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On 22 Feb 1995, Elaine McGirr wrote:

> change@rahul.net wrote:
> [a whole lot of stuff I deleted to ask one question]
> 
> 
> :             ==================================================
> :                         Choice from the Grave
> :             ==================================================
> 
> : A Chicago paper reported on 1/24/95 that a local doctor extracted sperm from 
> : a dead man's body at his widow's request. There goes another "loophole" for
> : men to avoid parenthood! Now even dead guys are fair game. This is a 
> : glaring example of how desperately men need a reproductive choice. How 
> : far will we let the courts violate men's reproductive rights before we 
> : LEGALIZE CHOICE FOR MEN?
> 
> Ummm, why is this an issue? Dead men can't pay child support. They're not 
I believe the original point of the posting was that the child would 
inherit an estate.  I have $250,000 in life insurance for my kids today.
I have had a vasecotmy to make sure no one can claim to have had my baby 
but my ex-wife.  Even if they call another man daddy, they are the
only children I will ever have.  Perhaps I will be able to afford
to see them next year (we are 3000 mile apart).

> expected to parent in any way. Dead people don't make ANY choices, let 
> alone reproductive ones.
Actually, some men deliberately leave sperm in sperm banks for withdrawal 
use by a future wife, especially after vasectomy.  Inheritance is always
a sticky question.  If the man leaves nothing to an ex-wife, can she
enseminate herself with his sperm and collect "child support" from his
estate?  Apparantly the answer is yes.
 
> I really don't understand this whole "choice for men" campaign. I could 
> have sworn it was satire first time I saw the position paper, so maybe 
> I'm missing something, but what's the terrible injustice in harvesting 
> sperm from a dead body at the request of the nearest living relative 

In the case of a sperm bank, there is some level of concious choice.  In 
the case of an estranged widow, it appears that a woman could deprive
previous children (or step-children) from some portion of their death 
benefits.  Could she collect the inheritance based on the unborn baby
and then abort the child?  This whole ruling is wierd.

	Rex


From rballard@cnj.digex.net Wed Mar  1 13:00:39 1995
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