A world of "perfect' babies

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists is now recommending that all pregnant women be tested to see if their fetuses have Down Syndrome.

That recommendation has set off a passionate and unexpected response from parents of children with Down Syndrome. Parents in Detroit and other cities are asking obstetricians to connect them to expectant parents who have just received the prenatal diagnosis. They want to show the unanticipated joys of raising a child who has Down Syndrome and, they say, dispel the often entirely pessimistic picture newly diagnosed families are given.

Besides offering support, the group is also hoping to give families a reason to skirt abortion and give birth to their child. It isn't a right-to-life campaign, per se, but in part to make families -- and society -- realize that disabilities are part of human life. Their other motivation is to make sure that their own children with Down Syndrome don't become a smaller and smaller population, with few others like them in their communities and little support or advocacy for their care.

It is a thought-provoking and complicated issue. Should there be more widespread testing for this and other disabilities? Are we becoming a society with less tolerance and less respect for children who enter the world with physical or mental difficulties? And what kind of messages and advice should families receive when they get a prenatal diagnosis of Down Syndrome and other disabilities? I'd like to hear your thoughts.