Comments on: Would You Live a Happier and More Financially Rewarding Life If You Never Have Kids?

By: Alex

Alex — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 07:16:18 +0000

Isn’t it selfish to have your own child when there are so many children in this world who need a better home? Should we not adopt?

By: Kyle

Kyle — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 22:58:07 +0000

Interesting post. My take is that if you plan accordingly to have kids you don’t necessarily have to give up the expensive hobbies, computer, big screen TV, etc… You may have to dial them back a bit, but it is not a question of giving up one for the other. It is all about balance.

By: Aaron Stroud

Aaron Stroud — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 18:42:01 +0000

Raymond, you’re right that good parenting requires that we willingly make substantial sacrifices. But I would argue that parenting doesn’t have to be extremely expensive. Lot’s of costs are unavoidable: clothing, food, bigger house, medical expenses. But the rest is optional.

If parents do a good job of preparing their kids to be adults, working their way through college will not seem an insurmountable burden.

By: Joseph

Joseph — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 04:15:34 +0000

I humbly suggest this post be rephrased as follows:

Would You Live a Happier and More Financially Rewarding Life If You Never Have a Girlfriend/Wife?

Would You Live a Happier and More Financially Rewarding Life If You Rob a Bank (and not get caught)?

All the commentary should be more or less the same as what the original post has.

By: Raymond

Raymond — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 04:11:37 +0000

Richard, yes you are right, truthfully, I am biased. I mean this with all respect, but I do feel raising a child is such an integral part of the human experience that I find it odd when I encounter those who have made or want to make the opposite choice. I always find myself asking them, why? It’s one of those questions we can ponder endlessly.

By: Richard

Richard — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 04:05:36 +0000

You seem to pose the question as a choice between selfless child rearing and selfish materialism. I think that’s a rather shallow treatment of the subject, and, perhaps, betrays your bias.

I’ve chosen to not have children so that it will be easier for your kids to find parking spots for their SUVs when they grow up. How selfless of me.

By: Mrs. Micah

Mrs. Micah — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 03:28:40 +0000

I love interacting with really young ones and watching them grow and learn. That’s a really wonderful experience.

At the same time, I sometimes wonder how we’ll afford kids (well, we’ll just not have them now, condoms are cheaper!) and how I’ll handle certain aspects of parenting–like if my kids end up with the same major depression I have, or if I’ll pass the genes on to them, or how I’ll handle being a majorly depressed parent.

My mom didn’t have kids until she was 40. She says she enjoyed all those years of “freedom” but also doesn’t (now) regret her decision for a minute. I just plan to wait until it’s financially possible for me to stay home with them (i.e. Micah’s got a full-time job, not a student teaching position with a stipend).

This lil’ guy is one of the biggest reasons I want to have babies. He took his first steps at our place: (Photo)
(these are a few weeks later).