Blog-Gag-Me
Readers have sent us (and we have happened upon) so many adoption blogs and blog entries that are offensive, dangerous set-ups for the children, unethical, illegal and/or crazy that it exceeds our FacePalm capacity. We invite anyone to add to our list and we encourage you to use our red flags and child collector numbers as you reference your entry.
Find the Red flags here and the Child Collector numbers here. The symbols explain why the particular blog or blog entry is of concern if it isn’t already obvious.
These are the lost causes. We would like to prevent these types of high risk placements by showcasing real situations.
One-hat tip to a reader who sent this one in a few months back
This is a group fundraising effort only for those adopting at least 2 at once. Bloggers had to fill out a special questionnaire and of course add their PayPal link.
http://aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.de/2012/10/the-idea.html
For that special questionnaire, see this post http://aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.de/2012/10/the-questionnaire.html
“The most incredible type of fundraising”exclaims our reader.
Two
The entire blog. Here is one entry about the “virtual scavenger hunt.” There are photolistings from Reece’s Rainbow and the “no hope for a family” mantra and the gushing praise that is to sway one over to adopting a child with a serious special need.
http://missionadoption.wordpress.com/scavenger-hunt/ “Love made us do it.”
Three
Thirteen children and waivers galore. They just came back from China after finding a photolisting on Facebook from Reece’s Rainbow. Adopted two at once from Ethiopia and three at once from Haiti
http://harmonyandhavoc.blogspot.com/2012/06/elder-whicker.html
Four-hat tip to a reader for forwarding this one on
Besides typing Russia as Rus*ia as if that is going to stop Russians or anyone else from finding this blog, I think it is interesting that they identify 70 Reece’s families that are “in process” [from the US side no doubt]. The blogger calls upon people to keep giving money to these families as she describes a backdoor “huge and cutting-edge and scary” process. I don’t know if they mean bribe, but that is sure how it sounds. And she thinks this is going to “help” the situation. Russia is closed. Agencies are closing left and right. And fundraising for programs that are not operating…how is that compatible with IRS regulations? These bloggers probably have never even considered that.
http://covenantbuilders.blogspot.com/2013/03/five-buckets.html
This is officially the most Gag-worthy AP blog I’ve come across in a while — it’s a tragedy waiting to happen:
This amom believes in spanking kids starting at age 6-9 months for horrible “crimes” like not following parental instructions (!!) – literally hitting babies who are too young to actually be ABLE to follow such instructions:
“My husband and I definitely believe in spanking. We both grew up being spanked and our parents grew up being spanked and we all lived to tell of it. None of us are traumatized or feel we are victims of abuse. We are hard-working, God-fearing adults who can discern absolute right from absolute wrong…
… For our children, (spanking) began around 6-9 months of age. That is when we knew our girls understood our voice and were smart enough to defy us… Around 6 months of age she was on the move and she got into EVERYTHING! Her favorite activity was knocking all the CDs and videos off of my shelf… Her behavior was not something I wanted her to do in our home or anyone else’s home”.
http://followingclosely.blogspot.com/2013/02/q-1.html
She adopted 11 yr old Brandon from Ukraine, who died following an accident all of 8 months later in 2012. In September 2012 (just a few months after Brandon’s death), her family returned to Ukraine to adopt 11 yr old Andrew.
http://followingclosely.blogspot.com/2012/12/christmas-letter-2012.html
All of FIVE months later, amommy is convinced Andrew has RAD – despite the fact that “(Andrew’s) language barrier makes many of these things (following directions someone gives you in English) more difficult”. A family that BEATS TINY BABIES – is proud of beating tiny biobabies!! – is punishing a kid they KNOW isn’t yet fluent in English for NOT FOLLOWING instructions he’s unable to understand (!!!!):
http://followingclosely.blogspot.com/2013/02/rad.html
This is a tragedy waiting to happen. Who let this family adopt so soon after the first kid died? Who did the homestudy? Given their attitude on corporal punishment, who the HELL let them pass TWO homestudies??
That is exactly the “discipline” of To Train Up a Child. This is another tragedy waiting to happen. Who the heck was the agency?
The APs are Tim and Carinda Kerr of Arkansas. The dead boy’s full name was Brandon Sergey Kerr, according to the obituary:
http://m.legacy.com/obituaries/fayettevilleobserver/obituary.aspx?n=brandon-s-kerr&pid=155737102&referrer=0&preview=True
According to the APs’ blog, they used Christian Adoption Services and Adopt a Waiting Child Ukraine:
http://followingclosely.blogspot.com/2011/06/our-home-study-is-complete.html
http://followingclosely.blogspot.com/2011/06/just-sayin.html
That poor boy. That poor kid who deserves SO much better. I don’t even think alerting whoever is in charge of adoption agencies in Arkansas would do any good (the kid has already been adopted and I’m assuming the Kerrs were smart enough not to tell the homestudy person that they believe beating babies is good way to discipline them).
I’m horrified beyond belief that parishioners at the church the Kerrs’ attend ENDORSES this kind of child abuse. That lots of grownups who KNOW better accept and endorse these disciplinary techniques… in the name of Jesus, no less. (That *nobody* at that church has the sense to point out that, developmentally, six month old babies are not *capable* of following directions).
Carlee,
I checked the Arkansas Division of Child and Family Services website. Apparently, they don’t consider corporal punishment abuse unless it leaves lasting marks or violates other restrictions on allowable discipline. “…No unreasonable action shall be construed to permit a finding of abuse without having established the elements of abuse…”
http://www.arkansas.gov/reportARchildabuse/A.C.A%2012-18-103.pdf
As long as they aren’t shaking the babies or striking them on the face, the state of Arkansas is okay with spanking babies and international adoptees who don’t fluently grasp the APs language for failing to “obey orders”. There is a provision for “…Injury to a child’s intellectual, emotional, or psychological development as evidenced by observable and substantial impairment of the child’s ability to function within the child’s normal range of performance and behavior…”, but that would be really hard to establish for an internationally adopted child. There’s also neglect for “…Failure or irremediable inability to provide for the essential and necessary physical, mental, or emotional needs of the child…”, but since they explicitly state they aren’t going to get into the justness or unjustness of corporal punishment as long as no marks are left, it’s questionable that they’d go to bat for a child being punished for not understanding the language.
I note that Brandon Kerr– like Max Shatto– died of an “accidental” abdominal injury which caused him to bleed to death. I wonder how they’re all so certain that he fell on his bike, since per the AP he never told them about this accident. Somehow, the autopsy determined that the ruptured duodenum which killed him was “caused” by a fall on his bike. Another psychic medical examiner, like Max Shatto’s?
The news articles I’ve seen said that Brandon fell off his bike and ruptured his small intestine – and had a pain tolerance high enough to not mention the fall to mention it to his APs. By all accounts it was nothing more than a horrible accident.
Carlee,
Ah. I’d looked for news coverage of Brandon Kerr’s death, but couldn’t find anything.
It occurred to me later that one of the girls may have seen the bike accident, but kept it quiet at Brandon’s request because he was afraid he’d get in trouble if he admitted he’d been riding dangerously when he got hurt. Then after his death, the story came out.
They’re actually from North Carolina, according to what I’ve read.
I am horrified by that blog. Poor little guy – almost every post about him includes mention of having to discipline him, by which they clearly mean Pearl-style spanking. Can’t imagine why he has any behavior problems.
“We are encouraged that we have more good days than bad days. We are encouraged that he is taking his discipline now like a man instead of throwing a tantrum and a 1-hour crying fit when we try to discipline him. “
Forgot to link the post I quoted:
http://followingclosely.blogspot.com/2012/12/prayer-and-praise.html#comment-form
Written in December when he landed in September.
“Like a man”? He’s a child! He’s 11! Poor kiddo.
The Kerrs are reportedly disrupting – this little boy just hasn’t adapted to their lifestyle (he’s been home for all of 6-7 months), so they’ve elected to re-home him.
I pray this poor boy finds a truly loving home this time.
The “poor little boy”that hadnt adopted to the lifestyle reportedly performed sex acts on their bio-daughters. I/d send the kid packing as well. That is unexeptable in any situation.
Name march 27/13 1:14 AM – I have *not* heard that the disruption is due to the adopted Ukrainian boy sexually abusing his sister.
I’d heard (from a third party, an adoptive mom of older, traumatized kids who reached out to the Kerrs) that the disruption was due simply to the boy “not getting with the program” and being insufficiently compliant to mommy and daddy’s will after six or seven months.
Let’s recall that this is a traumatized little boy who has been in the US for half a year and whose aparents PUBLICALLY ADMIT (on their blog!!) that he isn’t yet fluent in English and they are kicking him to the curb for NOT FOLLOWING INSTRUCTIONS THEY KBOW HE DOES NOT UNDERSTAND.
Oh, and that amommy feels the disruption is the will of Jesus. (My bible is curiously missing the page where Jesus tells his followers that it’s okay to stop caring for orphans if you think they are annoying and refuse to make their bed the way amommy wants them to).
Name,
Source?
http://aplacecalledsimplicity.blogspot.de/2013/03/they-need-us-all-of-us.html
Invite an orphan – Send him back if he does not meet your expectations – Feel free to mess with a child’s life – Fees are tax deductable, by the way – ….
And if it turns out your host child isn’t available for adoption, travel to Ukraine and try to bully the biological family that loves, regularly visits and/or is in the process of adopting that same kid into letting YOU adopt him instead:
http://martitimes.blogspot.com/2012/09/a-princess-and-model.html?m=1
http://www.allarepreciousinhissight.com/2011/12/prayer-for-mountains-to-be-moved.html?m=1