R THEY 4REAL?

I think parents, no matter how dumb they are, have a right to choose the name of their children, as long as it's not really sacrilegious or perverted. Here's an interesting story:

WELLINGTON, New Zealand - A New Zealand couple is looking to call their newborn son Superman — but only because their chosen name of 4Realhas been rejected by the government registry.

Pat and Sheena Wheaton say they will get around the decision by the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages by officially naming their son Superman but referring to him as 4Real, the New Zealand Herald newspaper has reported.

The Wheatons decided on the name after seeing the baby for the first time in an ultrasound scan and realizing their baby was “for real.”

They decided 4Real was the best way to write it, but the name was rejected because the registrar said a name had to be a sequence of characters.

Pat Wheaton said he was considering appealing against the decision through the courts, but whatever happens he won’t be budged on his choice.

“No matter what, it’s going to stay 4Real,” Wheaton told the Herald, “I’m certainly not a quitter.”

A spokesman for the Department of Internal Affairs, which operates the registry, told the Herald discussions with the Wheatons about their son’s name were continuing.
The baby is now 2 months old. The Wheatons first applied to register his name in late June.
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Here's some other interesting facts on naming kids:

French parents must choose baby names from an approved list. The laws are designed to prevent teasing. (OK, like this is going to stop all kids from being mean to other kids. Come on.)

Germany has laws against naming children Adolf Hitler and Osama bin Laden. (This one I get. I really do. Why start a kid out with a name based on some of the most terrible people in the world?)

New Zealand isn't the only country to restrict names. Sweden refused to allow a couple to name their daughter Metallica, after the rock group above, in April. (This one I don't understand. Can people not name their kid Marilyn Manson cuz he's a weirdo too?)

Singer Sonny Sandoval of P.O.D. named his daughter Nevaeh -- that's "heaven" spelled backward -- in 2001. Its popularity grew faster in the United States than any other name in the past century. (Well, if he's choosing the opposite of Heaven, do they call her Hell for short?)

One Michigan boy and one Texas boy have been named ESPN after the sports network based in Bristol, Conn. (Does it sound like Espen? That would be OK.)

In the United States, "You can't use a four letter word that I wouldn't use in this interview," a sociologist said, "and other than that you're free to do what you want." (Awww, shit.)

Anyway, if they want their kid to be 4Real but they aren't allowed to use a number in the beginning, why not just spell it For Real? For real.

What are your thoughts and what's the stupidest baby name you've ever heard?