On the debate train
Over the last couple of weeks I have closely followed the US elections and (of course) watched the vice-presidential debate last night. I won't go into the details of the debate, or for that matter into the politics of these election. I certainly have an opinion, but that is too unrelated to this website to bring forward.
There was one moment though that was interesting. Joe Biden said:
I have been able to work across the aisle on some of the most controversial issues and change my party's mind, as well as Republicans', because I learned a lesson from Mike Mansfield.
Mike Mansfield, a former leader of the Senate, said to me one day -- he -- I made a criticism of Jesse Helms. He said, "What would you do if I told you Jesse Helms and Dot Helms had adopted a child who had braces and was in real need?" I said, "I'd feel like a jerk."
He said, "Joe, understand one thing. Everyone's sent here for a reason, because there's something in them that their folks like. Don't question their motive."
While I don't disagree with the tenure of his remark, I hated that again it had to be saviourism of adoption used as the free ticket to be beyond criticism. Jesse Helms adopted so Jesse Helms must be a good man. My ass!!!!!
It was Jesse Helms who single handedly blocked the acceptance of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children in his role as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and helped make a travesty of a convention, that no other country in the word had any issues with.
But we cannot criticize him for that, because he adopted. Get real!!!
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Hi Niels, All's well ?
Hi Niels,
All's well ?
About this topic, the kid was seriously ill...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_palsy
Anyway I agree with you, that adopting (any) child cannot give a person an untouchable status.
Politicians especially should remain touchable.. otherwise democracy would come to a stand still. Ignoring criticism is a definition of dictatorship.
In my view, this kind of all-come-to-a-stop way of argument is based on religious formulas: only works when the majority is a strong believer. I understand that is the case in the US, especially where children are concerned..
For the readers here: I'm Dutch, and to the topic of Democrat or republican... I would vote Obama when I would be American !
;)
Lx
Hi Lx, It's been a long time
Hi Lx,
It's been a long time and I am glad to see you online again. I do agree with you to a degree about the saviour mentality as part of a religious doctrine, though I wouldn't want to rule out the bleeding heart liberal/socialist mindset either. Both lines of reasoning can lead to the rescue complex and neither is less dangerous than the other. In either case it takes an industry to exploit those notions and media outlets to provide the "information" to feed into the underlying sentiments.
Adoptive Parent As Angel
I have a lot of guilt about my own adoption because my a-parents used the fact that I was adopted to become foster parents in the state of Pennsylvania.
Because they had taken in a 'poor unfortunate', it somehow made them great parents...I often wonder how many of the kids who lived with us are now among the walking wounded considering my a-parents were little better than animals.
And as for Jesse Helms...well...one thing I can say for sure is that kid couldn't have been black, asian, hispanic. He drew the line at a handicapped unfortunate, but at least it was white.