Odd Question: How do you feel about couple's with Downs Syndrome having children?

[BoogerDawson]

Any couple who do not have the means (physically, emotionally, and financially, etc) to take responsibility for a child should not be reproducing. Particularly, if the couple cannot financially support a child, the taxpayers end up paying for the child's care, education, healthcare, etc. In the US, there are a lot of people on public assistance having kids they can't afford. Is this Down's couple self-sufficient? Do they have jobs or other means to be able to afford a child?

 

[blaseblase]

Why are we fixating on Downs Syndrome? The real question of this thread is whether mentally retarded adults should have children. There are people with Downs Syndrome who are not retarded and there are also lots of retarded people without Downs syndrome. Society should determine a minimum IQ to be a parent. There are obviously people in the world who are not functionally capable of being parents.

 

[Lord_Impaler]

Sounds like a terrible idea, but have not looked into it.

 

[Cole train]

If you want to know what low quality of life means, check out parents of disabled kids reddit

Some truly sad and horrific stuff

 

[HelloJapan]

pretty low bar, bud

Exactly addresses my point - the continual lowering of the bar. Well done!

 

[Ogata]

I saw a YouTube video with a guy who has down syndrome managing a restaurant. I can say that he is infinitely more polite, professional and respectful than I was when I was working in front of the house at families restaurant. So I mean who am I to judge?

It would be funny if they give birth to some charismatic, handsome, athletic super genius who ends up changing the world.

That being said, lot of these folks desire conventionally hot guys/girls and so coupling is rare occurrence.

 

[HenryFlower]

Exactly addresses my point - the continual lowering of the bar. Well done!

damn dude, no need to put the DS community on blast like this.

 

[Michaelangelo]

It's not good for the evolution of the species to circumvent natural selection.

Okay Hitler

 

[Bathwater]

Don't pretend you wouldn't, either.

The extra chromosome must have had the tiddy gene.

 

[Plissken]

Let them bang bro.
I can think of far worse people reproducing, not really any risk of the genes spreading if anyone is worried about the gene pool for some reason. If they can take proper care of the children (maybe with some help here or there) then let them live their lives and be happy.

 

[evergreenrider]

Does the state foot the bill for said family?

 

[PND]

I think it’s fucking retarded

 

[Ladder Master]

"Never start with a problem"

 

[KnightTemplar]

I feel sorry for them. Beyond that, it's none of my business.

 

[ralphc1]

What about dwarves?
Decades ago my parents were friends with a couple in their early thirties, the husband was 6ft 5in, and the wife was 3ft 8in! They ended up having a baby who was born a dwarf. Unfortunately within a year of the birth, the husband left his wife and baby.
I used to sometimes babysit the child. He was always smiling, and i used to wonder sometimes just how hard his life was going to be because of his dwarfism?
Lot's of dwarves have lifelong pain and operations, it's a difficult life for so many of them.

I'm fine with it.

Give them an island and make a reality show called The Down Unders.

Why are we fixating on Downs Syndrome? The real question of this thread is whether mentally retarded adults should have children. There are people with Downs Syndrome who are not retarded and there are also lots of retarded people without Downs syndrome. Society should determine a minimum IQ to be a parent. There are obviously people in the world who are not functionally capable of being parents.

I have relatives who care for a man with Down's syndrome. They started when he was 12 and he was about 40 the last time I saw them but he functions on about a 5 year old level. The wife of the couple is having medical problems now and they are going to have to quit as caretakers.

To me, having children seemed to be a big responsibility to take on. Responsible people take it quite seriously. Irresponsible people just pump out children that they can't take care of. I've always wondered how I would feel if I had a known genetic defect that had a good chance of being passed on to my offspring if I would take the chance. I was lucky to have waited to have children when I was married. I wanted to have a few carefree years and be more financially stable before adding children to the mix. It was a good thing I did or I would have had some 18 year loans to pay off after the divorce.

When I watched Little People Big World and saw what Matt Rolloff went through in his life. I questioned why he would take the chance of one of his children going through that.

When I was in my 60s, I found out that I have two genetic defects that would have had a 50/50 chance of being passed on to offspring and I was happy that I never had any children.

 

[Thepaintbucket]

It's none of my business what people want to do. Assuming I was in this situation if there's a high chance for my child to have diminished quality of life, I'd go with no.

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

A friend of mind introduced me to the show "Down for Love", which is a Netflix series that explores people with Down Syndrome (and other cognitive impairments) finding love. It's a fascinating and quite moving show, but in one of the episodes, they talk about a couple with downs syndrome starting their own family.

My initial reaction was that this would be a bad idea - taking care of a child requires significant emotional and financial resources and child rearing seems beyond the scope of their intellectual capacity. My friend thought I was a monster and said that people with Down Syndrome should have the same opportunities as anyone else. While I can understand the emotional aspect of that argument, the realist in me says that it puts a child at a significant disadvantage to be raised by parents with Downs.

What say you Mayberry?

Tangential question - how do you feel about people with who don't suffer from Downs dating those that do? One of the examples on the show was an autistic teenager who was intellectually advanced (but socially awkward) paired with a girl with downs syndrome. That also raised some red flags for me.

I can see them become a top tier protected species on the woke ecosystem. Therefore, let it be known, that I hereby accuse anyone opposed to this of literal hitlerism.

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

It's understandable that some might have concerns about individuals with Down syndrome starting their own families, given the complex emotional, financial, and intellectual demands of raising a child. However, it's essential to recognize that people with Down syndrome, like everyone else, have a range of abilities, strengths, and support networks.

Rather than making assumptions based on perceived limitations, it's essential to consider each person's unique circumstances, abilities, and aspirations.

As long as they've got the love, the resources, and the support, they should have the chance to make that choice for themselves.



If the relationship is based on mutual respect, consent, and genuine affection, I support it regardless of the cognitive abilities of the individuals involved.

If this post was not written by chat GPT I don't know shit about life.

 

[subtlySteve]

If this post was not written by chat GPT I don't know shit about life.

I understand that how a lot of humans write in a variety of styles, some of which can be quite structured or formulaic, might be confusing for you.

 

[KBE6EKCTAH_CCP]

I understand that how a lot of humans write in a variety of styles, some of which can be quite structured or formulaic, might be confusing for you.

Not confusing. The word ridiculous comes to mind, though.