An article saying that Iowa parents will have to pass a “parental fitness” test before having kids is just a hoax.
The fake report was published on National Report, a “satire” news website similar to The Onion. The bogus article was posted about a week ago but started going viral on Monday, with a number of people believing it.
“In an effort to curb overpopulation, Iowa has began to push for legislation which will thwart expectant parents from bearing children unless they are able to prove they are capable of providing for them both psychologically and financially. Their goal is to build a solid structure of sound minded, healthy adults who are fit to raise their offspring, as opposed to the majority of genetic abominations we see today,” it reads. “Expectant couples will need to pass a battery of tests to certify they are psychologically, physically and monetarily sound enough to bring a child into the world."
According to a disclaimer that has since been taken down from the website, National Report doesn’t publish real news--only “satire.”
“National Report is a news and political satire web publication, which may or may not use real names, often in semi-real or mostly fictitious ways,” it says.
National Report has published articles including one saying that solar panels “drain the Sun’s energy” and another claiming that President Obama will run for a third term.
On social media sites, people apparently believed the Iowa hoax.
“This is so ridiculous, maybe if you idiots made adoption less expensive, those parents who so badly want children and cannot afford the adoption process deserve children and would make great parents, there is no reason that the children should be a burden on the tax payers if the government did not have its head up its rear end!” one person wrote.
