Stop the Madness

My plans for the funny “How I Met My Husband” blog came to a screeching halt today after I read the following news item:

Mother Decapitates Newborn, Eats Brain (San Antonio, Texas)

Sadly this was not some crazy tabloid story that had been made up to grab people’s attention or increase circulation. Despite being National Enquirer worthy, this particular headline appeared in the local newspaper I read each day.

What is happening to our world? How is this possible? Who is behind this Hannibal Lecter-ish madness?

We all know how CNN likes to pontificate endlessly on drama filled news stories (Michael Jackson anyone?), so I was curious to read their coverage of this gruesome tale. CNN.com provided no additional details that would answer my questions, but it did lead me to a list of (shocking) related links…which, in turn, left me seeing red.

Missing Toddler, Infant Found Inside Trash Bin (Dayton, Ohio)

Newborn Found Covered With Ants in Box Along Roadside (Ocala, Florida)

Baby Found in Shoebox with Breathing Hole (Long Island, New York)

Newborn Left In Motel Room Littered With Beer Cans (West Springfield, Massachusetts)

Now before we become too smug, in a “that would never happen here” kinda way, you should know that these baby tragedies aren’t just happening in America. Case in point – one of today’s front page stories in the Chronicle Herald (the main newspaper out here on the East Coast) read:

Baby Dies, Parents Could Face Homicide Charges (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

It seems that the 23 year old parents of a 7 week old little girl decided to use her as a punching bag last week… right here in our very own backyard. Oh no, we Canadians are not above such horrors.

That's six, count ‘em, S-I-X news stories in a single day recounting the death or neglect of babies by their PARENTS - madness, pure and simple. What's more frightening? I located these on the internet in under ten minutes - who knows how many more I would have found if I had kept digging…

Being a YM Wannabe these appalling headlines disturb and offend me, not to mention make me sick to my stomach. And although they are likely to make every sane, rational, reasonable, and empathetic adult feel exactly the same way, I would argue these types of reports hit Wannabes harder. For us, these stories portray a cruel irony…while we would do anything to protect the children we do have and morn the children we have lost, these people are literally killing the children they have been blessed with.

Listen people - if you don’t want them, don’t have them in the first place!*

Then maybe, just maybe, some of this madness will stop.



* Meaning take proper precautions to avoid pregnancy entirely. And if that doesn’t work, consider giving unwanted children up for adoption so those who are desperate to be parents or those who have lost a child through no means of their own have a greater chance of realizing their dream one day.