“Down Syndrome Now Detectable In 1st Trimester,” the top Washington Post headline reads today, followed by this delicately, politely, euphemistically, ominously worded subhead: “Earlier Diagnosis Allows More Time for Decisions.”

While essentially a happy story for those wanting to decide on earlier and thus safer abortions, it includes this awkward, therapeutic-culture-conditioned stab at even-handedness: “[Earlier screening] also gives those who want to continue the pregnancy more time to prepare emotionally for their child’s condition…”

BTW, so it is a child?