Mom delivers 16th child, thinking of more

"LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (AP) -- Michelle Duggar just delivered her 16th child, and she's already thinking about doing it again."
This reminds me of that old Groucho Marx story from his You Bet Your Life.
Snopes recounts it:

The most infamous remark of Groucho's You Bet Your Life years supposedly occurred when he was interviewing a Mrs. Story, a contestant with twenty-two children (reputedly the largest family in America at the time):

GROUCHO: "Why do you have so many children? That's a big responsibility and a big burden."

MRS. STORY: "Well, because I love my children and I think that's our purpose here on Earth, and I love my husband."

GROUCHO: "I love my cigar, too, but I take it out of my mouth once in a while."

9 comments:

Michael Suddard said...

Talk about a baby factory!

So to keep the population going, each family needs to have at least 2.1 children. I think she covered that and then some!

Jack Steiner said...

Very true. ;)

Anonymous said...

You mean they have Chasidim living in Arkansas?

bornfool said...

I saw this on the news this morning. I wonder what the record is.

Anonymous said...

All the kids' names start with the letter J. There's something slightly off in that. This woman, without a doubt, does not function properly in the head. I don't know what it is, I'm not a doctor, I only play one on the web, but she certainly has some imbalance in her brain that has her leaning quite a distance from "normal."

And what those people ought to realize is this world is way too over-populated. There is poverty here in America, children going to bed hungry. One nation south families live in such poverty that rats in America have nicer homes and better food to eat. You don't have to go that far away from cities like Tijuana and Nuevo Laredo to see it firsthand. In Africa children die every single minute of the day because they don't have what we Americas take for granted - simple medicines to prevent easily curable illnesses, clean water, and food. Children never have a chance to have a childhood. How much money will it cost that Arkansas woman and her husband to raise all those 16 children until Age 18? On average a parent spends $250,000 on a child not including college. All that money spent on 16 children could save a couple thousand lives of children who will otherwise die. So pathetic. So selfish. Any couple who willingly decides they're not going to have even one child so that that can help other children instead, that couple is the perfect example of how more people should be living their lives in the 21st Century. More people = more problems for people and the land of Earth. Giving birth to one child means hundreds will die. Giving birth to 16 children? Just sad.

Michael Suddard said...

From the "Late Show with David Lettermen" (10/13/2005):

Top Ten Signs You Have Too Many Kids

10. "Kids sleep in bunk beds, sit on bunk sofas"

9. "Any movie you take kids to instantly becomes number one film in the country"

8. "You're spending $7.3 million a year in allowance"

7. "Family wiffle ball game has larger attendance than Devil Rays games"

6. "A 'Gap For Kids' just opened in your living room"

5. "In speech on global warming, Al Gore holds up your gas bill"

4. "When your kid says, 'I Love You', you say, 'And you are?'"

3. "Locals refer to you as 'That couple that's always doin' it'"

2. "FEMA is airlifting Cheerios and Barney videos to your home"

1. "Neighbors take up collection to buy you a vasectomy"

Jack Steiner said...

As a parent my biggest question is not whether the family has the money to support this many people.

The issue to me is whether the children receive enough time and attention from their parents.

Assorted Babble by Suzie said...

Two stories in one...loved the way you did that! (smiling)

I also posted on this story. Watched the family interviewed on Fox n Friends the other morning. The father is in Real Estate and they are debt free and praised God for it. The Mother home schools all the children too.

The family seem to be Blessed and appeared very happy.

Lil Bit said...

Aaaaarggggh! This story just frustrates me to no end! Good GRIEFFFFFFF!!! 16?!?! The woman's INSANE!

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