I have a serious question for those of you who support this. Would you feel the same way if parents applied for this treatment for a quadraplegic child of normal intelligence? The reasoning for such a step would be exactly the same that the child is completely reliant on the parents and the parents would find it increasingly more difficult to care for the child as he grew bigger and might have to bring in outside caretakers to help.
It seems to be perfectly acceptable with everyone mainly because the child is mentally retarded.
I have a serious question for those of you who support this...
I, Petronski, do NOT support this, so mind your pronouns if you're replying to me.
Precisely. You've nailed it. Severely mentally retarded children can have their growth stunted, their organs removed and their limbs removed (so long as it is done painlessly), because they are not going to use them anyway, and they are not going to know that they have been physically altered. People who think like this have equated personhood (and the rights that come with personhood) either with intelligence or with 'quality of life'.
-A8
I answered this above -- a child of normal intelligence will mentally age as well as physically age, and thus will have the capacity to consent to medical procedures or withhold consent.
When a person will develop the capacity to consent or withhold on his/her own, the decision should not be made by the family.