Dolls for disabled people

Ok, I'm trying to decided whether or not these things are fucked up. Have a read of this and see what you think....

More here.

I'm indifferent on it. If there's a demand there, makes someone happy and it's legal, might as well supply.

It's not mocking disability as far as I can see, so I guess there isn't much room for moral outrage.

Those Bratz dolls are fugly, though.

Dolls for disabled people is nothing new, though usually they're made for adults and are inflatable.

That's kind of redundant isn't it? I wouldn't expect supporters to say they harmed children.

I imagine a parent of such a child will do most anything to see them smile and give them some moments of "normalcy". I don't see anything wrong with a business built on wanting to help out in such a circumstance.

Then again.....any Chinese toy maufacturers reading this?

Return of the Cabbage Patch Kids?

Damn good idea and hats off to them if you ask me, only one thing....

This seems to be a pigeonhole they've put themselves for no good reason other than being PC.
Why shouldn't they profit from the dolls? I see no good reason why they shouldn't save keeping asshats and their "exploiting" bad press at bay.

Yep. If she profits from them, then she can invest the money back into the business (if she wishes) and it's a win-win situation for everyone concerned.

Is it just me though, who thinks that Downi Creations is a good name for a company that makes soft, handknitted jumpers?

Yea, seems she's being exploited by the PC Police. She should be able to pocket her share for this.

Sounds like a good name to me for jumpers, but the spelling would be misleading unless of course they were marketing to Downs kids.

How do I alert the PC police that other companies are making an unfair profit? I'd like to see some enforcement. Maybe start with Bank of America.

This thread is full of surprises.

I think it's a wonderful thing and anyone who can be derogatory about handicapped children having toys they can relate to are the real sick fuckers.

I've got no strong feelings one way or the other, but the Down's Syndrome girl they had on the Beeb this morning wasn't too impressed with them, she said she preferred ordinary dolls.
I don't see that they're anything that new, though, I remember a wheelchair doll being around when daughter was little.

I'd imagine it would be very tactile - lots of different fabrics, contrasts between, say, hard materials for the eyes and soft materials for the mouth.

Toys for blind kids have been made by volunteers and, I'd imagine, small toy makers, for a very long time. Volunteer organizations even make "picture books" for blind kids - storybooks with a Braille text "illustrated" with figures made from felt and yarn and buttons. Did a few of those for a nonprofit when I was in high school.

I wasn't aware that people undergoing chemo where considered disabled.

At the time they're undergoing chemo, a lot of normal function is disabled, particularly in children. A disability doesn't have to be permanent in order to be considered a disability. And for many kids undergoing chemo, placement of shunts, for example, may in fact be permanent, depending on the kind of cancer they're being treated for.

Not having seen these dolls, I'm assuming they're meant to comfort the child who's undergone hair loss and has to deal with classmates staring at them. Kids who have surgical scars, device implants, etc., need to be reassured that they aren't freaks. If that's what these dolls aim to do, they're a good thing.

Take it from me, they are. I underwent chemo for most of last year and was, to a large extent, physically handicapped.

^How are you doing now?

A lot better than I was this time last year. I have a better than 50% chance of living another five years at this point. Last year, making it to Thanksgiving was an iffy proposition. Toss in a transplant in December and frankly, I'm happy to still be posting.

Aw, geez!

What's next? Herpes Barbie?

Aye, agreed.

Well, the person you know who had cancer (I forgot if that's protected information, so I won't say who) was incredibly strong through it and was generally in good shape, considering the treatment.

However, other people don't respond well to treatment.

My aunt's cancer spread from her breast to her lungs and bones, until she was getting fractures left and right. Before she died (I think... 8 years ago? wow...), it got to the point where the chemo wasn't what was hurting her - the cancer had simply spread enough that she couldn't do anything for herself.

I don't have a problem with it. It's disappointing that some people would feel weird about having Down's Syndrom (or other types) of dolls.

As long as they don't come out with "If your erection lasts more than four hours, please seek medical attention" dolls.

Stallion already has one of those as his avatar

When is the model operating room staffed with organ harvesters debuting?

Perhaps the beginning......

Not all people are. My mom would have chemo and go out and walk five miles because she heard it was good for her. She would do it even if she was extremely tired. Sure she had a lot of complications but she wasn't disabled.

Chemo varies, both in duration and intensity. I'm glad your mom survived so well. Me? I was getting 4 1/2 hours of IV with three injections every 14 days for six months. I couldn't walk 50 feet without having to sit down after the first three months of it. OTOH, when I went through eight weeks of daily full-body radiation in 1997 it barely affected my stamina.

I didn't mean to imply that all chemo patients are disabled, only that chemo patients certainly can be disabled.