BellaOnline Forums Relationships Married No Kids An interesting read - Childlessness Transformed:

I enjoyed the article and hope one day for the childfree to really be accepted in this society. It seems as if more people are willing to accept this stance from a man, but a voluntarily childfree woman is still considered somewhat deviant and VERY selfish.
I also must agree that paying someone to give birth does seem to encourage people that really don't need children to have them (and a lot of them).

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Maybe, the more there is a dialogue about the perks to being/remaining CF, the more the ratio will go up. I don't want to stop (or end) the birth of children. But women need to know it is okay to know childrearing/childbearing is not for everyone and that it is OKAY to not have children. Especially in at-risk groups, 3rd world countries where there is little exposure/education about these kind of things.

Thank you for this interesting article .I really enjoyed reading it.Being childless by choice was obviusly much harder in the past but I still think there is a lot of presure on women today.One of the reasons I immigrated to Australia was to avoid constant pressure from my parents and my in laws.
Anyway, all the women should have the freedom to choose.

Both men and women should have the freedom to choose. The advances in male contraception are starting to take off here. It makes me wonder what effect this will have on the birth rate. Especially when you hear of so many cases where women have "accidentally" fallen pregnant.

Seems that the Americans are leading the way in trying to stamp out contraception, after reading that article.

It is simply madness. Sheer madness.

I was reading an article in the paper the other day about the Bush administration and it's HIV incentive for 3rd world countries. It seems that they are pushing abstinence rather than contraception in Africa too.

My mum was telling about this girl she works with who moved here from Africa. She said that a girl will go and live with the family who's son she is marrying and she basically becomes a slave to them. She has to cook, clean and do whatever they ask of her. IF her husband-to-be wishes to seek sexual gratification elsewhere, he can and she cannot say or do anything about it. And they wonder why HIV is so prolific over there????

I don't care how well meaning these "pro-abstinence" people think they are being, it just isn't going to work. Not when you have something which is so culturally driven. Who would want to give up sex? And what about if you don't believe in marriage which many people don't now anyway! Does that mean they should never be allowed to have sex?

Ti's crazy.

Very crazy. I never, n a million years, thought that the decision to be childfree would be reviled by so many.

You make a great point about pushing the whole "abstinence" agenda. It just isn't realistic to believe that people will give up that part of their lives, so contraception must be taught and used! An interesting side note...when I got my IUD my doctor said that some religious groups are even opposed to that since it prevents implantation of the embryo it is considered a form of "abortion." CRAZY!!! He actually asked me if I would have a problem with that...The only problem I would have is if the IUD failed in some way!

I agree that abstinence should definitely not be the only thing taught. That is so unrealistic, especially in the age we live in. It is not like children will not learn about sex elsewhere SOMEDAY.
This is another reason I remain childfree. I do not have to worry about having the "talk" with a child. It amazes me how some consider any form of birth control or sterilization against God's will.