More on Down Syndrome, Sarah Palin and Politics

Photo: Niah with her Mom, April during a visit earlier this year.



I am taking advantage of the fact that Sarah Palin has brought Down Syndrome to the forefront of politics to write again about the subject! I know I'm stretching it here, but I'm proud of my little granddaughter and I don't usually have a way to share anything in this blog about her!

I found an article on another blog that I thought was interesting on the subject of Sarah Palin and Down Syndrome:

Sarah Palin, Down syndrome and special needs

My younger son, Elijah, has Down syndrome, so naturally I was very interested to
hear about Sarah Palin's candidacy. Her experience of getting a prenatal
diagnosis of Down syndrome halfway through the pregnancy parallels our own
experience. Our doctor told us, "Based on this diagnosis, you can choose to
terminate the pregnancy." (We later learned that about 90% of babies prenatally
diagnosed with Down syndrome are terminated.) Like the Palins, we chose to have
our baby, and now we can't imagine life without Elijah. (My column for the
forthcoming October issue of Christianity Today is going to be about Down
syndrome and disability, because October happens to be Down syndrome awareness
month. I had already written and sent in my column a month ago, long before
Palin's candidacy had been announced. Kind of wild.)... (click the title to read all)

I also received an email this evening with a transcript of a discussion a caller had with Rush Limbaugh recently. I'd share it but it has so many of those little >>> marks that it'd take all night to get rid of them! The gist of the conversation was that a family with a Down Syndrome child was noticed by John and Cindy McCain and Sarah and Todd Palin as their bus drove in for a visit. They had the Secret Service go over and get them and the family hung out with the group for a while. They sent photos and gave a glowing talk about how down to earth and caring the McCains and Palins were. There's a real cute photo of the little Down Syndrome girl being held by Sarah Palin, giving her a big hug.



There are a lot of people making the Palin's choice to have Trig political. I continue to be dismayed at how nasty some people can be when writing about the subject.

Here's another real interesting blog post on Moonbattery:

September 1, 2008
Sarah Palin Blamed for Hurricane, Child's Down Syndrome
It appears that Bush, Cheney, and Rove are no longer responsible for all the ills of the world. Sarah Palin has to shoulder her share of blame too.
http://www.moonbattery.com/archives/2008/09/sarah_palin_bla.html

Here's another article of interest:

Joe Biden Slams Sarah Palin on Down Syndrome Son, Stem Cell Research
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
September 9, 2008
Joe Biden, Barack Obama's pro-abortion running mate, is coming under fire for comments he made today attacking vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin. After attacking her on abortion, Biden then slammed Palin on the birth of her son, who has Down syndrome.
http://www.lifenews.com/bio2567.html

OK, have I done enough writing about the political aspect to justify doing the grandma thing and sharing some photos of Niah? If not, sorry, you're getting 'em anyway!

2nd Photo: April (Niah's mom), cousin Skylar and Niah at my parents.
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Down Syndrome, Abortion and Politics

I thought I was ready to head to bed and call it a night, but I just saw a story that incensed me. Before I get into my rant, let me explain that I have the most wonderful, beautiful, and happy grandchild a grandmother could ever want. It just so happens that Niah has Down Syndrome.

When my daughter-in-law April was pregnant she was told her child would be Down Syndrome. She was also told the baby would have Dandy Walker which would mean, at best, she'd have autistic type tendencies on top of Down Syndrome. They later also told the kids Niah would have duodenal atresia, which is a separated intestine which can just be stitched together (kinda broad strokes on my descriptions of both problems).

They did an awful lot of praying. No, they weren't praying whether to have an abortion or not, that wasn't a question for them. They prayed for healing and strength. They looked forward to the birth of Niah.

When Niah was born she was whisked away to be tested and to prepare for surgery. April had complications and couldn't be with her so I stayed by Niah's side through the first days of her life in Intensive Care.

Niah didn't have Dandy Walker. They were wrong. The duodenal atresia was a fairly quick fix with surgery.

Today Niah is five years old and she is the joy of all of our lives. She is a handful at times. She has more extended family than any child I've ever known! Everyone falls in love with her. The most difficult challenge for me is trying to beat everyone to the gifts that grandparents are "supposed" to give! She is showered with love and she loves everyone back.

The kids were pressured into the abortion route. Almost everyone they encountered in the medical field steered them openly or through hints to choose to get rid of their "problem". They changed doctors once as a result of the pressure.

That little "problem" has blessed more lives than I can count. Having that little girl come up and hug me is worth more than I can ever put into words.

I listened tonight as Sarah Palin talked briefly to Sean Hannity about how she felt when she discovered Trig would be a Down Syndrome child. I'm sure the discussion will be on YouTube soon so I'll try to remember to share it with you. I understood completely what she was sharing. I struggled with my feelings about what the kids would face with all the problems. Greg (my husband) and I changed some major plans simply because we thought we might have to chip in and help.

Right after listening to Sarah Palin talk about the love and joy Trig was bringing, I stopped in here to turn off the computer and saw this story (News Busters):

Washington Post's 'On Faith' blog, Sally Quinn, on the role of social issues in the presidential campaign and cited recent poll numbers on abortion: "On abortion, the latest New York Times/CBS poll shows 37% of voters say abortions should be generally available, 42% want the procedure available but with stricter limits than we have now. 19% say they should not be permitted at all...What do you make of those numbers?" Quinn responded: "Well, I think the majority of people in this country believe that abortion should be legal at some point. And 90% of people, for instance, who have Down's Syndrome babies choose to terminate their pregnancies.... http://newsbusters.org/blogs/kyle-drennen/2008/09/18/msnbc-wapo-s-quinn-declares-90-parents-abort-downs-syndrome-babies

Talk about contrasts!

If you read the entire article the gist seems to be that Sarah Palin was wrong to choose to keep her child, that she's wrong on abortion, and that the majority of women are pro-abortion. I'm going to wake up tomorrow morning and re-read the entire article just to make sure I'm not reading things into it. You may get another bit about it from me in the morning depending on whether I read it before or after my first cup of caffeine!

I'm thankful my son and daughter-in-law chose to keep my beautiful granddaughter and not take the selfish, easy way out (although what is easy about aborting a life?). I'm thankful Sarah Palin chose to keep Trig. I think maybe, just maybe, if she ends up in the White House it might make it a bit easier for people to accept a child who isn't perfect according to some standards. I'm kind of looking forward to seeing the Vice President going to events with Trig!

(and before someone brings this up, I'm not a one-issue person. If Hillary Clinton had a Down Syndrome child it wouldn't make me vote for her... nor does the fact that Sarah Palin has a Down Syndrome child influence my vote... it's just icing on the cake that she's the kind of person who would make a choice I think is commendable!)