Richard Dawkins: bigoted against those with Down's syndrome?

[REP]

15. In reply to your edit: No

Down's Syndrome isn't about being being a good hugger or the many other demeaning and dehumanizing things people say, trying to compliment the intellectually delayed when they are in fact dismissing the numerous challenges they face. Let's start with just the health aspects: In addition to mental delay, which can range from profound to moderate, DS brings with it a number of serious health problems, not limited to the heart and kidneys. These are unpleasant and difficult enough for anyone to deal with; a person with a mental delay may find it even more terrifying and unbearable. No test can determine how severe the effects of DS will be; only that it is present.

Many with DS are never able to live independently, and statistically, children with DS are born to older parents. Who cares for that child should that outlive the parents? Group homes for those with mental delays are grim, and those are often the best alternative available. Sending off a vulnerable adult alone to the care of strangers is not a comforting thought.

Those are just two things - of hundreds - that are considered about the health and well-being of the potential child. It's not about bigotry; it's about 'can I do and provide everything necessary to make sure my child will be safe, cared for and protected?" That's hard enough to answer when there is no diagnosis of DS; when there is, there is so much more to consider - for someone else's sake.