<p>Nobody misread it. The title of the thread is wrong (which was mentioned upthread), but the posters all understand that this is middle school we are talking about. Have you rad the posts in this thread?</p>
<p>laplatinum,
The two cases are not the same. Of course it is routine for a school to acknowledge and even give an honorary diploma or degree posthumously to a student who had been attending before his or her death. At my D’s recent graduation they did just that for a student who had died during his senior year. It is not unusual, is unusually done in tribute and out of respect and I don’t think that anyone here has an issue with it. What we have an issue with is the family of a dead girl insisting that she is alive and is therefore entitled to a diploma from her school even though she died months ago. Not a posthumous diploma, mind you. A diploma. Even if she had been alive since december she was not attending school and therefore does not qualify. Since she is dead, she definitely doesn’t qualify. </p>
<p>It’s a MIDDLE SCHOOL honorary diploma.</p>
<p>Lighten up, people. It’s not like she’s going to use that credential to preempt your admission into Harvard </p>
<p>GMT, how can you be sure!!! :-SS </p>
<p>My guess was she’d be applying to Transylvania.</p>
<p>Lol, jym.</p>
<p>On a somewhat distantly related note, check out this video. I hope the funeral director is wrong when he says that this is the up and coming trend. Bad enough that they propped up the dead lady, but the dancing was over the top.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/us/2014/06/13/pkg-funeral-becomes-a-party.wgno.html”>http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/us/2014/06/13/pkg-funeral-becomes-a-party.wgno.html</a> </p>
<p>Definitely creepy, but not unusual in New Orleans</p>
<p>That doesn’t really bother me that much. I mean I do think it’s weird but people have a right to mourn a death or celebrate a life in whatever way gives them comfort. I would hope that the person was asked for their input before they died, though. I would hate to see a person with more conservative ideas propped up for the benefit of the mourners if that wasn’t their style in life.
In other parts of the world death is handled in different ways and New Orleans is a unique mix of several different ethnicities and ideologies. In a way it a form of folk art. The thing is that they are acknowledging the death of their loved one. In the McMath’s case, they are not. Very different.</p>
<p>(remind me to leave a note in my will that I do not want to be propped up like a mannequin with my art supplies, a martini and a plate of homemade pasta).</p>
<p>^ How about maybe being propped up reading a copy of the latest USNWR college edition? LOL</p>
<p>I am terribly sorry for the girl’s mother. I think that she is likely trapped in an awful state of loss, pain, hope, and denial. I can’t help but think that it would have been much better for her to acknowledge the death when it happened, and begin to mourn.</p>
<p>But the uncle…he’s another kettle of fish. Manipulative, opportunist, you name it. I think he is pushing his family down this damaging path in hopes of financial gain, period.</p>
<p>Agreed, on the uncle. But, I’m not giving the mom a pass, either. After all, she brought the uncle in at the beginning and that’s when the scheming started. He’s her brother. They all know what’s going on and none of them are dummies. </p>
<p>Agree, actingmt. I do sympathize with the mom about her tremendous loss but I don’t sympathize with her failure to acknowledge that loss. And I just keep going back to the issue of dignity. This was a little girl who was terrified of having this operation. She was afraid of dying. I know that she is unaware of what is happening to her body but it just bothers me that IF you told a twelve year old that they were going to die after an operation and their family was going to use their remains as a prop that would be all over the media…it just horrifies the twelve year old that still lives in me somewhere.</p>
<p>As someone said a bit earlier in the thread. They are just so lacking in grace and wisdom. It just astounds me.</p>
<p>Anyone remember this physician who claimed to be able to awaken patients from comas? Well… </p>
<p><a href=“New Jersey neurologist’s license revoked over having sexual contact with patient with brain injury – New York Daily News”>http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/doctor-license-revoked-sex-patient-brain-injury-article-1.1830673</a></p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Apparently she is now at a Catholic hospial in NJ, and her family state she is improving, although there is no independent proof. NJ is legally the best state in the nation for a brain dead patient whose family want kept on life support.</p>
<p><a href=“Questions Raised Over Condition Of Jahi McMath After Lawyer Said Girl Is Improving - CBS San Francisco”>http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/06/20/questions-raised-over-condition-of-jahi-mcmath-after-lawyer-said-girl-is-improving/</a></p>
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<p>It’s annoying that so many “journalists” cannot be bothered to do even a minimal amount of research before going to the keyboard. “Brain dead” and “coma” cannot be used in the same sentence because brain death is NOT a coma state. It just isn’t. </p>
<p>Good point, Nrdsb4. People frequently conflated coma, persistent vegetative state and brain death. They are not the same.</p>
<p>I am stunned. Just stunned that the family is persisting in their belief that she is ‘improving.’ </p>
<p>This poor child is dead after a medical error. I find the lol comments on this thread pretty sickening. You wouldn’t be making puns if someone you loved died after a tonsillectomy. What I am interested in, however, is who is paying to keep the machines going?</p>
<p>First, there is zilch evidence of any medical error. And, she did not have a routine tonsillectomy. She was obese, had severe sleep apnea, and was on her on her third surgery which included but was not limited to her tonsils. She also bled out in recovery where there are reports that she was being fed against medical orders. She was being suctioned by her grandma. There are problems. And, the bills are probably waiting on the inevitable lawsuit. Meanwhile, they are getting bigger and bigger while the family is back to tweeting, shopping, and partying. I agree, it’s sickening. </p>