Good times, good times....

I am very excited to have my good friend Class-Factotum visit me this weekend. She will arrive tomorrow morning, her husband will follow her on Sunday and they will stay through his meeting on Monday. Follow her blog, since she will likely be posting pics from our time together. CheeseGuy Family Movie Day is tomorrow- a beautiful old family tradition, complete with the gravitas that his family attaches to all traditions (in this case, voting ballots, spreadsheets, etc). I think our movies are Slumdog Millionaire, MILK, Leatherheads, and Pineapple Express. I've seen Slumdog Millionaire already and I didn't vote for Leatherheads or Pineapple Express, but that is irrelevant- the "Process" was followed, and we abide by the rules.

Wow, I found a MeanMommy moment and I wasn't even looking!!

Eight is Not Enough-- it's too much!

People have been asking me about my view of the Octuplet Mom, and I have been trying to not get into it, because it hits a real nerve with me. However, I saw Dr. Phil this week and I can't be silent anymore. His show was all about how she should get services like free nannies and free diapers and free everything so the kids don't go into foster care, how foster care is so terrible, etc. I wanted to scream at the TV, "I don't want the kids to go into foster care!! I want them to be adopted out!!" They should have the opportunity to be in real families who want them, who can love them and care for them. I agree they shouldn't be in foster care, but they also shouldn't be with that crazy narcissistic nutjob who thinks she's the earth mother to the world.

I am so angry at this whole situation. I think that IVF should not be paid for by the taxpayers. I think the doctor who repeatedly did her IVF should have his license revoked. He is a disgrace to my profession, and all of my colleagues agree. I think when she had eight embryos she should have had selective reduction. For those who believe that's playing G-d, I say, "The moment you had IVF you played G-d. It's all about semantics now." If you don't believe in selective reduction, you should never implant more than 1-2 embryos at a time, because the risk that you incur to the embryos when you allow too many to continue is too great. It's selfish, plain and simple. If you have to allow them all to continue, then exercise a little control on the front end. The reason people implant more is because of the assumption that some will not implant. You have to be prepared for the possibility that they all will, and if you cannot reduce that to a number that is safe for the children that will be born, you have no business implanting more than can be safely and healthily carried to term.

I don't even have words for how selfish and reckless that woman and her doctor were. Now we as a society are faced with giving her the resources that support her irresponsibility. No consequences. Why not continue? Why not do it again? Hell, let all people who can't afford kids get pregnant on the community dole and give them free stuff so they don't have to be responsible. Let those of us who work hard and raise our families scrimp and save and go without so our kids can go to good schools, so we can teach them values of responsibility, kindness, stewardship. The reckless ones? We'll pay for them. They don't have to answer to anyone.

Ugh.