So let me ask you …
My first reaction is OH HECK NO. How lame! How superficial! What a waste of money!
BUT … then you watch the video about this girl …
… and I don’t know.
Her ears WERE pretty misshapen. This wasn’t just an issue of whether they thought they were too big or simply ugly, this was a physical malformation. (The experts say that when you’re a kid, your ears are already 90% the size they’re going to be when you’re an adult, so they don’t grow much. This was the reason they could perform the surgery on this seven-year old girl. Obviously, they couldn’t do plastic surgery on noses, chins, etc. at seven years old. So maybe, not THIS young, but you get the idea).
I think I could agree with this decision. This wasn’t something she would grow out of and since they were so different, she WOULD likely get teased and possibly bullied because they were so different from “the norm.” (Whatever that is, I suppose).
Before you completely disagree with me, think about people who take their kids to the orthodontist. *raises hand* Isn’t that a variation of plastic surgery? Correcting crooked teeth? Or people that buy their kids contact lenses. It’s not surgery, but it’s another physical enhancement so they don’t have to wear glasses and stand out from their peers.
I guess it would depend on the situation. If the physical malformation was slight (and again, who decides that, really?), I’d say no. But if it was something as apparent as this poor girl’s ears, then I might have made the same decision.
Granted, kids need to learn to deal with difficult people no matter what they look like – there are mean people in the world who will pick on someone for any little thing because they’re insecure about their lives or something about themselves, but I guess, why make it harder when it’s something that CAN be fixed?
Boy, I don’t know. This is a toughie. I really think it’s a case-by-case situation.
What do you think?
More from Write From Karen
Write From Karen 
Hey Karen ~~ I wanted to comment on the dance moves but the comment function was disabled ! I think they were cool & you danced freely …
I’m just visiting from A~Z Challenge & hope you enjoy the rest of the challenge .
With regards to the plastic surgery topic … it’s a tricky one . I think that each case should be judged on its own merit and the above scenario definitely warranted the plastic surgery (my opinion) . It’s also true what you mentioned with regards to braces and contact lenses for kids …
Nice to meet you & keep dancing !!!! 🙂
~MICHELLE~
http://writer-in-transit.co.za/category/other/rambles-rants-and-raves/
I know, it is sad. I really struggled with this because I think it all boils down to society’s perception of what beauty is. Just because someone doesn’t look like the models on the magazines, does that mean that person is ugly? Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but what if the beholder is in the minority?
I guess I look at it as my parental responsibility to help my sons meet life head on and if that means getting their teeth fixed so they aren’t self conscious of it and no longer have to think about them or be embarrassed about them so they can concentrate on larger issues, then so be it, I suppose.
I realize that teeth is not quite the same as plastic surgery, but it’s the same concept, I think.
It’s a tough issue.
I think it’s sad that society is so intolerant of anything that looks ‘different’ that people feel they need to resort to these kinds of measures. I myself have one eye that looks rather unusual and people have regularly advised me to hide this with shades.
However I made the concious decision not to do this. Though I gues this was easier for me since I’m blind so have no idea what my eyes look like and am not aware of people staring – if they do. But if I could see I may well feel pressured into hiding my eyes by other people’s reactions.