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: Althouse

"If people with Down syndrome ruled the world."

From the National Association for Down Syndrome:

Affection, hugging and caring for others would make a big comeback....

All people would be encouraged to develop and use their gifts for helping others....

People would be refreshingly honest and genuine....

We believe, too, that a stuffy high society would probably not do well in the world of Down syndrome.

However, we believe that BIG dress up dances would flourish. People with Down syndrome love dressing up and dancing at big shindigs. They have a ball, and ...can they dance!...

People engaged in self talk would be considered thoughtful and creative. Self talk rooms would be reserved in offices and libraries to encourage this practice.....

Order and Structure would rule...

IN THE COMMENTS: hokiepundit writes:

Um...let's not forget that adults with Down Syndrome aren't just perpetually-innocent children in big-people bodies. They still have things like libidos and the capacity to act hatefully. They're just as human as the rest of us and it's unspeakable that people will abort their Down Syndrome babies, but these aren't supermen but simply men.

Man, I feel like I just harshed some mellow. I'll just go back to my legal reading now.

I respond:

Hokie, sure, we know that. This is just an effort to encourage respect for people who are part of the diversity of humanity.

I'm getting a vibe from some of the anti-Palin writings on the web that it's irresponsible to give birth to a Down's child unless you are planning to give up all your other aspirations in life. To me, this is thinly veiled abortion-encouragement, and it's quite horrifying.

I don't really want people with Down syndrome to rule the world. "Order and Structure would rule"... I think we know how things like that work out in practice.

ADDED: Rule-the-world fantasies are interesting and crazy and, at bottom, scary.

If I ruled the world/Every day would be the first day of spring/Every heart would have a new song to sing/And we'd sing of the joy every morning would bring/Every man would be as free as a bird/Every voice would be a voice to be heard/Take my word we would treasure each day that occurred/My world would be a beautiful place/Where we would weave such wonderful dreams/My world would wear a smile on its face/Like the man in the moon has when the moon beams/Every man would say the world was his friend/There'd be happiness that no man could end/No my friend, not if I ruled the world.

Hey, I can picture Barack Obama singing that, but here's the great original recording by Tony Bennett.

Full post as published by Althouse on August 31, 2008 (boomark / email).