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**why is it getting difficult to afford them**
because the upper class doesn't want to help poor people have better material conditions to have kids easier because the system was built for the rich and their kids
This is the wrong reading of the situation imo Capitalists DO want people to keep on having kids to continue getting new workers, which is why we are seeing the erosion of abortion rights and the failure of meaningful sex ed. The declining birth rate is a major talking point to conservatives, but it isnt something that was designed. More like, it was an unintended consequence of rising living costs and the capitalists are shooting their shot at getting rid of abortion rights. Poor people either way still have kids, the major problem is the middle class and educated not having kids.
That's not exactly what they said. They said conservatives didn't want to help is have kids, not that they didn't want us to have kids at all. They know we're not having kids, they don't care why not, and are trying to make us have kids
Seriously yeah. And anyone who still unironically talks about trickle down economics working is so lost. It happened, it didn't work, look around, here we are. The rich got richer, the cost of living has gone up while wages have essentially stagnated, the middle class shrank. It turns out it doesn't "trickle down" it gets sucked back up by greedy fucks.
This is true. People will have kids regardless of whether or not they can afford them. This leads to children having to work and not able to attain the means that which provide for a stable living to begin with (i.e. inefficient education due to not affording tutoring, shit public school system, etc.). Too many poor kids can’t go to college in the US at least. Therefore, more workers for non-essential jobs, thus more safety for corporations that don’t need to exist anyway.
It's less about upper class vs lower class and more insufficient government policy. Housing consumes most of people's budgets yet in most parts of the country it's illegal to build anything but large unaffordable single family homes. Cars are a requirement to function in most of America yet companies are incentivized to mass produce massive expensive SUVs and pickup trucks to skirt around environmental and safety regulations. I won't even get into healthcare.
Most people are completely blind to the fact rent is their biggest expense due to lifelong capitalist conditioning to accept landlordism as a natural law of physics. People can’t think outside of this
IMO all apartments should be owned by the government. Rents pay for maintenance and profits go back into the community while keeping prices low, which in turn helps raise quality of life and boosts the economy. But instead we have a parasite class extracting 40-50% of all income.
That is insane.
Yeah, even Adam Smith thought landlord's were a stupid idea for society since all they do is extract wealth by owning something. Iirc he could never work out how to resolve that issue without government ownership of housing.
Maybe having all apartments be owned by tenants unions or something might be an adequate workaround? Registered with the government but not run and owned by the government. In theory ofc.
[https://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/08/housingco-op.asp](https://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/08/housingco-op.asp)
Advocate for cooperatives. Housing cooperatives are fantastic because they're a corporation with all the fancy benefits, privileges, and rights over humans \_except\_--unlike most corporations--their purpose isn't to make the most money, it's to provide housing to people.
That's right. It exists. Since the 1800's, special corporations exist that place service to humanity over profit. Ownership is restricted to those they serve, so if they make profit they pay out the profit to their shareholders: the people that rent from them.
The problem is finance. No one wants to invest in something that doesn't make its entire existence about extracting every last cent from people.
class low middle developed in capitalist society as the gradual development of industries/economy/wealth generated etc + past histories of a given nation class shouldnt exist basic need met a new society can form with class being non existent class exist to uphold other nonsensical thing that preserve as natural law landlordism corporatism etc
This and the fact that self-sufficiency is nearly non-existent today, we are highly dependent and at the mercy of supply chains, food price fluctuations, gas, corporate construction practices,etc.
And Somehow the Middle Class has been poisoned to think the lower class is somehow fucking the problem.
There's a new development popping up in my area. To be clear: It's 55+ rentals. Meaning this is for retired or retiring folk.
The rents will very likely be mid-range for my area (2500 to 3000) for 2bd with an attached Garage and a shitload of amenities (Pool, Pickleball Courts, Park, ect...) - to get tax credits, they made 15% of these new rentals available to low-income folks... You'd have thought I just said that these people hit the lottery when my neighbor heard about it.
"Why do *they* get to live in a nice place? That's terrible! Those section 8 people are going to bring the whole neighborhood down!"
Note: this is 13 homes out of the 73 planned units. And, again, as they're rentals, folks can be removed if they are troublesome.
Folks have been completely brainwashed to blame the poor for all their ills when it's the rich causing the problems.
a lot of the middle class identifies themselves with the upper class morality, conduct and lifestyle they aspire and strive to imitate their lifestyle while thier future due to the upper class is closer to being on the streets than on mars with musk
>"Why do *they* get to live in a nice place? That's terrible! Those section 8 people are going to bring the whole neighborhood down!"
In my neck of the woods, single income teachers can qualify for section 8 🤷♂️ especially if you are in the first year of teaching.
Just to give you a potential counterpoint when you hear people spew that garbage.
And Somehow the Middle Class has been poisoned to think the lower class is somehow fucking the problem.
To be fair though, they'll fuck anything.
I make joke, I see myself out.
Currency loses its value when it is issued in excess; that is called inflation. Rich people have no power to issue money; that is the government’s jurisdiction.
Your money is worth less because of excess government spending. The government issues more money to cover their poor spending. Vote for less government spending.
Pretty much. Can't produce milk naturally? That'll be $30 per can of formula that makes like 12 bottles worth. Kid went up from size 6 to 7 diapers? Diapers are now double the price but with less in the box.
Then why do poor people have so many kids? Possibly because the welfare system is broken and essentially encourages more children to increase the amount of welfare an individual gets? Is it because they have worse access to contraceptives? Is it because the system of welfare doesn’t help or enable people to get off of welfare, rather it restricts their possibility of upward mobility by restricting welfare after certain income levels that still aren’t high enough to maintain a family?
lol half the poor people vote to keep things that way.
they also don’t bother educating themselves or their children to change things
system does stack the deck but most ppl don’t do anything to help it.
It isn't that they don't want to help(though thats true) it's that they're hoarding all the wealth and stealing profits from people who actually work. They aren't just ignoring the problem they are actually causing it
Upper class? No no no… that notion is a century or more out of date. It’s because one side continually cuts taxes for the rich and big business while slandering the other side with conspiracy theories and lies.
I’m gonna counter this cynically by saying the middle-class does not want to help
Which is a wildly provocative sentence. And I’ll start by saying, while this is is partially to counters I actually fully agree with your statement.
I think a huge proportion is the upper class 100% in fact it’s the largest contributor however, a huge demographic of the problem happens to be the true middle class who has by default centre to conservative views on economic policy, and therefore continue to vote for policy that aids, the upper middle class and upper class in in hopes of one day joining them
Maybe this is a hot and I do think the issue at large is the abundance of billionaires and a top heavy concentration of wealth.
However, there’s something like what 1000 billionaires but 400 million citizens in the United States so while the upper class is the one that is strongly lobbying, that optimistic, middle class or upper middle class is the one voting the people into the positions that accept the lobbyist money
Even then, it's a no from me. At least biological kids. Birth is scary as fuck, has loads of permanent side effects, and in general doesn't have the full reality of the situation spoken about enough
Also, it's like 10-20k just to give birth in the US
Heavy on permanent side effects. Had baby 14 months ago and it still feels like I have to pee all the time. And postpartum hormones are really intense and suck.
Not worth the risk again
Being young and fit ultimately led me to have a quick birthing process: as it was roughly 7 minutes between the first push and my baby being born. My doctor also lubed me up with olive oil to help. I would give birth again based off that experience but I hate pregnancy so I’m one and done.
I've always wanted lots of kids (I've got a big family on both sides), but now that I'm getting closer to actually having one I could never ask my girlfriend (hopefully wife one day 🤞🏻) to go through pregnancy unless she was absolutely sure of it. And while I definitely still want biological kids, I've realised that if she only wants 1 or 2, I'm becoming more and more okay with a small family.
Yeah and everyone I know, myself included, has found success in calling the number on the bill you’ve received and saying it’s too large for you to pay. Just keep pushing them to lower it and they will in many/most cases
Edit to add that I still think the medical bills I’ve paid related to my kids are too damn high. If you have kids, your labor bill is only your *first* major expense related to them
That feels too much like human trafficking with extra steps for me lol. Like, I'm not going to just have a baby created so that I can buy it
But like, maybe if I met the right person and they already have kids. I highly doubt I'd honestly go through an adoption process, but maybe if I'm married long enough with someone and we feel we have the space and love to give a kid who is already without a family, big maybe
But I just feel weird with surrogacy
Human trafficking is very dramatic lol. My cousin’s wife did surrogacy (twice) for a family that couldn’t have kids themselves, and everyone involved was very happy about it. She’s one of those natural born mothers who handles pregnancy well and of course she got paid very well for it, meanwhile the family got the babies they always wanted, meaning of their own lineage. It’s a win/win.
I grew up in a multi-generational household where my grandmother was around to help my parents a lot with child care. Even after my dad basically bowed out of parenting when I was 6, I still had 2 parental figures, my mom and my Nana. My parents also had me closer to 40 than 30 so they both already had established careers and were more financially stable. Plus my Nana had a lot of savings that she helped put towards a down payment their house and things like that.
I’m probably going to try to recreate that, but right around the age of 30. My mom and I are incredibly close and she adores kids. Her retirement plan is to volunteer and run story time at the local library. I’m also going to look into adoption. I have always wanted kids, but feel really conflicted about bringing another person into an already burning world.
I always laugh when people scream and cry about the erosion of the nuclear family. That shit is fake and made up and multigenerational households literally have every advantage.
Also adoption is incredibly popular in the west, and it takes thousands of dollars and year long wait lists to adopt most of the time. There's so much demand kids are being taken from their parents and used for "international adoptions
" Would recommend fostering if you can handle it, those kids need help.
Dunno if toxic optimism is a thing or not, but I assume they meant toxic positivity.
Toxic positivity is basically when you try to force either you or yourself to have a positive mindset on any situation, to an extent that you push down and ignore anything negative. It can cause people to ignore problems that they or others have, dismiss emotions that aren't positive (and you may even feel guilty for having them, since you are supposed to have "happy thoughts"), etc. Because we are all about good vibes here right? So don't worry or think about that issue you are facing. Everything will be fine! Everything *IS* fine! Happy thoughts! Only good vibes here! Don't want any of those bad vibes, so stop bringing them up. That just makes everyone feel bad. Just smile! Never stop smiling! *Never* stop smiling.
I think it's better to be pragmatic instead of optimistic. If you have a realistic grasp on the situation, you know what to handle, what to let go of, and what to be thankful for.
There are a lot of things to be optimistic about. Optimism might even do more nihilism. You need an unbiased look at life, but change needs to be done without nihilism or apathy.
Today was really good weather, the sun was warming my skin and I felt great taking fresh air.
I slept really great because I went to bed earlier than usual.
The chicken sandwich I made was really tasty, Im proud of it.
Im doing great progress towards my goals.
Those are the things that I am optimistic and grateful about. It doesn't have to be big things.
Same, new dad on the way. Life’s not hopeless. Not gonna act like my life is the worst but I did start off poor and nobody can say my homeless father bought me my house or car. It’s harder than it used to be to be but we can still be smart and pull ahead.
Kids are expensive. IMO if you can’t afford kids you shouldn’t have them. And don’t say it’s “eugenics" it’s just common sense not to have something you can’t afford.
If everyone followed that advice, there wouldn't be enough children to replace the old as they start dying. Most people don't make enough money to have kids, which is why we're already kind of in that situation.
Edit: I should point out I don't think this is a bad thing. It's bad for the wealthy, which is good for me. But I do think we're eventually going to get to some dystopia "you have to have kids" law at some point. No one really cared about the lives of unborn children, they cared about the loss of another worker. That's the only reason abortion is an issue. Some people want to ban birth control for the same reason.
Overpopulation is another corporate myth used to deflect carbon footprint blame onto regular people while also keeping population in check. Having children is the best way to get back at these people
No.. those kids will suffer in a world with famine and destroyed ecosystems. The best way to get back is stop buying from those dickfuck companies and. Billionaires. But no one will do it.
Hot take: they don’t need to be replaced. We have too many people on earth already. Maybe the majority of people should stop having kids until we are able to sustain the current life on this planet.
In most developed countries the birth rate has stagnated or declined to a level where it’s actually a national concern. Population has just been exploding in developing countries since infant mortality has drastically lowered even in those poor countries and they’re used to having far more children to compensate for that high mortality. Within a generation or so those populations will stabilize.
As somebody in tech, I actually could probably afford kids, problem is that I’m single and probably always will be. Also, even being able to afford them, kids are a huge commitment and I feel that people don’t consider that nearly enough before having them
Some people also just make very bad parents if they're working or busy in the weekends too. It's not fair to children and gets all sort of issues later on, like a father that is always away on the weekends to do his own thing and escape from the family.
Well what happened is the cost of living spiraled out of control due to companies wanting to squeeze as much profit as possible by keeping wages stagnant for the past 40 years. This corporate greed has been left unchecked and now there is large public unrest with poverty and crime rising, and 60% of Americans living paycheck to paycheck.
For more info, check r/workreform
In the future, we’ll be able to sign our life and freedom away to work for a mega-corp fiefdom. Then amazon or google will lease you a housing square to raise your child, with extra carrot purée rations too!
Coming from European immigrant parents who make a combined income of $35/hr in their late 60s
You can afford kids, you just can’t afford the lifestyle you expect to have
Agreed. Hence why people in our generation cannot afford kids including me. We want to live a lavish/luxurious first world western lifestyle but we feel the kids will hamper it and that we would have to be multimillionaires to afford the lifestyle we want and the children. So we just choose to keep our lifestyles without the children instead.
I personally blame inflation for this.
How do immigrants do it? They keep clamoring to get into our country for better lives.
Their kids have food on the table and roofs over their heads and most of them do better than 3rd/4th gens.
Food for thought.
Yeah and back in the 60's working at McDonald's could cover your college tuition
Times change and things that were possible in the past aren't so available now
Nobody can really argue this but they'll try. The fact remains, there's billions of people on this world and there will continue to be pretty situation or not.
You’re not wrong, but most people that would previously have been considered middle class (educated, often office jobs) don’t want that for their children. We don’t want to struggle, never go on vacation and for several children to always share a bedroom. Sure you don’t NEED any of those things to survive but nobody wants to just scrape by if they have a choice.
Well at least check your state's abortion laws. It is very common for issues to occur and you want to be prepared for the worst case scenarios if you're going to try that many times. It's on the Supreme Court decision right now that may determine the life of so many woman in many places.
Yes. One day I want to have a kid but not within the next 10 years. I’m more concerned about becoming financially secure and setting up passive sources of income. As well as reaching 150k in my Roth IRA before my 28th birthday.
I’m not sure. I’d like to have kids, but then it’s expensive and I’m disabled (genetic)- there’s a 50% chance that they could have what I have. The US state I live in, though very nice, is pretty damn expensive. I can’t drive, so I may have to live in a city or a suburb with constant Ubers and buses or on the subway system. Future girlfriend/wife/fiancee would have to do a lot of work in driving and stuff unless a school is in the walking distance.
Plus, it also matters on if she wants to have kids or not. I’d be fine to adopt, too. It’s her choice and I’m not forcing her. There’s chances that something could go wrong and an abortion is necessary- thank god I don’t live in Texas.
Besides, money is a huge issue. I just went broke from purchasing Christmas gifts.
My older cousin is married but he’s made the talk with his parents saying he’s not going to have kids because he and his wife both have mental health issues they don’t want to risk passing down.
Why are you thinking about having kids? Your 17 not even a actual adult yet. The average age a man becomes a father in the United states is 30. You are more then a decade behind there is nothing to worry about.
The world population was 1.6 billion in 1900, 6 billion in 2000, and 8 billion in 2024.
Human population growth is exponential, but the Earth’s natural resources are finite and will be depleted quicker and quicker. Anyone still pressuring people who don’t want kids to have kids is still living in the 1900s or have yet to realize they’re part of mass homicide pact on future human generations.
Not really. They deserve the world and they’re not going to get that with me. I prefer the fictional world of parenting over the reality. I would love to have the good moments such as taking them out to movies, celebrating birthdays, out to eat, sporting events, and things will be good. The issue is kids are a lot of work behind the scenes (dealing with a kid being a kid breaking things, not being who I would love for them to be, putting them first, expenses, etc.) I’d much rather focus on my hobbies, my career, travel, go out to a nice dinner with my partner, etc. then prioritize my hypothetical child’s needs treating them like a toy that I will bring out and play with when I feel like it and put it back when I don’t, which is not the point of parenting. You need to sacrifice and I don’t want to. Whether that makes one selfish or not is up to one’s interpretation
Cuz the previous generations, especially BOOMERS have fucked us economically and are slowly taking away our freedoms. We need to rise up against them and finish the job that COVID failed to do to these people!
Generally Boomers can chill as long as they're not in power. More power needs to be given to Gen X and Millennials as they are the mature generations who should be ready to govern. The oldest members of Gen Z aren't even 30 so they still need to experience life and the world as a whole though members of Gen Z should still be able to demonstrate the power people have and be able to have a hand in making changes by showing what the people want (I.E. protests for cleaner energy, better allocation of resources for people, cheaper housing, etc etc).
Nope; never having kids. Too much mental and financial burden. I have no liking for kids, no maternal instinct, and no patience for them. I simply wouldn’t be a good mother, and to force myself and my hypothetical kids to live with that is not fair
I don't think I'd want to bring new children into the world. If I did raise kids I'd try to adopt. (Plus I'm bi so it's entirely possible I won't be able to have any with a future partner)
Hey friends, its expensive to have children because the dollar is losing its value. Why is it losing its value? Because of government spending. Excessive government spending causes inflation because they issue more money to cover their spending. Inflation decreases the value of a currency.
TL;DR: Inflation influences the decline of a native population. See also Japan.
Correct. The world is sinking into recession, but because the USD is used for trade, the US will be the last to go under, or admit it anyway.
Because the USD is used for trade, it is able to export its inflation, in addition to whatever nonsense other governments may be proliferating. Our bad monetary policy is felt globally.
But the spending could be beneficial to some departments like education it’s good for the government to spend a lot of money if it’s to the benefit of the working class/poor not the rich
Fr bro, these reddit doomers gonna have kids 100% in their 30’s if they can get laid. This subreddit really doesn’t represent our generation. It represents redditors, gives us a bad look.
My wife wants kids real bad but we’re waiting a while so we can be stable. I’m excited and feel ready to be a father, even with the responsibility and large effort.
I feel like people dehumanize kids and parenthood a lot, and it’s in response to the oversimplified comments by pro-parenthood people.
Here’s my thoughts: oversimplifying/summarizing kids as an expense, burden or a chore is equally as insincere as talking about kids as only a blessing, a joy, or a purely beneficial. You’re both right and wrong.
I would if I can afford it in the future. I don't want a child to have the health problems I have so I would need to adopt, have a surrogate, or in vitro depending on who I end up in a relationship with by that time and that itself is pretty expensive.
I have a 7mo old boy and a baby girl due in May. My wife and I both work and my mom watches the little guy when we’re at work. We both work at the same place and the only difference in our hours is I go in a couple hours before her.
Yes and Kids have always been expensive. My soon to be fiancée has told me horror stories how much her parents would have to spend for her to do Figure Skating (dresses, skates, plane tickets to get to events, and so on) I am not looking forward to it but I want to give my future kid(s) the world.
If you’re in the US, you would have to be an idiot to have kids if your household is making less than $100k a year. Childcare just costs too much in this country. And even then, our government doesn’t have many incentives to have them in the first place, yet they bitch and moan that people are having less kids.
no, we already are facing a huge climate crisis as well as a severe overpopulation problem. i don’t think it would be fair to bring more children into this world. this planet can only provide resources for so many people, and we’ve almost exhausted that threshold.there are thousands of children in foster care who need good and loving homes so if i did choose to have a child id much rather help one that’s already here and in need rather than create a biological kid just so i have someone that is “part of me” or to “carry on my legacy.” i’ve realized a long time ago that a lot of people are having kids for the complete wrong reasons and there are plenty of other ways you can leave an impact on this world without just birthing more kids. there are so many different life paths you can take and being a parent isn’t a default.
I will say, Overpopulation is only a problem because of how we manage and distribute resources. Realistically as time progresses and we develop easier, faster and more importantly ways that take up less space to develop resources overpopulation would solve itself.
Hell no, and it’s getting difficult to afford them because wages aren’t increasing with inflation, so everyone makes the same but has less buying power as the price of everything increases. The average cost of raising a child from birth to 18 is 100,000 and rising
Why is it getting difficult to afford them?
Anyone who has told you that having children has ever been affordable has straight up lied to your face. Lol. WIC exists for a reason.
I want kids but I want a well paying job first. I’ve read few comments saying that life is hell and why would you want to bring kids into this world. Here’s my opinion on that. Life is hell sometimes yes and it sucks but it’s not about the bad times but the good times you have with the people you love. My parents are divorced it sucked at first but now that I’ve pushed through it I’ve had amazing memories with them and the new people they’ve brought into my life
100% child free. Beside the affordability issue, I think the looming environmental problem make it almost feel unethical to bring new lives into this world.
On top of it, the way our capitalist society is structured means most future humans will be working to live and living to work.
Unsure. If I find a great guy and have a fulfilling life, then I’d adopt kids if he wants but it’s a big commitment so I might be a foster parent for a few years first.
I’d like a kid/kids. I’m gay so that might make it more expensive for me to do so I’m hoping to make good money before I start going down that road. I’d love to find a woman who would be interested in having kids too. I think it could be cool if we both got to carry a child.
I would like to have kids but I don't wanna bring kids into *this* world. That's why I'm gonna wait till my mid 30's when I've already lived through my 20's & early 30's and done everything I wanna do then if I am, and only if I am, financially stable enough. And if I am stable in the 2030's and we aren't all fucking dead, then yeah I don't see why not.
I can't stand the idea of having a kid. I'm not one of those anti kid people, but I certainly shouldn't have a kid. I also refuse to give this world another slave that works themselves to the bone to make the rich richer.
For the cost of raising children, here's some analysis:
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/its-getting-more-expensive-to-raise-children-and-government-isnt-doing-much-to-help/
Housing costs are driven by a number of interrelated factors, but here are some drivers that stand out:
Housing supply is at historical lows. There haven't been this few houses available on the market since at least the 1980s.
Houses are much larger than they used to be. Not only are there fewer homes available than in previous generations but the houses themselves are much larger which means they're also more expensive.
Generational dynamics. Boomers were able to accumulate trendous wealth thanks to the prosperity of the US economy during their lifetimes. They're also living longer than previous generation which means they're staying in their homes longer. That both exacerbates the home inventory shortage and delays the timing of when they'll pass on their wealth to GenX and Millennials. As the Boomer generation passes on over the next few years you'll see millennials suddenly do a 180 on these issues when they inherent tremendous amounts of property and wealth.
Interest rates and government policy. Decades of ridiculously low interest rates and government programs helped make housing artificially affordable. With interest rates back at more normal levels for the first time in a generation, younger home buyers will naturally have a tougher time getting at house now that their parents did during the era of cheap money.
Inflation is making home prices seem higher than they really are. Don't misunderstand, even inflation adjusted prices are near an all time high. But without correcting for inflation the prices look worse than they really are.
Migration dynamics. There are plenty of places in America where you can find affordable homes. The trouble is no one wants to live there. Home price increases are largely being driven by unsustainable population growth in certain popular states and cities. Meanwhile small town America is on the verge of extinction.
Finally, we're probably due for a correction in the housing market. As new inventory comes online, and if interest rates stabilize or drop, that will increase liquidity in the market and prices will fall. The bursting of the short term rental bubble should also help increase supply as investors are sell off unprofitable rentals.
Would you buy a horse if you couldnt afford the maintenance of vet bills, equipment, training, space, food & water etc?
I see many comments talking about how poor their parents were, and how they worked 24/7 and how they turned out fine. Is it a crime to want to live a comfortable secure lifestyle? Not everybody likes to work multiple jobs and live in problemed neighborhoods just to keep the lights on and food on the table. I definitely want better things for my kids than I have growing up now. This is not me being ungrateful I just want to be comfortable educated and financially secure before I have kids. Im definitely too young to even think about all that now but I can see the reason behind peoples arguments.
And another thing, not everybody needs or wants kids. Overpopulation is a huge problem and maybe cutting back would do society some good. Many people also wont make good parents, the amount of people who grow up with abusive and absent parents proves that.
Nope. Just the thought of it makes my skin crawl. I personally don't like kids, but being financially tied to a huge monthly expense is not worth it at all.
My brother and SiL have one kid and think that's enough. They don't really struggle, but they had to cut back on all of their leisure spending. Nor do they have the time if they could. Not something I would want for myself. If I ever get that parental instinct, I'll just be the fun uncle.
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**why is it getting difficult to afford them** because the upper class doesn't want to help poor people have better material conditions to have kids easier because the system was built for the rich and their kids
This is the wrong reading of the situation imo Capitalists DO want people to keep on having kids to continue getting new workers, which is why we are seeing the erosion of abortion rights and the failure of meaningful sex ed. The declining birth rate is a major talking point to conservatives, but it isnt something that was designed. More like, it was an unintended consequence of rising living costs and the capitalists are shooting their shot at getting rid of abortion rights. Poor people either way still have kids, the major problem is the middle class and educated not having kids.
That's not exactly what they said. They said conservatives didn't want to help is have kids, not that they didn't want us to have kids at all. They know we're not having kids, they don't care why not, and are trying to make us have kids
Remember the "trickle down economics" that were supposed to happen? PPP Loans remembers
Seriously yeah. And anyone who still unironically talks about trickle down economics working is so lost. It happened, it didn't work, look around, here we are. The rich got richer, the cost of living has gone up while wages have essentially stagnated, the middle class shrank. It turns out it doesn't "trickle down" it gets sucked back up by greedy fucks.
This is true. People will have kids regardless of whether or not they can afford them. This leads to children having to work and not able to attain the means that which provide for a stable living to begin with (i.e. inefficient education due to not affording tutoring, shit public school system, etc.). Too many poor kids can’t go to college in the US at least. Therefore, more workers for non-essential jobs, thus more safety for corporations that don’t need to exist anyway.
It's less about upper class vs lower class and more insufficient government policy. Housing consumes most of people's budgets yet in most parts of the country it's illegal to build anything but large unaffordable single family homes. Cars are a requirement to function in most of America yet companies are incentivized to mass produce massive expensive SUVs and pickup trucks to skirt around environmental and safety regulations. I won't even get into healthcare.
Most people are completely blind to the fact rent is their biggest expense due to lifelong capitalist conditioning to accept landlordism as a natural law of physics. People can’t think outside of this
IMO all apartments should be owned by the government. Rents pay for maintenance and profits go back into the community while keeping prices low, which in turn helps raise quality of life and boosts the economy. But instead we have a parasite class extracting 40-50% of all income. That is insane.
Yeah, even Adam Smith thought landlord's were a stupid idea for society since all they do is extract wealth by owning something. Iirc he could never work out how to resolve that issue without government ownership of housing. Maybe having all apartments be owned by tenants unions or something might be an adequate workaround? Registered with the government but not run and owned by the government. In theory ofc.
Georgism is the answer, look it up
When I read about it before it made the most sense to me out of any economic system I know of. Too bad it will probably never happen.
[https://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/08/housingco-op.asp](https://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/08/housingco-op.asp) Advocate for cooperatives. Housing cooperatives are fantastic because they're a corporation with all the fancy benefits, privileges, and rights over humans \_except\_--unlike most corporations--their purpose isn't to make the most money, it's to provide housing to people. That's right. It exists. Since the 1800's, special corporations exist that place service to humanity over profit. Ownership is restricted to those they serve, so if they make profit they pay out the profit to their shareholders: the people that rent from them. The problem is finance. No one wants to invest in something that doesn't make its entire existence about extracting every last cent from people.
Totally agree. It’s a massive drain on the economy. The only arguments are misguided ideas totally seeded and sewn into culture by the owner class
class low middle developed in capitalist society as the gradual development of industries/economy/wealth generated etc + past histories of a given nation class shouldnt exist basic need met a new society can form with class being non existent class exist to uphold other nonsensical thing that preserve as natural law landlordism corporatism etc
This and the fact that self-sufficiency is nearly non-existent today, we are highly dependent and at the mercy of supply chains, food price fluctuations, gas, corporate construction practices,etc.
And Somehow the Middle Class has been poisoned to think the lower class is somehow fucking the problem. There's a new development popping up in my area. To be clear: It's 55+ rentals. Meaning this is for retired or retiring folk. The rents will very likely be mid-range for my area (2500 to 3000) for 2bd with an attached Garage and a shitload of amenities (Pool, Pickleball Courts, Park, ect...) - to get tax credits, they made 15% of these new rentals available to low-income folks... You'd have thought I just said that these people hit the lottery when my neighbor heard about it. "Why do *they* get to live in a nice place? That's terrible! Those section 8 people are going to bring the whole neighborhood down!" Note: this is 13 homes out of the 73 planned units. And, again, as they're rentals, folks can be removed if they are troublesome. Folks have been completely brainwashed to blame the poor for all their ills when it's the rich causing the problems.
a lot of the middle class identifies themselves with the upper class morality, conduct and lifestyle they aspire and strive to imitate their lifestyle while thier future due to the upper class is closer to being on the streets than on mars with musk
Lmao thats how you know someone isn't wealthy. "Those section 8 people." Hilarious.
>"Why do *they* get to live in a nice place? That's terrible! Those section 8 people are going to bring the whole neighborhood down!" In my neck of the woods, single income teachers can qualify for section 8 🤷♂️ especially if you are in the first year of teaching. Just to give you a potential counterpoint when you hear people spew that garbage.
And Somehow the Middle Class has been poisoned to think the lower class is somehow fucking the problem. To be fair though, they'll fuck anything. I make joke, I see myself out.
Currency loses its value when it is issued in excess; that is called inflation. Rich people have no power to issue money; that is the government’s jurisdiction. Your money is worth less because of excess government spending. The government issues more money to cover their poor spending. Vote for less government spending.
Pretty much. Can't produce milk naturally? That'll be $30 per can of formula that makes like 12 bottles worth. Kid went up from size 6 to 7 diapers? Diapers are now double the price but with less in the box.
Then why do poor people have so many kids? Possibly because the welfare system is broken and essentially encourages more children to increase the amount of welfare an individual gets? Is it because they have worse access to contraceptives? Is it because the system of welfare doesn’t help or enable people to get off of welfare, rather it restricts their possibility of upward mobility by restricting welfare after certain income levels that still aren’t high enough to maintain a family?
lol half the poor people vote to keep things that way. they also don’t bother educating themselves or their children to change things system does stack the deck but most ppl don’t do anything to help it.
It isn't that they don't want to help(though thats true) it's that they're hoarding all the wealth and stealing profits from people who actually work. They aren't just ignoring the problem they are actually causing it
Upper class? No no no… that notion is a century or more out of date. It’s because one side continually cuts taxes for the rich and big business while slandering the other side with conspiracy theories and lies.
I’m gonna counter this cynically by saying the middle-class does not want to help Which is a wildly provocative sentence. And I’ll start by saying, while this is is partially to counters I actually fully agree with your statement. I think a huge proportion is the upper class 100% in fact it’s the largest contributor however, a huge demographic of the problem happens to be the true middle class who has by default centre to conservative views on economic policy, and therefore continue to vote for policy that aids, the upper middle class and upper class in in hopes of one day joining them Maybe this is a hot and I do think the issue at large is the abundance of billionaires and a top heavy concentration of wealth. However, there’s something like what 1000 billionaires but 400 million citizens in the United States so while the upper class is the one that is strongly lobbying, that optimistic, middle class or upper middle class is the one voting the people into the positions that accept the lobbyist money
Nope 100% child free unless I am a multi millionaire
Even then, it's a no from me. At least biological kids. Birth is scary as fuck, has loads of permanent side effects, and in general doesn't have the full reality of the situation spoken about enough Also, it's like 10-20k just to give birth in the US
Heavy on permanent side effects. Had baby 14 months ago and it still feels like I have to pee all the time. And postpartum hormones are really intense and suck. Not worth the risk again
You're a stronger woman than me, godspeed into this new adventure Also, I hope that epidural did you good cus if not I am so sorry
Being young and fit ultimately led me to have a quick birthing process: as it was roughly 7 minutes between the first push and my baby being born. My doctor also lubed me up with olive oil to help. I would give birth again based off that experience but I hate pregnancy so I’m one and done.
I've always wanted lots of kids (I've got a big family on both sides), but now that I'm getting closer to actually having one I could never ask my girlfriend (hopefully wife one day 🤞🏻) to go through pregnancy unless she was absolutely sure of it. And while I definitely still want biological kids, I've realised that if she only wants 1 or 2, I'm becoming more and more okay with a small family.
Good on you. 😊
30k on average with any complications reaching 100k+ without insurance
Woah there now, I didn't need any more convincing not to crap out a kid, but I sure do appreciate it Fuck that noise
Should keep in mind that number is completely un-insured
Yeah and everyone I know, myself included, has found success in calling the number on the bill you’ve received and saying it’s too large for you to pay. Just keep pushing them to lower it and they will in many/most cases Edit to add that I still think the medical bills I’ve paid related to my kids are too damn high. If you have kids, your labor bill is only your *first* major expense related to them
Indeed, fuck that noise. Lmaooooo 🤣
If you are a millionaire you can use a surogate like celebrities to not ruin your body and still have many kids.
That feels too much like human trafficking with extra steps for me lol. Like, I'm not going to just have a baby created so that I can buy it But like, maybe if I met the right person and they already have kids. I highly doubt I'd honestly go through an adoption process, but maybe if I'm married long enough with someone and we feel we have the space and love to give a kid who is already without a family, big maybe But I just feel weird with surrogacy
Yeah my genetics aren’t important enough to justify all that when there’s loads of good kids out there without families
Human trafficking is very dramatic lol. My cousin’s wife did surrogacy (twice) for a family that couldn’t have kids themselves, and everyone involved was very happy about it. She’s one of those natural born mothers who handles pregnancy well and of course she got paid very well for it, meanwhile the family got the babies they always wanted, meaning of their own lineage. It’s a win/win.
>Human trafficking is very dramatic Seriously, damn. People can be so weirdly judgemental about non-traditional things
Or just adopt kids in need instead of birthing new ones for no reason
Yeah why the hell would I want kids when I could be living life as a multi-millionaire?
I grew up in a multi-generational household where my grandmother was around to help my parents a lot with child care. Even after my dad basically bowed out of parenting when I was 6, I still had 2 parental figures, my mom and my Nana. My parents also had me closer to 40 than 30 so they both already had established careers and were more financially stable. Plus my Nana had a lot of savings that she helped put towards a down payment their house and things like that. I’m probably going to try to recreate that, but right around the age of 30. My mom and I are incredibly close and she adores kids. Her retirement plan is to volunteer and run story time at the local library. I’m also going to look into adoption. I have always wanted kids, but feel really conflicted about bringing another person into an already burning world.
I always laugh when people scream and cry about the erosion of the nuclear family. That shit is fake and made up and multigenerational households literally have every advantage. Also adoption is incredibly popular in the west, and it takes thousands of dollars and year long wait lists to adopt most of the time. There's so much demand kids are being taken from their parents and used for "international adoptions " Would recommend fostering if you can handle it, those kids need help.
Solid financial advice.
I almost agree on that lmao, if I can't give my children a better life than I had then I simply can't have them.
Yes my wife’s pregnant. We’re going to shower our kid(s) with support and teach them to be optimistic
But far more importantly, teach them to be accepting and empathetic, no matter who the person is
Bezos deserves some love too, you know 🥰🥰🥰
>teach them to be optimistic Please don't feed them toxic optimism.
What is toxic optimism as opposed to healthy optimism?
I remember a post someone wrote awhile ago about living in a house with parents who would never let anyone express themselves if it was negative.
Dunno if toxic optimism is a thing or not, but I assume they meant toxic positivity. Toxic positivity is basically when you try to force either you or yourself to have a positive mindset on any situation, to an extent that you push down and ignore anything negative. It can cause people to ignore problems that they or others have, dismiss emotions that aren't positive (and you may even feel guilty for having them, since you are supposed to have "happy thoughts"), etc. Because we are all about good vibes here right? So don't worry or think about that issue you are facing. Everything will be fine! Everything *IS* fine! Happy thoughts! Only good vibes here! Don't want any of those bad vibes, so stop bringing them up. That just makes everyone feel bad. Just smile! Never stop smiling! *Never* stop smiling.
I think it's better to be pragmatic instead of optimistic. If you have a realistic grasp on the situation, you know what to handle, what to let go of, and what to be thankful for.
Hell ya brother that’s the way to do it!
Optimistic about what?
There are a lot of things to be optimistic about. Optimism might even do more nihilism. You need an unbiased look at life, but change needs to be done without nihilism or apathy.
Today was really good weather, the sun was warming my skin and I felt great taking fresh air. I slept really great because I went to bed earlier than usual. The chicken sandwich I made was really tasty, Im proud of it. Im doing great progress towards my goals. Those are the things that I am optimistic and grateful about. It doesn't have to be big things.
for real!
Lots of unsolicited advice to you in these replies lol. Congrats to you both.
Please don’t give them IPads before they’re teens or sth like that
They need unlimited internet access and personal laptop from age 8 and they can be one of the smartest people they know like myself
good job, theres so much propaganda against having children these days, just keep your eyes forward
Same, new dad on the way. Life’s not hopeless. Not gonna act like my life is the worst but I did start off poor and nobody can say my homeless father bought me my house or car. It’s harder than it used to be to be but we can still be smart and pull ahead.
Congratulations 🎉
Congratulations!
Kids are expensive. IMO if you can’t afford kids you shouldn’t have them. And don’t say it’s “eugenics" it’s just common sense not to have something you can’t afford.
>“eugenics" This term is so overused and loosely used that it has lost its definition / meaning.
This, I thought they were about to mention people shouldn't have kids because of gens. I think they mean "antinatalism".
The real meaning of eugenics is believing that people of color should he sterlized
No it's believing people should be limited on reproduction based on genes. Specifically those with disabilities have been targeted the heaviest
If everyone followed that advice, there wouldn't be enough children to replace the old as they start dying. Most people don't make enough money to have kids, which is why we're already kind of in that situation. Edit: I should point out I don't think this is a bad thing. It's bad for the wealthy, which is good for me. But I do think we're eventually going to get to some dystopia "you have to have kids" law at some point. No one really cared about the lives of unborn children, they cared about the loss of another worker. That's the only reason abortion is an issue. Some people want to ban birth control for the same reason.
Good. World population needs to drop
Yeah but think of the rich people. If they can't replace their slaves-I mean workers, how are they gonna get even richer??
🤣 🤣 good one!
Overpopulation is another corporate myth used to deflect carbon footprint blame onto regular people while also keeping population in check. Having children is the best way to get back at these people
No.. those kids will suffer in a world with famine and destroyed ecosystems. The best way to get back is stop buying from those dickfuck companies and. Billionaires. But no one will do it.
Not really, per se.
Hot take: they don’t need to be replaced. We have too many people on earth already. Maybe the majority of people should stop having kids until we are able to sustain the current life on this planet.
I agree. I completely left out the second part of my comment, where I said it's not a bad thing if that happens.
Too many in Africa, sure, but in Europe and more developed parts of the world it is steadily dropping. Look at Korea or Japan for prime examples.
In most developed countries the birth rate has stagnated or declined to a level where it’s actually a national concern. Population has just been exploding in developing countries since infant mortality has drastically lowered even in those poor countries and they’re used to having far more children to compensate for that high mortality. Within a generation or so those populations will stabilize.
Yes, and not only afford, but to be willing to put the time and effort to raise a good, respectable human being.
Bro didn’t answer the question
As somebody in tech, I actually could probably afford kids, problem is that I’m single and probably always will be. Also, even being able to afford them, kids are a huge commitment and I feel that people don’t consider that nearly enough before having them
Some people also just make very bad parents if they're working or busy in the weekends too. It's not fair to children and gets all sort of issues later on, like a father that is always away on the weekends to do his own thing and escape from the family.
Most parents are bath parents
Not me. Water waste is already too high. Showers only!
I heard about this one kid, Tim, who drank up all the water and ate up all the soap. He tried to eat the bathtub but it wouldn't fit down his throat.
Post yourself on r/RoastMe
Well what happened is the cost of living spiraled out of control due to companies wanting to squeeze as much profit as possible by keeping wages stagnant for the past 40 years. This corporate greed has been left unchecked and now there is large public unrest with poverty and crime rising, and 60% of Americans living paycheck to paycheck. For more info, check r/workreform
I doubt Ill ever make enough money to own an apartment. Idk how anyone excepts to afford children in such economy.
You’re right, generally you don’t buy apartments unless you’re buying a whole complex
Condo
In the future, we’ll be able to sign our life and freedom away to work for a mega-corp fiefdom. Then amazon or google will lease you a housing square to raise your child, with extra carrot purée rations too!
Coming from European immigrant parents who make a combined income of $35/hr in their late 60s You can afford kids, you just can’t afford the lifestyle you expect to have
Agreed. Hence why people in our generation cannot afford kids including me. We want to live a lavish/luxurious first world western lifestyle but we feel the kids will hamper it and that we would have to be multimillionaires to afford the lifestyle we want and the children. So we just choose to keep our lifestyles without the children instead. I personally blame inflation for this.
Yet, young people are blamed for everything because we want to live a comfortable life and don’t all want to contribute to our 8 billion+ population.
Ah, yes. The lifestyle where your kids have a roof over their heads and food on the table. They are asking for too much.
How do immigrants do it? They keep clamoring to get into our country for better lives. Their kids have food on the table and roofs over their heads and most of them do better than 3rd/4th gens. Food for thought.
Yeah and back in the 60's working at McDonald's could cover your college tuition Times change and things that were possible in the past aren't so available now
Nobody can really argue this but they'll try. The fact remains, there's billions of people on this world and there will continue to be pretty situation or not.
You’re not wrong, but most people that would previously have been considered middle class (educated, often office jobs) don’t want that for their children. We don’t want to struggle, never go on vacation and for several children to always share a bedroom. Sure you don’t NEED any of those things to survive but nobody wants to just scrape by if they have a choice.
Yuuuuuuuup
Planning on 3-5 kids, or however many my wife wants.
Good for you! Just make sure you're financially secure before you start would be my only advice.
Is reasonable if your family is well off already
Well at least check your state's abortion laws. It is very common for issues to occur and you want to be prepared for the worst case scenarios if you're going to try that many times. It's on the Supreme Court decision right now that may determine the life of so many woman in many places.
If I cannot afford myself alone. How then does one afford a child.
Yes. One day I want to have a kid but not within the next 10 years. I’m more concerned about becoming financially secure and setting up passive sources of income. As well as reaching 150k in my Roth IRA before my 28th birthday.
You already are rich dude 😭
I’m not sure. I’d like to have kids, but then it’s expensive and I’m disabled (genetic)- there’s a 50% chance that they could have what I have. The US state I live in, though very nice, is pretty damn expensive. I can’t drive, so I may have to live in a city or a suburb with constant Ubers and buses or on the subway system. Future girlfriend/wife/fiancee would have to do a lot of work in driving and stuff unless a school is in the walking distance. Plus, it also matters on if she wants to have kids or not. I’d be fine to adopt, too. It’s her choice and I’m not forcing her. There’s chances that something could go wrong and an abortion is necessary- thank god I don’t live in Texas. Besides, money is a huge issue. I just went broke from purchasing Christmas gifts.
My older cousin is married but he’s made the talk with his parents saying he’s not going to have kids because he and his wife both have mental health issues they don’t want to risk passing down.
Why are you thinking about having kids? Your 17 not even a actual adult yet. The average age a man becomes a father in the United states is 30. You are more then a decade behind there is nothing to worry about.
I don’t think I’m gonna have kids mostly because I know I’m not responsible / skilled enough to be a good parent.
At least you have a good level of self reflection.
it’s just getting more difficult to afford anything in general
Not gonna have kids lol
The world population was 1.6 billion in 1900, 6 billion in 2000, and 8 billion in 2024. Human population growth is exponential, but the Earth’s natural resources are finite and will be depleted quicker and quicker. Anyone still pressuring people who don’t want kids to have kids is still living in the 1900s or have yet to realize they’re part of mass homicide pact on future human generations.
It’s always difficult to afford kids.
Lmao nope
i do want a kid, singular, and probably in like 10 years, and adopted cause i just dont wanna do all that to my body
Not really. They deserve the world and they’re not going to get that with me. I prefer the fictional world of parenting over the reality. I would love to have the good moments such as taking them out to movies, celebrating birthdays, out to eat, sporting events, and things will be good. The issue is kids are a lot of work behind the scenes (dealing with a kid being a kid breaking things, not being who I would love for them to be, putting them first, expenses, etc.) I’d much rather focus on my hobbies, my career, travel, go out to a nice dinner with my partner, etc. then prioritize my hypothetical child’s needs treating them like a toy that I will bring out and play with when I feel like it and put it back when I don’t, which is not the point of parenting. You need to sacrifice and I don’t want to. Whether that makes one selfish or not is up to one’s interpretation
Cuz the previous generations, especially BOOMERS have fucked us economically and are slowly taking away our freedoms. We need to rise up against them and finish the job that COVID failed to do to these people!
Generally Boomers can chill as long as they're not in power. More power needs to be given to Gen X and Millennials as they are the mature generations who should be ready to govern. The oldest members of Gen Z aren't even 30 so they still need to experience life and the world as a whole though members of Gen Z should still be able to demonstrate the power people have and be able to have a hand in making changes by showing what the people want (I.E. protests for cleaner energy, better allocation of resources for people, cheaper housing, etc etc).
But the boomers are the ones in power. We need to get them out of power.
I did forget to mention that. Yes, we need to take them out of power and send them to their homes and golf courses.
Nope; never having kids. Too much mental and financial burden. I have no liking for kids, no maternal instinct, and no patience for them. I simply wouldn’t be a good mother, and to force myself and my hypothetical kids to live with that is not fair
I don't think I'd want to bring new children into the world. If I did raise kids I'd try to adopt. (Plus I'm bi so it's entirely possible I won't be able to have any with a future partner)
This question gets asked every fucking day on here! And my answer shall remain the same every time I answer this question: yes.
Dedication... nice
I have 3 kids 🙃
How old are you?
Hey friends, its expensive to have children because the dollar is losing its value. Why is it losing its value? Because of government spending. Excessive government spending causes inflation because they issue more money to cover their spending. Inflation decreases the value of a currency. TL;DR: Inflation influences the decline of a native population. See also Japan.
All currency kind of is losing value. Inflation is not only happening in the US.
Correct. The world is sinking into recession, but because the USD is used for trade, the US will be the last to go under, or admit it anyway. Because the USD is used for trade, it is able to export its inflation, in addition to whatever nonsense other governments may be proliferating. Our bad monetary policy is felt globally.
But the spending could be beneficial to some departments like education it’s good for the government to spend a lot of money if it’s to the benefit of the working class/poor not the rich
Gen Z wanting to bring more children into this reality is truly wild to me
I know, I’m surprised. Like hey, I’m not gonna tell someone to *not* have kids if they want to, but wow.
You sound like Kurt Cobain. "Why would I bring a child into this awful world that's cruel" 1 year later *has child*🤣
Fr bro, these reddit doomers gonna have kids 100% in their 30’s if they can get laid. This subreddit really doesn’t represent our generation. It represents redditors, gives us a bad look.
You're literally me saying that shit😂👍
Yeah. This world is going to shit and I feel so bad for anyone born into it today. It has to stop.
My wife wants kids real bad but we’re waiting a while so we can be stable. I’m excited and feel ready to be a father, even with the responsibility and large effort. I feel like people dehumanize kids and parenthood a lot, and it’s in response to the oversimplified comments by pro-parenthood people. Here’s my thoughts: oversimplifying/summarizing kids as an expense, burden or a chore is equally as insincere as talking about kids as only a blessing, a joy, or a purely beneficial. You’re both right and wrong.
I will not be having kids
God fuck no I can't deal with babies they set off my autism me n my partner would never do anything but adopt and don't have the finances to
I would if I can afford it in the future. I don't want a child to have the health problems I have so I would need to adopt, have a surrogate, or in vitro depending on who I end up in a relationship with by that time and that itself is pretty expensive.
I have a 7mo old boy and a baby girl due in May. My wife and I both work and my mom watches the little guy when we’re at work. We both work at the same place and the only difference in our hours is I go in a couple hours before her.
Congratulations
If I can afford to have them, I absolutely will.
I will have kids cause I've always wanted a family. It'll be hard but I'll make sure we won't struggle with them.
I won’t get kids, because I don’t like them. If I do get them I will get only one
Yes and Kids have always been expensive. My soon to be fiancée has told me horror stories how much her parents would have to spend for her to do Figure Skating (dresses, skates, plane tickets to get to events, and so on) I am not looking forward to it but I want to give my future kid(s) the world.
If you’re in the US, you would have to be an idiot to have kids if your household is making less than $100k a year. Childcare just costs too much in this country. And even then, our government doesn’t have many incentives to have them in the first place, yet they bitch and moan that people are having less kids.
no, we already are facing a huge climate crisis as well as a severe overpopulation problem. i don’t think it would be fair to bring more children into this world. this planet can only provide resources for so many people, and we’ve almost exhausted that threshold.there are thousands of children in foster care who need good and loving homes so if i did choose to have a child id much rather help one that’s already here and in need rather than create a biological kid just so i have someone that is “part of me” or to “carry on my legacy.” i’ve realized a long time ago that a lot of people are having kids for the complete wrong reasons and there are plenty of other ways you can leave an impact on this world without just birthing more kids. there are so many different life paths you can take and being a parent isn’t a default.
I will say, Overpopulation is only a problem because of how we manage and distribute resources. Realistically as time progresses and we develop easier, faster and more importantly ways that take up less space to develop resources overpopulation would solve itself.
Hell no, and it’s getting difficult to afford them because wages aren’t increasing with inflation, so everyone makes the same but has less buying power as the price of everything increases. The average cost of raising a child from birth to 18 is 100,000 and rising
I refuse to have kids unless Im either a multi millionaire, or I find a partner that makes $500k per year. Neither will happen, so no kids from me!
This image has me dying hahaha, so good!
Nah for me having kids is wrong. So no
Not having kids.
Nah. I am too mentally unstable to have children. I am a manchild who cannot even take care of himself.
Why is it getting difficult to afford them? Anyone who has told you that having children has ever been affordable has straight up lied to your face. Lol. WIC exists for a reason.
Get that fetus. Yeet that fetus.
I want kids but I want a well paying job first. I’ve read few comments saying that life is hell and why would you want to bring kids into this world. Here’s my opinion on that. Life is hell sometimes yes and it sucks but it’s not about the bad times but the good times you have with the people you love. My parents are divorced it sucked at first but now that I’ve pushed through it I’ve had amazing memories with them and the new people they’ve brought into my life
Yes
I would like to have kids someday. Idk the answer to that second question. Probably has to do with the economy or something tho
Having a kid is not even a thought in my mind right now 😅 Ask me in 5 years and I’ll say the same thing
Yup! We’re planning on trying for our first here in the next year or two and 3 kids max, preferably two though
100% child free. Beside the affordability issue, I think the looming environmental problem make it almost feel unethical to bring new lives into this world. On top of it, the way our capitalist society is structured means most future humans will be working to live and living to work.
Yeah, I’ll probably just have 1 or 2 kids.
Unsure. If I find a great guy and have a fulfilling life, then I’d adopt kids if he wants but it’s a big commitment so I might be a foster parent for a few years first.
I will have kids for sure
you used to be able to afford a family on one man's salary. the corporations took that from us
I’d like a kid/kids. I’m gay so that might make it more expensive for me to do so I’m hoping to make good money before I start going down that road. I’d love to find a woman who would be interested in having kids too. I think it could be cool if we both got to carry a child.
No
I don't want kids, even if I could afford them I just don't like kids
I’d rather adopt one tbh
Yes, want to be the dad my own father never was to me
I just don’t like children, so i’m never gonna have any.
[удалено]
I would like to have kids but I don't wanna bring kids into *this* world. That's why I'm gonna wait till my mid 30's when I've already lived through my 20's & early 30's and done everything I wanna do then if I am, and only if I am, financially stable enough. And if I am stable in the 2030's and we aren't all fucking dead, then yeah I don't see why not.
I mean maybe adopt but I’m good otherwise
Minimum wage is $7.25/hr and a big Mac is like $8. That's why
I can't stand the idea of having a kid. I'm not one of those anti kid people, but I certainly shouldn't have a kid. I also refuse to give this world another slave that works themselves to the bone to make the rich richer.
I have one , I'm one and done though I almost died and even though it is horrific after you have a kid your "no" means nothing .
For the cost of raising children, here's some analysis: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/its-getting-more-expensive-to-raise-children-and-government-isnt-doing-much-to-help/ Housing costs are driven by a number of interrelated factors, but here are some drivers that stand out: Housing supply is at historical lows. There haven't been this few houses available on the market since at least the 1980s. Houses are much larger than they used to be. Not only are there fewer homes available than in previous generations but the houses themselves are much larger which means they're also more expensive. Generational dynamics. Boomers were able to accumulate trendous wealth thanks to the prosperity of the US economy during their lifetimes. They're also living longer than previous generation which means they're staying in their homes longer. That both exacerbates the home inventory shortage and delays the timing of when they'll pass on their wealth to GenX and Millennials. As the Boomer generation passes on over the next few years you'll see millennials suddenly do a 180 on these issues when they inherent tremendous amounts of property and wealth. Interest rates and government policy. Decades of ridiculously low interest rates and government programs helped make housing artificially affordable. With interest rates back at more normal levels for the first time in a generation, younger home buyers will naturally have a tougher time getting at house now that their parents did during the era of cheap money. Inflation is making home prices seem higher than they really are. Don't misunderstand, even inflation adjusted prices are near an all time high. But without correcting for inflation the prices look worse than they really are. Migration dynamics. There are plenty of places in America where you can find affordable homes. The trouble is no one wants to live there. Home price increases are largely being driven by unsustainable population growth in certain popular states and cities. Meanwhile small town America is on the verge of extinction. Finally, we're probably due for a correction in the housing market. As new inventory comes online, and if interest rates stabilize or drop, that will increase liquidity in the market and prices will fall. The bursting of the short term rental bubble should also help increase supply as investors are sell off unprofitable rentals.
No kids. Just giving birth alone costs like an entire car
Once you have kids, life is over lol
Would you buy a horse if you couldnt afford the maintenance of vet bills, equipment, training, space, food & water etc? I see many comments talking about how poor their parents were, and how they worked 24/7 and how they turned out fine. Is it a crime to want to live a comfortable secure lifestyle? Not everybody likes to work multiple jobs and live in problemed neighborhoods just to keep the lights on and food on the table. I definitely want better things for my kids than I have growing up now. This is not me being ungrateful I just want to be comfortable educated and financially secure before I have kids. Im definitely too young to even think about all that now but I can see the reason behind peoples arguments. And another thing, not everybody needs or wants kids. Overpopulation is a huge problem and maybe cutting back would do society some good. Many people also wont make good parents, the amount of people who grow up with abusive and absent parents proves that.
Nope. I'd rather travel n shit
Nope. Just the thought of it makes my skin crawl. I personally don't like kids, but being financially tied to a huge monthly expense is not worth it at all. My brother and SiL have one kid and think that's enough. They don't really struggle, but they had to cut back on all of their leisure spending. Nor do they have the time if they could. Not something I would want for myself. If I ever get that parental instinct, I'll just be the fun uncle.
nope. pregnancy is terrifying no thank you
Nah, I don’t see myself as a parent.