I can't help feeling that this whole saga has crossed the line from being about the welfare of an infant who is unable to exist (I don't use the term "live" deliberately) without permanent life support to being about the wants and needs of his parents.

I'm glad that in my parenting career to date, I've never had to face what the Gards are having to deal with. Still, I'm convinced that they are no longer acting solely in the child's interests. I also think they're being swept along in the media bubble that now surrounds them and this too is not something that's being done with the child's interests at heart.

The massed ranks of expert medical and legal opinion is once again being portrayed by some media elements as being a malign force.

It's all starting to look a bit shabby, to be honest.

Edited by Mr_Gristle (11 Jul 2017 1.22pm)

Well I think Simon's head is large; always involved in espionage. (Name that tune)

I think that the parents are being incredibly selfish.

I can't condemn them for it though

From reading more about the case today the treatment hadn't even been tested on mice.
I totally 'get' what you are saying. Treatment and research has to start somewhere and over the generations there have been plenty of treatments which people have initially dismissed which later prove to be beneficial.

But.. there is something deeply uncomfortable about the parents having the 'right' to do this. From what I understand the child is unable to cry or express in any way whether he's in any form of pain. Hence doctors saying in their initial judgement they don't know whether he's in any pain or not. His breathing activity which could be an indicator can't be looked at to help as it's a machine performing that act for him. The treatment could help future cases but it could leave him to die an absolutely hideous death. All this is ifs, buts and maybes but I personally don't feel it's right to do that to any child and for what ends. Essentially turn them into a lab rat.

When I was a young girl my Mother said to me.. You listen here kid you're CPFC

Would be the easiest thing to do. But if it is going to cause Charlie further suffering its not the right thing to do.

If I didn't know differently I would think they had the Mccanns pr team running this. Funds (in excess of £2million raised which they have access to) but have asked for more to cover legal fees and it was then revealed their legal representatives are working pro bono. More money requested to pay for the Pastor from the US to come over and pray at the child's bedside. GOSH said no to this and r He parents took to all types of social media to complain how unfair it was until the hospital eventually backed down. The father at court yesterday with the child's cuddly toy placed in his jacket pocket . That's what I mean by circus. It's a hospital. Goodness only knows what the parents and families visiting their own children on the same ward must be thinking of all this intrusion. The mum placing the child's passport in his hand saying he's ready and wanting to go to America and taking a photo for Twitter of the whole thing. People react differently to things and hopefully I will be lucky enough to never have to be in their shoes but I can't help but feel it's turned into a situation of us against the professionals / state. Alot of people hitching their wagon to this particular campaign are also very anti establishment anti state and quite simply they are against the state or legal body having any say over this poor child's treatment .

Edited by Michaelawt85 (11 Jul 2017 4.23pm)

When I was a young girl my Mother said to me.. You listen here kid you're CPFC

Because the parents are in a position to view this objectively. The comment from the very erudite mother on TV was 'a parent knows what their child wants'. Really? Sure there is a bond but there is also a great deal of wishful thinking (I like to pretend my kids have brains for example).