Day Thirty-Eight: If You Cannot Afford a Child, the Solution Seems Pretty Obvious

I saw a commercial today for diapers in which the plot line had to do with making sure you always had a diaper on hand when you need one and the fact that not every parent does. I presume that they went on to detail some charity effort this particular diaper maker is sponsoring. Something along the lines of every time you buy our diapers we donate a half cent and hearty fuck off to the poor.

I'm not entirely sure what the charity or point of it was because my mind stuck on the part where they stated that some parents do not have the financial resources to provide diapers for their children. That sounds logical. Diapers are expensive, babies go through a ton, and economic times are tough. Hell, there are people out there without the money for food or shelter, so of course diapers are not the number one priority to these parents. So, I have an idea. STOP FUCKING BREEDING.

I know, every American believes it is his or her right to procreate. Well it's not. Having children is a privilege, not a right. Those of us that are financially or emotionally unable to care for a child -- or both-- should abstain. This should not be something a person needs to be told. If one cannot afford to feed an extra mouth or diaper an extra ass, then perhaps the extra should not happen.

I get that accidents happen and not every pregnancy is planned for, I also get that most people of child-bearing and fertilizing age know where babies come from. How it's done is of no importance to me. Birth control, keeping your legs closed, pulling out early or straight oral sex. Pick one or a combination of them and do us all a favor and do not have a child.

Then again, if irresponsible, fertility drug loving couples would stop popping out 6-8 babies at a time, expecting corporate sponsors and friendly donations to pick up the tab, maybe there would be more resources available for donations to the truly needy. I don't know, but I do know that those of us that are of breeding age seem fairly irresponsible about it. Hell, if I didn't have to worry about how to feed, clothe and nurture the sucker, I'd pop one out too. It would be nice to have someone in the world love me and cuddle me no matter what, but the reality is that a baby is not a tool for our own fulfillment. Not everyone gets one, or four, or eight.

If children have become the answer to what a person is going to do with his or her life I'd like to suggest said person take a step back. Yes, we need loved, stable, intelligent children to grow up and take the reins. Yes, we need loving parents willing to devote their time to child rearing. Yes, we even need families with more than one child to help kids learn to share and socialize. I am not debating or disputing any of these beliefs. What we do not need, however, are more parents who have children simply because they are too lazy, stupid, selfish, or arrogant to believe that maybe they just aren't right for parenthood.

So here's an idea. Should the expense of diapers themselves be too costly then either use cloth and a gentle detergent, or just say no. I'm not buying a particular brand of anything to pay for your irresponsibility. I believe in welfare. I give money and food to the homeless. I've donated to shelters. Any one of us can fall on hard times and I will never speak out against that type of charity, insisting the homeless are just lazy bums. I've been nearly homeless myself more than once. Living paycheck to paycheck can turn disastrous pretty quickly. I take issue not with the parents suddenly facing a hardship, but with those parents who never had the means in the first place but believed they had a right to children regardless. They don't. It's harsh, but true.