Stanley the Adult Baby Investigated For Social Security Fraud
[There was a video here]
Remember Stanley Thornton Jr., the 30-year-old man who gets bottle-fed, diaper-changed, and lullabied to sleep in a custom crib by his roommate/pervnabler? Of course you do — he was absolutely precious! Stanley became an instant internet sensation when his "adult baby" lifestyle was featured on National Geographic Channel's Taboo. But Sen. Tom Coburn, the Senate's "top waste-watcher," appears to have caught a heavy whiff of Baby Stanley's diaper — and the Oklahoma Republican is considerably less enchanted than the rest of us.
The problem is that Stanley claims to be incapable of holding down a regular job, and therefore lives off of disability benefits paid by the Social Security Administration (as does his roommate). Yet he manages to run an adult baby support group website, www.bedwettingabdl.com, and has demonstrated other marketable skills.
From a letter Coburn wrote to Inspector General Patrick P. O'Caroll Jr., excerpted in The Washington Times:
"Given that Mr. Thornton is able to determine what is appropriate attire and actions in public, drive himself to complete errands, design and custom-make baby furniture to support a 350-pound adult and run an Internet support group, it is possible that he has been improperly collecting disability benefits for a period of time."
Asked to comment, Thornton sent back an email that included a threat of suicide should his benefits be revoked:
"You wanna test how damn serious I am about leaving this world, screw with my check that pays for this apartment and food. Try it. See how serious I am. I don't care. I have no problem killing myself. Take away the last thing keeping me here, and see what happens. Next time you see me on the news, it will be me in a body bag."
I know it's a little controversial, but in cases like this, I'm actually a big proponent of ferberization. [Washington Times, National Geographic video clip via Jezebel]