to go to England after the birth, but their plans were scrapped when they discovered they would be having twins, jeopardising their careers, relationship and health.”
There is so much mind-boggling lunacy going on in this whole story that one hardly knows where to begin. But let’s consider just a few issues.
First, these two lesbians are denying the two girls (who are now three years of age) one of the most basic and fundamental of all human rights: the right to be born into a family with one’s own biological father and mother. As has been shown time and time again in the social science research, there is nothing better for a child than to have been born and raised in a biological two-parent family, preferably a married family.
Any other family structure is proven to be much less likely to secure a range of positive outcomes for the child. But the interests of the child are the last thing being considered by the radical social engineers. Children have now become just a commodity to please basically selfish adults who seem to care little about their wellbeing.
Given the overwhelming evidence about the need of children to have their own biological mother and father, to deliberately bring children into the world in other alternative lifestyle arrangements is arguably a case of child neglect.
Not only has this lesbian couple deprived these girls of a father, but they are now condemning at least one of them to a life of rejection and misery by wishing she had never been born. What an incredibly anti-child state of affairs this is. Imagine growing up knowing that your own “mother” has publicly declared that she wished you had never been born. How will this poor girl cope?
Young people are already so very vulnerable and racked with low self-esteem and feelings of being of no worth. What is this public rejection of the child going to do to her?
And incredibly, the article states that one of the reasons why these two lesbians were so devastated was because of concerns about their “careers”. The article stated that the mother is “claiming more than $400,000 for the cost of raising” the second child to the age of 21.
Yet, according to the article, the “birth mother told the court she earned more than $100,000 in the recent financial year, and her partner also worked full time”. This lesbian couple seems to be earning more than many heterosexual couples, yet they are suing because a second child will cramp their very cosy lifestyle.
This just seems to be the height of selfishness. Once again, the child is a mere commodity, apparently meant to fit into a lifestyle of the rich and famous. It seems their mindset is operating something like this: let’s go out and buy a fancy new sports car, take a world vacation, and, oh yeah, let’s throw in a kid with that as well.
Kind of like, throw in an order of fries with the burger and coke. That’s all this grimy little affair appears to be. It’s all about selfishness and greed, with children just another commodity to make the free-wheeling lifestyle of some adults more fun.
And then there is the whole problem of IVF and assisted reproductive technologies. Briefly stated, in order to improve their quite low success rates, IVF specialists tend to resort to various means, such as superovulation to produce more eggs, and implanting more than one embryo at a time. Of course the result is quite often multiple births: twins, triplets, and so on.
The whole thing is designed to get more bang for the buck, even though there are many more medical risks associated with such procedures. But the fertility business is just that, another business, where profits come first, and cost-cutting measures take priority over health and safety concerns.
Suffice it to say that we seem to have lost the plot altogether. Chesterton said it well: “When common sense ceases to be common, a society is in terminal decay.” So intent are we on catering to lunacy that we are quickly on the verge of losing many of the gains made in the last few millennia of Western civilisation. How much longer any nation can last when we continue down a path of reckless disregard for reason, for common sense, and for our own children, remains to be seen. But one suspects it cannot be too long.
20 Replies to “When Madness Reigns, Children Suffer”
Bill, this is a serious case and I don’t mean to be flippant but I cannot see what the fuss is all about. Surely this is a case of “buy one get one free.” What was to stop them from selling the child? Or was it that they had been prevented from doing this and so thought they would bleed the doctor, instead? I am afraid this kind of story only makes me want to become a Muslim!
David Skinner, UK
Bill,
how right you are.
Unfortunately we have now created so many social and family anomolies that those whose common sense compases will be most confused are the new generation who will be born without other reference points into it.
Hopefully the work you do will help re-establish that compass – keep it up.
Jim Wallace
Yes Bill, I agree this is sheer madness, but it is indicative of the standards that are upheld in our “modern” society.
Why does this occur?
I think that it is time that the silent majority, which has remained just that – silent, starts taking responsibility for what it has allowed to happen.
I use the example of raising a child, if we continue to warn and do not take any action our words are empty threats and the child grows up to be spoilt.
For so long now, the past 50 years in my memory, we have sat idly with a “laissez faire” attitude and allowed the noisy minority groups to direct our future, steal our freedoms and create an atmosphere of antagonism should we disagree.
We have no others to blame but ourselves, I imclude myself in that category.
Although I am no a member I agree with the RSL motto “the price of freedom is eternal vigilance.”
Jim Sturla
I wholeheartedly support your comments Bill. This is gross selfishness at its worst. With twins, which one is rejected? You could understand that both could grow up with a feeling of rejection because neither is sure if she (or he) was the one not wanted. At any event both are denied, as you say, the right to a natural family of father and mother. I have never heard of multiple birth as a cause of action. An IVF doctor would ineveitably plead that it is the practice of IVF clinics to implant multiple embryos because the failure rate is high and therefore multiple implantations reduces the risk of failure.
How you do that without the consequential risk of multiple births is unknown. If the biological mother had engaged in a heterosexual relationship the risk of multiple births is there too. Clearly the biological mother did not want the hand of God involved in this process. This arrogance and selfishness is yet another reason why it is completely inappropriate that our society permit IVF to homosexual /lesbian couples.
There are good theological reasons to question IVF from a moral issue and you have rasied these issues elsewhere in this forum.
However the incident referred to in the Canberra Times should be a call to ban homosexual/ lesbian couples from participation in any such programs in the interests of children.
David Grace
Timely comments, Bill. This is a case of blatant consumerism and an indication of a society gone mad. The child has become a commodity item that can be engineered to suit. I hope the judge has enough common sense to throw this action out of court. Reading between the lines the commitment of one partner to the other is shaky, so where does this leave the twins?
Eric Frith
I am shocked. Seems to me there will be many more permutations of law suits, claims and rights stemming from the the ‘new’ rights of homosexuals. Slippery slope indeed.
We’d better alert Kevin Rudd; his answer to the question of same sex union at the ACL webcast is very telling.
Henry Lim
My concern is that our main religious denominations are not interested in such matters. It seems that there is a danger in defending traditional family (Mum Dad and the Kids) might put some people at odds with their churches. They are worried that if their Bishops and senior clergy speak out they will not be able to stand the heat. One conclusion might be that the longer they wait the less will be their congregations. These matters should be addressed by all Christians as to leave them untended means their witness will not be seen and their message not heardwill not be heard.
Peter Rice
I would like to offer my agreement with the sentiments posted in your article on the case of a lesbian couple suing a Doctor for having twins – surely they were aware of this possibility prior to undergoing the IVF procedure. Secondly my heart goes out to that poor child – it is child abuse in my mind to mount such an action. The suicide rate amongst young people causes us much grief, yet we continually give them multiple messages about how cheap and disposable life is. Until we are consistent in our approach to all life being precious and worthy of protection then we will continue to see high child abuse rates, suicide and other “culture of death issues” in our world. By the way I would feel exactly the same way if this couple were heterosexual – the issue is the children are a gift and should be loved and valued as that.
GK Chesterton was so right!
Noelle Melrose
Yes Bill. You have summed this up so well. Selfish People who want to have what they believe is rightfully theirs. There have been many couples on IVF who have not successfully produced one child let alone Twins. It is “God” who blesses us with Children, but of course we believe that we are smarter than our Creator and this is where there is always going to be problems because as you say This is a Business which has to show success rates. What a tragic Society we are living in.
Rae Wallace, Devonport, Tasmania
Yep. key word “selfishness”.
Family is no longer something to live and die for anymore, it’s an accessory that we put on until it no longer suits our lifestyle, or makes us happy.
It’s the eternal promotion of our own individual rights over the well-being and love for others we have a responsibility to.
This case may be extreme and obvious, but sadly it’s is a representation of what is prevalent and even legislated throughout all levels of our self-absorbed society.
That’s why we need Jesus – no other religious figure lived and died solely for the benefit of others, forsaking self. He was either a nut and went to an early death, or truly the risen Son of God.
Garth Penglase
Well done Bill, for being there to highlight the insanity of this and so much of what is going on culturally, politically and spiritually in our beloved nation, and abroad.
Unless exposed for what it is, evil, and the lies that are put across as truths, cannot be withstood.
Garth Penglase
Back in 1984 Queensland Newspapers P/L published comments titled “Homosexuals are made not Born” by Lady (Dr) Phyllis Cilento in which she stated in the last paragraph; quote- “Australia is a young virile country; it needs all its children and sound families in which to rear them and a pioneer type population to develop its marvellous potentialities. We should not tolerate, here in Australia, people who are conditioned to decadence by the habits and degenerate examples of older Nations: nor should we become targets for the almost incurable “sexually acquired’ diseases so prevalent in these countries”. and “there is never a thought as to what public acknowledgment and condoning of this unnatural practice will have on women and the family – a married male/female couple – and the stability of our national life”. A great pity those in Government and law making Institutions did not heed the advice. Lady Cilento was almost 90 yrs of age with much medical experience and a family of 6 children. Obviously she also had much commonsense, not to mention courage to speak out and so have her views published. I hope the Judge presiding in this unsavoury court case has the courage and sensibility to stand against this ‘mother’ and think of this poor child who will no doubt go on bearing negative emotions forever after. Thank you Bill for keeping watch.
Marion Minty
Bill, there seems to be a more serious issue arising out of all these comments and it is not the evil being committed by these two women and the seething army of bloodsucking, frizzy-haired lawyers feeding off these children. Jim Sturla’s post points to a growing sense of frustration and impotence amongst Christians to have any effect on society. Where is the action? Where is the corporate prayer? Why is it that these real and pressing issues that threaten the very fabric of our nations are only discussed virtually on sites like this? For me that is twelve thousand miles away! Why is it that Sunday services are so much therapeutic consumption of the feel good factor? Why is it that if one makes the slightest whisper of the evil taking place outside the church windows – and most likely within it as well – one is made to feel a kill joy, a party pooper ? After all, isn’t this, as many, mind numbing chorus go, “ where the party is?”
It is true that there is nothing we can do to earn our salvation; that we bring our muck and lay it at the cross – free of charge, but we forget that we are invited to pick up our crosses and participate in Christ’s sacrificial death. Death to ourselves, made acceptable by Christ’s perfect sacrifice, is still par for the course.
Garth Penglase, in the previous article also asked where is the salt and the light? Matthew 10:24ff just about sums it up:
“A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the student to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household! “So do not be afraid of them. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven. Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mothering law — a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household. Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
David Skinner, UK
Just another example of a society focussed on “rights” as opposed to obligations.
Robert Phillips
What an astonishing case of sheer selfishness and self-absorption!
Hock C Chua
Thanks all
Just an update on this case, ten months on. The ACT Supreme Court today (24 July 2008) ruled against the lesbians and in favour of the doctor. The couple has to pay the legal costs, but can still appeal.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Finally some common sense. I bet they’ll appeal though. They’ll surely have a stack of lawyers lining up to protest against the gross injustice hurled upon these poor women. I’m worried about the poor children!
George Kokonis
That’s great news from the perspective of justice being done. At least there is some sanity left in the judicial system of the current age. However, my heart still goes out to those poor children who will live with the feeling of being inconvenient. Parents have a way of passing on hidden resentment to a child. There’s that and the burden of being raised in a household with these two selfish moral pygmies. I once met a little girl living with two lesbian ‘parents’. She was forever wanting to play family roleplay games.
Dee Graf
Thanks George and Dee
Common sense indeed! The only question is why it took the court ten months to make a ruling! I would have thought that about ten seconds would have done the trick.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
One of your respondents, Henry Lim, refered to the ‘many more permutations of law suits’. I wonder if these little ones when they get older will sue their mother and partner for child abuse?
As a teacher I also wonder how the teachers of these little girls will handle the problems these students will bring to the classroom?
Bill, this is a serious case and I don’t mean to be flippant but I cannot see what the fuss is all about. Surely this is a case of “buy one get one free.” What was to stop them from selling the child? Or was it that they had been prevented from doing this and so thought they would bleed the doctor, instead? I am afraid this kind of story only makes me want to become a Muslim!
David Skinner, UK
Bill,
how right you are.
Unfortunately we have now created so many social and family anomolies that those whose common sense compases will be most confused are the new generation who will be born without other reference points into it.
Hopefully the work you do will help re-establish that compass – keep it up.
Jim Wallace
Yes Bill, I agree this is sheer madness, but it is indicative of the standards that are upheld in our “modern” society.
Why does this occur?
I think that it is time that the silent majority, which has remained just that – silent, starts taking responsibility for what it has allowed to happen.
I use the example of raising a child, if we continue to warn and do not take any action our words are empty threats and the child grows up to be spoilt.
For so long now, the past 50 years in my memory, we have sat idly with a “laissez faire” attitude and allowed the noisy minority groups to direct our future, steal our freedoms and create an atmosphere of antagonism should we disagree.
We have no others to blame but ourselves, I imclude myself in that category.
Although I am no a member I agree with the RSL motto “the price of freedom is eternal vigilance.”
Jim Sturla
I wholeheartedly support your comments Bill. This is gross selfishness at its worst. With twins, which one is rejected? You could understand that both could grow up with a feeling of rejection because neither is sure if she (or he) was the one not wanted. At any event both are denied, as you say, the right to a natural family of father and mother. I have never heard of multiple birth as a cause of action. An IVF doctor would ineveitably plead that it is the practice of IVF clinics to implant multiple embryos because the failure rate is high and therefore multiple implantations reduces the risk of failure.
How you do that without the consequential risk of multiple births is unknown. If the biological mother had engaged in a heterosexual relationship the risk of multiple births is there too. Clearly the biological mother did not want the hand of God involved in this process. This arrogance and selfishness is yet another reason why it is completely inappropriate that our society permit IVF to homosexual /lesbian couples.
There are good theological reasons to question IVF from a moral issue and you have rasied these issues elsewhere in this forum.
However the incident referred to in the Canberra Times should be a call to ban homosexual/ lesbian couples from participation in any such programs in the interests of children.
David Grace
Timely comments, Bill. This is a case of blatant consumerism and an indication of a society gone mad. The child has become a commodity item that can be engineered to suit. I hope the judge has enough common sense to throw this action out of court. Reading between the lines the commitment of one partner to the other is shaky, so where does this leave the twins?
Eric Frith
I am shocked. Seems to me there will be many more permutations of law suits, claims and rights stemming from the the ‘new’ rights of homosexuals. Slippery slope indeed.
We’d better alert Kevin Rudd; his answer to the question of same sex union at the ACL webcast is very telling.
Henry Lim
My concern is that our main religious denominations are not interested in such matters. It seems that there is a danger in defending traditional family (Mum Dad and the Kids) might put some people at odds with their churches. They are worried that if their Bishops and senior clergy speak out they will not be able to stand the heat. One conclusion might be that the longer they wait the less will be their congregations. These matters should be addressed by all Christians as to leave them untended means their witness will not be seen and their message not heardwill not be heard.
Peter Rice
I would like to offer my agreement with the sentiments posted in your article on the case of a lesbian couple suing a Doctor for having twins – surely they were aware of this possibility prior to undergoing the IVF procedure. Secondly my heart goes out to that poor child – it is child abuse in my mind to mount such an action. The suicide rate amongst young people causes us much grief, yet we continually give them multiple messages about how cheap and disposable life is. Until we are consistent in our approach to all life being precious and worthy of protection then we will continue to see high child abuse rates, suicide and other “culture of death issues” in our world. By the way I would feel exactly the same way if this couple were heterosexual – the issue is the children are a gift and should be loved and valued as that.
GK Chesterton was so right!
Noelle Melrose
Yes Bill. You have summed this up so well. Selfish People who want to have what they believe is rightfully theirs. There have been many couples on IVF who have not successfully produced one child let alone Twins. It is “God” who blesses us with Children, but of course we believe that we are smarter than our Creator and this is where there is always going to be problems because as you say This is a Business which has to show success rates. What a tragic Society we are living in.
Rae Wallace, Devonport, Tasmania
Yep. key word “selfishness”.
Family is no longer something to live and die for anymore, it’s an accessory that we put on until it no longer suits our lifestyle, or makes us happy.
It’s the eternal promotion of our own individual rights over the well-being and love for others we have a responsibility to.
This case may be extreme and obvious, but sadly it’s is a representation of what is prevalent and even legislated throughout all levels of our self-absorbed society.
That’s why we need Jesus – no other religious figure lived and died solely for the benefit of others, forsaking self. He was either a nut and went to an early death, or truly the risen Son of God.
Garth Penglase
Well done Bill, for being there to highlight the insanity of this and so much of what is going on culturally, politically and spiritually in our beloved nation, and abroad.
Unless exposed for what it is, evil, and the lies that are put across as truths, cannot be withstood.
Garth Penglase
Back in 1984 Queensland Newspapers P/L published comments titled “Homosexuals are made not Born” by Lady (Dr) Phyllis Cilento in which she stated in the last paragraph; quote- “Australia is a young virile country; it needs all its children and sound families in which to rear them and a pioneer type population to develop its marvellous potentialities. We should not tolerate, here in Australia, people who are conditioned to decadence by the habits and degenerate examples of older Nations: nor should we become targets for the almost incurable “sexually acquired’ diseases so prevalent in these countries”. and “there is never a thought as to what public acknowledgment and condoning of this unnatural practice will have on women and the family – a married male/female couple – and the stability of our national life”. A great pity those in Government and law making Institutions did not heed the advice. Lady Cilento was almost 90 yrs of age with much medical experience and a family of 6 children. Obviously she also had much commonsense, not to mention courage to speak out and so have her views published. I hope the Judge presiding in this unsavoury court case has the courage and sensibility to stand against this ‘mother’ and think of this poor child who will no doubt go on bearing negative emotions forever after. Thank you Bill for keeping watch.
Marion Minty
Bill, there seems to be a more serious issue arising out of all these comments and it is not the evil being committed by these two women and the seething army of bloodsucking, frizzy-haired lawyers feeding off these children. Jim Sturla’s post points to a growing sense of frustration and impotence amongst Christians to have any effect on society. Where is the action? Where is the corporate prayer? Why is it that these real and pressing issues that threaten the very fabric of our nations are only discussed virtually on sites like this? For me that is twelve thousand miles away! Why is it that Sunday services are so much therapeutic consumption of the feel good factor? Why is it that if one makes the slightest whisper of the evil taking place outside the church windows – and most likely within it as well – one is made to feel a kill joy, a party pooper ? After all, isn’t this, as many, mind numbing chorus go, “ where the party is?”
It is true that there is nothing we can do to earn our salvation; that we bring our muck and lay it at the cross – free of charge, but we forget that we are invited to pick up our crosses and participate in Christ’s sacrificial death. Death to ourselves, made acceptable by Christ’s perfect sacrifice, is still par for the course.
Garth Penglase, in the previous article also asked where is the salt and the light? Matthew 10:24ff just about sums it up:
“A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the student to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household! “So do not be afraid of them. There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven. Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mothering law — a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household. Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
David Skinner, UK
Just another example of a society focussed on “rights” as opposed to obligations.
Robert Phillips
What an astonishing case of sheer selfishness and self-absorption!
Hock C Chua
Thanks all
Just an update on this case, ten months on. The ACT Supreme Court today (24 July 2008) ruled against the lesbians and in favour of the doctor. The couple has to pay the legal costs, but can still appeal.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
Finally some common sense. I bet they’ll appeal though. They’ll surely have a stack of lawyers lining up to protest against the gross injustice hurled upon these poor women. I’m worried about the poor children!
George Kokonis
That’s great news from the perspective of justice being done. At least there is some sanity left in the judicial system of the current age. However, my heart still goes out to those poor children who will live with the feeling of being inconvenient. Parents have a way of passing on hidden resentment to a child. There’s that and the burden of being raised in a household with these two selfish moral pygmies. I once met a little girl living with two lesbian ‘parents’. She was forever wanting to play family roleplay games.
Dee Graf
Thanks George and Dee
Common sense indeed! The only question is why it took the court ten months to make a ruling! I would have thought that about ten seconds would have done the trick.
Bill Muehlenberg, CultureWatch
One of your respondents, Henry Lim, refered to the ‘many more permutations of law suits’. I wonder if these little ones when they get older will sue their mother and partner for child abuse?
As a teacher I also wonder how the teachers of these little girls will handle the problems these students will bring to the classroom?
Greg Brien