Why does the U.S.A...

[Amina516]

..feel like they can rule other countries (citizens) lives?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100727/..._kids_in_limbo

I dont get how the USA gets carte blanche to swoop in there and take a group of kids. They werent supposed to have been eligible to come over here in the first place...

Im the first to admit that theyd probably lead "better" lives here, but wow...I dont know. Theres so many local children that need adoption as well, but for some reason people always want the "designer" foreign babies. Charity should start at home, IMO.. I hope that these kids get good families, but at the same time why dont people seem to care about all the children here in the US that have been through shitty situations and crappy home lives?

ETA: Ok, so maybe the USA shouldnt be blamed, i just mean you would think there would be better regulations for situations like these.

[Red Panda]

Stupid USA going into countries devastated by natural disasters and saving the citizens.

[AdminAssistant]

We should be 'saving the citizens' by helping them rebuild their infrastructure and provide basic necessities (food, water, shelter, clothing) to the displaced and homeless. We should not be barging in and taking children away because they would have a better life in America. As Amina said, there are plenty of children here who desperately need good homes. These children were not part of the adoption process; they should have stayed in Haiti. But American busybodies just know that this is the land of sunshine and puppy farts and that everyone is better off here. Who cares about silly laws?

[Greenday]

Stupid USA going into countries devastated by natural disasters and saving the citizens.

I'm not sure how kidnapping = saving.

[Red Panda]

Yeah! I hope whoever was airlifting children out of a destroyed city gets a stern talking to about the importance of double checking paperwork. The horrors of saving the wrong orphans is a huge deal. Everybody knows orphans are the most likely to survive when left to their own devices so making sure these children were left behind should have been a priority.

[Nyoibo]

Actually if you read any other articles and had any background knowledge of the matter these 12 kids have family, some of the kids this group was trying to SMUGGLE out actually still had parents alive.

[Red Panda]

Thats a differant group. These kids were taken from an orphanage.

[Plaidman]

I never thought I'd say this.

I agree with Red Panda.

Look, yeah, America should be helping our own country own unloved children first, and by adding more to the care of the state, those kids very likely WILL be adopted first because hey, they're from another country that was deviestated, and they have the whole label on them, and not to mention the bragging rights some of their adopotive parents will do " well I adopted a child there to help that country, what have YOU done, hmmmmmm?


That being said, I can't dislike anyone for rescuing people that likely would die otherwise. Goes against my nature.

[Hobbs]

Exactly. The US provided the most relief of any country in Haiti. We even refuse to fly our flag in Haiti. We're even restricted from flying it in Iraq. Yet the only thing people dwell on are the actions of a private group of citizens. How can you blame the US for something a few of its citizens did? Are we back to demonizing people based on their affiliation?

Sigh...as a member of the Armed Forces, I will continue to defend-to the death-the freedoms that make such thinking possible.

[ExRetailDrone]

Thats a differant group. These kids were taken from an orphanage.

Actually, the article stated that the 12 kids that are in the middle of this were not on the list to be taken to the US in the first place.

Unlike some 1,100 other children flown out of Haiti to the U.S. after the Jan. 12 earthquake, the youths at the Holy Family Institute in Emsworth, Pa., were not part of the adoption process prior to the quake and — according to some legal experts — shouldn't have been eligible for the emergency program.

That is why it's turning into such a hot-button issue. Most of them have family (including parents) alive back in Haiti. The families have supposedly waived their rights as guardians so that their children can be adopted out in the US, but people are worried that they have not been given all the information that goes along with this decision, as things have happened so rapidly.

The State Department is aware of claims that the children's relatives have relinquished them, but wants to verify any such actions and be sure the relatives understand the ramifications of any statements they've made.

[lordlundar]

I dont get how the USA gets carte blanche to swoop in there and take a group of kids. They werent supposed to have been eligible to come over here in the first place...

Technically, it's not allowed. Most of the adoptees that are in the process went through proper procedures (basically the on-site officials cleared them for the process) while these kids were, for lack of a better term, smuggled from the country under the claim of being rescued. Te catch is, there's a politician involved, making it seem legitimate.

Basically, they committed an illegal act and are now trying to get the law to work in their favor after the fact. Why are they getting away with it? Well, you tell a church that they're wrong for doing the act, especially with Government approval. I promise you the next news piece will be just how much of a monster you are.

[Red Panda]

Actually, the article stated that the 12 kids that are in the middle of this were not on the list to be taken to the US in the first place.



That is why it's turning into such a hot-button issue. Most of them have family (including parents) alive back in Haiti. The families have supposedly waived their rights as guardians so that their children can be adopted out in the US, but people are worried that they have not been given all the information that goes along with this decision, as things have happened so rapidly.

I read the article. 12 kids out of over a 1000 were not on the list to come to America. The case of the kids being kidnapped by a private organization when they had parents was a differant private organization. All this shows in when in the middle of a disaster sometimes its hard to double check all the paperwork and a few kids fell through the cracks and were brought to America sooner then they were suppose to.

[Arcade Man D]

Technically, it's not allowed. Most of the adoptees that are in the process went through proper procedures (basically the on-site officials cleared them for the process) while these kids were, for lack of a better term, smuggled from the country under the claim of being rescued. Te catch is, there's a politician involved, making it seem legitimate.

Except they weren't. It was a case of 12 kids out of 1100 being in the wrong place, and brought here accidentally. When it was figured out, it was probably better to keep them in the Pittsburgh orphanage for the time being. They made a mistake with 1% of the kids, and are keeping them in one place while it's sorted out, instead of taking them back to Haiti, then taking possibly taking them back here again.

And yes, if the relatives didn't relinquish their rights, they should go back to the family. But if they did relinquish their rights, they're in a good position to get adopted soon right now.

[lordlundar]

Except they weren't. It was a case of 12 kids out of 1100 being in the wrong place, and brought here accidentally. When it was figured out, it was probably better to keep them in the Pittsburgh orphanage for the time being.

See my second part. Regardless of the intentions, it was a private group that brought them into the US without the approval of the appropriate officials. That is smuggling. But instead of finding out if they have to go back or not, are trying to get the put on the adoption list ( and given the approach, jump ahead of the list) after the fact. The only difference here from other smuggling operations occurring is this one has a politician attaching his face to it.

[Red Panda]

Where does it say the private group did the airlift? All it says about the airlift is that a govenor was involved. I would assume it was the US military that did the airlift. I think you are confusing this case with the one where the private church group tried bringing the bus of children across the boarder into the Dominican Republic. Also they are trying to find out if they need to go back or not. The agency says everything is good to go but the state department is double checking and making sure Haiti is okay with everything.

I really don't see the problem here. Would the orphans have been better off being left in a destroyed building? Worse case scenario is they live in America for a few months while the governments work things out.