re: #20 reine.de.tout

That is the main thing that I’ve talked about with the parents of disabled children. It’s a terrible conversation, every time, especially when the people are poor.

Some of the most heroic people to me are those with mentally disabled siblings who take care of them as adults, even though having a sibling who is retarded is incredibly stressful, shaming, and painful for kids.

And equal bravery is one disabled boy I know who talked his brother into checking him into an institution so that his brother could actually go to college. He understood he was preventing his brother from having a happier life, and was able to convince him that he’d do well in the institution— he even said “I’ll help the other kids because I’m smarter than them.” Which is true, he was very clever and had a near-perfect memory.

It’s an insanely problematic subject, ethically, and I’ve never really been comfortable commenting on Palin and her relationship to Trig except to be glad that they have money to provide for him in the future and feel somewhat appalled that they expose Trig to the media in the way that they do. But in the end, of all the Palin-related things, I think Trig should be the last anyone ever gets to.