This has always bothered me? Am I wrong?

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n2mama	I hear you. Let's take care of our own first, then worry about the rest of the world. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

dixiechic	Many people choose to adopt from foreign countries rather than domestically because domestic adoptions have a much higher rate of falling through and/or being challenged later on down the line. Many families try to adopt domestically and after many failed attempts choose to adopt a foreign child. The problem with domestic adoptions is that often the birth mother pulls out at the last minute OR even after the child is born and has been placed with the adoptive family! Moreover, many families have adopted domestically only to find years later that they are in a bitter custody battle with a birth parent or other biological family member. This does not happen with foreign adoptions. Most people who adopt over seas do not want to run the risk of having their hearts broken with failed adoptions or worse having their child taken away from them by the court system after they have been raising the child for years. I dont blame Angelina and Brad or anyone else for that matter to choose a safer route. Besides, children in the foster care system in the united states may not have it great, but they certainly have it better than orphanes in third world countries, who often do not even have access to simple things like clean water, food, adequate clothing, and medical care. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

sandee	I dont think it should matter where the child lives, a kid is a kid. You wouldnt say "why adopt from California when you can adopt from Connecticut" or "why adopt from Miami when you can adopt from Orlando" right? So whats the difference between New York and China? We're all humans, and we all live on earth, so it doesnt matter where the child is from, what part of earth, if they need help then they need help. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

pattypuff76	I COMPLETELY agree with you. I don't get it. It seems as if she's collecting third-world children. For anyone who thinks she's a goddess savior of children, read how she feels about her and Brad Pitt's child Shiloh: http://www.hipandpop.com/angelina-isnt-feeling-shiloh-1046.html http://fametastic.co.uk/archive/20070109/4095/angelina-jolie-i-feel-closer-to-maddox-and-zahara-than-shiloh/ For all those who won't bother to read the links: Angelina Jolie told UK Elle that she has more feelings for Maddox and Zahara because "they are survivors." She calls her own child privileged--and without personality--and pays more attention to the one's adopted from other countries because of "the life the may have lived" there. Nice, huh? Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

ajhaydenus	Well-most other countries are much poorer than here. The children need more help. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

?	well your right about that, but thats not the worst problem, the problem is that medication doesnt help sometimes to cover up the pain of what there feeling inside and out Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

pyl_strollerstrides	does it really matter where the child is from, just as long as that child is provided a home. Come on! It saddens me to hear this "help our own" first. Many people choose not to adopt from the US, and that is their right. Let's focus on the child not where they come from. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Sabrina	I have often thought about that, too. I think that it is for publicity. It makes them LOOK good. Everybody gets so wrapped up in how WONDERFUL it is for Brad and Angelina to give these underprivileged kids from third world countries a chance at knowing the American dream. Think about it, with the amount of $ they have at their disposal, they can hire enough live in nannies to assure that they NEVER have to lose a nights sleep due to a crying baby. They can hire enough housekeepers to make sure that they NEVER have to polish the fingerprints off of a single mirror, and enough cooks to be sure that they never have to spread peanut butter on bread. I think they just like all the publicity that their adoptions get for them. I guess it doesn't seem quite so "fabulous and chic" to adopt your needy child from the hills of Kentucky or West Virginia when you can adopt a RAINBOW of nationalities from around the globe! Maybe I am wrong, if so, well---it ain't the first time and surely won't be the last. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

.vato.	I cannot speak on the behalf of Angelina Jolie or Brad Pitt but I do know that the adoption process here in the US is 'difficult' at the very least. For some parents it can be impossible if you do not find the right agency. It's much easier and [I hate to say it..] cheaper to adopt internationally. Also, depending on how a person looks at it--the children in other countries who die daily from curable illness and starvation maybe considered 'priority.' While at the same time there are kids here who do need help. It's too bad so many people say "...so many people already adopt, I don't need to." This is not true. We should all as a nation and worldwide care for these kids in any little way we can. Although, scams are too easy to come buy and the world is just to corrupt to trust anyone. Ugg. It seems like a loosing battle. I guess what I originally wanted to say was it all depends on how you look at it! Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

butterfly	I know they should worry about the kids we have here. I heard that she was going to adopt a boy from here but she didnt wanted 2. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

leen	i completely agree with u on why not start in the homeland first. however,here in the US there are more assistant and options for the kids here to get adopted.in the 3rd world countries,they've got no at all.United States,like its be said is the land of opportunities,and thats why i think people like Jolie and Pitt r doing this cus the kids from other countries don't have the opportunities like the kids here. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

LuvPugXOXO	BINGO! I am with you. I understand the need is great, but I don't get it with her either. It seems she is not taking the time to enjoy being a parent to the children she already has before she adds to her 'collection.' I am a foster parent, and I don't understand why celebrities don't adopt out of the foster care system. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Marianne T	They do those foreign adoptions for publicity. If Angelina and Brad really wanted to help, they would build orphanages for those kids in poor countries. They would help publicize all the children that need homes. They could also do that here in the U.S. but they wouldn't get the publicity. Madonna is the same. Don't you think there are orphans in England that she could have adopted? Yes, of course. But it was so much more newsworthy to be seen walking around with blonde hair in some African tribal area. I'm sure celebrities have adopted in the U.S. but you don't ever hear about it. Right? Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Fayley A	None of us can solve every problem or help every charity. We pick one that we feel is awful and do what we can. We can't criticize anyone, including ourselves, for not doing everything, because if we start doing that then none of us will do anything because we can't do everything! Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Stardust Fairy	I do agree with you. I could care less that Angelia and Brad adopt kids. There are millions of people that do it every year. It is for the media attention and i guess if they do it in other counties it gets world news. I know that sometimes it is easier to get a baby overseas however with there money the US would be just as easy. God Bless you for being a foster parent. The world needs more people like you. Best Wishes to you and your family. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

laurasimonuk	I totally agree with you. I think celebs are in a bubble world and think that it will make a difference to the world somehow. They waltz it there throwing money around then take a child out of it culture without a care for its pshychological wellbeing or any thought to how the hell it will deal with the fact that they are black chinese vietnamese with white parents etc. And as for Madonna and baby David, dont even get me started. He wasnt even an orphan for gods sake. How the hell are they going to explain that instead of helping his father raise him with sponsorship, they decided to take him away from his own flesh and blood! grrrrr Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Brianna M	i think any adoption is great ...but u are 100% right there are many children here need to be adopted and people always look else where.I cant figure it out my self. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Heaven L	just like mentioned above, the orphaned children in america are in A WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY BETTER position than the children in africa. millions of children are up for adoption in america but at the same time millions of them get adopted every year, how many do you think get adopted in africa? Angelina and Brad are giving those children a fighting chance in the country of freedom, they deserve it, you have no right to question why they would do it, who the hell are you to say they should leave children in africa to suffer and adopt fully privilliged american children. Sending money isnt enough, half the time the money doesnt even go to the children, it goes to the white fu cks that make the commercials showing the little black children with flies on their faces, pretending to give a fu ck. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

grdnangel0209	This is a question that alot of people think about unfortunately there is no real answer....Some people just do...maybe they see it as another way to show people "I'm special enough to help other countries" and don't stop to think about what it actually makes them look like....I still don't get what and why people make a fuss over anyone anyway....We all have a job to do whether its in the spotlight or not :) Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

ladybmw1218	In response to those metioning cost factors, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt need not worry about that. Anyway, adopting from US foster care is usually free,. I agree with several previous posters in that the poor in our country are still several times more cared for than orphans in third world countries. Many, many (in the thousands) children in Guatemala live in the trash dump and pick trash to eat and build shelters..having to fight with stray dogs for scraps of rotting food. In many countries orphans simply roam the streets begging. A child in a foster home in the US has state paid medical care, shelter, food, and an education. I think at least some people that adopt from overseas are moved by a number of factors to choose that route. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

guatemama	Oh my goodness. I had to stop reading the responses to this question before I got SICK!! Those who responded in AGREEMENT with the poster apparently have never looked into adopting in any shape or form! Because all I read were "guesses" not FACTS. The truth is OF COURSE there are lots of children in the United States that need families. My question to you guys that posted against all of us who are FOR international adoption is this: WHY DON'T YOU ADOPT THEM? If it is THAT EASY and THAT CHEAP then go for it! Get your check book out and start writing. Go to the department of social services and pick you one out! I mean, by the way you guys talk its the AMERICAN thing to do! RIGHT? Now let me tell you MY side of the story. My husband and I have two children biologically. We took in a biracial little boy who needed a foster family. We fell in love with him instantly. Needless to say we wanted to adopt him. His mother was in prison and his father was WHO KNOWS WHERE. He lived with us for a few months when we found out that the mother changed her mind about who the father was. This put a "kink" in the adoption plan. But we carried on. THEN she decided that she didn't want to sign the papers. She didn't want him though....she just didn't show up to sign the papers to give up parental rights. We found out that we would have to endure court for about a 2 year process to get the rights taken away legally. HOWEVER, during this time, if she showed any interest in him she could take him back....even if it was in the final stage! This meant we could raise him til he was 3 YEARS OLD only to have him go back to his mother who hadn't seen him since he was an infant!!! I couldn't do it. The lady was NUTS! I had two other children to think about.....they were already bonding. They would be totally CRUSHED to have their little brother taken from them when he turned 3 if she decided to do that. So, we gave him up to his biological grandmother and I went into a DEEP depression. A few months later we were contacted by a young couple who heard we were thinking of adopting. They wanted to meet us. They were about to have a baby girl. After we filed all the paperwork and spoke to a lawyer. The mother decided she didn't know if she could go through with it or not. I told her I understood and to just let us know....we would wait. They called us two weeks later and said they decided to go ahead with the adoption. But by this time I was a little nervous. I had spoken to our lawyer and he said that the mother would have 6 months EVEN AFTER THE BABY WAS BORN AND IN OUR HOME that she could change her mind and take back the baby girl. Once again, I could not deal with that. I understood the rights of the mother. But I also knew that I could only take so much. And taking care of and rocking and feeding and loving a baby girl for 6 months in my home, only to have her taken away from me....especially after what happened with the little boy only a few months before...well that would be TOO MUCH. So we backed out of the adoption. By this time, I'm thinking that there is no way I can adopt without taking a chance of getting my heart broken. Then we saw a picture of a little boy in Guatemala with big brown eyes. We found out that he had been found in a village, starving to death. He was already 2 years old. Most people want to adopt babies when they internationally adopt, so this boy didn't have much of a chance to be adopted. I knew INSTANTLY he was MY BOY! There was just a connection. Was the adoption EASIER? HAHAHAHA NO WAY. I've never seen so much red tape in all my life. Oh my GOSH!! Was the adoption cheaper? HECK NO! $30,000 + but God provided Did we adopt internationally because we wanted a "perfect" child? UM NO....we adopted our child without knowing ANYTHING about him. He has NO HISTORY. They asked us if we wanted him tested for AIDS. I told them "it doesn't matter" he's our son no matter WHAT! (As for the comment by a poster about "adopters" not wanting "hearing impaired/deaf kids"....I got one of those with my bio son....didn't have to adopt one! And guess what, he's STILL a blessing!!!!) I could go ON and ON. Adoption is a blessing to the adopted child and the adopting parent no matter WHAT country the child or parent is from. What does it matter? Adoption is giving a child a home!! PERIOD!! For those of you who want to criticize, I really don't think you have any room to talk UNLESS you've actually adopted!! Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

musicpanther67	I don't see why they can't adopt children from where ever they want. Try to think globally instead of just nationally. Kids in need are in need no matter where they are from. I don't see the problem. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Dee	i can understand your point,but i guess some people have there reason why they adopt in other countries. I would like to adopt one day. I will probably adopt in the USA. Our kids need home too. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Kim_T	As a mother to a child adopted from China and having been a foster parent myself and loosing my foster children whom I wanted to adopt because of the system, I totally understand why they adopt internantionally. I had two foster children I wanted to adopt but my job was relocated across state lines. I was in the middle of the adoption from China and would have adopted my foster children too. My foster son had huge behavior and emotional problems and is to this day considered "unadoptable" because of his issues which were under control when I had him. I begged to take him with me but the system would not permit me to take them across state lines. I was devistated, they were devistated and in the end the little girl I had was adopted separately from her brother despite the fact that I was one state and 4 hours away screaming "I will still adopt them both. Don't separate them." The paper work is rediculous to cross state lines and most child protective services departments are not willing to do it. It also takes a long time for it to go through. International adoption is much easier especially if you do not want birth parents to be involved. As for Angelina and Brad I cannot say what their motives are. If they are like the rest of us adoptive parents, they want to be parents and they want to do it in the "cleanest" way possible. International adoption is a sure thing. You cannot say that about domestic private adoption or adoption through foster care. While I agree the children in foster care are extremely important it is easier on the heart to adopt internationally without the threat of a distant relative stepping forward at the last minute to adopt the child. That happens quite frequently too with foster adoption. Relatives who do not come forward to foster their family members children but when it looks like the child will have parental rights terminated they come out of the woodwork because they are biologically related they "get dibs" so to speak. People are drawn to different countries to adopt for different reasons. I am not sure why Angelina and Brad were drawn to the countries they have adopted from. I will say though that I have always said if I won the lottery I would adopt from a bunch of different countries including foster care (I would move back to my previous state, adopt my former foster son and then move to where I wanted). Whatever their reasons and motives are I am sure it is the right thing for their family. Kim T Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

janitza421	I think its because a lot of people feel as if the United States is the most wealthiest and liberated countrys; comparing to Africa, India, and other poor countrys that can not really offer much to children. Like most people have said, the United States is the only country that people go hunting on a full stomach. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

ljc1410	I don't know if it's right or wrong, but I think they are giving children a chance in life that they would never have otherwise. I don't mean being rich and priveledged, but that they may actually live. The kids that they adopt come from such horrible places. The people in some of these places work for pennies a day. They are the children you see on tv being served soupy rice from a bucket. There are children here that need homes, but at least in this country it doesn't matter where you come from, anyone can build the life they want if they work hard enough. Again, I'm not saying it's right or wrong or that one is more deserving than the other. That's just my theory. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

midget52	I have heard a lot of people ask this same question and I guess to me it doesn't make any difference where the child is from. They need a family no matter what country they are living in. Plus living conditions can be a lot more rough in orphanages in other countries than they are here in the states. I don't see why people should have to adopt American babies before they adopt foreign ones.... Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

onerockinmamato2	I understand the opinions from each side. But, I think what we need to ask ourselves is if one life is more worthy than another? Every adoptive parent needs to adopt a child that they feel most comfortable with. No one should ever adopt from foster care here in the U.S. just because they think they'd be "saving a life." Many children in foster care have issues that not all of us are equipped mentally and emotionally to deal with. Also, for some reason, many people think it's easier to adopt from another country, but that's simply not true. When adoptiong internationally, not only do potential adoptive parents have to meet criteria set forth by their own state but they have to meet the criteria set forth by the country they'll be adopting from as well. We adopted two babies from birth from right here in the U.S. through an agency and both adoptions together cost less than what one international adoption would have been. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Silver B	I think that Angelina feels that it is her calling to have a melting pot of a family. If you can't save them all, save the ones you can! Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

islander8181	I'm not a fan of Angelina Jolie. Having said that....the poor in Africa are in much greater need than the poor in this country. Poor people in this country usually have food to eat and a place to sleep (even if it's just a homeless shelter). Kids in Africa are dying of starvation, have no health care, and sometimes have to fend for themselves at unbelievably young ages. And while I understand the idea of helping your neighbors first - people in other countries are just as important as people in our own country. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Barbara C	well children here are in a lot better conditions than children over seas in most third world countries. Granted the conditions are not ideal here, but at least the children in foster care attend school and are fed, most children overseas live in dirty, rundown orphanages, with little to no food, no medical care, no nutrition, some babies live all day long in their cribs, they never have human interaction or even get out to learn to walk and crawl. They dont have diapers or if they do, they are never changed, they don't get bathes. I could go on and on. So yes, there are children everywhere that need homes, but if you go by true needs, these poor babies in third world countries, need homes more ( if you can put children on a priority list) than children here in foster care. My husband was adopted from Korea at age 4 and he was dumped in a garbage can to die and lived in a horrid orphanage for a while. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No