Last week, I wanted to know what you thought about the birth of octuplets which occured a few weeks ago. Basically, it was a “to judge or not to judge” question, and a full seventy six percent said that they judged the mother, and harshly. An angelic twenty three percent said that it wasn’t their place.

As for me, I question the ethics of the fertility clinic involved, and I honestly have to question the mother’s judgement. Just because you want something, doesn’t mean you should have it. She seems to have some sort of deep need to have children, and I’m not sure that is reason enough to have 14 children without a full-blown support system already in place. To just have that many children and hope it will all work out is not something I could do.

So, playing upon the theme of larger families, I just read an article in the NY Times about how larger families are falling out of fashion, and how some parents of larger families feel they are being unfairly judged.

Barbara Millicent Rogers comes in for a lot of flack in the blogosphere, some of it deserved, and some strictly appearance-based and you know how we feel about catty remarks based on someone’s appearance around these parts. Long, indeed, has it been my own hope that she, like Nancy Drew, might some day stop tooling around in that dopey convertible and accessorizing compulsively and get a real job.

That day, my friends, has arrived. Behold the Angela Merkel Barbie:

As part of a series to celebrate the toy’s 50th birthday, manufacturer Mattel has brought out a version modelled on the German chancellor. The doll wears the politician’s tailored trouser suit and her trademark blonde bob, but the resemblance ends there: its tiny waistline is more Heidi Klum than Angela Merkel and its smiling face is free of the worry lines produced when you are trying to fight economic crisis in Europe’s largest economy.

A spokeswoman for Mattel said that like Barbie, Merkel embodied the dreams of many girls who want to get on in the world. “She’s simply a good role model for girls around the world,” she said.

Alas, like the original, the Barbie Angela Merkel is one-of-a-kind and not for sale. No word on how well she plays with others, but the signs are good: