When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, ‘it means just what I choose it to mean – neither more nor less.’
The Ohio House Health and Aging Committee heard proponent testimony Wednesday on House Bill 307 which I wrote about earlier. The bill would cut finalization the time an adoption can be challenged after finalization from one year to 60 days, lessen already paltry putative father rights, and expand the state adoption tax credit from $1500 to 10,000 to be spread out over a period of time.These points, and others, Ohio Right to Life and proponents claim, will “encourage” adoption and lessen the the stress on paps living in fear than a parent may come back and claim “my child.”
The bill is promoted as an “adoption reform” package. with, no input from actual adoption reformers. This appropriation of “reform” language is akin to racist and sexist appropriation of language. In the topsy-turvey world of American politics African-Americans, for instance, who support black candidates for office are racists; women who support abortion rights hate women (and children.) During the baby dump campaign a few years ago, Bastard Nation, and myself in particular, were called “anti–adoptee,” with an implication of self-loathing.. “Do you want to see adoptees in little white coffins? the Morriseys liked to hector. (not that that question even makes any sense), but the meaning was clear. I’d rather see newborns die than be adopted out of the “safe haven” program, and that’s what they spread around legislatures.
Appropriation is the desperate cry of elites losing their grip and having no idea how to frame their own decrepit, discredited arguments. In a country where victimization is worn as a badge of honor, the the progenitor of victimization is now the victim. It’s the cry of the sore winner. Whenever you hear it you know you’re getting somewhere.
Adoption Circle used to have a pretty good reputation, but after this testimony, it doesn’t. I can’t cut and paste as I had planned originally, so I’m linking it.
. Lucie Blumenthal HB 307 testimony001 (2)
Blumenthal lays out the horror of “waiting” for a newborn to be free of its biological parents and into a permanent “secure” adoptive environment. The funny part of this is that she sabotages her own arguments. Blumenthal says that in her 28 years of adoption work she has never known of a parent to come back after finalization to challenge. That’s because Ohio has a year finalization timeframe. Gut that to 60 days and watch the lawsuits fly.
I really didn’t want to testify on this bill, but I’m going to have to.
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