By: David Rice To: Don Martin Re: Cs Child Abuse +gt;+gt;[cuts] DM+gt; As sheer serendipid

By: David Rice
To: Don Martin
Re: Cs Child Abuse

>>[cuts]
DM> As sheer serendipidy would have it, my wife and I surfed
DM> to an old LA Law during a lazy afternoon last Sunday, and
DM> one of the cases being tried was of a Christian Science
DM> couple whose child had died of bacterial meningitis. Dad was
DM> the true believer, wife had her doubts and had said "this
DM> isn't working" some three days before the kid's demise.
DM> Guess who was found guilty of manslaughter? Not the true
DM> believer, but mom, whose doubt was an admission of
DM> rationality and therefore a basis for responsibility. Sheer
DM> brainless belief served, in that case at least, as a
DM> defense.
>>[cuts]

They made "Dad" the true believer because they did not want a
law suit for being too close to the real case. The actual case
involved a woman "Christian 'Scientist'" who was the Real,
True, I-Have-Faith-In-Gawdd Believer--- her spouse was and is
also "Christian 'Scientist,'" but he's a silent, meek little
man that lets The Little Woman dictate religious policy.

The child in question died horribly, with his brain litterally
cooking in its own juices. Christianity is grand, ain't it?

The State of Californian has a rather recient exclusionary
clause in it's Section 17 Criminal Justice Code. The code
mandates that parents must provide medical treatment, as
well as shelter and clothing. The exclusionary clause says
that parents may use "alternate therapy" in regards to
medical intervention, and the wording comes straight from
Mary Baker Eddy's books, even going so far as using the
word "practitioner" instead of "doctor."

Guess which cult lobbied and put this exclusionary clause in
the criminal code? Yep.

There were six trials that I know of in California of death
due to "Christian 'Science'" parents allowing their children
to die, plus two in Colorado. Who can say just how many
children have died--- the "Christian 'Scientists'" claim
they do not keep records.

One of the most famouse case involved the parents fleeing with
their sick child when relatives tried to get the child to a
real doctor: the disease in that case was also meningitis, which
has a very good rate of recovery if caught in time. The child
was hidden for ten days (if I recall correctly) while cult
members "worked" on him (i.e. they prayed, called in their
"practitioners," etc.). When the child died and the parents
came out of hiding, they were put on trial and aquited.

Odd how this seems so clearly to be premeditated murder to me,
but not to the State (let alone the goddamn parents).

When Jesus said "suffer the little children to come unto me,"
somehow the "Christian 'Scientists'" thought he meant "Suffer,
little children."

The whole ugly mess is documented in _Deadly_Blessings_ which
is available from Prometheus Books.

... Sagan say's there ain't no God but Sagan himself. -- Pat Parrinello