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California fury at cost of raising octuplets
12 Feb 2009The unemployed mother of octuplets has provoked a barrage of criticism in her home state of California, which is billions of dollars in the red.
Many taxpayers are furious that the burden of raising Nadya Suleman's 14 children will fall on their shoulders.
Even before the 33-year-old single mother gave birth to IVF octuplets last month, she had been caring for her six other children with the help of $490 a month in food stamps, plus social security disability payments for three of the children.
"It appears that raising 14 children takes not simply a village but the combined resources of the county, state and federal governments," Los Angeles Times columnist Tim Rutten wrote.
"A woman's right to reproduce should be limited to a number which the parents can pay for," Charles Murray wrote to the Los Angeles Daily News. "Why should my wife and I, as taxpayers, pay child support for 14 Suleman kids?"
On the internet and talk radio, bloggers and listeners called Ms Suleman an "idiot", and suggested she be sterilised.
Ms Suleman's spokesman urged understanding. "She has been under a tremendous amount of pressure that no one could be prepared for," he said.
Reader views (8)
Perhaps the doctor who did the IVF treatment should pay for them for the rest of their lives.
- Colin Snelling, Melbourne Australia, 13/02/2009 02:40
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"She has been under a tremendous amount of pressure that no one could be prepared for," Yes thay could because she willfully had IVF transplant causing multiple births.
- Terry Senton, hounslow middx, 12/02/2009 18:04
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Millions of children in the World are starving because of overpopulation yet we still give IVF to people who Nature has decreed no children. Madness.
- Ayliff Mcnab, Spain, 12/02/2009 17:32
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Only in America.
- Jackie, surrey, 12/02/2009 15:34
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She should move to England. The nulabour rabble will welcome her with open arms, put her in a multimillion pound mansion, shower her with taxpayer money and nobody will be able to complain as any complaints would be considered racist.
- Alan Preen, McLean, Texas, USA., 12/02/2009 15:29
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Replace "foolish" with greedy and you have the answer. I'd like to know how an unemployed mother of six, living on welfare in her divorced parents' home could afford the IVF treatment in the first place. In this country Social Services would have whisked all 14 children from her by now and put them up for adoption
- Lmd, North London, 12/02/2009 15:17
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Why was she allowed fertility treatment if she already had six children and was unemloyed?
Does the left hand know what the right hand is doing in California (and for that matter here in the UK, where this could probably also have happened)?
A concerted set of policies by all of the agencies involved would prevent this kind of occurrence.
- Eric Legge, Ongar, England, 12/02/2009 14:38
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I can't believe anyone was foolish enough to give a woman who already has 6 children IVF in the first place.
- Kathy, London, 12/02/2009 13:48
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