Friday, February 13, 2009
Eight Is More Than Enough Say Republican Lawmakers
WASHINGTON, February 13 - Congressional outrage over the woman who gave birth to octuplets as a result of in vitro procedures and cannot afford to pay her medical bills or the cost of raising those children in addition to six others, has led to a bill limiting a woman's right to breed.
Sponsored by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the bill would require all fertility clinics to adopt the same procedures as banks and mortgage companies when asked for a loan. "When folks want to buy a house they are usually required to have a down payment and proove they can afford to pay the mortgage," says McConnell. "We should be doing the same for women who want to have fertilized eggs implanted in their uterus."
Conservative Republicans who support the bill say they have no intention of inserting government in the natural breeding process. It's only when a woman insists on the transfer of multiple embryos at a fertility clinic and the public may end up paying the bills that government intervention is required. "We should not end up with egg on our face when a woman with rabbit-breeding instincts tries to create the equivalent of a baseball and basketball team in one household," McConnell points out.
The woman in question, Nadya Suleman, a single mother of six before the octuplets were born, has apologized for yearning for "lots of children" and has promised never to do it again. She has already signed a contract with Disney to do a movie about a woman living in a shoe with her brood to help pay expenses. And she says she will be putting some of the kids up for adoption on eBay.
In addition to financial proof, the bill would also require the clinics to rate the potential intelligence and health of the unborn as part of the application process. "Just as a bank requires a home buyer to have an independent inspection of the property before lending any money, the clinic will need to determine whether the product or products, in the case of multiple births, will be an asset or liability to society," McConnell explains.
"A leaky roof or a below average IQ can be a reasonable cause for denying the application," he says. "It doesn't take an egghead to figure it out."
The bill also contains stiff penalties for both the women and the clinics if the initial application procedure is ignored or falsified. Clinics could have the test tubes tied up in court for years and women could be forced to undergo a partial or complete abortion.
"I'm generally opposed to killing the unborn," says McConnell. "But when you weigh the financial cost to society against a very expensive potential life, my conservative business instincts tell me that the bottom line is more valuable than a infant's dirty bottom."
The McConnell bill has been hailed by the American Eugenics Society and the Congressional Reddog Republicans. It is expected to be attached to the bank bailout legislation to assure passage.
Sponsored by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the bill would require all fertility clinics to adopt the same procedures as banks and mortgage companies when asked for a loan. "When folks want to buy a house they are usually required to have a down payment and proove they can afford to pay the mortgage," says McConnell. "We should be doing the same for women who want to have fertilized eggs implanted in their uterus."
Conservative Republicans who support the bill say they have no intention of inserting government in the natural breeding process. It's only when a woman insists on the transfer of multiple embryos at a fertility clinic and the public may end up paying the bills that government intervention is required. "We should not end up with egg on our face when a woman with rabbit-breeding instincts tries to create the equivalent of a baseball and basketball team in one household," McConnell points out.
The woman in question, Nadya Suleman, a single mother of six before the octuplets were born, has apologized for yearning for "lots of children" and has promised never to do it again. She has already signed a contract with Disney to do a movie about a woman living in a shoe with her brood to help pay expenses. And she says she will be putting some of the kids up for adoption on eBay.
In addition to financial proof, the bill would also require the clinics to rate the potential intelligence and health of the unborn as part of the application process. "Just as a bank requires a home buyer to have an independent inspection of the property before lending any money, the clinic will need to determine whether the product or products, in the case of multiple births, will be an asset or liability to society," McConnell explains.
"A leaky roof or a below average IQ can be a reasonable cause for denying the application," he says. "It doesn't take an egghead to figure it out."
The bill also contains stiff penalties for both the women and the clinics if the initial application procedure is ignored or falsified. Clinics could have the test tubes tied up in court for years and women could be forced to undergo a partial or complete abortion.
"I'm generally opposed to killing the unborn," says McConnell. "But when you weigh the financial cost to society against a very expensive potential life, my conservative business instincts tell me that the bottom line is more valuable than a infant's dirty bottom."
The McConnell bill has been hailed by the American Eugenics Society and the Congressional Reddog Republicans. It is expected to be attached to the bank bailout legislation to assure passage.
