Girl born without a brain

[Ruptga]

The girl doesn't care, she doesn't know she exists, she doesn't have a brain, nada, zip, zilch in the IQ department, a flatline zero, or as someone else pointed out a carrot.

I think that fact has been fairly well established, but what does that have to do with the idea that the mother went through all of this in order to exploit welfare? That's what your quoted post was responding to.

 

[MongGrel]

Perhaps she should make a pot roast.

"Occasionally, yes. If a tiger's cubs are stillborn, or if they die, the mother will often eat them. She begins by licking them, trying to rouse them, and when the cubs do not respond, it seems to turn into a predatory response (big cats often lick their prey before beginning to feed). She may also kill and eat cubs which are weak or sickly, and are not likely to survive - many animals know when something is wrong with their young, even if they appear normal to human eyes. Eating cubs like this may be a way of recycling the nutrients the mother has lost nurturing them."

:whiste:

 

[zinfamous]

I wouldn't put anyone through that. Having her around would be worse than if it were stillborn.

Seems kind of selfish by the parents.

agreed. Though some think every cell is sacred and even worth a short life of constant pain and torture.

 

[JM Aggie08]

The first thing that came to my mind were the lower-level demons in Constantine.

Pics or it didn't happen.

 

[mmntech]

A family member of mine, oh, 20 years ago found out the baby they were carrying had severe hydrocephalus. Aka "water on the brain". They decided to terminate the pregnancy, which they still feel was the right thing to do. I agree with them.

From what I've read on hydranencephaly on Wikipedia, it seems that it may not be that easy to diagnose in the womb. The doctor may have missed the signs when doing ultrasounds. When the baby is born, they may appear completely normal. A newborn's base instincts are governed by the brain stem. So they may still cry, suckle, and generally appear normal. Though symptoms manifest themselves a couple weeks after birth. After a few months of life, it develops into seizures, sensory impairment, paralysis, and severe intellectual deficiencies (duh). Apparently the oldest person with the condition survived to age 33.

It's interesting from a philosophical standpoint regarding euthanasia. This girl is so severely disabled she has zero chance of having anything resembling a life. Yet at the same time, I can understand the parents not wanting to abandon her to death. Not something I would wish on my worst enemy.