Obligation or Irresponsibility?

Having kids, that is. Should we? Should we not? My personal answer is obvious... :)

As I continue to research homeschooling and household-management how-to's, I run across many large or growing families, and am struck by their genuine passion to serve God in part by raising their children up in His Admonition. In light of this, I find the general attitude of many Americans and Europeans very odd. There are those who find it 'irresponsible' to have a larger than 1.6-child family. Whether because they believe these children will use up resources, or be a financial strain on their parents, contribute to global overpopulation, global warming, or any other host of concerns, I don't know. All of the above, probably. Interestingly, Europe and America (discounting immigrants) and much of the world have dwindling and aging populations. Who will work and spend to support the economy, if we do not increase our children? Who will pay taxes for the elderly's Medicare if we have less children? Forget the economy... who will be the doctors, nurses, or cooks at the nursing homes where these pessimists will spend their later years???

For myself, I don't feel badly about having 3 daughters. I don't even watch the news, but it doesn't take much to figure out that there are a lot of deplorable people out there. A lot of idiots, a lot of ill-raised children and adults. Instead of shaking my head and bemoaning those who "would bring another person into this sad world," I think perhaps those who can raise up decent people should do so! We're going to need a lot of decent people to counter-balance the crummy ones out there. I'm trying to do my part... And no, I'm not anti-birth-control. Every time I venture out, I see many, many people who should be practicing it exclusively. In fact, were I God, many people would be sterile.

As to overpopulation, I got out my 10-digit calculator years ago and figured out the silliness of that myth. I don't know how to prove or disprove it with my calculator, but I've also read that "if current trends continue" the world population will peak in the middle of this century (or before) and start 'demographic freefall'.

And I've settled my answer to Gi-gi's frequent "do you have any idea what it costs to feed, clothe, and educate kids these days???" comment: "Well, Gram, is there anything more worthwhile to spend money on..?"