To breed, or not to breed
Jul. 9th, 2009 10:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kribbanWhen people are asked if they want to have children, they usually answer whether they like children or not, and whether they would like to raise children or not.
That's fair enough. But there's also another question there, which is;
Do you want to create another human being or not?
And that's a bit tougher. See, I'm not sure how I stand on the first question. I'm 30 years old, yet I have not yet any longing to have children. I don't dislike them, I just don't want to take on the responsibility of being a parent.
This might change later in life, but as it stands, I'm leaning towards no. I don't want to "have" children.
The tricky part comes when you think of the second question.
I'm extremely grateful towards my parents for creating me. I believe life is a gift and a miracle that should be treasured. I feel in debt to my parents for giving me life; and my grandparents for creating my parents and so forth.
I'm alive today because a long row of people decided to procreate. My grandmother had ten kids; a bit too much even for the standards of the times. Yet, I'm incredibly glad she did, because my mom was number nine.
Generations upon generations of humans have given life; and it all trickles down to me.
Is it really my right to cut off the blood line and refuse to create life? To refuse to do for someone else what was done for me?
If I don't have kids; there are x number of potential human beings that never come into existance. (The offspring, the offspring's offspring etc.) Is it really my place to cause their "unbirths"?
Is it selfish to choose not to create a person?
There is also the universal aspect of it. Humanity needs to survive, and in order to do that people need to have kids. If I don't have children, I'm leaving the full responsibility of the future of mankind with those that do. I'm basically shirking my responsibility as a member of the human race.
Sure you can argue that an individual has the right not to have kids; but if everyone chose that, we wouldn't have a future. Our socities would fall apart, our economies would collapse and mankind itself would die out. No hope of a great utopian future, etc. The only reason I'm getting away with it is because other people (like my brother) still has kids.
These are tough questions. I must say in some ways it would be a relief to be infertile; that way the choice would be out of my hands. ^^
That's fair enough. But there's also another question there, which is;
Do you want to create another human being or not?
And that's a bit tougher. See, I'm not sure how I stand on the first question. I'm 30 years old, yet I have not yet any longing to have children. I don't dislike them, I just don't want to take on the responsibility of being a parent.
This might change later in life, but as it stands, I'm leaning towards no. I don't want to "have" children.
The tricky part comes when you think of the second question.
I'm extremely grateful towards my parents for creating me. I believe life is a gift and a miracle that should be treasured. I feel in debt to my parents for giving me life; and my grandparents for creating my parents and so forth.
I'm alive today because a long row of people decided to procreate. My grandmother had ten kids; a bit too much even for the standards of the times. Yet, I'm incredibly glad she did, because my mom was number nine.
Generations upon generations of humans have given life; and it all trickles down to me.
Is it really my right to cut off the blood line and refuse to create life? To refuse to do for someone else what was done for me?
If I don't have kids; there are x number of potential human beings that never come into existance. (The offspring, the offspring's offspring etc.) Is it really my place to cause their "unbirths"?
Is it selfish to choose not to create a person?
There is also the universal aspect of it. Humanity needs to survive, and in order to do that people need to have kids. If I don't have children, I'm leaving the full responsibility of the future of mankind with those that do. I'm basically shirking my responsibility as a member of the human race.
Sure you can argue that an individual has the right not to have kids; but if everyone chose that, we wouldn't have a future. Our socities would fall apart, our economies would collapse and mankind itself would die out. No hope of a great utopian future, etc. The only reason I'm getting away with it is because other people (like my brother) still has kids.
These are tough questions. I must say in some ways it would be a relief to be infertile; that way the choice would be out of my hands. ^^
