Salon | Letters to the editor

_______________JUST BECAUSE I'M HIV-POSITIVE, CAN'T I BEAR CHILDREN? BY LORI LEIBOVICH (11/25/97)

Selfish.
Even if Patti Radigan's baby was lucky enough not to have contracted AIDS from her HIV-positive mother, what type of a life can this child hope for?
With a home "secured ... with welfare funds," a father who was kicked out of the house for cheating on his wife and a mother whose job experience ranged from prostitute to waitress and who had been "addicted to heroin, cocaine, uppers, downers, alcohol and pot," how can this child possibly be expected to flourish in a secure and nurturing environment?
If Patti Radigan had possessed the unselfish love that is a prerequisite for parenthood, she would not have brought a daughter into the world under these conditions.
Worst of all is the fact that Patti Radigan KNEW that her daughter could have been infected with AIDS -- to say nothing of the other health consequences the baby risked from a mother who had abused drugs and alcohol for years and who, at age 38, was at a higher risk than younger women of having a baby with Down's syndrome.
Patti Radigan could have turned her life around by volunteering to help some of the hundreds of thousands of children who desperately crave the company of someone to read to them, play with them or help them with homework. She wouldn't have experienced maternity, but she would have experienced the satisfaction and emotional involvement that comes with bringing joy into the lives of children who experience little of it in their everyday lives.
Instead, Patti Radigan took the selfish way out. That's her choice, but don't expect me to admire it.
-- Betsy Kelaher
A mother who clearly exhibits striking symptoms of chronic thinking impairment qualifies for "Mothers Who Think"? If the editors weren't rolling around on the floor laughing at the irony of this article's placement they certainly need a humor transplant. The only other rag I can think of that would be overly sincere enough to be so stridently non-judgmental is Utne Reader. Unfortunately, their unintentional humor was limited to endlessly repeating this one joke. I had to cancel my subscription. I beg you to please vary your ridiculousness so that I may continue reading your magazine.
-- John Dubberley
SALON | DEC. 2, 1997

R E C E N T L Y+| THE HIGH CHURCH OF STARBUCKS BY JENNIFER REESE

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_______________JUST BECAUSE I'M HIV-POSITIVE, CAN'T I BEAR CHILDREN? BY LORI LEIBOVICH (11/25/97)
	Selfish. Even if Patti Radigan's baby was lucky enough not to have contracted AIDS from her HIV-positive mother, what type of a life can this child hope for? With a home "secured ... with welfare funds," a father who was kicked out of the house for cheating on his wife and a mother whose job experience ranged from prostitute to waitress and who had been "addicted to heroin, cocaine, uppers, downers, alcohol and pot," how can this child possibly be expected to flourish in a secure and nurturing environment? If Patti Radigan had possessed the unselfish love that is a prerequisite for parenthood, she would not have brought a daughter into the world under these conditions. Worst of all is the fact that Patti Radigan KNEW that her daughter could have been infected with AIDS -- to say nothing of the other health consequences the baby risked from a mother who had abused drugs and alcohol for years and who, at age 38, was at a higher risk than younger women of having a baby with Down's syndrome. Patti Radigan could have turned her life around by volunteering to help some of the hundreds of thousands of children who desperately crave the company of someone to read to them, play with them or help them with homework. She wouldn't have experienced maternity, but she would have experienced the satisfaction and emotional involvement that comes with bringing joy into the lives of children who experience little of it in their everyday lives. Instead, Patti Radigan took the selfish way out. That's her choice, but don't expect me to admire it. -- Betsy Kelaher A mother who clearly exhibits striking symptoms of chronic thinking impairment qualifies for "Mothers Who Think"? If the editors weren't rolling around on the floor laughing at the irony of this article's placement they certainly need a humor transplant. The only other rag I can think of that would be overly sincere enough to be so stridently non-judgmental is Utne Reader. Unfortunately, their unintentional humor was limited to endlessly repeating this one joke. I had to cancel my subscription. I beg you to please vary your ridiculousness so that I may continue reading your magazine. -- John Dubberley SALON \| DEC. 2, 1997