To bring a child into the world currently

[Autumnwater87]

I feel in such a pickle at the moment. I thought i wanted kids for most of my life it’s what I imagined. However this last year I can’t stop thinking about what an absolute S#%t show it seems to be at the moment, potential of war more likely, climate change seems to be more obvious, rising costs the list goes on it’s bloody doom and gloom. The thought of bringing a child into this at times breaks my heart, then I see loads of people optimistically and excitedly trying to conceive and getting pregnant on here and in real life friends and family etc, then I think, this must all be in my head look at all these people having babies or trying for babies am I just being dramatic? I don’t like the thought of not having kids but am I being selfish or am I just overthinking and people believe everything will settle back down?

Sorry, 2/3-3/4.

Eyam?

Not Eyam, much earlier and further south. It's got a lovely cross over what is thought to be the plague pit, though.

Rosling always ignores the fact that this has zero impact on emissions and consumption of resources. Levelling off and not getting to the levels projected previously is one thing, but we are already WAY into overshoot where we'll be servicing literally billions more people on far fewer resources in a more unstable climate.

Forgive me for not leaping for joy because industrialising nations have fewer children.

Hilariously, a falling population is also a terrible thing, given the post-war generation retiring is sucking out investment and causing more care costs to accumulate on the shoulders of a smaller young workforce. Screwed with too many people and too few. It's a treat.

I feel like the world is getting worse my DD is 9. I worry what the cost of things will be for her , how long she's going to have to work for. The NHS will probably implode Will they push the retirement age to up to 80? Things seem less comfy than my parents my dad's retiring on a final salary pension at the age of 57. That won't happen for me and it certainly won't be happening for DD. I don't plan on having anymore children.

I can't see how people are optimistic this is probably the first generation people are worse off than their parents.

I don't believe you. You actually didn't want children - which is absolutely fine - and now are pretending that it was a tremendous act of self-sacrifice.

I wouldn't be bringing another human into the mess the world is in. I don't see it changing much. I don't even want to be part of it anymore wouldn't burden another innocent soul who didn't ask to be here with the mess.

Right... so everyone should stop having children, then the world becomes dangerously under populated, and it's a million times worse than it is now.
In all the time you spent discussing, did you research anything at all?
Thinking someone is selfish for having a child based on your catastrophic and skewed view of life is ridiculous.

Yep you are being dramatic.

We live in a first world country in the safest century there has ever been.

The world is indeed a shit show but no more so then during 2 world wars, the 30s recession, and century after century of war, plague and famine before that. I expect some people pregnant in the middle of the Black Death wondered if it was a good idea, but overall life improved afterwards.

Have kids if you want them, bring them up to be part of the solution, and do what you can to be the same.

Yes exactly.

A decline in population is what we need, not a crash off a cliff. Some people do need to have kids or we will be fucked, as any fule kno

I actually feel very sorry for people who have such a negative view of life that they consider it selfish to have kids. The fact that they have reached that conclusion says a lot about how they see the world and about their own experience of life. It's all rather sad.

I think those who pay attention all have this fear in certain degree, compare to people who can ignore what is happening. But I think if we all stop having children, it's game over anyway. Children are the future. I've seen so many cases of children, especially teenagers taking initiative on how to change the world recently. They are passionate to fight. And we can support.There are hope.

Maybe your opinion (and the masses of childfree posters on mumsnet) would be better off on the raging cesspit that is r/childfree - just a suggestion. Think you'd fit in better there. 😊

Everything in your OP is one of the many reasons I don't have children.

Why shouldn't childfree people be here?

Exactly this. We should be encouraging people who are environmentally aware to procreate and pass on good habits; buying local food, eating less animal produce, using air travel less or cutting it out completely. The more eco minded we become, the better our chances - unfortunately it's mostly the conscientious who decide not to have children and then we're left with people who don't give a shit 🤷‍♀️

Despite all the ‘doom and gloom’ the world is in the best state its ever been in. Human beings will continue to procreate because of the biological drive and desire to parent. We used to have way more children back when the world was extremely unstable and people died from their teeth in their 30s.

I’m currently pregnant and feel optimistic about my child’s future. We will support him if required. We will stop at one though, I think we owe that to the planet / our own species.

Such a dismal, depressing viewpoint. I love being alive and feel it an absolute honour to have been born into this amazing world, with all its imperfections.

Our generation will be fucked if we don’t have children - who will pay our state pensions? Who will provide care for us in old age etc. I don’t agree with big families personally from an environmental perspective but in general people need to replace themselves to keep the whole pyramid scheme show on the road!

How do you know that your children will definitely care for you in your old age? What if they're in jail? What if you've fallen out? What if they just don't want to?

I'm happy for my genes to go when I go.

I think anyone choosing to bring children into the world now is crazy and selfish. I do think though that probably the majority of people just don't even give it a seconds thought.

You may have been selfless but that doesn't make others selfish. I think it's a bit silly to give up on something so important to you, just so others can continue having kids IYSWIM. so others are still enjoying what they wanted, and you make such a big sacrifice.

We can just have 1 or 2 kids. I'm not giving up on one of my life's aspirations so that others can keep having them.

I have had my children and now have grandchildren. I agree that there have always been problems in the world but most of the issues were, and still are, political.

The one exception, as I see it, is climate change. I think the planet has passed the point of humans being so arrogant as to think about 'controlling' it and it can only get worse.

Perhaps I'm too pessimistic, I certainly hope so, but if I were young today, I wouldn't want to have children.

I'm not saying they shouldn't be here, but if you're going to insult parents on what is predominantly a parenting forum then perhaps you shouldn't be here.

So we can't go on the relationships forum? Style and beauty? Pets?

Or we can't have a debate about something we have also made a choice on on a public forum?

This is just pure delusion.