NYT Article on DS

I actually had a much more positive reaction than Rob to the NYT article on the grass-roots efforts of parents of kids with Down Syndrome to educate doctors & genetic counselors on the reality of D.S.  While the reporter did acknowledge the self-interest motivating parents, I thought she was rather forceful in articulating the larger questions, even daring to give credence to the suggestion that we might be talking about something "that can border on eugenics." 

Their goal, parents say, is not to force anyone to take on the task of parenting a child with disabilities. Many participants in the ad-hoc movement describe themselves as pro-choice. Yet some see themselves as society’s first line of defense against a use of genetic technology that can border on eugenics.

“For me, it’s just faces disappearing,” said Nancy Iannone, of Turnersville, N.J., mother to four daughters, including one with Down syndrome. “It isn’t about abortion politics or religion, it’s a pure ethical question.”

But then, of course, there's this:

Genetic counselors, who often give test results to prospective parents, say they need to respect patients who may have already made up their minds to terminate their pregnancy. Suggesting that they read a flyer or spend a day with a family, they say, can unnecessarily complicate what is for many a painful and time-pressured decision.

Suggesting that they READ A FLYER might be an unnecessary complication?????  Come on!! And why does the decision have to be time-pressured?  Did I miss something?  Have we enacted some time restrictions on abortions here in the U.S.?  This decision is time-pressured mainly because of the pressure that genetic counselors and doctors put on their patients to make this "painful" decision quickly.