“You’d make a great dad”

[note, this post is a copy of a reply I made in Leesher’s blog]

I was being told that starting around age 17. Really funny I thought. Looking at myself, I agree with their reasoning, but my response was “Not yet, I’m still a bit young for that”. Now…. yes, I still think of myself as too young for it. But I’m looking forward to it. Not today, not tomorrow. But in the next 5 to 7 years I think. ( and I admit, part of this comes out of my brother Doug’s death last year)

There is a real part of me though, that would like to be able to show my grandmother a great-grandchild before she dies. She’s doing well now, and her mother stuck around to see me born, so the chance is there. It’s not a big consideration, or pushing me really, but it is a thought on my mind.

And I also think back to a more feudal/hereditary thought process. Someone has to keep the family name going, and not just toss away everything that my ancestors did. That’s how I view my future inheritance: It’s not going to be my money, but it’s family money, provided by the past for the present and for the future. It shouldn’t be blown on a year or two of fun, then having nothing left. Living a life where I spend everything I make, and die broke (or nearly broke) is nice if it’s only my money. But to think of the hard work of my forebear’s as such smacks me of being insulting.

I know, it’s a hard sentiment to hold these days. But I do like to take the long term view.

And thinking of the long term view, I am in favor of anyone one’s personal decision not to have kids. I’ve been advocating Negative Population Growth for a few years now (but only on a worldwide scale, on a local level only, it scares me greatly), and while it will begin a very scary economic time for a few decades, it would make us more manageable as a society. Since my views on the death penalty are going out of fashion, we have to limited to minimizing births in order to reduce our population.

–Bill De Witt
http://www.ke6lbm.com/wordpress/