Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: Sandman on June 29, 2008, 03:09:18 PM
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Here's an interesting read, that I can't say surprised me.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/143792
"In fact, no group of parents—married, single, step or even empty nest—reported significantly greater emotional well-being than people who never had children. It's such a counterintuitive finding because we have these cultural beliefs that children are the key to happiness and a healthy life, and they're not."
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Hehe:
" In pre-industrial America, parents certainly loved their children, but their offspring also served a purpose—to work the farm, contribute to the household. Children were a necessity. Today, we have kids more for emotional reasons, but an increasingly complicated work and social environment has made finding satisfaction far more difficult"
THE "OFFSPRING" SERVED A PURPOSE!!!!!
Well, castrate all city folks then, and watch them die out :devil
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How can you measure happiness for comparison? Ask people I suppose. So those with children and those without both say they are happy. I suspect this study was designed to make those who choose no children to feel better about themselves.
Of course how happy would we be if everyone decided to have no more children? Who's gonna pick up your garbage when you decide to retire if everyone retires with you?
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BS, I didn't have kid (s) til my mid-30's, Vulcan Junior brings me oodles of happiness. The happiness and pleasure you get with having a child is vastly different to the late Saturday night chundering into a toilet smashed of the face state solo-childless-mid-30's yuppies call happiness.
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Oh horse crap...the so-called Mr. Sloan was a closet homo and his wife didn't want that limp willy anywhere near her. That is why they chose not to have children. As for me I couldn't imagine not having the three that we have and the joy and frustration they bring is just part of life.
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Well i've never married and no kids running around illegitimately and i'm 46. Never felt the need nor desire for either a wife or kids.
If i feel the need to be nagged or harassed i go visit the family i grew up with, and if their kids are there that takes care of that fix for the next year. :lol
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Those who have kids spent at least part of their life not having kids. They know what it is like not having kids. Those who never have kids cannot know what it is like to have them.
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I recommend that you do not sterilize yourself. Have a doctor do it, they are trained professionals. I mean, do you really want to snip at your kit all on your own?
;)
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After you've sired all the kids you want, have a vasectomy. Snip snip. No more fretting about birth control.
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As someone who never had kids I will say Ive been happy with my wife. We both decided to not have kids since we married. Although we have been happy, I will say one thing. Without kids you have the opportunity to do things that you may not be able to do if you had them.
The catch is, after you do all you can afford to do, dreams become scarce. Maybe thats where the guy with kids has an emotional edge. The dreams of maybe someday being able to do something he desires. Sometimes dreams are enough.
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Without kids you have the opportunity to do things that you may not be able to do if you had them.
Yeah but those swinger parties start to get gravity challenged after a wile :D
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Kids demand a sacrifice. You are now a ship at anchor, so to say.
I do not regret mine though, I want more!
As for freedom, well, they grow up :D
Anyway AkIron has it true, those who have them know both deals, those who haven't only know one deal...
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wow... newsweek is for the breakup of the family? whod'a thunk?
Next you will be telling me that they are a liberal socialist rag! Can't believe anyone still reads that trash.
The pain that children cause us is far outweighed by what they give us. I think that the people who never had kids think they are happy because they have no point of reference.
lazs
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Lazs :aok
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After you've sired all the kids you want, have a vasectomy. Snip snip. No more fretting about birth control.
And then what do you do if your wife goes on Springer, says YOUR kids are really the mailmans, and the very next day you hit the Mega-Lotto for 200 million $ ?
What then?
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And then what do you do if your wife goes on Springer, says YOUR kids are really the mailmans, and the very next day you hit the Mega-Lotto for 200 million $ ?
What then?
You could adopt me. ;)
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...I think that the people who never had kids think they are happy because they have no point of reference...
Pretty condescending there Lazs - its perfectly possible to lead a happy and fulfilling life without kids.
Let me put it another way - how would you react if I were to say "people who's lives are fulfilled by children must have been leading pretty empty lives beforehand"?
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I'm pretty much sure that Lazs would say the same as me......you don't know what you're talking about!
BTW, you folks must also remember that for you to be here, means that your parents had a kid or more.....
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wow... newsweek is for the breakup of the family? whod'a thunk?
Next you will be telling me that they are a liberal socialist rag! Can't believe anyone still reads that trash.
The pain that children cause us is far outweighed by what they give us. I think that the people who never had kids think they are happy because they have no point of reference.
lazs
It helps to actually read the article.
In Daniel Gilbert's 2006 book "Stumbling on Happiness," the Harvard professor of psychology looks at several studies and concludes that marital satisfaction decreases dramatically after the birth of the first child—and increases only when the last child has left home. He also ascertains that parents are happier grocery shopping and even sleeping than spending time with their kids. Other data cited by 2008's "Gross National Happiness" author, Arthur C. Brooks, finds that parents are about 7 percentage points less likely to report being happy than the childless.
I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that neither Gilbert nor Brooks work for Newsweek.
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I'm pretty much sure that Lazs would say the same as me......you don't know what you're talking about!
Exactly my point. My statement is stupid, but no more so than essentially saying you can't be happy unless you have kids.
BTW, you folks must also remember that for you to be here, means that your parents had a kid or more.....
True - but were they happier as a result? And given - in my case - they had us so young, did they ever have a chance to experience anything else to really know the difference?
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Ever notice its the people with kids that always say.."Oh..you dont have any kids yet? You gotta have kids!"
Misery loves company.
Im sure it has its moments, but I do know happiness. Happiness is being an uncle where I can go wind up my brother's and sister's kids,enjoy them until I get tired of it, say "See ya!" and go home and relax.
It all comes down to **** control. Some of us have it, some dont. :)
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After you've sired all the kids you want, have a vasectomy. Snip snip. No more fretting about birth control.
There are methods of birth control that do not require irreversible (or risk of being irreversible) surgery that are more effective than 'the snip' or having 'tubes tied'.
'Implanon' is a sustained release, progesterone based 'implant' that is the size of a match stick and is inserted just under the skin in the inside upper arm area.
It lasts 3 years. It is not affected by diet, other drugs or digestive problems like the contraceptive pill and is relatively painless. IIRC it is the most effective and safe birth control. Success rate is 99.9% and any side effects are usually minimal and are similar to that of the contraceptive pill.
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sandie.. the article was simply newsweek fishing the community till they found a couple of shrinks who agree with them.. they could easily have done the reverse of finding a couple of shrinks who are against the family.. but..their politics led them to that article.. it is not difficult to see the agenda.. this is the rag that called for all man made global warming sceptics to be branded as blasphemers.. that one was so vitriholic and badly written that they had to retract the whole thing the next issue.. and it was a cover story.
in short.. you can find a behavioral study that says anything you want it to.. the ones you choose to "prove" a point is your agenda.
lazs
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68woolie... I said no such thing.
I am merely pointing out that those who have no kids have no point of reference. It is like a priest telling us how unfulfilling sex is.
I would point out that it is rare that anyone who has had kids.. no matter how badly it turned out.. ever says that they wish they had not... If you have never had kids then how would you know? As humans.. and especially Americans.. we love to bemoan our condition.. Kids are a trial but there are some things that they give us that we can't get any other way.
If you have never had kids then it is like trying to explain sex to a virgin.. the virgin may think that he is perfectly happy without it and.. overall.. he may be happier but.. he can't ever really understand.
lazs
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Hehe,,,
Nobody even mentioned that "kids" is just not about children. Normally your "kids" will be in your life untill you die.
In a good family, that is a very good thing.
So, I see young or relatively young guys here promoting this happy lifestyle. Now.....don't spread the word too much, for if you do so successfully, there won't be any babes around in a while :devil