• baby talk

    Less Stigma For Kids With Down Syndrome, But More For Moms Who Abort?

    More British children are being born with Down syndrome, leading some to speculate that Britain has become more tolerant of the condition. After the introduction of a prenatal test for Down's in 1989, its incidence in Britain dropped from 714 births a year to 594. But that number is up again, to 749, its highest level ever. Some of this is due to moms getting older. But some of it may reflect improved public perception of the condition, or the fact that, at least according to columnist Dominic Lawson, "younger generations of parents are much less keen on the idea of abortion for eugenic reasons." More »

    5:00 PM on Tue Nov 25 2008
    By Anna N.
    4,966 views, 169 comments

    Most discussed Gael: This might sound cruel but I would never have a down's syndrome child. It's a lifetime of responsibility. It's not more »

  • victims of victimless crimes

    Moms Behind Bars: How To Make The Best Of A Bad Situation

    According to a Time article by Tammerlin Drummond, the number of women in prison has risen 650% over the last twenty years and there are more than 100,000 female inmates with children under 18 in local, state or federal custody. Many of those women are single parents and, statistically speaking, of the 1.5 million children in the U.S. with one incarcerated parent, half can be expected to commit a crime of their own before they turn 18. More »

    6:20 PM on Tue Nov 18 2008
    By Megan
    3,124 views, 43 comments

    Most discussed Vivelafat says Vive La Obama: What about the fathers? They don't get to spend time with their new born children? Are we assuming they don't more »

  • domestic disturbances

    Is Being A Bad Mother The Most Heinous Crime Of All?

    Yesterday we wrote about an adoptive mother named Yvette Maguire who gave her child back after a mere two weeks with the boy, because, as she said, "I felt no bond with him whatsoever. People were brutal towards Maguire for what they considered to be terrible mothering, and today comes news that Nixzaliz Santiago, the mother of brutally murdered 7-year-old Nixzmary Brown, was given a jail sentence that was 17 years longer than that of Cesar Rodriguez, Nixzaliz's husband and Nixzmary's murderer. If Rodriguez was the one who struck the fatal blows that killed Nixzmary, why is Nixzaliz's sentence so much more stringent? More »

    2:00 PM on Mon Nov 17 2008
    By Jessica
    9,586 views, 178 comments

    Most discussed hortense: It sounds like the jury was swayed by a videotaped statement she gave: "She was so nonchalant about her daughter's more »

  • badvertising

    Moms In Uproar Over Snarky Motrin Ad

    When Johnson & Jonson debuted a web clip this past weekend — a psuedo-advertisement for Motrin, in which a snarky, slangy female narrator gripes about the social pressure to "wear" baby slings — Twitter moms freaked out. The narrator says, "Supposedly it's a real bonding experience… They say that babies carried close to the bod tend to cry less than others. But what about me?" Yeah, she uses the word "bod." She also says that wearing a baby in a sling "totally makes me look like an official mom." The ad is supposed to promote Motrin as a cure to the pain you can get from carrying your baby instead of putting her in a stroller; but mothers on blogs and Twitter feeds agreed: The ad (embedded after the jump) is offensive. Guess what happened? More »

    12:30 PM on Mon Nov 17 2008
    By Dodai
    19,538 views, 216 comments

    Most discussed madktdisease: Can't watch the video, but as an aside, am I the last person on the internet who thinks Twitter is more »

  • Broken Bonds

    After Only Two Weeks, An Adoptive Mother Gives A Child Back

    Yvette Maguire desperately wanted children. After 18 months of failing to conceive, she and her husband Mark turned to IUI treatments, which failed the couple three times. After IVF treatments also failed, the Maguires decided to turn to adoption. The process was emotionally draining, but the Maguires pressed on. As Yvette recalls, "The entire process is designed to put you off, to frighten you to see if you're 100 per cent committed. But it didn't deter either of us. I was so blinkered that all I could think was: 'I want a baby, I want a baby.'" The couple eventually got their wish: a 2-year-old boy named Ben, who "had been terribly neglected as a baby" was placed in their custody. Yvette finally had the child she always wanted. But then something went wrong: just two weeks after welcoming little Ben into their home, Yvette felt a disconnect from the child, and eventually returned him to the adoption agency as a result. More »

    5:00 PM on Sun Nov 16 2008
    By hortense
    28,179 views, 312 comments

    Most discussed kelsium: This is what happens when society screams at women that a child is the only thing that will complete them more »

  • Executive Decisions

    Michelle Obama: From Mentor With Moxie To Mom

    Rebecca Traister's piece for Salon on the "momification" of Michelle Obama deals with the idea that this accomplished lawyer, who has her own, very strong identity, is now a woman who will be picking out dresses to wear to the inaugural ball and finding schools for her daughters. Traister writes: "The Associated Press wondered what kind of first lady Michelle will be, and concludes, 'the kind of first lady this country has not seen in decades.' You mean, the kind with a high-powered job? No, 'the mother of young children.'" Traister insists we don't forget: More »

    2:40 PM on Wed Nov 12 2008
    By Dodai
    10,215 views, 220 comments

    Most discussed shorty63136: I think Michelle understands that she hasn't LOST anything. And that part of her job as a wife is to more »

  • baby talk

    Hollywood Now Run By "Mommy Mafia"

    The standard image of Hollywood is a classic boys club: Deals made in cigar-filled boardrooms, on golf courses, or in red sports cars, aka mid-life-crisis mobiles. But according to a piece in the LA Times, things have changed. The power's with the new Hollywood Mommy Mafia: "Female film financiers and producers are taking meetings at kiddie parks. Mommy & Me groups are birthing adult friendships that extend beyond quelling toddler tantrums and lead to lucrative deals. High-profile birthday parties, rather than red carpet premieres and business dinners, are the hot new places to network." Great, if you have kids. But what if you don't? More »

    5:00 PM on Fri Nov 7 2008
    By Dodai
    2,939 views, 66 comments

    Most discussed Archetype: Baby Boom is one of the coolest 80's movies. I can't tell you how happy it makes me when more »

  • dying to give birth

    Maternal Mortality Plagues Sierra Leone -- And The United States

    If you're feeling a little too happy today — you know, because everything seems to be going so well and all — take a look at this Washington Post article on maternal mortality in Sierra Leone. The piece, which ran on Sunday, profiles first-time mother Saio Marah, who needs an emergency C-section after two days of labor, but has to wait for a surgical team to arrive from their homes and do the procedure. In the meantime the baby dies, and they bury it in a special graveyard set aside for the hospital's many stillbirths. But Marah survives, unlike many of her countrywomen, who have a one in eight chance of dying in childbirth. And like many supposed Third World problems, maternal mortality is a First World problem too. More »

    2:20 PM on Tue Oct 14 2008
    By Anna N.
    4,095 views, 42 comments

    Most discussed ineffable.me: so the article is about maternal mortality in sierra leone and you are offended that they only centered in the more »

  • crappy hour

    Stay Off Of John McCain's Lawn!

    As the sun rises on the debate day but sets on John McCain, one is forced to wonder: where are the racists at? And, it turns out they're at McCain-Palin rallies! Swampland's Ana Marie Cox and I aren't surprised, any more than we're surprised that Dick Morris still sucks hooker's toes, and Todd Palin might be "borrowing" Sarah's underwear. Oh, and John McCain is probably losing and wants people the fuck off his lawn, you cunt. More »

    10:00 AM on Tue Oct 7 2008
    By Megan
    6,398 views, 236 comments

    Most discussed SisterMaryMartha: What is American Carol? more »