“Fine," Connor tells him. "Think about stuff until your head explodes. But the only thing I want to think about is surviving to eighteen."
― Neal Shusterman, Unwind
Incentives have changed and children no longer provide the value they once did.
A reminder of how the value equation works: Value = Benefits - Costs.
A recent experience:
I waited at the airport gate to board a flight to Provo, Utah, when a young pregnant woman sat down next to me. The strangest feeling overcame me as she was sitting next to me-- discomfort. I already have a problem with sitting at the Provo gate. I feel like the people walking through the terminal, pass the gate, see that it's heading to Provo and have terrible thoughts about the group waiting to board. Now, there was a young pregnant woman in the mix-- an icon of gender inequality -- drawing all this extra attention and judgement. I was uncomfortable to be sitting next to her.
I still have much to discover on the topic of having children. I've been thinking about the topic seriously for 4 years as there have been many developments and discussions around the rights and responsibilities of parents during that time frame. But also, this time period has accounted for my shift into adulthood where the future of humanity, American society, my local community, my family, and myself are of much greater interest to me. As with all of my writings on philosophy, humanity, and society, there are many questions and few answers.
Birth rates are dropping worldwide, and atheism is on the rise. Humans act in their own self-interest and for 10,000 years it was in their best interest to have children and care for them. Children were young and strong and could help defend the tribe and take care of the sick and weak. Now, in the modern day, children are perceived as, and may very well be, a liability. They cause physical, financial, and emotional pain to parents. They do not provide value to their parents. Beyond that, they are considered a burden on the tribe as a whole. The cost to feed, medicate, and educate children is a massive financial and labor burden on our society. If the trend continues, that birthing and raising children produces less and less perceived value with each generation, then it is inevitable that technology will continue to replace the birthing and raising process. Until either A) children are created and raised by machines, or B) children are replaced entirely by machine babies. Why pour $300k into a child when I could put that into training an AI model that will dedicate its existence to serving me?
As the 18+ cohort of humans continues to deregulate the social and legal regulation around the rights and responsibilities of parents, it is inevitable that children, more and more, start to resemble that of a house pet. Something that some people will choose to have around for emotional stimulation that will eat, sleep, and poop and play fetch. Ignorant to the world outside, blind to the reality in front of them, and enjoying the rights and liberties granted to them as house pets.
Dogs are not responsible for their pups- their owners are. So as humanity gives up ownership over their young, I can't help but wonder if we are being cultivated from wolves to dogs. And I can't help but wonder, to what end?
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“The way I see it, it's got nothing to do with all of that. It has to do with love...A person don't got a soul until that person is loved. If a mother loves her baby--wants her baby--it's got a soul from the moment she knows it's there. The moment you're loved, that's when you got your soul.
--Diego”
― Neal Shusterman, Unwind
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I think that no matter what society decides in how we are going to operate this fundamental challenge to the ways humans reproduce, the above quote is a good place to start. If someone cares about another human, they should have the right to protect that human. In simple terms, we should have the right to love someone.
I have no moral, philosophical, or scientific basis for why I am pro human. If asked today, I would simply answer that it's what feels right. I hope to develop more feelings and understandings relating to this topic as I progress through life, find a romantic partner, and have children of my own.
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