I have a question thought -- not to you, in general.
If their kids are "the best that happened to them" (as most say), why do we have so many cases of neglected or abused children, tons of estranged parents and children ("haven't spoke to my folks for years"), crazy fights, depression, etc. I guess it's human nature, but also it seems like "the best thing that happened to me" is mainly about the kid being a baby and such (the novelty factor?), and not so much afterwards.
Although I'm me, I'm also in general, so I'll take a stab.
You take notice of the examples toward either end of the spectrum, people like me who say it's the best ever (and he's 15, not a baby), and slobs who beat and neglect their kids. The majority are in the middle, silent, and they love their kids, even if they never say so.
People suck. At least, they can. For the abusers, they probably can't understand that their kids could be the best thing that ever happened to them. And even for the people who aren't outright assholes, it's stressful to be married or cohabitating, especially with kids. Some people don't hold up well. We're not all the same.
I see no reason not to have kids, not by policy anyway. Some people don't want them or aren't suited to it. To borrow the bumper sticker: "Don't like kids? Don't have one." But having kids is undeniably a natural state. Life is hard, and the universe is cold, so why not claim this little bit of birthright?
And yes, I think over-population is not going to be a problem. As education rises, birthrates fall. If anything, population loss will be the longer term problem, as Japan is just beginning to see the first waves. Their problem is not just longevity, it's that fewer young people are marrying and having fewer children. In the end we'll learn to deal with that too, but it will be quite a disruption after centuries of societies that implicitly assume growth and families.
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>My boy is the best thing that ever happened to me.
So your life was meaningless without having a child? And, following the same logic, your son's life is nothing too, unless he gets a child too?
Or do you mean "it's the best thing that happened to you", but other things were quite nice too?
Yes, other things were quite nice too. It wasn't the only good thing, just the best.
Fair enough.
I have a question thought -- not to you, in general.
If their kids are "the best that happened to them" (as most say), why do we have so many cases of neglected or abused children, tons of estranged parents and children ("haven't spoke to my folks for years"), crazy fights, depression, etc. I guess it's human nature, but also it seems like "the best thing that happened to me" is mainly about the kid being a baby and such (the novelty factor?), and not so much afterwards.
Although I'm me, I'm also in general, so I'll take a stab.
You take notice of the examples toward either end of the spectrum, people like me who say it's the best ever (and he's 15, not a baby), and slobs who beat and neglect their kids. The majority are in the middle, silent, and they love their kids, even if they never say so.
People suck. At least, they can. For the abusers, they probably can't understand that their kids could be the best thing that ever happened to them. And even for the people who aren't outright assholes, it's stressful to be married or cohabitating, especially with kids. Some people don't hold up well. We're not all the same.
I see no reason not to have kids, not by policy anyway. Some people don't want them or aren't suited to it. To borrow the bumper sticker: "Don't like kids? Don't have one." But having kids is undeniably a natural state. Life is hard, and the universe is cold, so why not claim this little bit of birthright?
And yes, I think over-population is not going to be a problem. As education rises, birthrates fall. If anything, population loss will be the longer term problem, as Japan is just beginning to see the first waves. Their problem is not just longevity, it's that fewer young people are marrying and having fewer children. In the end we'll learn to deal with that too, but it will be quite a disruption after centuries of societies that implicitly assume growth and families.