"A [Pyrrhic] Victory for Life"

[cheri1122]

Texas teen wins right to have baby after suing parents | Fox News

I wouldn't say that a 16 year old is unable to be a good parent, because I know a few who were, [and have heard of many others], but I have to say the odds don't look good for this one. It takes a lot of support: financial, emotional, and practical, and this teen is surrounded by too many people whose primary concern is her right to have a child, but seemingly not a single thought about the child's right to a stable home life. They're fine with her wanting to marry at 16, with neither prospective parent able to support themselves, or even finished with high school!
I'd say that if you need a court order forcing your mother to pay for your cellphone, you're not parenting material, clearly.
The attorney is sooo proud of what he's done, but where will he be for the rest of the life he made happen?
Will anyone who helped today be there for the teen or her child tomorrow?

 

[LDB]

Yeah, better that the pro death people had won and killed the baby. Nobody deserves a chance to live if the pro death option is available.

 

[Turtle]

I'd say that if you need a court order forcing your mother to pay for your cellphone, you're not parenting material, clearly.

The implication being that's what happened in this case. But the agreement was a result of an out-of-court agreement, not a court order. Kinda "Fox Newsed" that one a little bit, huh.

The attorney is sooo proud of what he's done, but where will he be for the rest of the life he made happen?

The attorney has nothing to do with making that life happen. All he did was protect the mother's right to choose - which any pregnant female should be able to do - in the face of her being threatened with physical harm from by her parents in trying to coerce her to have an abortion. Forcing someone against their will to abort a fetus is just as abhorrent as forcing someone against their will to carry a baby to term.

Will anyone who helped today be there for the teen or her child tomorrow?

Hard to say, but the case wasn't about taking care of these two 16-year olds and their baby for the rest of their lives, it was about the right to choose.

 

[cheri1122]

Got me on the 'court order', but the difference makes no difference: if she can't pay for her phone, who's going to pay for her and her child's needs?
I totally agree that the teen has a right to have a child, but rights have responsibilities, and she doesn't seem prepared to take those on at all.
The case is about her right to choose, but it's also about a parent's right and society's right to overrule the ill considered decisions made by people who have not attained adult maturity, because it's they [parents & society] who will bear the costs. She can get married, if her parents consent, precisely because she is too young to make decisions of life changing consequences without guidance.
The Texas legal group used the teen to pursue their agenda, and they should not be proud of what they've done, because in this case, it serves nobody's interests.

 

[Turtle]

Who said she couldn't pay for her phone? The article certainly didn't. All the article said regarding her phone was that her parents agreed to pay for it. In addition to going to school, the girl is working two jobs, so it's conceivable that she could pay for her own cell phone.

They also agreed to pay half her insurance, and to return the teen's car, implying the parents took it for some reason. In addition, the parents agreed to cease any threats of physical violence or psychological coercion, including threatening to slip an "abortion pill" mickey on her.

The article doesn't say, but it's certainly possible the parents may very well have agreed to these terms in exchange for the girl not pressing charges for assault and battery, and for terroristic threatening.

The case is about her right to choose, but it's also about a parent's right and society's right to overrule the ill considered decisions made by people who have not attained adult maturity, because it's they [parents & society] who will bear the costs.

I dunno. She certainly seemed prepared enough, and smart and resourceful enough, to file a lawsuit to protect her right, and the right of the father, to choose. The boy's parents are apparently more than willing to carry some of that burden, according to statements made by the boy in the actual news report from Fox26 Houston. The girl also doesn't even live with her parents, she lives with her paternal grandparents, who have stated in court records they agree to help care for the baby.

The reason she's living with her paternal grandparents? Her parents invited the paternal grandparents to a bar where they discussed slipping the girl the "abortion pill" though deception. The paternal grandparents refused to be a part of that and took the girl in to protect her.

A pregnancy is not something that the baby's grandparents, much less society, should be able to overrule, be it a forced abortion or a forced birth. The decision to have a baby, or have an abortion, is an intensely personal decision, and no one should be forced against their will to do one or the other.

It takes an incredible amount of courage to stand up to your parents in this manner. I think she and her new family will be just fine.