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Courtesy Thomas family
John and Renee Thomas with their son, Jack, 7, who was adopted from Russia at the age of 3. Jack is hoping for his brother, Nikoly, now in a Russian orphanage, to join him in the United States.
This Christmas, the best gift 7-year-old Jack Thomas could get would be the arrival of his little brother, Nikoly, who lives in an orphanage in Kursk, Russia.
"When Jack is asked about his family, he talks about his brother," said his father, John Thomas, speaking from the family’s home in Minnetonka, Minn. "He always asks, 'When is he coming home?' We just tell him we’re waiting for the call."
Jack has been waiting several years, a long time for a little boy. What he doesn’t know is that a feud between politicians in Moscow and Washington could destroy his chance to grow up with his brother.
On Friday, Russian lawmakers passed a bill that would prohibit Americans from adopting Russian children, and if that bill is signed into law by President Vladimir Putin, it would cast doubt on even those adoptions already in the pipeline.
For John Thomas and his wife, Renee — and very likely hundreds of other expectant American families and Russian children — the latest political shift could mean a delay, a new hurdle or a brick wall.
The U.S. State Department and some high-level officials in Moscow have lambasted the legislation as punishing Russian children who need families in an effort to retaliate against Washington.
But the bill has gained ground amid a wave of nationalism, fueled by anger over a U.S. human rights bill singling out Russia and by several highly publicized cases of U.S. adoptions that ended tragically.
Since the end of the Soviet era in 1991, Americans have adopted about 60,000 children from Russia, making it one of the main countries of origin for non-domestic adoptions in the United States, according to U.S. government statistics. At the peak of the trend in 2004, Americans brought 5,862 children into their homes. In 2011, the number was down to 962 — a product of well-intentioned policy shifts, bureaucracy, corruption and other difficulties.
See the US Action Plan on Children in Adversity
European Children Adoption Services
Jack Thomas, at the age of 3, just before he was adopted from Kursk, Russia, by Americans John and Renee Thomas. He is now 7 years old and growing up in an affluent suburb of Minneapolis.
Even with foreign adoptions, which are allowed after giving Russians priority, Russia has an estimated 700,000 children living in institutions, nearly 80,000 of them orphaned, and the rest abandoned or taken away by the state because the parents were judged unfit to take care of them.
The Thomases have experienced the painful, stop-start nature of the Russian adoption process in their quest for Nikoly.
It was in December 2008, when they were finalizing their adoption of 3-year-old Eduard, whom they named Jack, that they learned he had a baby brother. They started the adoption application process for Nikoly as soon as they could, after a required waiting period.
Compliments of the Thomas family
Renee Thomas in December 2010 meeting Nikoly at an orphanage in Kursk, Russia. He was 18 months old at the time, and Thomas says she expected he would join the the family within a matter of months. Nikoly is now 4 and remains in institutional care in Russia.
A year later, John and Renee Thomas, who work as an attorney and a building contract negotiator, again flew to Moscow and then went by rail to Kursk to meet Nikoly, whom they call Theodore or Teddy. He was 18 months old. Renee Thomas says she thought it would take about the same amount of time to adopt him as it had with Jack, and expected to travel to Kursk sometime in the spring of 2010 to get him.
The Thomases are still waiting.
One of the reasons for delay, they say, is the horror caused by a woman in Tennessee who put her 7-year-old son, whom she had adopted in Russia, on a one-way flight to Moscow in 2010, with the explanation that the child was "mentally unstable" and she could no longer take care of him.
In another delay that Renee Thomas believes cost their adoption another year, the Russian government shut down adoptions for review and re-accreditation of all adoption agencies that work in Russia.
European Children Adoption Services
Nikoly in an undated photo taken at an orphanage in Kursk, Russia. (The red splotches on his face are believed to be a type of antiseptic.)
In addition, the Thomas’ dossier has gone before a series of judges in Russia, some of whom have rejected it without a stated reason, and others setting forth requirements that they are not able to meet under U.S. law. Even so, there are Russians trying to help them run the gauntlet, and they figured the problems would get ironed out.
"We expected to be traveling soon" to get Nikolai, said John Thomas.
Just last month, when a newly negotiated bilateral adoptions agreement came into effect, designed to smooth out the process and help safeguard adopted children, things appeared to be looking up.
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"These adoptive parents have really been through the ringer," said Johnson. "This was a bilateral treaty signed by our two governments. We really celebrated it. I thought we could turn our attention to other countries. But we’re really back to Russia again."
Kids pay in human rights spat
The ban that passed the Russian parliament grew out of a dispute over human rights.
On Nov. 16, the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act passed by a landslide in the U.S. House and Senate. Magnitsky was a 37-year-old lawyer who exposed massive fraud allegedly committed by a group of Russian officials. He was arrested and died in police custody 11 months later under suspicious circumstances. Among other things, the bill denies visas and freezes assets of the Russian officials implicated by Magnitsky.
The new U.S. law sparked an angry reaction from Moscow and fueled popular anti-American sentiment.
Russian President Vladimir Putin claims the U.S. is "poisoning ties" between the two countries with a law that bans Russians who abuse human rights and is backing a Russian draft law banning adoption by Americans. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
Vladimir Putin said that the law singling out Russia "contaminates our relations."
Russian legislators then drafted a bill to counter the U.S. law, with provisions restricting organizations and individuals linked to the United States.
Just before the first vote in the Duma, the proposed ban on American adoptions of Russian children was tacked on as an amendment. The legislation was named after 21-month-old Dima Yakovlev, a Russian boy who died in Virginia after his adoptive father left him alone in a hot SUV for nine hours.
Americans may lose right to adopt Russian kids
After the Duma approved the legislation on Friday, the U.S. State Department registered its disapproval.
"If Russian officials have concerns about the implementation of (the adoption) agreement, we stand ready to work with them to improve it and remain committed to supporting inter-country adoptions between our two countries," said acting State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell. "The welfare of children is simply too important to be linked to political aspects of our relationship."
The bill is now heading for Putin’s desk for his signature.
Compliments of the Thomas family
John Thomas and his son, Jack, who was adopted from Russia at the age of 3, in an undated picture taken at their home in Minnetonka, Minn.
Opponents of the ban are still hoping that the president will veto the bill, despite his comments while campaigning for re-election that U.S. adoptions should no longer be allowed. More recently he has remained silent on the issue.
Over the past week, Russian opponents of the ban have launched petitions and small protests at the parliament building, and several high-level officials have registered strong opposition to it, including Russia’s foreign minister and education minister.
Johnson of the National Council for Adoption says he’s hoping the domestic opposition will dissuade Putin from signing the adoption ban into law.
"One good thing that’s happening … is a movement brought on by Russian citizens and the foreign minister who has spoken out against this legislation … saying it’s not the right way to stick it to America,” he said. "Hopefully more politicians will feel comfortable speaking out."
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Barring that, he said, he hopes Russia will at least make provisions to finalize the adoptions that are already in process.
"There is a precedent … to negotiate pipeline cases," he said, citing examples in Guatemala and Kyrgystan. "But given the animosity that Russians feel towards this, I hope that’s not a conversation we have to have."
For the Thomases, despite politics, the adoption effort is now in overdrive. They understand that Nikoly, who turned 4 in June, could be moved at any time — and in fact may have been moved already to a Russian institution for children as old as 18.
"That's major," said John Thomas. "That's where bad things start to happen."
For Renee Thomas, her greatest fear is that the boys will not be allowed to grow up together. But she tries to stay positive for Jack.
"This morning as I was making him breakfast, he said 'Mom, wouldn't it be great if we woke up Christmas morning and Santa left presents and Teddy under the tree?' My response was 'Let's hope for next year.'"
Leave a Comment:
It is totally hypocritical to complain and get self righteous about some Americans treatment of several Russian children, when one has done horrible things to vast numbers of ones own children, and women as well as men. Sort of like the pot calling the kettle black. Only so much of it is behind the scenes. For the millions upon millions slaughtered, which history has recorded.
Even as these helpless children could now spend their lives stuck in institutions, unloved, wasting away. There have been orphanages, where U.S. reporters visited under some pretense, then secretly film. Images showing several infants chained in every crib, rooms filled with cribs. toddlers tied to walls. It was obvious to the reporters, they hadn't been allowed to ever be taken out. With little markers for graves on the common grounds. No play equipment outside, nor toys inside.
So now Russia wants to get all high and mighty? Just watch how the Russian people will rise up and roar when it sees it little children once more shoved aside. The President can think people will accept his will.But there are still good souls who will not just sit back and little these little souls be lost once more.These are not the old days, when a tyrant could anything while people simply bowed in fear and let him be.
"the country has an estimated 700,000 children living in institutions, nearly 80,000 of them orphaned"
An interesting story. However, I would like to know what the institution numbers are in this country and what is the adoption rate.
I have two stories about Russian orphanages, and adoptions.
First, when I had more money, I was over in St. Petersburg visiting, and I visited two orphanages to donate some things they needed. The first orphanage was very homey, but the second one looked like a vacant hospital typically used in a horror movie here. As I toured that second one, I came upon a room where the children, easily under the age of 6, were being taught ballet. One of the "nannies" was physically abusing, and hitting one of the children, for not doing it right. When she saw me, she tried to cover it up, but I had seen everything.
The second story was my ex-wife and I decided to adopt a child from Russia. What we were told would be a $10,000 proposition ended up being closer to $30,000 once we got started. Unfortunately, right as the price was skyrocketing, I lost two major clients on back-to-back days, and my business, and income, were severely affected. We could no longer afford it, so we had to back out. On the bright side, we learned that the nice little boy we had planned to adopt was later adopted by some other family. That is one of the great regrets of my life.
From what I have heard from my Supervisor who is from Russia it is against the law in Russia for a child to be adopted. They can stay with a family until they are 18 and then it is up to the child to choose adoption or not.
I just think it is horrible when children have to live in an orphanage and are not allowed to be adopted out. I understand there have been some problems with reports of child abuse toward children who have been adopted from other countries, I don't know if they are true or not. If so the "parents" need to go to jail.
Kevin, I'm so sorry things didn't work out for you and the boy. I will never understand why it has to cost so much to adopt. There are many families I know who cannot have children and will never be able to afford that kind of money.
Why keep the children housed when you could easily find them good homes if "whomever" didn't market/sell them at such a high cost. Seems like black market brokers to me. I certainly hope this family is blessed with the adoption they seek very soon.
I really feel for these families. However, it is wrong for the US to assume some kind of 'holier than thou' attitude here. Their refusal to deal with adoptions 'in the pipe' policies stranded a huge group of adoptive parents (US citizens) in Nepal last year. They claimed it was just being thorough, but it was just trying to protect themselves politically not to accept CLEAR evidence in that situation.
Also, has the US social services apologized for and revamped their adoption procedures? Obviously the cases described should not have got through adoption vetting; if the US has not said 'We screwed up with our vetting, we're sorry, and we will change things", then laid out specific plans to do so, it is reasonable for Russia not to allow further adoptions. Think how we would feel if a US child died in a foreign country because their adoptive parent left them in an SUV for 9 hours or someone put a 7-year-old on a plane back to the US with no help (assuming we even had much going on in inter country adoption the other way). Of course congress would pass legislation putting things on hold from there indefinitely...
I really hope this family is able to complete this adoption and BOTH governments get their collective heads out of their tails
unfortunately in this country in the dcyf system we do have more then 80,000 orphans and 700,000 children in the system needing permanent homes.
i think it's terrible for people who are living in this country and ignore the 100s of thousands of children who need adopting here in the states. this couple doesn't need to go to russia for a child - i doubt they want another child as much as they want the attention they're getting for going after a russian child.
You think this family paid tens of thousands of dollars to get attention? What do you know? Have you tried to adopt here in te US? It takes years because the justice system doesn't want to break up families even if the parents are criminals or drug users. That is why I adopted two children from Russia. After children turn 16 in Russian orphanages, they are realesed with no family help or government help. Girls become prostitutes and boy turn to crime. I think it's better that they have a chance here.
We should have a law in the USA..if you want to adopt..you must try right here in the USA 'FIRST'..if it doesn't work out then a different country.
I'm sure the Russians have heard some stories: from physical and mental abuse to violent death of the children by the adoptive parents, to the "hot sauce mom." Who, living in Alaska, adopted two five year old brothers from Russia. If they didn't do as they were told she would take them to the bathroom and make them take off their clothes. Then she would put them under the cold shower in the middle of the winter. After that she would sit them in the bathroom counter, fill their mouths with hot sauce and make them hold it until she said so. This "punishment" was put on national television and the internet. It caused an uproar in the Russian embassy in Washington, child services and did some major international shaking. Not to mention the senseless violence in our society.
@mike277
So people should get their $$ back when it does not work out in the US! How much should they have to lose ?? $50,000, $70,000? US adoption industry is corrupt, and takes advantage that there are 10 parents for EVERY child placed for adoption. Why is is MORE expensive to adopt domestically than internationally?? Never made sense to me.
DAN-3184485
I have also heard some adoption stories in the U.S. Yeah, you adopt a child, give him all your love and care when they are babies and toddlers, and they recognize you as their parents. In the meantime, the biological parents are living life in their own terms knowing they have a very good babysitter monitored by the state. When biological parents are done living their life, then they come and claim their children. They go to court, and the court without any sensitivity to the child, return the child to the irresponsible "parents". That's why people are turning to oversees adoptions. I would never adopt a child in the U.S. unless the biological parents are dead.
Besides, this child the Thomas' are trying to adopt is the brother of their adoptive son. It's only fair they grow up together.
Even though Russia is technically no longer communist and a supposedly a democratic, capitalist state, it's nothing of the sort. It's filled with corruption and corporatism, headed by the putrid Putin. It's all about making money for wealthy people (hmmm, speaking of that, here in America....never mind). The main religion, the Russian orthodox church, is also filled with corruption. And those who run Russia seek to use innocent, suffering children against America in order to make more money for its newest class of rich people. It's time for America to stop pussy-footing with Russia. We can still knock its *ss to the ground if we want to by any means. We're still more powerful. We need to make it bend, as we did in the late 80's. We can hurt it, and really bad. But we don't, because our own country is owned and controlled by rich politicians and corporatists who want more money for themselves, and they see Russia as just another way of achieving that. What's the difference between a rich corporatist and a rich communist? Nothing.
Ahhh, we've got our own problems of corruption and scandal in this country... We're teetering on a fiscal cliff as of right now. Let's fix our own problems before we spend time and money trying to solve other countries problems!!
It is a shame that these little children are being used as pawns in a diplomatic spat between the US and Russia. All these parents want is to reunite the two brothers so that they can grow up together in a happy, loving home. It is utterly disgusting that politicians think that scoring political points is more important that the welfare of these children. It is bad enough that there is so much expense and red tape with international adoptions, the last thing that is needed is for the politicians to make things even worse. There is no reason that something as relatively simple as adopting a child should cost $30,000. The only reason it is this expensive is all the corruption and all the palms that need to be greased in Russia to get the adoption approved. Instead of making the welfare of the children the top priority, some bureaucrats only concern themselves with how much money they can squeeze out of people to line their own pockets. Politicians on both sides need to stop the nonsense and think about the kids first.
@DAWG....If we'd done that a long time ago, there wouldn't be a fiscal cliff to fall off of! I agree with you completely, although the article makes me sad for all the children and families caught in this mess. Why do politicians have to "tack on" stuff like this?!
Sorry to hear about there situation even worse, but it is a couples choice but here we go again Americans trying to be savior of someone other than are own what a nice thing to do but it does surprise me why we are so quick to adopt foreign children when we have so many here that could and need parents that do not get adopted it's sad to see this happen all to often. In any case for people trying to adopt hope you to be successful and thanks for helping a child.
Should be obvious from the photos why these people are adopting from russia and not adopting american born children. I wonder why we don't see photos of a black american couple adopting a russian child.
An ignorant comment from an ignorant person!
So what? It's their choice who they want to adopt from. And why does it matter to you or anyone else? Children are children, no matter where they are from. Are you adopting American children? Are any of you people who are complaining adopting American children? I doubt it. The important thing is that a child now has a home, not that he's not "one of our own". What a dumb thing to say.
Hank there have been too many stories of people adopting babies in America and then some rediculous judge decides to hear the birth mother's plea to have her baby back. Some people have lost the children they adopted back to the birth mom.
I don't blame people for looking elsewhere. Just entirely too many dishonest people in the world
Hank, as I was reading this article, I was thinking on the same lines as you. Where I do feel for this family, I am still wondering why the American people want to travel over oceans to adopt children when there are children at home(US) who needs to be loved and cared for. If these people are so proud of America, then why don't they build America up? Build and make strong our legacy? I, too, wish this family well.
@ courage
my wife and i do foster care, friends of ours do foster care as well. we have all adopted children from the foster care system. so yes i can truely say, we need to not allow out of country adoptions, untill all our kids are taken care of first.
It is true that many AMerican children ar waiting to be adopted but in this case since they already adopted the older brother, I can see how they would want to adopt the younger brother as well. It says something that in the "undated" photo he is not smiling and by now, having lived in an orphanage to the age of 4, he
You'd think he would want to get as many children out of institutionalized care as possible. He's ruining their lives but does he care? No he's just in love with himself and is an egomaniac. Very sad for the children.
may have suffered serious emotional demage.
Putin-
It's too bad that you're acting like a baby and using babies as hostages because you don't like something the U.S. has said as a statement. You need to grow a pair! You know that all world leaders get criticized. You act like you're so tough so stop acting like a thin-skinned little boy!
I suppose consistency is good... I mean what else can you say about American's penchant for greed, stigmatic excellence and hatred for others? Merry Christmas America... I fear the New Year is going to be a real rough one.
As has been referenced previously, the adoption process here in the US is horrid....one family I know fostered a child for over SIX YEARS before the courts would terminate the legal rights of a set of parents so drugged out that the kid was abused, neglected and sexually assaulted for drug money every time the birth parents were allowed to see him, WITHOUT supervision! Counselor after counselor told the courts that this kid was in danger, but until the child was old enough and brave enough to speak out....he had to return "home" to those birth parents time and time again. SIX YEARS....and another three before the adoption was finalized.
There are good cases too, but this attitude of keep the birth parents parenting regardless of what they inflict is inherent in the US system....every system is broken I think, in every country, with the children being the silent, innocent victims.
In 1997, Adoption and Safe Families Act was signed which requires that states move to terminate parental rights for children who have been in Foster Care for 15 out of the last 22 Months. Many states went a step further and declared birth parents/birth families must get their act together within 12 months or lose their rights. The courts and the DCF system is ordered to give the parents that 1 year opportunity to get their act together but then terminate parental rights if progress is not made toward reunification of the family. Thus these arguments are moot about the US system not terminating rights for adoption. There are many American children in need of homes. The real issue is that the majority of Americans want 0-2 children that they can lie to by claiming to be the birth parents rather than adopting and admitting that the child is adopted. A smaller group is willing to adopt the 4-5 age group. However very few to almost none are willing to adopt the children after 5 years because the adoptive parents are afraid "of the mental and emotional baggage that comes with the older child."
Angela, I have seen kids that parents wanted to adopt; however, with the amount of red tape, the fact that they had the child in their household for 18 months before it was finalized. At anytime during that time if the parents were given their rights back the child goes back to them without question. I don't know about most people, but I don't think I could raise a child, care for it as if it was mine while knowing all along that some judge or court could take the child back. Not the mention if years later the father said he didn't know and how wants custody. So many rights and chance after chance is given to keep the biological family together I would never want to put myself out there for that. I have seen successful adoptions of girls from China (I know of 3 families that went this route. One after having their adoption dreams crushed in America). Seems like girls are easily adopted from there if you are interested in a girl.
International adoptions are subject to the laws of the individual countries. There are plenty of kids in the USA that need homes. How do people justify leaving them in orphanages but trying to help those half way around the world from a different culture? I'm not an isolationist but American's should be adopting American kids.
The US redtape and the ability for birth parents to change their minds up to 6 months later make it a very scary proposition for Americans to adopt domestically. All of God's children deserve a loving family to grow up in, regardless of where they physically were born.
Robin, you are so right. They spend so much money trying to adopt in the U.S., the mother changes her mind after they have bought EVERYTHING for the child, which can be very expensive, and the child is taken away from them and they don't even get reimbursed for any of this. Once a mother puts her child up for adoption, that should be it. No changing your mind. It would be heartbreaking to bring a child into your home and love it as your own, only to lose it. We have seen cases where the child is 5 or 6! How horrible is that to a small child that only knows that couple as their parents?
But, Mary, don't the adoptive parents have to wait a long time, if not longer due to travel issues and pay out emormous 'fees' to adopt children from other countries? What's the difference? Please explain.
@ mary
wrong it is not a long wait, go through foster care and adopt any kid in that system, it takes a very short time. the problem is that most people want new Born's. i am sorry but with all the kids in the system in the US, they need to be taken care of first. fact it costs nothing to adopt thru dcyf, in fact when you adopt a US dcyf child, their health care is paid for by the govt, as well as any future college expenses for them.
@ robyn
wrong go thru dcyf and the parental rights have been terminated, the original parent(s) do not get to change their minds.
I know this family from being one of Jack's teachers in the past years... all JT talked about was his little brother and how special he is. He talks about him like he lives with him already. Best wishes to the family in their continued battle and a very Merry Christmas. Hopefully next year's Christmas picture will have Teddy under the tree!!
Let's remember that this child in Russia is his birth brother. The US wants to get biological children together so should other countries.
@ Eric
You are clearly abusing the foster care system if you are doing it only to steal birth parents children! the purpose of that system is to RETURN children to their birth families once they have it together...not be a free source of children for you. I know several wonderful families who have begged to get into foster care, but told they do NOT need more foster homes. Most states are drastically cutting the number of children placed into foster care, instead using kin...or bringing services to the birthparents while the kids stay at home...so it might be the end of your free ride.
I wouldnt want my russian kids raised be liberal LGBT parents and there minds twisted at our Goddless public schools and lied to about everything when it comes to our media.No Thanks!
Put down the Rosary and take off the Tin Foil hat. Just because we aren't a theocracy doesn't mean we're a bad nation. I'd rather live in the US than anywhere else. Also, the biggest sinners are usually those in Church, who come down upon others so they can make their own sins look less. Their sins of hatred and violence, vs the "sins" of loving LGBT couples. Just sayin'...
Then you'd prefer that they live in orphanages that are little better than dog kennels? Those places warp children far more than being raised by gays ever could.
kaybeetoys (who ever shops THERE any more at that overpriced, overrated, ever increasingly smaller toy store chain) and ThaMonkeh, you need to quit being lapdogs of the LGBTTIQ establishment and realize that you are brainwashed soldiers of the extortionist, biased, payola producing, racqueteering making, conspiracy promoting, crime making, elitist, arrogant, immature, discriminatory, judgmental, mentally incompetent, mentally incontinent, intolerant, prejudicial, hypocritical, and sexist little industry that you claim to represent (if not by your words, then at least certainly by your deeds and actions). Furthermore, you arrogant, narrow minded, narcissistic little twits, dubsak20 said what he said because the former Soviet and Communist countries in Europe went through a lot of pain and a lot of the similar procedures that people like you promote and the same could be said of places like Germany, Spain, and Italy, among other places, for promoting Socialism and Fascism, so excuse people like him and myself if we know that we are in a field and we can detect male cow manure, which seems to be coming from your mouths and your minds at an ever increasing rate. Besides, are you leftist, world controlling types not trying to reduce what you refer to as global warming? You might want to shut up a lot more because your wasted existences might be contributing to the problem by the waste products that seem to be coming from the places that I had previously mentioned. Finally, the old adage is true, which is "If we fail to learn from history, then we are surely doomed to repeat it," and, to be honest, I do not know about you but I want to prevent humanity to fail again, let alone many more times, from the same lesson. Mark Twain and that book that you refer to as a collection of fairy tales, never mind that you are just jealous of promoting your own inferior collection of them yourselves, both said "It is better to be thought of as a fool than to move your mouth and remove all doubt." Last, but not least, the Golden Rule does not say, "He (or she) that has the gold (and other precious metals and gemstones and power) makes the rules," rather, it said, "Do unto others what they would have done to you." I guess you were wronged a lot in your lives, so you love to react in a negative way yourselves. This is so typical of the goats of your mindset.
thetruthteller - Wow, that's a long list of adjectives. But I'm wondering, have you ever considered visiting a psychiatrist? I'm quite sure you could really benefit from it. At the very least, a doctor might be able to help you with your logorrhea, if not your persecution complex and mental instability.
Also, on a side note, you of all people really shouldn't be lecturing other people for being brainwashed.
truthteller....Huh? All that word vomitus made absolutely zero sense. Obviously someone got a dictionary for Xmas...
Whoa fookin' Nellie boys n' girls!! If someone wants to adopt a Russian kid, a Portuguese Kid, a kid from the Bronx or a kid from Mars it's their own personal business - dontcha think? Or isn't their ANYTHING left we can consider 'personal' and not 'political'? Hmmmm? Y'got a homeless, family-less kid and a nice family that wants to love and raise 'em. How about putting a big fat PERIOD at the end of that sentence and let it go?
This is however a perfect example of governments overstepping their bounds... corrupt Russian bureaucrats??? Color me SHOCKED!!! A few Russian orphans (out of thousands adopted) are sadly mistreated by American couples!!! Stop the presses!!! Both governments knew this was happening LONG before the NEWS (lol) leaked. So, what's the solution? Let the orphans continue to be orphans while two groups of alleged adults toss sophmoric insults at each other? "Ladies and gentlemen... and orphan children of all ages... welcome to The Greatest Show on Earth... the human race!!! Aptly named because of the lickity-split pace it's on become as inhumane as humanly possible!"
BSTTheClown, you are totally correct. It is so refreshing when someone actually understands the situation. There is no law (yet) that REQUIRES us to be politically-correct in every area of our lives, including what children we want to adopt. I hope everything works out for this family and others who have been caught up in the governmental one-upmanship going on between the US and Russia.
@BST
One of the best, most practical posts I've read all day! It made me smile :-) Why can't everyone REALLY support this family and their desire to bring the boys together? It's disgusting that politicians fight their battles at the cost of other's lives. I wish them and all the other families caught up in this the VERY BEST CHRISTMAS and thanks for being willing to provide a child a home!
There are 600,000 children in foster care in this country. Many of them living in substandard group homes and institutions. More than 2000 children die a year in the US while under the care of the state. While 125,000 children are legally free for adoption in this country every year only about 50,000 are adopted. Every year for decades we have allowed 25,000 children to "age out" of care only to face a life of homelessness, unemployment, mental illness and suffering.
In addition to the 19 Russian children who have be murdered by US adoptive parents there are scores of children adopted by predators, severely abused by their adopters, returned to Russian not to mention the escalating problem playing out over two decades of human trafficking. Furthermore, long before Putin's proposed reforms there have been hundreds if not thousands of Russian children separated from their siblings, not by Russian law but be incoherent immigration laws in the US.
Adoption is a multi billion dollar industry in the US, an industry the US government has effectively refused to regulate in any responsible or effective way. Let's not kid ourselves. This is not a "Russian" problem. This is a US problem and one that we have ignored for years. Perhaps this will be a wake up call. But it's more likely that the Russians will continue to be the whipping posts while children in the US and Russian continue to suffer.
@ Maureen Flatley
I see that you are new to the newsvine. Interesting statement, reads like you have some experience with this subject.
Need anyone wonder why there is so much turbulence "in the world", with the conditions in which so many young lives must develop!
Totally agree with you, Maureen.
I was reading another article about a family adopting children with disabilities through the US foster care system. The numbers in the article are significantly different - "About 104,000 foster children nationwide were waiting to be adopted in September 2011, according to the most recent report from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System." Obviously, no matter the number, they all deserve a family, but it's a difference of 500,000.
#.UNhv8XfTqSo
@ finngal1
that doesnt count the other systems as well fin, lutherans, easter seals etc, all have adoptable children, you would be astonished at the amount of children in the US that need a home.
@finngal1
The 600,00 figure includes many children in foster care who are not eligible for adoption because parental rights have not been terminated. Some are short-term placements. Some of these children go in and out of foster care or from one foster family to another. Maureen says 125,000 are legally available for adoption.
Thanks for clarifying. I missed that in Maureen's post.
@ Maureen Flatley
Far more children than ever have been dying in the care of the state in our foster system - AGREED. It's this system that insists on returning them to their abusers over and over. Only when the damage is done and the children are late teens are 95 percent of those FINALLY available for adoption. Based on adoptuskids.org, there are barely ONE thousand children available for adoption in the US. The rest there are over 12 years old.
Putin, another misguided midget, hellbent upon "ruling" his country into the stone age.
No country is perfect. The USA has over 100% debt. Russia has under 10%. What does that mean? People are always so quick to bash another country. I think we should focus on fixing our own.
Swan - Anyone who tries to draw an equivalence between the US and Russia is either ignorant or only focusing on a single facet rather than the big picture. Besides, though not ideal, debt is not the worst thing in the world from an economic standpoint.
Having lived in both the US and Russia, I will tell you unequivocally: Though the US has plenty of problems, Russia is in much, much worse straits. Their problems make ours look like nothing.
Yeah I hear that all the time from people who lived in Russia years ago. However my wife is Russian and is there NOW and couldn't be happier. So is my son and step daughter. I'll be joining them shortly. I'm sure depending on who you are and where you live you are going to have you own perspective on things but don't make the mistake of thinking that your view is the same as everyone else's. Believe it or not there are happy people in other countries.
PS: You might rethink that if our debt ever blows up in our face which is not beyond the realm of possibility.
@YoursOnly
what you see in the US is a facade hiding rotten insides. In Russia you have to be able to see into the core, there are no facades....almost literally :) but at least no one will shoot you from the roof of a nearby building right.
Both countries have problems. Agreed that gun violence is a bigger problem in America. But in Russia, everyone dies sooner.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2102rank.html
Probably because many drink themselves to death. Trust me I've seen it first hand. In any case at least that is something I have control over.
Yes, I'm sure that the high rate of alcoholism contributes to shorter lives. There is also a lot of smoking. And, medical care there is not great, in general. There are many places in Russia where you will be screwed if you need emergency medical care. On one of my visits there, I could not find a dentist on a Saturday who could re-install a temporary crown that dropped out. So, I spent the rest of the trip eating very carefully.
I, too, have been to Russia, and I would not relish the thought of moving there. I suppose I could get by in a large Russian city, if I had money.
I like to say that to live a happy life in the US, you need to keep away from doctors and lawyers.
In Russia, to live a happy life, you need to keep away from the police, politicians, and criminal gangs. Some people say that these three are really just one and the same, in Russia :-)
The anti-adoption bill was introduced and widly supporetd to protect Russian children from abuse, tortur and even death of Russian children adopted by Americans. That has been published in Russian news repeatedly with names and addresses. Thus, blame yourselves and do not seek political ground for this bill and do not show your journalistic stupidity.
Here we go again. The comments from the uneducated who have never adopted themselves (have no idea of the process, the challenges, etc) but still manage to find a way to judge families who adopt children from other countries. These are the same people who manage to throw out a number they googled about how many children are available for adoption in the US and why, in their holier-than-thou monologue, would we DARE adopt a child not from the US. First, it is incredibly misleading the number of children available for adoption in the US. Yes, many are in foster care but they are not legally available to adopt. The vast majority of children available in the US are older sibling groups or kids with special needs. Of course these kids deserve loving wonderful families, but not every adoptive family is equipped to handle these challenges. In addition, it can be very difficult to adopt across state lines. So, if you live in an area of the country with fewer children available you may never get a chance to even be foster parents. We waited over a year and never got the chance. Second, since when is adopting a child in need a bad thing regardless of the country? Do you think God recognizes borders? Do think a child suffering and starving in an Eastern European orphanage knows anything of borders? How dare you criticize any family who is willing to open their homes and hearts to a child.
IG21, thank you from an adoptive mom of a very special little girl from China (1994). I would like to add one more reason to your list of why adopt internationally. The laws in the US are not family friendly and still protect the bio parents over the adoptive parents - too many children, even years later after adoption finalization, are returned to the bio parent(s). It became a precedent to either misname the bio father (or not name him at all), creating a glitch that could later re-open a successful adoption and turn that well-adjusted, secure child's life completely upside down.
IG21, thank you from another adoptive mom! So frustrating to read these posts from all the ignorant people who don't know the facts. Bless you!
No offense, but the statement above:
Ummmm, I'm behind you on your other statements, but I can't support you on this. So, the parents that have children affected by disaease or special-needs are equipped? If you want a child, and you have enough love, then maybe, just maybe, some of these parents adopting should become ready to handle these challenges. So, with this statement, you set back your cause a lot. The imperfect children don't need love so we'll take our chances elsewhere? Kinda terrible.
If they want to they can. However life is cruel and the reality is most people don't want a geeked up kid. I have a friend who has a severely retarded kid. She's five and can't stand, walk, talk and it's dubious if she can even see. It's a *huge* burden on a family. Why you think it's so "terrible" that a family doesn't willingly taken on that burden is beyond me.
The comments made about "birthmothers" changing their minds and reclaiming their kids prompts my response. Maureen Flatley pointed out the nature of this country's massive adoption industry, and this alone is to blame for reclaimed children. Agencies initiate all kinds of risky practices to complete a sale, including deliberately excluding fathers from the decision-making. Some agencies transport expectant mothers out of their home states to states they term "adoption friendly," meaning the mothers must sign sooner after delivery and fathers' rights are bypassed through devious means. Cut off from their families and potential support systems, these mothers feel trapped into surrendering. Both agencies and attorneys often use highly coercive means - and sometimes threats - to get mothers' signatures on relinquishment forms. Even the touchy-feely "open adoptions," where mothers are encouraged to bond with prospective parents before delivery and involve the couple in the birth amounts to a coercive tactic. How can a woman follow her natural God-given desire to take her newborn to her breast and bond with him if she has made a commitment - even if not legally binding - to turn him over to others? Anyway, promises made to mothers of "open adoption" commonly turn out to have been manipulations amounting to "Thank you for begetting - now begone!"
The industry severely needs regulation. The mother and father need to be fully informed of the ramifications of adoption and have every possible opportunity to parent their own children before being allowed to relinquish them. Granted, that won't pay the three-figure salaries of adoption agency execs, but it will stop a lot of the legal challenges to adoptions that never should have happened in the first place.
Because, everyone is jumping on the American parents who get children from Russia and send them back due to "imperfections". The statement was cruel and undignified so that's why I called it out. Parents don't necessarily want to have children with special needs, but they do, and they raise them. There are many people out there that take in children that others have blindly walked past in search of a child that is perfect and without issues.
I have news for you all- no child is perfect. You don't know what the future has in store for you, even if they are born healthy and issue-free. So, when your child develops issues you just shuck it aside and go get a new one? No, you love your child with all your heart. So, again, the statement was BS, especially in light of how many parents reading this have either adopted a child with special needs or have given birth to them should be offended. I am blessed every day.
I know it happens every day but if you really want to love a child, it shouldn't matter if the child is perfect or not. Life is cruel...so by your logic, parents that give birth to children that aren't perfect need to deal with it because life is cruel and they chose to take on the burden and parents who can't give birth at all need to shop around because your friend has a special needs child that doesn't do anything like a normal child? Geez. Merry Christmas.
if they *choose* (a concept you clearly don't understand) to take on the burden then yes.
Huhhhh? You must be referring to someone else because I never said anything of the sort. They don't *need* to shop around but they can. That is their right, and if they want to find a kid from a foreign country that is their right also as long as the laws of that country allow it. What is so hard for you to understand? You think parents that adopt should be forced to take special needs kids? Why? It's not their problem. Why should they sacrifice a large chunk of their life for it? If they want to do it they can but I certainly don't lay any blame on them for wanting a healthy kid.
While I am totally against any adoption except in cases where the children are orphans (both biological parents are deceased) and there is no family member to take the kids.
I am even more against bringing kids from other countries to the US through adoption. However the Thomas's already have Jack and this other one is supposedly a full blood brother to him, you can't send Jack back at this point that would be wrong. Therefore there is no choice but to bring Teddy to Jack.
If I were these parents and I really cared I would have someone there travel to another country with the child and then pick him up there. Kids have been smuggled out of foreign countries before. Once he is here you have your adoption papers already so just do it and stop whinnning.
But had Jack not already been here for years I would have said send him home to grow up with his brother.
We need to stop all foreign adoptions that are not full siblings to kids already adopted here.
So you're in favor if child abduction if it suits your desires. Nice. Makes me wonder what else you would do if you can justify it in your own mind.
not to mention most kids available for adoption in America are older or had prearranged agreements.
Your article is laced in propaganda.
There are over 2 million Kids in group homes and orphanages in the USA. The USA also has thousands of children sitting in child prisons. The United States is one of the few countries that tries children as adults and has the longest prison sentences for children in the world. Some have been sentenced to life in prison. There are also millions of homeless children and children living on stingy food stamps.
Why don't you make a law let Russian families adopt American Children without any strings attached?
Why don't you take care of your own children first, and stay out of Russian business.
MSN failed to provide following link to explain where this story began http://rt.com/usa/news/adopted-russian-boy-murdereed/
Systemic abuse of Russian orphans in US adoptive families is horrendous and suggests state approved persecution or at the least inexplicable absence of attention, required for anyone to claim adherence to any "human rights". None of the US families was ever charged or even outed. Even the link above is from Russian press and is a result of Russian state child adoption agency following up and investigation on US adoptions out of Russia own state purse.
None of it was uncovered by US organs charged with protecting child rights or human rights or anything related to humanitarian mission. When faced with international inquiry State Department went out of its way with flat out denial that murder ever happened and denies to follow on its obligation to provide access to adopted children.
Even in this story the silence regarding broken international law, prohibiting separation of sibilings, is deafening. Talk about Christmas whishes is a cheap ploy to cover up an extremely disturbing state of affairs with regards to adoption of Russian orphans in US.
And frankly, that Magnitsky dude failed to pay enough taxes to state of Russia to keep most of commenters here happy and well fed for life. So, I am not sure why the dude is so dear to our Congress... but between a Russian Enroner and Vania Skorobogatov, I know where human rights were broken without their assistance.
Your article is laced in Propaganda.
The USA has more children available for adoption, than any other country in the world. Millions of USA kids are in "group homes", where they are rarely allowed to have any contact with their own families and are treated as mental cases and drugged up.
The USA is one of the few countries that tries kids as adults. Thousands have been sentenced to languish in prisons for the rest of their lives. Up until 2005, when the USA and Iran were the only countries executing juveniles, the USA supreme court ruled to end executions of Juveniles simply because they did not want to have too much company with Iran.
Why don't you take care of your own first and stay out of Russian Business?
One could ask, Yanni, why don't Russians take care of their own? They obviously aren't with such a large number of kids in institutions who are willing to take huge prices - excuse me, "fees" - to process overseas adoptions......
But I am glad Russia is talking about banning adoptions to the US. We have far too many foreign kids coming in.
...and your response is laced in spam, Yanni25. Besides, who in their right mind even LISTENS to Yanni anyway, let alone Kenny G? Before you say, "I do and I AM in my right mind," let me say that if you say such words from your mouth that you have already proven your own sanity as a lie by default, okay? Now, in all seriousness, the politicians are being immature jerks and overegulation of a system nor lax regulation of it will solve the matters of it any by ANY country. There are bad parents out there in foster homes, in adoptive homes, and in the typical nuclear family and we all can thank a lack of morals in the homes of people and lots of religious and anti-religious people being a bunch of immature jerks that are fighting with each other as well as among themselves and thus bringing forward even more distrust, paranoia, and immaturity to the world rather than real and true progression of the human race. A child is not a slave and they are not chattel. This is not the Middle Ages, people, this is the 21st century and to the parents that HAVE adopted children and have raised them right, regardless of whether they came from the USA or from other countries, I say thank you for making a difference for the better in their lives and for teaching them to be better than many posters on places like MSN and Newsvine. I also thank you for raising them to be morally outstanding individuals and for having brains and just plain old fashioned street smarts and common sense in their heads, too. You all are a true credit to humanity in this regard.
homesick yank, this country (the USA) was MADE of foreigners, yes, even the so-called "First Nations" people, so please do the world a favor and make like Piers Morgan and deport yourself, okay? You do your fellow citizens of the world a disservice. I hope that the people of the world make like they did to that one person and not allow that person to ever set foot on dry land ever again. It was done because the guy was considered as a traitor to this country and people like you deserve such a fate. Children from this and other countries deserve loving homes and stable lives. Now I am sorry that Mommy and Daddy did not love you as they should have and that you are still struggling with issues with them but the nice people in the white laboratory coats might be able to help you out with your problems if you will give them a chance. They also have this nice room that is all plush and comfortable and that is all white and has lots of these pillow-like things everywhere.
"We have far too many foreign kids coming in."
Prove it.
A hint, you racist twit: A kid who is born in Russia but who is adopted into an American family at the age of 3 and who then spends the rest of his growing up years in America is essentially no longer a foreign kid. He's an American kid who grew up with American culture and surrounded by American people and with little connection to his birth country.
Whatever idiotic, juvenile problem you have with foreigners, it's not caused by foreign kids adopted into American families.
Truthteller, my spouse is foreign-born. I don't have anything against foreigners or legal immigrants. I just think that we already have so many kids in this country who need help.
Yanni -Wrong - on almost every thing you said. What do YOU know about the US? You seem like a foreign troll who should stay out of US business.
I think we need to ban foreign adoptions. We have so many kids who need foster homes in this country; if one has the time and energy and love and money to spare to adopt a foreign child, they should put all those resources towards American children.
In addition, from a practical standpoint, I have seen firsthand that often kids adopted from overseas have physical and emotional/behavioral problems which of course then our schools have to deal with at taxpayer expense.
Why aren't we taking care of our own kids first? Our fellow countrychildren deserve good homes. Please think about that before you send your extra cash to another country to essentially "buy" a child.
homesick yank...I assume based on your comment that you have adopted or fostered children in the US? I have 2 children who were adopted internationally (not foreign children). Prior to adopting internationally I had numerous meetings with family services in an attempt to foster/adopt domestically. I was told that I would never foster/adopt a healthy child. They were simply not available and did not need homes. The children who were available were older children, sibling groups or medically fragile. I wasn't prepared to parent those children. So I adopted internationally. My children are both happy, healthy and well adjusted. I have a good job and I provide for them.
Yes, sometimes children adopted internationally have issues. So do children born into their families. Adoption isn't a perfect situation. In a perfect world, all children would live with their birth parents in their country of birth with enough food, shelter and plenty of love, and no abuse. But the world isn't perfect.
I would have gladly adopted domestically. But our foster care system is so broken that kids are first abused and neglected, then shuffled around from foster family to foster family while their birth parents try to get their act together. Sometimes they can, and families are reunited. But frequently they cannot, and after years, those children are finally available for adoption.
Birth parents should absolutely be the first choice for parenting their children. But when they fail time after time, their children suffer. And what you're suggesting is that people like me, who do not have children by birth, should be forced to parent those children. No matter our circumstances, you want to decide how childless people should build our families. We all have a responsibility to the children in our country. So again...what have you done to help? Do you foster? Are you a child advocate?
No, I haven't adopted or fostered, finngal, and I do think your question is certainly valid. I don't have the financial resources or the extra personal time it would take to do it right. But I work as a special ed aide in central PA. There are American kids right in my area who need foster care (and they are white for those who say that Americans go overseas to get white kids), and I personally know people who have adopted foreign kids who have physical and mental issues which take already limited (and soon to be reduced) public resources. It just seems to me that we ought to take care of American kids first before bringing in kids from other countries.
My belief is that every child deserves a home and loving parent(s). I don't believe that country of birth matters. I also believe that every parent should have the right to choose how to built their family, not just birth families. What you're suggesting is that families such as mine should be required to followed different rules than families who have birth children. That isn't just either.
This is just my opinion...but I don't think that the primary reason for families choosing to adopt internationally is race. In 2010, the top 2 countries for international adoption were China and Ethiopia. It's probably other factors.
However...I'm not convinced that there should be a tax credit for those adopting internationally. To "stimulate" (for lack of a better term) why not limit the tax credit for adoptions to domestic adoptions. Then the financial support is going to families adopting domestically.
I firmly believe that our foster care system and oversight of children in abusive/neglectful situations is broken. Fixing that situation would probably do more to encourage domestic adoption than anything else. I would gladly have adopted domestically and made significant efforts to do so....but I was told that that wouldn't happen for me.
What a sweet little boy. He could have asked for toys, but what he really wants is his brother. I hope he gets his Christmas wish; that would be awesome. I hate it when children are split up and sent to different homes.
And to the people complaining about how this couple adopted a Russian child instead of an American child, why should you care? I don't see you adopting anyone. A child is a child, so who cares if they adopted him from Russia? They gave a child a home and I don't care where he's from.
Your response is the most truthful and honest one that I have seen on here, CourageLovePeaceLive. I believe in a similar response as well in all honesty myself. The man who married you married well, miss, for you are quite lovely on the inside as well as the outside.
Dear Yank,
I would agree that it would be great to adopt domestically. Much less expensive for one thing. However, before you make these statements you should try adopting domestically - it will not take long for you to understand why International adoption is popular...
I'm offended that this couple would change the boy's perfectly good names. What is wrong with Ed and Nick?
Savvy, you're not offended by the whole situation of the US and Russian governments playing politics with these kids lives but you ARE offended because this loving family changed the child's name??????? Get a grip and a heart.
what's wrong with you? who really cares...their children they are free to rename them.
With $ 1 trillion deficits per year the USA is heading for complete collapse at warp speed. Russia, China, Germany will be the survivors and laughing over our grave.
Born 1953. Parents no idea. Early memories, a farm and a brother. Orphanages, can name several. Foster homes more than the fingers on two hands. State sponsored sibling separation age 9. Reformatories and prison, 5 years. Education, Catholic schools, GED, short college stint. Mental stability, tenuous. Intelligence rating, extremely high I.Q. Horror stories, too many to mention. Introduction into a functional world. Luckily for this one.
We in the U.S. churn these children out every year by the thousands. So do other countries. Along with products of "decent environments" is it any wonder why we ponder the problems of our society. Governments have never been able to do anything for the betterment of the people. Only you can make a difference.
I am aware of the immense responsibility of ones actions. After all, I'm the product of it, and this was my short story. I don't repeat the mistakes of my parents, hopefully someone reading this, won't either.
You know jack, mikeyknows. Besides, all of those other countries are in debt to their eyeballs as well, sir, and the same could be said of every other country in the world. Things will inevitably end up in a global oligarchy and nepoarchy and then it will be a dictatorship that will be led by the Antichrist. Go ahead and laugh but money and lots of it in the wrong hands will cause the minds of some seriusly screwed up people to be greedy enough to take whatever that they can get, no matter the cost. The love of money, despite what some people say, can and will make the root of all evil a reality. However, this is not to say that having money in and of itself, let alone the power over money, as necessarily an evil thing in life, rather, what is being criticized is the improper use and application over said money is the true root of all evil. Plato said it best, "Power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely." This means that, regardless of whether we let one person, a small group of people, or each individual to have a place of control in this world, we are still going to be susceptible of being corrupted by that power that we allow into this world, as in our forms of government as well as within our moral structures.
I could agree with most of what you have written (windancersong), however you and most of the world do
not understand these children are not put up for adoption they are sold. American pay big money for these children. This is a muilt million dollar business, and where does this money go? Hummm I think
not to the orphanages.
This politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky cried the loudest in the Duma (Russia parliament) about how
terrible the Americans are, paying big money for Russian children, maybe he
should ask 'Who’s selling these children, and where is all this money'? One should check the
directors, and officials in charge, and you will see they, and their family
live well above their salaries.
I am for this ban on human baby trafficking, now Russia can show the world they
are stepping up to the plate and will take care of their own children.
This will take a lot of money, and with 20 million Russian living in poverty and this number growing faster than expected I think nothing will change.
Will the people rise up, I again think no, they will forget after about 4 days and go back to trying to Survive
Think of what 230 million dollars could do if spend right, but 230 million is what this is all about isn’t it
It is unfortunate that innocent children suffer, when stupid politicians quarrel.The human rights issues are a joke. A country that tortured people, invaded sovereign states, killed millions of children by sanctions, kills whomever they do not like with drones brings up the issue of human rights ? It is only comparable to a Wall Street bankster responsible for robbing billions accusing a shoplifter of theft.I wonder where all these human right politicians were when millions were dying under Communist Terror. Wall Street helped Communists since day one and Joe McCarthy was demonized for being right.
In this particular case, I think , Obama should step in and make an exception. Such a move would be a nice Christmas gift to all.
I could really care less about an American family getting a child from another country, make a real American story and tell us how you adopted a U.A. child that was looking for a family, tired of you people bringing more illegals into our country and making them citizens, we have enough of our own we are supporting.
I agree! We have a lot of little children looking for homes in America. They are living in foster care. Why aren't American families looking to adopt here first?
I suppose if you ever attempted to adopt yourself, you would know the answer.
How very sad. Very sad that any children have been mistreated by anyone and sad that the politicians think the answer is to let the kids grow up in orphanages. Suffer the little children. Crazy adults ruin so many lives!
I understand that there are millions of children around the world who are orphans, no family, nothing. They probably won't get birthday gifts or christmas gifts. There are children who have not eaten anything edible in days, months, maybe even years. What I don't understand is how celebs and Americans are willing to travel overseas and adopt children from other countries when right here in the USA, we have children that are in the same boat as the millions overseas.
I realize that USA does give a lot to others in humanitarian aid, but what ever happened to taking care of our own first than going to help others after? In 3rd world countries like Russia, you don't think that children are trained to be soldiers? You better think again folks. You could very well be adopting the next Putin in 20 yrs and never would have known about it. These 3rd world countries, there are multiple reasons that they do things differently than we Americans do.
I for one, if I ever need to adopt a child, I'm going to start with children in USA first, because we need to take care of our own before taking care of others. This era of the world, it's dog-eat-dog, survival of the fittest.
Well said!
Absolutely. While I respect these people for adopting, there are thousands of our own in this country facing a bleak future. Our own "Fiscal Cliff" will force us to reconsider ALL funding to ALL things and you know damn well that Foreign Aid, Social Security and the Entitlement Programs will NOT be cut.
I suppose consistency is good... I mean what else can you say about American's penchant for greed, stigmatic excellence and hatred for others? Merry Christmas America... I fear the New Year is going to be a real tough one.
The big brother wants to make sure his little brother is taken care of by his family. No better bond than DNA. Good luck to them all.