Tickets to see a woman give birth
Josie Cunningham is a self-described aspiring model. From what I can tell, she is most famous for somehow getting Britain's government-funded medical system to pay for a breast augmentation. Now, she's back in the headlines after she sold four tickets to an upcoming event — the birth of her third child.
In a bid to make herself one of the craziest women out there, Cunningham put four tickets up for sale. Two were for £10,000 and the other two for £5,000 — a total of £30,000, which is over $50,000 USD. She said that the tickets didn't last long, either, selling out within 14 minutes.
Tickets sold out tweet
She claims that each stranger will be vetted and she will have personal protection in place for the safety of both her and her child. The top-paying "lucky fans" will be also allowed to videotape and photograph her birth.
Birth is not a spectator sport
I believe that every woman has the right to allow (or disallow) people in the delivery room based on her level of comfort. Some moms enjoy family and friends welcoming their child into the world with them. Others feel more comfortable with only medical staff and labor support in the room. That being said, birth really isn't a spectator sport. Selling bedside seats to perfect strangers is, quite frankly, bananas.
When I first heard about this, I immediately thought, "Has she lost her freaking mind?" A quick browse through her Facebook page is not only thoroughly depressing, but it's full of people who also feel that her decision is completely insane. I admit that I don't care for the tone of most of the vitriol aimed at her, with much focus on her face and other aspects of her physical appearance. And I'm not in the habit of judging what other moms do — after all, if there are people willing to fork over big bucks to watch her labor and birth her baby, who am I to say she's wrong?
But I really think that selling out your childbirth experience to make cash is just bonkers. It's reported that three of the ticket buyers are journalists, but the fourth was snapped up by a "super fan." And that seems extra creepy to me. I'm not sure what sort of guy would adore this woman so much he'd fork over that much moola to watch her birth a baby, but it's probably someone she shouldn't be associating with.
She's back in the headlines, though, which is most likely the result she wanted.
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