The Word "Stillborn".

So, lately I have found myself spending hours pouring over the internet, searching for others like us. Others with a child born sleeping. I have gotten so intent upon it that my most recent searches use simply the word, "stillborn". My search of course has garnered many responses. Surprisingly, however, most of the hits have been entirely unrelated to lost children. There are countless articles discussing "stillborn plays" in football games, "stillborn bills" in congress, "stillborn homes" on empty sites, and "stillborn vacation plans". So, apparently, "stillborn" to many simply means thwarted before even beginning. I understand that, and the definition is very similar to that in what I have always considered to be reputable sources. But, my question is more one of heritage than definition. "Stillborn" is considered the opposite of "liveborn", a child "born alive". (Merriam-Webster) "Stillborn" I am then assuming was originally interchangeable with "born still". I can hardly believe there ever was a word, "stillborn", in the dictionary meaning "failing before or at the very beginning or inception" that was so literally intertwined with, but not related to, the idea of a child "failing before or at the very beginning or inception" of life. (American Heritage Dictionary) So, I am forced to believe that the origin of all meanings of the word, "stillborn" were at some point of or related to a child lost before birth, or "born still". Another thing I understand, as a writer of sorts, is that occasionally a writer stumbles upon a word with a literal meaning so perfect that she can hardly keep herself from using it. And surely there are few words better for the purpose of describing something falling just so very short of fruition as "stillborn". But, this brings me to my questions. Is it possible that the word "stillborn" has fallen into the category of a useable piece of the American vernacular? Do authors and reporters feel that "stillborn" is an appropriate word to use to describe anything "abortive or unsuccessful". (Wordnet) Do I need to start a personal crusade, replying to blogs and online articles everywhere? Am I to take on the heartless and bitter, single 30 and 40 something men who write these articles looking at highrise apartments through the windows of their highrise apartments, and relish over finding the "perfect word" to describe their trivial frustrations? Am I to burst their liberal or conservative bubbles, reminding of what they cannot possibly understand, that a "stillbirth" is not in any way synonymous with political issues or zoning problems, nor should the very heavy term ever be part of sports terminology? Do I need to quit my dayjob? Or do I need to really accept that, in some cases, the word is just a word? That the author of the article really has touched me with his frustration, and made me feel the deep, mind-blowing grief he must feel when he takes on the issue of yuppies' journeys to work rendered "stillborn" by flooded metro lines?

Oh, and if you really want to see someone who has misused the word "stillborn", check this out.

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=9020892