Almost Canadian

http://www.calgaryherald.com/health/...414/story.html

I`d be interested to hear people`s opinions on this one. Privacy for the donors, or identity for the conceived? Another "social experiment" gone wrong?

Your thoughts?

Piff Poff

I understand both sides of the argument, I don't think there is a 'right' answer to it. I do think it will make people think twice about donating though.

Jingsamichty

Hmm. I'm sure that there are many children who don't know the identity of their biological father.

The selection of a mate is a woman's choice, and that choice may or may not be the same man who brings her children up.

I don't think any child has the "right" to know who it's biological parents are. Too much is talked about people's "rights" to things... just because science has made something possible to be done doesn't automatically confer rights to knowledge that would be impossible in nature.

Almost Canadian

I understand that there are two points of view. I don`t understand the "argument". If the donor made the donation on the basis of his identity never being disclosed, that`s the end of it, isn`t it?

My understanding from the comments about the case is that the father`s identity in this case will never be known as the records have already been destroyed or his details were never kept (I can`t remember which).

I agree with Jings. Why should such children be placed in a better position than those that were conceived "naturally" but whose mother has not been "honest"?

Alan2005

No they shouldn't.

I saw this women give an interview on the TV. She is an extremely angry and bitter person who is clearly messed up in the head. Somebody needs to tell her that finding out who daddy really is will not fix stop her being a basket case.

Didn't they enact this legislation in the UK and didn't the number of sperm donors collapse to practically zero or something? I'm seem to recall that happening, but am not sure of the details. I know I certainly wouldn't knock one out if I there was a possibility that some mentally unstable women with a father fixation would come knocking at my door in the future.

CanadaJimmy

Yeah I don't think they should be able to find out. If you donate Sperm, you expect that it will help a woman who wants a child, you don't expect all the kids to come visit you to say Hi afterwards.

No doubt the mothers would get greedy too and make a case for child support. Reminds me of cases where a male friend has gotten a woman pregnant as a favour, only to later on be asked for child support.

BristolUK

To me it's enough of a puzzle that when you've been brought up by "your parents" you then want to know about biological parents simply because you discover you had them but never knew them.

That you developed thanks to an anonymous and clinical squirt in a pot is even less reason to ponder the matter.

Joe_Sleepy

No...

John_B

Absolutely the identity of the donor should be kept anonymous.

In this case the parents decided to use a donor when they discovered the Father was infertile. Surely it's enough of a kick in the teeth for the parents to have to resort to a donor, let alone the kid wanting to know who that person is when they are grown up.

JonboyE

Not just you ...


The woman could be whack job, perhaps even treated for mental health illness in the past, but that kind of information is confidential, just like the information the sperm donor clinic has on file about their sperm donors.

http://www.crookedincanada.com/2010/...pratten-story/

Clematis

If someone donates something on the basis of it being anonymous, then that is exactly what it should be. I wonder if the same issue is being raised with women donating eggs?

fledermaus

Wasn't that one of the arguments - that not knowing who your father/mother is messes with your head? So in theory people who desperately want to know will have a few issues to the donor would most likely not want them around.

I think it should be a done deal, people donated anonymously and that should be respected.

Chookie

I don't think they should have a right to know who their father is...

And the girl in the article DOES have a father - he may not have been her sperm donor, but he was still her father... There is more to being a father than just providing the sperm.

I think it is extremely insenstive of her to go looking for her sperm donor - I bet he (her father) feels really hurt about this.

Piff Poff

The donor, wether it's an egg donor or sperm donor should be able to choose wether his or her identity can be divulged.

I also understand the child wanting to know their biological history too.

It's a no win situation.

Chookie

The way I see it, if they allow the kids to know who their sperm donor is, they should reciprocate and let all sperm donors know the identity of the kids conceived using their sperm...

You can bet that if they said that if you wanted to know your sperm donors identity that he would be given your identity, all those kids would suddenly change their minds!