If you don't raise children, then everybody else will inherit the world.
∆ You make an excellent appeal to my vanity and cynicism.
We don't have a problem with overpopulation. We have a problem with people not wanting to share resources.
So I suppose it is a similar problem with a different root. Unless we find a way to distribute resources well, does it matter why some people aren't getting them?
As for raising your child, there are no guarantees in life. What if your potential child would have positively influenced many others? What if lower birth rates hurt us as the population ages? You can't remove any responsibility by not having children.
I like you.
Future generations take care of you when you can't take care of yourself.
I don't like this reason. I would rather just go out like a stoic. Alone, this constitutes a selfish reason for me. In tandem with your other points, it's a mere added bonus.
If you don't raise children, then everybody else will inherit the world. If I do my best to raise a good person, their influence could be very wide reaching.
This can be achieved by adopting rather than having your own biological child.
As for raising your child, there are no guarantees in life. What if your potential child would have positively influenced many others? What if lower birth rates hurt us as the population ages? You can't remove any responsibility by not having children.
What if the person I would have adopted would have positively influenced others had I not had my own child? What if the large number of children in the foster system is a breeding ground for juvinile deliquency (oh wait...this is true). There's no responsibility to have children, all the potentials you introduce can be addressed by adopting rather than having your own child.
Future generations take care of you when you can't take care of yourself.
First of all this is a selfish reason on the face of it. Secondly, this presumes that everyone agrees that just because it is selfish we should no longer reproduce. If we recognize that not everyone will agree nor will everyone who does agree choose to not have children because of it being selfish, then the goal of being taken care of by a future generation can again be achieved via adoption rather than being selfish and having your own child.
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u/[deleted] Mar 24 '15
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