Posted October 17, 200618 yr Right, let's NOT make this a thread about Madge's music (any posts even mentioning her music in passing WILL be deleted...)... I want views on what people feel about the ethics of these Celebs just going into Third World countries and plucking out some poor little kid (preferably the ones WITHOUT AIDS, HIV, Hep C, etc or physical deformities so it seems....) at random, be seen to just totally bypass that country's rules and regs on adoption, etc and drag the kid into the full glare of the media spotlight.... Personally, I'm incredibly uncomfortable with this apparent growing trend (it seems to me to be an extention of the trend for celebs to go around with these horrid little rat-dogs..), what's it actually being done for..? For the benefit of who...? Is it for the child's benefit, or is it some incredibly cynical PR stunt to make themselves look like the 'grande dames' who are gonna save the poor little brown babies from starvation....? If Madge is really that committed to the children of Malawi, why doesn't she actually move there and do something positive instead of merely chucking some money around and picking out one particular little kid to 'save'.... And frankly, the sight of the press all running around after the bairn at the airport just sickened me to my stomach.... <_< Like a pack of fukkin' hyaenas. Shame on them....
October 17, 200618 yr first angelina now madonna.....soon all celebs will adopt kids......these kids are the new itsy bitsy doggies and like u said if they really care about the kids then why dont they send money to them for schools/clean water/food etc. That would help them a lot more than just picking one random kid Edited October 17, 200618 yr by pink_princess01
October 17, 200618 yr I'm all for the adoption of these kids - doubtless they will get better lives out of it - but I believe they could go further. These celebs have the money to save entire communities, so why not do that as well as adopt a child? If they really want to good PR out of it, saving entire communities would go a hell of a lot further than just saving one child...
October 17, 200618 yr Author I'm all for the adoption of these kids - doubtless they will get better lives out of it You think being chased around by scummy Paparazzi is actually gonna ensure the kid has a 'better life'. Sure, in terms of the purely material aspects, but there's a bit more to life than just that, if the kid is gonna be living his life in some sort of freak-show goldfish bowl, then how is it actually 'good'...? We've seen plenty examples of celeb kid fukk-ups....
October 17, 200618 yr You think being chased around by scummy Paparazzi is actually gonna ensure the kid has a 'better life'. Sure, in terms of the purely material aspects, but there's a bit more to life than just that, if the kid is gonna be living his life in some sort of freak-show goldfish bowl, then how is it actually 'good'...? We've seen plenty examples of celeb kid fukk-ups.... I didn't really mean it in a materialistic aspect - I'm sure being chased around by the paparazzi is a worthy trade for at least surviving past your fifth year. The materialistic aspect may come into it as well, but I don't think the kid's gonna exactly starve to death or die of poisoning from contaminated water under Madonna, no?
October 17, 200618 yr I agree with you Scott. The thing that irritates me about it is that any normal family wanting to adopt a child would have to go through years worth of legalities and be tested and screened to see if they're fit to adopt a child. Whereas I can guarantee Madonna never even had 1% of the hassle that a normal family would. If she actually had to sign an official form I'd be surprised. For the record that isn't me slagging off Madonna (as a Mariah fan I must be careful) just basing an opinion on the situation as a whole.
October 17, 200618 yr I agree with Scott. This child will never want for the material things in life, but personally, I am very uncomfortable with this adoption. It seems that in recent years, it has become the 'in thing' for celebrities to adopt children from such countries. If it were you or I, the process would definately not be speed tracked through. I read somewhere that Madonna and Guy's marriage was in trouble and they hoped another child would help their relationship. Now, that may well be media speculation, but even if there's only the smallest grain of truth in it, I would be very unhappy with it.
October 17, 200618 yr Author I don't think the kid's gonna exactly starve to death or die of poisoning from contaminated water under Madonna, no? No, probably just become a heroin addict or alcoholic instead....
October 17, 200618 yr To be honest, if the choice is between risking starvation and poverty in an orphanage in a very poor country or being in the media glare but living with one of the most rich and famous people in the world and getting the best material possesions, health care and possibly education money can buy, then I think that kid has got a pretty good deal. As they say, it's probably preferable to be unhappy in the back of a limosine than to be unhappy in the back of a truck. I agree with Kelly that it is a bit unpleasent that Madonna has bypassed the usual legal testings anyone else would have to go through if they wanted to adopt though.
October 17, 200618 yr I think the logical answer to this whole scenario is to look at the average life expectancy of Malawis. It's 20 - 25. At a push. Who can argue that taking a child out of that situation, immense poverty, infection-ridden and starvation, and giving him a life we can only dream of is the right thing to do? OK, he'll have press interest for the rest of his life, and will go through the same hell every celeb kid is put through. But surely this is better than being dead at 20, if not probably before. But he'll always know where he come from, and it'll obviously be his choice to retrace his roots. Also - in future years, this kid will inherit untold fortunes..... let's hope he puts a sizeable chunk of those fortunes back to his homeland. Madonna comes in for a fair amount of flak, much of it justified (especially about her shameful ticket prices this year)... but in this case, back off her - not only has she saved a kid's life - she's also ploughed millions into the village he came from - so you can only imagine how many other lives that money will save.
October 17, 200618 yr Author I think the logical answer to this whole scenario is to look at the average life expectancy of Malawis. It's 20 - 25. At a push. Who can argue that taking a child out of that situation, immense poverty, infection-ridden and starvation, and giving him a life we can only dream of is the right thing to do? OK, he'll have press interest for the rest of his life, and will go through the same hell every celeb kid is put through. But surely this is better than being dead at 20, if not probably before. But he'll always know where he come from, and it'll obviously be his choice to retrace his roots. Also - in future years, this kid will inherit untold fortunes..... let's hope he puts a sizeable chunk of those fortunes back to his homeland. Madonna comes in for a fair amount of flak, much of it justified (especially about her shameful ticket prices this year)... but in this case, back off her - not only has she saved a kid's life - she's also ploughed millions into the village he came from - so you can only imagine how many other lives that money will save. But is it actually being done for the right reasons...? Seems quite a selfish act in many ways to me. The kid actually has a living father, so is not actually an orphan... I dunno, I just dont like this general trend, seems to me like these kids are like some sort of fashion accessory like yappy little dogs or Gucci handbags.... The white western world cannot just salve its collective guilt over Africa just by a few grandiose, self-important individuals making mere gestures or paying lip-service to huge, fundamental problems... It just doesn't sit right with me, sorry.
October 17, 200618 yr The kid actually has a living father, so is not actually an orphan... But that father put his son in an orphnage to be raised as he didn't think he'd be able to do it himself. So while the kid may not technically be an orphan, he was being raised in an orphanage. Whatever the father's motives for doing so, or Madonna's for adopting him- which, while we can speculate and make educated guesses, are only known to the individuals themselves- the bottom line is that kid will probably get to do and be part of things he would never have had chance to under normal circumstances. I just don't see how he is supposed to be losing out.
October 17, 200618 yr Author But that father put his son in an orphnage to be raised as he didn't think he'd be able to do it himself. So while the kid may not technically be an orphan, he was being raised in an orphanage. Whatever the father's motives for doing so, or Madonna's for adopting him- which, while we can speculate and make educated guesses, are only known to the individuals themselves- the bottom line is that kid will probably get to do and be part of things he would never have had chance to under normal circumstances. I just don't see how he is supposed to be losing out. Actually go and talk to an African, they could explain it to you so much better than I ever could... If rich white people can just go into a third world country and basically have their pick of any kid they want and bypass all the regs, well doesn't that strike you as being a little dodgy.....??? The next rich, white person may not be someone like Madonna, it may be someone like Paul Gadd, Michael Jackson or Johnathan King..... <_<
October 17, 200618 yr Actually go and talk to an African, they could explain it to you so much better than I ever could... If rich white people can just go into a third world country and basically have their pick of any kid they want and bypass all the regs, well doesn't that strike you as being a little dodgy.....??? The next rich, white person may not be someone like Madonna, it may be someone like Paul Gadd, Michael Jackson or Johnathan King..... <_< Michael was found not guilty -_-
October 17, 200618 yr Author Michael was found not guilty -_- Yeah, well, so was O J..... Rich people can buy 'justice', just like they can buy kids so it seems....
October 17, 200618 yr But that father put his son in an orphnage to be raised as he didn't think he'd be able to do it himself. So while the kid may not technically be an orphan, he was being raised in an orphanage. Whatever the father's motives for doing so, or Madonna's for adopting him- which, while we can speculate and make educated guesses, are only known to the individuals themselves- the bottom line is that kid will probably get to do and be part of things he would never have had chance to under normal circumstances. I just don't see how he is supposed to be losing out. I agree with this. People are right to be sceptical about celebrities exploiting charities for PR but the child will benefit. The Malawi communities that Madonna has donated millions of dollars to benefit from the cash too. Madonna's motives cannot be known by us and - even if they could - are irrelevant.
October 17, 200618 yr The white western world cannot just salve its collective guilt over Africa just by a few grandiose, self-important individuals making mere gestures or paying lip-service to huge, fundamental problems... But the Africans who benefit would rather have a few 'mere gestures' than nothing. I agree with you that more needs to be done to help Africa but even the smallest or rarest donations help.
October 17, 200618 yr Author Madonna's motives cannot be known by us and - even if they could - are irrelevant. Spoken like a true fan... :lol: :lol:
October 17, 200618 yr Author But the Africans who benefit would rather have a few 'mere gestures' than nothing. I agree with you that more needs to be done to help Africa but even the smallest or rarest donations help. But it's like using an elastoplast to patch up a shotgun blast to the head mate, the whole continent more or less, is fukked; a handful of Celebs going out there and picking up this season's 'must have' little brown baby and chuck a few dollars around aint gonna do sod all to actually aleviate Africa's problems. Her heart may be in the right place, but her gesture has to be backed up with something solid from Govts, it cant just be left up to celebs and whatnot to pick up the pieces... And also, it can be so easily interpreted as being ever-so-slightly patronising as well...
October 17, 200618 yr Spoken like a true fan... :lol: :lol: I meant that we don't know whether her motives are selflish or not. Reading it back it did seem a bit like 'Madonna works in mysterious ways' :lol: That wasn't my intention. Edited October 17, 200618 yr by Tim
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