Comments on: A Modest Proposal

By: Al_Pal

Al_Pal — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 04:14:00 +0000

“everytime someone goes in to buy an SUV, they are sterilized and forced to drive a hybrid instead?”
Heh. There’s a thought.
As the eldest of four kids, at age 31, I’m pretty glad to have grown up in a ‘big’ family–and really glad that we’re all fairly eco-conscious. (at minimum, we recycle and drive vehicles that are at least 20mpg. I compost and drive a 30/38 car.)

I’ve seen people claiming that having kids is a direct contradiction of eco-consciousness before, and it is so ridiculous!
If ‘green’ folks don’t have kids, how are there going to be any kids that know to be green?

Plus, there was that article in the last year or so about how, even after rebellion, kids tend to follow the political beliefs of their parents. So, clearly, we need conscious people to breed!

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 20:56:00 +0000

You know what i say? i say that this is a good idea and NO, i really don’t care if anyone disagrees with me because This is FACT. This is reality. Im serious. If people would just wake up from their own world and stop being so selfish, then maybe, just MAYBE, people would stop “predicting” that the world is going to end. I don’t care if i sound absurd. Im just saying, if you Wish to have children, then please, help our Earth, and just have one. At least one. Please. No, im not be hypocritical about this, im trying to say if people take it easy and have just one child, think about it- The world wouldn’t be so populated. Human beings have children everyday. It isn’t some kind of crime to have children. Just have one. Why don’t people try HEAR Earth’s warning instead of being selfish. Agree, Disagree.
I could really care less. I just wanted MY opinion heard.

By: Her Bad Mother

Her Bad Mother — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 17:04:00 +0000

KBAB – choosing to not have children doesn’t make anyone crazy. Preaching the child-free life as morally superior is, however – to my mind – ethically suspect and intellectually unsound. I don’t begrudge anyone the choice to not have children – so long as they don’t insist that I should be begrudged *my* choice.

We do best for the earth by leaving a light footprint. We can do that with children, or without.

By: KBAB

KBAB — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 16:45:00 +0000

I get the satire.

I'm just tired of getting lumped into a group of "crazies" because I choose not to have children. Everyone who chooses not to have children does so deliberately and for a variety of reasons. While I think my husband and I would have some pretty kickass offspring that could definitely make the world a better place, that doesn't override my reasons for being childfree.

That doesn't make me crazy or an extremist. Just making a choice.

Yeah, I get frustrated when I see people that have 3, 4, 8 kids trailing them. But I don't know their life. Selfish people exist. Some choose to reproduce and others don't. Not everyone who is childfree takes island-hopping jet vacations or drives a Hummer. I don't have a car, I recycle, I reduce my consumption by not buying anything new that I can find used... and I'm sure some people with kids do the same.

By: Shannon

Shannon — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 02:16:00 +0000

I like you, Bad! I was thinking Logan’s Run before I even got to your paragraph on it. (We named our son Logan after that movie!)

Great post, only a fool would not recognize your satirical ability.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 02:55:00 +0000

Oh my god, Brava! brava!

By: Veronica Mitchell

Veronica Mitchell — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 14:57:00 +0000

I have wanted to write a post on this for weeks, but knew from me it would devolve into an unfunny, spittle-flinging rant. Thank you, thank you for doing it better. Jonathan Swift is standing up in his grave and saluting you.

By: Jacque Dixon

Jacque Dixon — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 06:35:00 +0000

My first thought was same as Nancy’s:
“Each additional person consumes a huge amount of resources over their lifetime, especially if they live an energy-intensive lifestyle such as we enjoy here in Canada…” but his solution proposes reducing the PEOPLE and not the ENERGY-INTENSIVE LIFESTYLE. In other words, he arguably wants people to keep up their own selfish lifestyles while future generations (if there are to be any) must pay.”
That is what got me. Ignorant.
The next bit ‘o info I must agree with is what Mama Luxe said about large families being frugal, passing things down, instead of buying, buying buying, etc… yes, we are a large family, and we have to budget. We stay home most of the time. We do not have time for frivolous shopping, etc. We use organic cleaners, buy the organic food we can afford and grow our own in a large garden. We cloth diaper, breastfeed, home birth. We have goats we milk and actually are letting them mow the lawn – and weeds. We are by no means perfect, but we are not sucking the future out of the planet, either.
Having a large family is not what a lot of people think it is.
Oh – and VERY funny satire. Very funny.

By: the mad momma

the mad momma — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 05:30:00 +0000

ummm..okay – so we dont have any more children. all of us. the whole world. we just stop having kids cold turkey so that we can save the earth. and then we’ll all be dead and the earth will be safe for who?

By: Granny

Granny — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 03:45:00 +0000

Gamey and tough to chew checking in to say hi.

Good post and yes, I totally get the satire.