One of those rare funny-but-sad stories:
OMAHA, Nebraska (CNN) — Nebraska officials said they’re concerned about an apparent rush by parents to drop their teenage children off at hospitals before lawmakers change the state’s troubled “safe haven” law.
Four children have been dropped off at Nebraska hospitals in the last two days.
The latest cases came on the eve of a special session of the Legislature on Friday to add an age limit to the law. On Thursday, a boy, 14, and his 17-year-old sister were dropped off at an Omaha hospital; the girl ran away from the hospital, officials said. A 5-year-old boy was left by his mother at a different hospital, officials said.
The day before, a father flew in from Miami, Florida, to leave his teenage son at a hospital, officials said.
“Please don’t bring your teenager to Nebraska,” Gov. Dave Heineman told CNN. “Think of what you are saying. You are saying you no longer support them. You no longer love them.”
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/11/14/nebraska.safe.haven/index.html?eref=rss_topstories
It’s too easy to leap to the conclusion that parents who drop off their kids this way don’t love them. It may be true at times; we certainly have plenty of dysfunctional families.
The bulk, I imagine, DO love the kids, but either can’t afford to keep them (a failing in the social welfare system) or the child may have a behavior problem that is simply too much to cope with (again, implying that access to the help they need isn’t known or forthcoming).
I think the reason no infants are dropped off is that the mothers, usually teenagers with little knowledge of social services available to them, simply didn’t know they could do that. There are babies abandoned every year, in every state. If the mothers knew they could drop them off at a hospital, with no conseequences, they’d certainly prefer to do that. Especially because any OTHER form of abandoning an infant is a crime. They probably DO know about that. Maybe this program ought to be made better known – particularly to young girls – perhaps as part of a health class in high school.
Excellent content…keep up the good work!
Some people just aren’t parent material. It’s hard to make believe that kids are the most important things in your life when you don’t really feel that way. I put a six year old kid up for adoption over thirty years ago….and no, I don’t want to know where it is or if I have grandchildren. I didn’t like kids then, and still don’t. I wanted to adopt it out when small, but I was young and took the anti depressants they said would change my mind….they didn’t. I didn’t have post partum depression. I just didn’t want to raise a kid.
I’ve worked in the medical profession(RT) for many years and found if you’re a woman with kids, you’re screwed. If you breed, even if the kid is dumb as a rock, it can still make medical decisions when you’re old….whether you want it to or not. I’ve seen too many women locked away in the death houses(nursing homes) by their loving kids and there’s not much hope that a lawyer will touch it.They go whining to your doctor about how they are so concerned about your welfare and in no time at all….you’re gone.
Not everyone who gives birth feels a connection, and all the psycho drugs in the world aren’t going to change that. I personally don’t want other people in my house. My interests are mostly solitary….and I hate feeling obligated to help people make believe. Yes, I’m selfish…I don’t have a problem with that. I’ll take care of myself, thank you……and I know I’m not the only one.
Don’t assume that the parents who leave their kids in Nebraska love them and just need councelling or psycho drugs to “come around”. It might just be the first legal chance they’ve had to be rid of them.
your blog is very similar to my friend’s… you should check his out. entertaining, random tidbits. I think he may have posted a similar story on his blog earlier =). he’s bay area, too (and cs guy from uw-madison)
http://www.xanga.com/deansoapbox